Carbon Removal Must Quadruple by 2050 to Meet Climate Goals: Report

New Delhi, Jun 6 (KNN) By 2050, humanity needs to durably remove four times as much carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air compared to today in order to limit global warming below 2°C, according to a major report by researchers at the University of Oxford.

The report, the second edition of "The State of Carbon Dioxide Removal," states that between 7 to 9 billion tonnes of CO2 must be captured from the atmosphere annually by 2050.

Currently, only around 2 billion tonnes are being removed each year, mainly through reforestation efforts.

While rapidly reducing emissions remains the most crucial strategy, the researchers emphasise that eliminating CO2 already in the atmosphere is also necessary to achieve the objectives of the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Most carbon removal today relies on nature-based solutions like planting more forests. However, expanding forests could claim land needed for growing food and biofuels.

New technologies that can directly capture CO2 from the air show promise but face major scaling and funding challenges.

The report calls on governments to create policies that boost development of the carbon removal industry through incentives, regulations and public funding.

So far, only the United States has announced a USD 3.5 billion plan specifically dedicated to carbon capture initiatives.

Environmental groups warn that an overreliance on carbon removal could distract from urgently needed actions to phase out fossil fuels.

The report acknowledges some removal methods pose risks to ecosystems if poorly executed.

(KNN Bureau)