{"id":85573,"date":"2022-09-28T02:04:00","date_gmt":"2022-09-28T00:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sonnenseite.com\/?p=85573"},"modified":"2022-09-27T14:05:13","modified_gmt":"2022-09-27T12:05:13","slug":"nature-key-for-climate-safe-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sonnenseite.com\/en\/environment\/nature-key-for-climate-safe-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Nature key for climate-safe future"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The land sector, including agriculture, forestry, & natural land protection & restoration, must reach net zero annual emissions by 2030. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the result of a new report by Conservation International, in partnership with the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, the WWF, and the Exponential Roadmap Initiative. The report pinpoints actions needed to turn the land sector from a greenhouse gas source today into a carbon sink by 2050 and lays out a new benchmark: the \u201cCarbon Law for Nature”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rooted in the latest climate science, the Carbon Law for Nature benchmark states that everyone with a land sector footprint \u2013 particularly companies, banks and governments \u2013 would need to reach net zero emissions by 2030 and collectively achieve a 10 billion tons carbon sink by 2050 across that footprint.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, the balance of greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sinks from the land sector emits a net total of about 12 billion tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere each year that must decrease \u2013 then reverse \u2013 by 2050. Meeting this benchmark is well within reach. Soils and plants could sequester much <\/em>more carbon than they already do, helping to close the massive gap between global carbon emissions and storage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Improved agricultural and forestry practices, the report states, present significant opportunities for absorbing climate-warming carbon out of the atmosphere while at the same time supporting local economies by offering sustainable livelihoods. Notably, the report details a timeline for who, how and where is best suited to maximize the potential of these \u201cnatural climate solutions\u201d \u2013 that is, nature-based initiatives that better protect, manage and restore natural and working lands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo keep the ‘safe\u2019 climate limit of 1.5\u00b0C warming within reach, we need major investments in natural climate solutions \u2013 in addition to rapidly phasing out coal, oil and gas,\u201d said Johan Rockstr\u00f6m, Director of the Potsdam Institute and Conservation International chief scientist. \u201cEven if energy and industry meet their climate mitigation targets, without urgent action in the land sector we will not be able to limit warming. These solutions aren\u2019t reliant on hypothetical technologies or risky geoengineering. In most cases, it\u2019s about rapidly scaling practices that have been known for centuries.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About 80% of the climate mitigation opportunity from the land sector in the next decade will depend on transforming agriculture, diets and food waste. Protecting healthy ecosystems and avoiding deforestation from agricultural expansion is especially important; these efforts represent 30% of the 2030 natural climate solution mitigation opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report finds that improved management of agricultural land through the action of farmers and ranchers, supported by governments, businesses and the finance sector, can achieve more than 5 billion tons of total carbon sequestration by 2030 \u2013 90% of which is newly removed from the atmosphere; 10% is reduced emissions of methane and nitrous oxide annually. These actions include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n