Key facts
- UNEP report states exceeding 1.5°C warming is unavoidable.
- New goal is to minimize duration and magnitude of overshoot.
- Scenario aims for 66% chance of limiting warming to 1.8°C.
- Requires removing 320 gigatonnes of CO2 by century's end.
- Coal use to be cut 75% by 2035 and phased out by 2040.
- Oil and gas use to be cut 30% and 35% by 2040.
The United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) has officially acknowledged that the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels is no longer viable. The agency's latest report indicates that exceeding this threshold is unavoidable, with current policies projected to lead to 2.8°C warming by the end of the century. Even ambitious net-zero goals would only bring warming down to 2.1°C.