Net zero emissions

Rate of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Global net zero emissions, or simply net zero, is a state in which human-caused emissions are balanced by human-caused carbon dioxide removals over a specified time period.[2] In some contexts, "emissions" refers to emissions of all greenhouse gases, and in other contexts it refers only to emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2).[2]

IEA_WEO_2022_Global_Warming_by_Scenario.png
Estimated global warming by 2100 associated with various scenarios: Green dots: The International Energy Agency’s proposal for reducing energy-related emissions to net zero by 2050 is consistent with limiting global warming to 1.5°C. Blue dots: Net-zero pledges and other pledges to reduce emissions would limit temperature rise to around 1.7°C. Yellow dots: Since many climate pledges are not backed by policies, policies announced as of 2022 would limit temperature rise to around 2.5°C. Red dots: Before the 2015 Paris Agreement, the world was on a trajectory for global warming of 3.5°C.[1]

Achieving net zero targets requires actions to reduce emissions, such as by shifting from fossil fuel energy to sustainable energy sources. To counterbalance their residual emissions, organizations commonly offset them by buying carbon credits. The terms net zero emissions, carbon neutrality, and climate neutrality are often used interchangeably.[3][4][5][6]: 22–24  In some contexts, however, the terms are given different meanings from each other.[3] For instance, some standards bodies allow more use of offsets for carbon neutral certification than for net zero certification.

In the last few years, net zero has become the dominant framework for climate ambition with countries and organizations alike setting net zero targets.[7][8] Today more than 140 countries have a net zero emissions target, including some countries which were resistant to climate action in previous decades.[9][8] Country-level net zero targets now cover 92% of global GDP, 88% of emissions and 89% of the world population.[8] At a company level, 65% of the largest 2,000 publicly traded companies by annual revenue[8] and 63% of Fortune 500 companies have net zero targets.[10][11] Company targets are a result of voluntary action as well as government regulation.

Despite an increasing prevalence of commitments and targets, however, net zero claims vary enormously in levels of credibility and most have low credibility.[12] While 61% of global carbon dioxide emissions are covered by some sort of net zero target, credible targets cover only 7% of emissions. Low credibility in targets reflects a lack of binding regulation and the need for continued innovation and investment to permit decarbonization.[13]

To date, 27 countries have enacted domestic net zero legislation – laws passed by the legislative branch of government that contain net zero targets or equivalent.[14] While there is currently no national regulation in place that legally mandates companies based in that country to achieve net zero, legislation is being developed in several countries, most notably Switzerland.[15]