Global net human-caused emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) would need to fall by about 45 percent from 2010 levels by 2030, reaching ‘net zero’ around 2050. This means that any remaining emissions would need to be balanced by removing CO2 from the air.
Warming of 1.5°C or higher would increase the risk associated with long-lasting or irreversible changes, such as the loss of some ecosystems and biodiversity, making it difficult to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Deep emissions reductions
The IPCC recognizes that the energy system transition that would be required to limit global warming to 1.5°C is underway in many sectors and regions around the world. Also, electrification, hydrogen, bio-based feedstocks and substitution, and in several cases carbon dioxide capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS), can lead to the deep emissions reductions, says the IPCC.
This is in line with the focus of the Bio-Based Industry Consortium and the public-private partnership Bio-based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI-JU), set up by the EU and the bio-based industry in 2014. Sustainable impact is an important criterion for BBI -JU projects. An evaluation of these projects, as well as industrial biotechnology activities in Europe, has led to the conclusion that the bio-economy and biobased industries contribute to 11 of the 17 sustainable development goals of the UN. Read the full article about this subject in Agro & Chemistry.
