UNEP Report on Environmental crises

Introduction

Three environmental crises — climate change; nature loss; and the pollution of air, soil and water — add up to a planetary emergency that will cause far more pain than COVID-19 in the long-term.

UNEP Report

In 2020, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) announced that, despite a dip in greenhouse gas emissions caused by the pandemic, the world is still headed for global warming of more than 3°C this century.
The Dasgupta Review reminded us of what UNEP has long warned: the per capita stock of natural capital (the resources and services nature provides to humanity) has fallen by 40% in just over two decades.
A staggering nine out of 10 people worldwide breathe polluted air.

Towards a sustainable future

The UN has released the Making Peace with Nature report to guide decision-makers towards the action required.
Our environmental, social and economic challenges are interlinked.
- They must be tackled together.
- For example, we cannot achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 if climate change and ecosystem collapse are undermining food and water supplies in the world’s poorest countries.
- We have no choice but to transform our economies and societies by valuing nature and putting its health at the heart of all our decisions.
- If we did this, banks and investors would stop financing fossil fuels. Governments would shift trillions of dollars in subsidies to nature-positive farming and clean energy and water.
People would prioritise health and well-being over consumption and shrink their environmental footprint.

What must be done?

Net-zero emissions: The number of countries promising to work towards net-zero emissions stands at 126.
- The ask is for all countries to deliver stretched nationally determined contributions ahead of the climate Conference of the Parties (COP) and immediately kickstart the transitions to net-zero.
- At the climate COP, governments must also finally agree on the rules for a global carbon trading market.
- The $100 billion that developed countries promised to provide every year to help developing nations cope with the impacts of climate change must finally flow.
Circular economic systems: We can create an amazing economy by moving to circular economic systems that reuse resources, reduce emissions and weed out the chemicals and toxins that are causing millions of premature deaths – all while creating jobs.

Conclusion

Governments must take the lead, starting with a smart and sustainable recovery from the pandemic that invests in the right places.

Govt. must create opportunities for future industries that generate prosperity.
Govt. must ensure that transitions are fair and equitable, creating jobs for those who lose out.

Source: TH