Global Warming Solutions News

Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Also Would Improve Energy Security, Improve Health, and Create Jobs

Boston—The pollution reductions needed to stave off the worst effects of global warming can be achieved if governments act now, according to a major consensus report released today by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).  The IPCC is a United Nations body charged with assessing the scientific record on global warming.

“Delayed emission reductions lead to investments that lock in more emission-intensive infrastructure and development pathways.  This significantly constrains the opportunities to achieve lower [greenhouse gas] stabilization levels and increases the risk of more severe climate impacts,” the report states.   

“This report provides a roadmap on how to avoid the worst effects of global warming, but we have to start moving now,” said Frank Gorke, Director Environment Massachusetts.  “The sooner we act, the sooner we start improving energy security, creating jobs, and protecting future generations from the worst effects of global warming,” he added.

The report finds that already available energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies could substantially reduce global warming pollution, while improving energy security, reducing air pollution, and creating jobs.  Taken together with the second volume of the IPCC’s report, released in April, it also finds that it is cheaper to prevent dangerous global warming than to deal with its consequences.

The document released today, entitled “Mitigation of Climate Change,” is the Summary for Policymakers of the third volume of the IPCC’s Fourth Assessment Report.  Major findings include the following:

• Pollution Will Skyrocket Unless Governments Act: Global emissions are projected to rise by 25-90% over 2000 levels by 2030, unless policies are adopted to reduce emissions.
• Still Possible to Avoid Dangerous Global Warming: To prevent dangerous global warming (as documented in the second volume of the IPCC’s report), global emissions would need to peak no later than 2015 and then decline by as much as 50% by 2050, thereby limiting the global average temperature increase to about 2°C over pre-industrial levels (which is equivalent to 3.6°F, or about 2°F over today’s levels).  This level of reduction “can be achieved by deployment of a portfolio of technologies that are currently available today and those that are expected to be commercialized in coming decades.”  While not specified in today’s release, the U.S. must reduce its emissions by at least 80% by 2050 to meet the global target of about 50% reductions, given our greater contribution to the problem.
• Action Cheaper than Inaction: Stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations at relatively safe levels will cost less than 3% of expected economic growth by 2030 (less than 0.12% per year).  Costs would be lower if carbon permits are auctioned and the revenue is invested in energy efficiency and the development of new, clean energy technologies.  The former chief economist of the World Bank, Sir Nicholas Stern, has put the price of unmitigated warming at as high as 20% of global GDP by 2100. 
• Vast Potential for Energy Efficiency: Energy efficiency in vehicles and buildings could significantly reduce global warming emissions “with net economic benefit” and with “large co-benefits,” but “many barriers exist against tapping this potential.”  The co-benefits include improved energy security, job creation, lower costs, and reduced air pollution.
• Vast Potential for Renewable Energy: “Given costs relative to other supply options, renewable electricity…can have a 30-35% share of the total electricity supply in 2030….”  “Renewable energy generally has a positive effect on energy security, employment, and on air quality.”
• Reducing Global Warming Pollution Can Improve Health: “[N]ear-term health co-benefits from reduced air pollution as a result of actions to reduce [greenhouse gas] emissions can be substantial and may offset a substantial fraction of mitigation costs.”
• Voluntary Action Ineffective:  “The majority of [voluntary] agreements has not achieved significant emissions reductions beyond business as usual.”

“There are already bills in Congress and the State House that follow the prescriptions in this report. In Congress he Safe Climate Act is supported by every member of the Massachusetts House delegation. And on Beacon Hill the Global Warming Solutions Act, filed by Senator Marc Pacheco, would make Massachusetts a national and international leader in tackling global warming,” added Gorke.  “These bills would reduce U.S. and Massachusetts global warming pollution by 80% by 2050 by requiring improvements in energy efficiency and increased use of renewable energy like wind, solar, and geothermal,” he said. 

A final synthesis of the IPCC’s Fourth Assessment Report is due out later this year.  The full Fourth Assessment Report includes input from more than 2,500 experts worldwide. 

The previous two volumes, released earlier this year, concluded that (1) global warming is happening and caused by humans; (2) burning fossil fuels and other human activities are responsible for most of the observed increase in global average temperatures since the mid-20th century; (3) the impacts are already evident worldwide and will worsen significantly, with increasing droughts, floods, heat waves, water stress, forest fires, and coastal flooding in store for the U.S.; but that (4) “many impacts can be avoided, reduced, or delayed” by quickly and substantially reducing global warming pollution.

The IPCC was established by the United Nations Environmental Program and the World Meteorological Organization in 1988 with a mandate to assess the state of knowledge on global warming on a “comprehensive, objective, open and transparent basis” and to generate documents that reflect a consensus among those involved.  In 1990, 1995, and 2001, the IPCC issued its prior assessments.

Gorke also noted that the report is inherently conservative because it reflects the consensus of hundreds of parties, including industry groups and governments opposed to taking action to reduce global warming pollution.

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Environment Massachusetts is the new home of MASSPIRG’s environmental work.