As pollution increases, world falls further behind climate targets

NOAA ocean carbon observations are collected by a network of biophysical moorings like “Peggy,” shown here. Credit: Natalie Monacci, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Emissions of carbon caused by fossil fuel pollution continued to grow slightly in 2023 to 36.8 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide, setting yet another new record despite increasingly urgent warnings from scientists about the need for steep and immediate decreases.

Preliminary estimates compiled by the Global Carbon Budget project indicate that the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) released into the atmosphere by fossil fuels will increase by another 0.8% in 2024, which would raise yearly emissions to 37.4 billion metric tons of CO2.

“The impacts of climate change are becoming increasingly dramatic, yet we still see no sign that burning of fossil fuels has peaked,” said Professor Pierre Friedlingstein, of University of Exeter’s Global Systems Institute, who led the study. “Until we reach net zero CO2 emissions globally, world temperatures will continue to rise and cause increasingly severe impacts.