Background. The International Energy Agency (IEA) issued its
assessment, “Global Energy and CO2 Status Report, 2017” (Report)
on March 22, 2018. The IEA reviews
aspects of global energy use and greenhouse gas emission rates annually. This schedule has become even more important
since the Paris Climate Agreement among virtually all nations of the world was
concluded, under the auspices of the United Nations-sponsored organization, the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, in December 2015.
The essence of the
Paris Agreement is first, setting the goal of keeping the global average
increase in temperature, measured from the beginning of the Industrial
Revolution, under 2°C (3.8°F), and second, having every nation individually
commit voluntarily to embark on its own program to reduce annual emission rates
for CO2
to achieve the
temperature objective. The
emissions originate from humanity’s burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and natural
gas) to provide energy for buildings, industry, and transportation. An analysis of those promised emission rates,
however, showed that they were inadequate to limit the global temperature rise
as intended.
The Report finds that,
for 2017 world-wide demand for energy increased 2.1% over
that for 2016. CO2 emission
rates derived from that demand increased by 1.4%. The total amount of CO2 emitted during
the year was the highest recorded to date, showing that the world, instead
of making progress toward attaining the goals of the Paris Agreement, is
actually regressing.
Dr Fatih Birol, the
IEA’s Executive Director, said of these findings “The
robust global economy pushed up energy demand last year, which was mostly met
by fossil fuels….The significant growth in global energy-related carbon
dioxide emissions in 2017 tells us that current efforts to combat climate
change are far from sufficient.” Use of
all three fossil fuels increased in 2017, providing 81% of total energy demand,
even as renewable energy generation (from solar, wind and hydropower) increased
dramatically, by 6.3%. The United States
was among just a handful of nations whose emission rates actually decreased.
Conclusion. Worsening of global warming and its
consequent climate change effects cause major harms, and inflict costly damages
the world over. For example, “the most severe drought [on ] record” in the Middle East, made worse by human activity, created
sociopolitical conditions that contributed to the start of the Syrian civil war.
The has led to dire consequences for security and stability in the
region. Many instances of extreme
weather and climate events, such as the 2017 hurricanes affecting the Caribbean
and southern U. S., have been at least partly attributed to global
warming. Warmer temperatures adversely
alter ecological balances such as with pine bark beetle infestations.
All nations of the
world, including the U.S., must redouble their efforts to minimize further
emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases, with great
urgency. Without concerted, assertive action keeping
the global temperature increase to less than 2°C will not be possible.
© 2018 Henry Auer
