Economic development opens up avenues for decarbonisation
Trucks and cars drive near the Duvha coal-based power station owned by power utility Eskom, in Mpumalanga. Picture: SIPHIWE SIBEKO/REUTERS
Senegal, where GDP adds up to $1,600 per person — one 47th of that in the US — could get richer much faster if it were allowed to exploit fossil fuels. A high-growth path proposed by the International Energy Agency would multiply its economy sixfold by 2040, in large part by quadrupling the use of fossil fuels.
If their economic growth were to accelerate to reach an average income per person of $6,000 by 2030, global emissions over the decade would decline by 29% even if the carbon intensity of the poorest worsened substantially, as long as the rest of the world stayed on a path to net zero at midcentury. But the seemingly straightforward argument gets complicated pretty quickly. If the Swiss plan is to earn carbon reduction points by repurposing their international aid budget, they would be trading away what matters most for developing countries — development — to suit their own low-carbon preference.
Vijaya Ramachandran at the Breakthrough Institute and Arthur Baker at the Development Innovation Center at the University of Chicago argue that poorer nations will have to raise their per-capita consumption of energy from their current level of 100KwH-300KwH to 5,000KwH-10,000KwHs per year, to achieve the living standards of the rich.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Africa: Buhari Calls for More Western Commitment On Climate ActionAs world leaders meet in Egypt for a two-week climate change summit, COP27, African leaders have been emphasizing the need for their western counterparts to increase their commitment to addressing climate change's impact on Africa.
Read more »
Africa: Climate Change and Wildlife - 3 Studies That Reveal the Devastating Toll On Africa's AnimalsAnalysis - Climate change has produced a number of threats to wildlife. Over time, changing rainfall patterns have transformed habitats and forced animals to move. Increasing temperatures are causing mass die-off events during heat waves and making it hard for animals to find food.
Read more »
Africa: Climate Briefs - Funding for Solar, Infrastructure and Warning Systems Announced at COP27 #AfricaClimateHopeClimate Briefs - Funding for Solar, Infrastructure and Warning Systems Announced at COP27... allafrica: Africa ClimateChange AfricaClimateCrisis COP27
Read more »
South Africa must move with speed to implement its climate planSouth Africa unveiled an initial five-year Just Energy Transition Investment Plan (JET IP) at the UN's COP27 climate conference in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, with a goal of decarbonising the economy in line with Nationally Determined Contributions by 2030.
Read more »
South Africa wants US and Europe to pay reparations for climate disastersWealthy countries should provide aid through a so-called loss and damage mechanism, and multilateral development banks should be recapitalised to provide more finance to tackle global warming, said South African environment minister Barbara Creecy.
Read more »
Africa hopes voluntary carbon markets will fund climate finance and create jobsAfrica hopes voluntary carbon markets will fund climate finance and create jobs - But some see carbon credits as a false solution because companies will use the system to avoid cutting their carbon emissions
Read more »