ECB Sounds Alarm on Climate Change Progress: 10 Years On, Emissions Still Rising

The European Central Bank (ECB) has issued a warning that efforts to combat climate change are insufficient, ten years after the Paris Agreement was signed.

Data from the ECB shows that greenhouse gas emissions are still rising, albeit at a slower rate than in previous decades. The report warns that carbon uptake by the soil is declining and that the remaining carbon budget to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C is almost exhausted.

The Paris Agreement aims to keep global average temperatures well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, with an ambition of limiting temperature increase to 1.5°C. However, the report finds that mitigation efforts are not sufficient to meet this target and that global warming of around 3.2 °C is projected by the end of the century.

The ECB experts stress that it's no longer a question of whether to act on climate change, but how to act decisively, adaptively, and collectively to tip the balance in favour of a sustainable future. They call for a systemic, precautionary, and adaptive framework that is compatible with incentives and capable of reducing the likelihood of irreversible climate damage.