Global warming is a rising phenomenon. Carbon emission is an important factor in global warming. This is why this issue got a central place in Paris accord on climate change. Zero carbon emission policy has been successfully adopted and being implemented by many countries.
In the last few months, some positive news is coming in the realm of climate change. There is a large number of countries who are aware of the benefits of long term policies on climate change and global warming. The UK has recently announced that it will reduce the carbon emission to zero till 2050. While Germany has also signaled a similar policy on carbon emission, Norway is already trying to achieve the target by 2030. Finland is determined to achieve the desired carbon cut off till 2035 while Sweden has the same aspirations by 2045.
Many European countries are calling for effective and shared collaboration to achieve zero emission by 2050. However, Eastern European countries are dependent on coal for their energy needs. This is why they are opposing the zero emission target. Currently, about 20 countries want to set a zero emission goal.
Setting and achieving the net zero emission is difficult but not impossible. Declining expenses of alternative energy sources like Solar and wind are rapidly replacing the energy dependence on coal. Now more than a hundred cities fulfill more than 60 of energy needs via renewable resources. Electric cars have been introduced. Experts opine that these cars may replace the traditional vehicles in coming years. However, currently, they are expansive as compared to conventional vehicles.
About ten years ago, the UK Committee on Climate Change claimed that reducing carbon emission by 80 percent will cost about 1 percent of GDP. However, now the UK is preparing for a zero emission in the same budget. Environmentalists claim that every single dollar spent on zero-emission returns six to seven dollars in terms of health and other benefits.
To pragmatize the zero emission of carbon, Governments should transfer fossil fuel subsidies to alternative energy sources. In 2018 the fossil fuel subsidies were about 400 billion dollars. While investment in renewable energy was about 290 billion dollars, subsidies on Agriculture industries also need serious reforms. New subsidies should encourage farmers and landlords to store more and more carbon in the soil to protect biodiversity.
Deforestation and installation of new coal plants need to be condemned. Currently, fifty percent of the money spent on coal plants is coming from China. Meanwhile, Japan and South Korea are also significant contributors. New investments in deforestation and coal projects should be discouraged. The world needs to focus on renewable energy resources like wind, solar, and biofuel.
Now let us have a look at the private sector. Only 15 percent of the multinational corporations showed consent on keeping the rise of average global temperature less than two centigrade.
The G-20 should encourage the private sectors to achieve their zero-emission targets by 2030. The great economies should introduce carbon pricing. A fine should be placed for large emissions. Experts opine that about 20 percent carbon emission is dependent upon the price. However, a sudden action to abandon the emission is also dangerous, as seen in the yellow vest protests in France. Appropriate measures should be taken to address the issue so that a common man may not suffer.
Experts believe that sooner or later, the world will have to implement the rules to avoid carbon emission forcefully. If the issue of carbon emission is not addressed, our planet will no more be a safer place to live.
