Fossil fuel emissions continue to spiral upwards

Published in Earth System Science Data, the analysis comes from the Global Carbon Project (GCP) and its annual report on the planet’s carbon cycle. According to the research, the average increase over the past 10 years has been 0.5 per cent, so 2023 marks an acceleration in fossil CO2 emissions. The amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere from fossil fuels is now six per cent higher than in 2015, when the Paris Agreement was negotiated.  

“We continually see record growth in clean energy, but we have failed to put sufficient controls on the growth of fossil fuels and therefore CO2 emissions just keep rising,” said Glen Peters, senior researcher at the CICERO Center for International Climate Research.

Coal emissions are predicted to increase 1.1 per cent, driven largely by its continued growth in China and India. The expected rise of 1.5 per cent for oil emissions is attributed primarily to an increase in international aviation and ground transportation in China. According to recent analysis from Carbon Brief, the massive boom in Chinese renewables could help the country peak its CO2 emissions in 2024.