In the face of the deadline for submitting climate protection plans (NDCs) on Monday, with 195 states having committed to the Paris Climate Agreement, the environmental organization Greenpeace is urging for more speed. “Record temperatures, storms and wildfires are a clear sign: the intensifying climate crisis will not wait or pause its catastrophic impacts while countries delay their action plans” said Tracy Carty, a climate policy expert at Greenpeace International, on Monday.
The past ten years since the Paris Agreement have been the hottest years on record, she explained. “We are moving in the wrong direction, while the oil and gas polluters continue to rake in massive profits.”
However, there is still a real chance to avert the worst climate impacts. “This requires stringent, 1.5°C-targeted emission reduction targets and plans, including measures for the gradual phase-out of fossil fuels” Carty said. “But where is the sense of urgency? Some of the world’s largest economies and biggest emitters are still not taking action.”
Shefali Sharma, an activist at Greenpeace Germany, emphasized the need to re-examine the goals and measures in the areas of land and forest use, as well as the agricultural sector. “A rapid reduction of emissions from the agricultural sector, including methane emissions and those linked to land-use changes, would have immediate effects on slowing the global temperature increase and would give us a real chance to achieve the Paris Agreement’s goals” Sharma said. “The livestock production is the main cause of emissions in the food system and it is crucial that in the next round of NDCs, binding and radical measures are taken.”
So far, only a few countries have submitted their updated climate protection plans, including the United Kingdom. By 2035, the UK’s social democratic government plans to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 81 percent compared to the 1990 level. This will be achieved by promoting the development of renewable energies, insulating buildings and installing heat pumps for low-income households and decarbonizing the public sector. Germany and the EU last updated their climate protection plans in 2023.