Clearly the net zero push to date has been a complete failure. But the green focus on renewables made this inevitable.
More bad news for the planet: greenhouse gas levels hit new highs
Tags: Greenhouse gases Published 26 October 2022 Press Release Number: 26102022
WMO records biggest increase in methane concentrations since start of measurements
Geneva/New York, 26 October (WMO) – In yet another ominous climate change warning, atmospheric levels of the three main greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide all reached new record highs in 2021, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
WMO’s Greenhouse Gas Bulletin reported the biggest year-on-year jump in methane concentrations in 2021 since systematic measurements began nearly 40 years ago. The reason for this exceptional increase is not clear, but seems to be a result of both biological and human-induced processes.
The increase in carbon dioxide levels from 2020 to 2021 was larger than the average annual growth rate over the last decade. Measurements from WMO’s Global Atmosphere Watch network stations show that these levels continues to rise in 2022 over the whole globe.
Between 1990 and 2021, the warming effect on our climate (known as radiative forcing) by long-lived greenhouse gases rose by nearly 50%, with carbon dioxide accounting for about 80% of this increase.
Carbon dioxide concentrations in 2021 were 415.7 parts per million (ppm), methane at 1908 parts per billion (ppb) and nitrous oxide at 334.5 ppb. These values constitute, respectively, 149%, 262% and 124% of pre-industrial levels before human activities started disrupting natural equilibrium of these gases in the atmosphere.
“WMO’s Greenhouse Gas Bulletin has underlined, once again, the enormous challenge – and the vital necessity – of urgent action to cut greenhouse gas emissions and prevent global temperatures rising even further in the future,” said WMO Secretary-General Prof. Petteri Taalas.
“The continuing rise in concentrations of the main heat-trapping gases, including the record acceleration in methane levels, shows that we are heading in the wrong direction,” he said.
“There are cost-effective strategies available to tackle methane emissions, especially from the fossil fuel sector, and we should implement these without delay. However, methane has a relatively short lifetime of less than 10 years and so its impact on climate is reversible. As the top and most urgent priority, we have to slash carbon dioxide emissions which are the main driver of climate change and associated extreme weather, and which will affect climate for thousands of years through polar ice loss, ocean warming and sea level rise,” said Prof. Taalas.
“We need to transform our industrial, energy and transport systems and whole way of life. The needed changes are economically affordable and technically possible. Time is running out,” said Prof. Taalas.
Given the need to strengthen the greenhouse gas information basis for decisions on climate mitigation efforts, WMO is working with the broader greenhouse gas community to develop a framework for sustained, internationally coordinated global greenhouse gas monitoring, including observing network design and international exchange and use of the resulting observations. It will engage with the broader scientific and international community, in particular regarding land surface and ocean observation and modelling.
WMO measures atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases – what remains in the atmosphere after gases are absorbed by sinks like the ocean and biosphere. This is not the same as emissions.
A separate and complementary Emissions Gap Report by UN Environment will be released on 27 October. The Emissions Gap report assesses the latest scientific studies on current and estimated future greenhouse gas emissions. This difference between “where we are likely to be and where we need to be” is known as the emissions gap.
As long as emissions continue, global temperature will continue to rise. Given the long life of CO2, the temperature level already observed will persist for decades even if emissions are rapidly reduced to net zero.
Highlights of the Bulletin
Carbon dioxide (CO2)
Atmospheric carbon dioxide reached 149% of the pre-industrial level in 2021, primarily because of emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels and cement production. Global emissions have rebounded since the COVID-related lockdowns in 2020. Of the total emissions from human activities during the 2011–2020 period, about 48% accumulated in the atmosphere, 26% in the ocean and 29% on land.
There is concern that the ability of land ecosystems and oceans to act as “sinks” may become less effective in future, thus reducing their ability to absorb carbon dioxide and act as a buffer against larger temperature increase. In some parts of the world the transition of the land sink into CO2 source is already happening.
Atmospheric methane is the second largest contributor to climate change and consists of a diverse mix of overlapping sources and sinks, so it is difficult to quantify emissions by source type.
Since 2007, globally-averaged atmospheric methane concentration has been increasing at an accelerating rate. The annual increases in 2020 and 2021 (15 and 18 ppb respectively) are the largest since systematic record began in 1983.
Causes are still being investigated by the global greenhouse gas science community. Analysis indicates that the largest contribution to the renewed increase in methane since 2007 comes from biogenic sources, such as wetlands or rice paddies. It is not yet possible to say if the extreme increases in 2020 an 2021 represent a climate feedback – if it gets warmer, the organic material decomposes faster. If it decomposes in the water (without oxygen) this leads to methane emissions. Thus, if tropical wetlands become wetter and warmer, more emissions are possible.
The dramatic increase might also be because of natural interannual variability. The years 2020 and 2021 saw La Niña events which are associated with increased precipitation in tropics.
Nitrous oxide is the third most important greenhouse gas. It is emitted into the atmosphere from both natural sources (approximately 57%) and anthropogenic sources (approximately 43%), including oceans, soils, biomass burning, fertilizer use, and various industrial processes. The increase from 2020 to 2021 was slightly higher than that observed from 2019 to 2020 and higher than the average annual growth rate over the past 10 years
The WMO Global Atmosphere Watch Programme coordinates systematic observations and analyses of greenhouse gases (GHG). The Bulletin includes measurement data from 55 WMO Members. This data is archived and distributed by the World Data Centre for Greenhouse Gases (WDCGG) at the Japan Meteorological Agency.
The World Meteorological Organization is the United Nations System’s authoritative voice on Weather, Climate and Water
For further information contact: Clare Nullis, WMO media officer, cnullis@wmo.int. Tel 41-79-7091397
Obviously I think the WMO’s CO2 alarmism is a joke. But the bigger joke is greens have had a proven means of reducing CO2 emissions at their fingertips since the mid 20th century, but chose not to use it.
If the world had focussed on affordable nuclear power, if the world had converted most electricity production to zero carbon nuclear, like France did in the 1970s, greens probably would have made at least a small dent in those graphs.
Greens claim nuclear is too expensive, but that is simply not true – otherwise how could France have done it? Either you embrace the idea that the French are the foremost engineering geniuses in the world, or you accept that the factor which is making nuclear power too costly in most countries is something other than the cost of constructing and operating the nuclear plants.
Nuclear Power in France. Public domain, source Wikipedia.
I like how every graph starts at 1985, where is the rest of the history? Get the feeling those graphs wouldn’t correlate temperature rise to CO2 or methane
The continued rise of misnamed “greenhouse” gases in a world where the oceans refuse to boil, glaciers wax and wane, life thrives and temperatures do nothing very interesting is proof the theory of CAGW is just another infantile “cry wolf” scenario.
ResourceGuy
October 28, 2022 9:25 am
We take cash, checks, or sovereign budget transfers. Sorry, we don’t accept sovereign debt or green credits. Make your payment on time or there will be a 30 percent penalty, at least for the U.S. where leaders are stupid enough to pay it.
Greeboz6
October 28, 2022 11:48 am
“the three main greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide” You should check this garbage factoid for yourself so you will KNOW who is manipulating & duping you. Water vapor is the greatest “greenhouse gas” by a huge percentage. The entire “Greenhouse Gas” warming THEORY is baseless if you study it in any depth whatsoever. It is a propaganda program intended to dupe the masses who BELIEVE instead of Fact Checking. Don’t be a believer, be some one who KNOWS & cannot be gas-lighted into helping enslave humanity.
Tom Abbott
October 28, 2022 11:57 am
From the article: “As long as emissions continue, global temperature will continue to rise. Given the long life of CO2, the temperature level already observed will persist for decades even if emissions are rapidly reduced to net zero.”
There is no reason to believe global temperatures will continue to rise if CO2 levels rise, and there is no evidence that CO2 has a long life in the Earth’s atmosphere.
These are just more unsubstantiated assertions by climate change alarmists.
CO2 is currently rising, yet global tempertures are cooling. How does the WMO explain this?
I like how every graph starts at 1985, where is the rest of the history? Get the feeling those graphs wouldn’t correlate temperature rise to CO2 or methane
Green plants celebrate !
Please show me the year by year H2O graph. Oops – that’s too hard.
The continued rise of misnamed “greenhouse” gases in a world where the oceans refuse to boil, glaciers wax and wane, life thrives and temperatures do nothing very interesting is proof the theory of CAGW is just another infantile “cry wolf” scenario.
We take cash, checks, or sovereign budget transfers. Sorry, we don’t accept sovereign debt or green credits. Make your payment on time or there will be a 30 percent penalty, at least for the U.S. where leaders are stupid enough to pay it.
“the three main greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide”
You should check this garbage factoid for yourself so you will KNOW who is manipulating & duping you. Water vapor is the greatest “greenhouse gas” by a huge percentage. The entire “Greenhouse Gas” warming THEORY is baseless if you study it in any depth whatsoever. It is a propaganda program intended to dupe the masses who BELIEVE instead of Fact Checking. Don’t be a believer, be some one who KNOWS & cannot be gas-lighted into helping enslave humanity.
From the article: “As long as emissions continue, global temperature will continue to rise. Given the long life of CO2, the temperature level already observed will persist for decades even if emissions are rapidly reduced to net zero.”
There is no reason to believe global temperatures will continue to rise if CO2 levels rise, and there is no evidence that CO2 has a long life in the Earth’s atmosphere.
These are just more unsubstantiated assertions by climate change alarmists.
CO2 is currently rising, yet global tempertures are cooling. How does the WMO explain this?
By insisting that global temperatures are rising. I hope you didn’t expect honesty.
I’m holding out for 1,000 ppm which is the mid-point between 800 ppm and 1,400 ppm that plants have been found to do best in.
Yawn.
So Northern Europe won’t freeze to death this winter?