WMO Warns of CO2 Levels

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Written by Daniel Graeber for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Global emissions of carbon dioxide have increased more than 10% in the last 20 years, with the use of fossil fuels among the largest contributors, the World Meteorological Organization found.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) issued its annual report on greenhouse gas emissions on Monday. Its first edition in 2004 put the global level of carbon dioxide (CO2) at 377.1 parts per million (ppm). Last year, it was 420 ppm, an 11.4% increase over 20 years.

"CO2 is accumulating in the atmosphere faster than at any time during human existence," the report read.

CO2 is a greenhouse gas that lingers in the atmosphere for at least a century, absorbing infrared radiation and leading to warmer temperatures. When dissolved in water, it can lead to ocean acidification.

This year marks the twelfth consecutive year that total emissions have increased by 2 ppm or more, and levels are 51% higher than pre-industrial levels, before 1750. Much of the increase is due to human-related activities, such as the use of coal, crude oil and natural gas.

Though the global economy is moving away from polluting fossil fuels, levels remain high, the U.N.-backed WMO said.

"These are more than statistics," WMO Deputy-Secretary General Ko Barret said. "Every part per million matters, every fraction of a degree of temperature increase matters; it matters in terms of the speed of glacier and ice retreat, the acceleration of sea level rise, ocean heat and acidification."

Energy companies are looking for new ways to power the global economy, although many emerging forms such as hydrogen remain too expensive for widespread adoption. BP at the start of the decade, for example, had pushed for a 40% mix in renewables, but scaled that back to 25% last year.

Warming since the start of the industrial age, meanwhile, has led to more volatile weather patterns and extreme weather events. It was climate change that was partially to blame for the outbreak of fires across the Rocky Mountains this year.

Last year's wildfire season in the Canadian Rockies was its worst. And because forests are a sink for CO2 emissions, fires release those stored molecules. The WMO said that emissions during last year's wildfire season in Canada were equivalent to the annual fossil fuel emissions from some large, developed nations.

Apart from fossil fuels, WMO said that more wildfires would release even more CO2, while the warming of the oceans means global waters are sequestering less.

"As a consequence, more CO2 could stay in the atmosphere, accelerating global warming and ocean acidification," the WMO said.

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