Britain to become first G7 country with net zero emissions target
Britain has announced it will enshrine a new commitment to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 into law, marking a first among G7 nations facing increasingly severe impacts from the climate crisis.
With global carbon emissions at record highs despite decades of talks aimed at bringing them within safe limits, outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May said the goal was ambitious but essential for protecting Earth’s future.
“Now is the time to go further and faster to safeguard the environment for our children,” she said in a statement.
“Reaching net zero by 2050 is an ambitious target, but it is crucial that we achieve it to ensure we protect our planet for future generations.”
Britain’s existing target is to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent from 1990 levels by 2050. The new target is in line with the 2015 Paris climate agreement which calls on countries to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by mid-century to try to keep the global temperature rise as close to 1.5 degrees Celsius as possible.
Temperatures have already risen about one degree Celsius since pre-industrial times. Scientists warn further increases risk triggering tipping points that could render swathes of the globe uninhabitable, devastate farming and drown coastal cities.
May, who is due to step down this summer after her political career became a casualty of the turmoil over Brexit, said legislation would be put before parliament on Wednesday to incorporate the new target into an existing climate change act.
Although May had staked her legacy on delivering an orderly exit from the European Union to respect the result of a 2016 referendum, the new target earned her praise from climate specialists heartened by any sign of greater ambition from a major economy.
“It’s momentous,” said David Reay, professor of carbon management at the University of Edinburgh. “Achieving net zero by 2050 will change all our lives.
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