The Emissions Gap Report 2018 is the 9th independent scientific assessment produced by UNEP which assesses how national governments’ mitigation actions and pledges are affecting trends in global greenhouse gas emissions, comparing them against the emission reductions necessary to limit global warming to well below 2°C and 1.5°C in accordance with the Paris Agreement.
What’s new in this year’s report?
The Emissions Gap Report 2018 is the 9th independent scientific assessment produced by UNEP which assesses how national governments’ mitigation actions and pledges are affecting trends in global greenhouse gas emissions, comparing them against the emission reductions necessary to limit global warming to well below 2°C and 1.5°C in accordance with the Paris Agreement. The difference between these two values is known as the ‘emissions gap’. In line with previous editions, the report highlights key opportunities to bridge this gap. This edition of the report presents an overview of options for enhancing the ambition of NDCs, while strengthening actions through a suite of domestic policies tackling climate change. Next to the role of governments it also assesses the role of non-state and subnational actors in bridging the emissions gap, examines the role of fiscal policy reform in creating incentives for low carbon investments and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and assesses how acceleration of innovative approaches can help bridge the emissions gap, while simultaneously transforming societies.
The Emissions Gap Report 2018 finds that it is still possible to keep global warming below 2°C, but the technical feasibility of bridging the 1.5°C gap is dwindling. Global carbon dioxide emissions increased in 2017, after a three-year period of stabilization. If the emissions gap is not closed by 2030, it is extremely unlikely that the 2°C temperature goal can still be reached.
