The Pliocene Returns - Oh Well!! Atmosperic CO2 Content Rose 11% 2014-2023; CH4, Nitrous Oxide Also At New Record Highs

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Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations increased to 420 parts per million (ppm) last year, the 12th year in a row when climate pollution rose by at least 2 ppm, the World Meteorological Organization reports in the latest edition of its annual Greenhouse Gas Bulletin. The WMO report landed just days after the United Nations Environment Programme’s Emissions Gap Report warned that global greenhouse gas emissions in 2023 had put the Earth on track for 2.6° to 3.1°C average global warming.

The analysis shows CO2 levels rising 11.4% in just 20 years, “committing the planet to rising temperatures for many years to come,” the Geneva-based UN agency says in a release. The Earth last experienced comparable CO2 levels in the atmosphere three to five million years ago, “when the temperature was 2° to 3°C warmer and sea level was 10 to 20 metres higher than now.” Methane concentrations grew to 1,934 parts per billion last year, and nitrous oxide to 336.9 ppb. Methane is about 84 times more potent a greenhouse gas than CO2 over a 20-year span, while nitrous packs 285 times the warming potential.

“Another year. Another record. This should set alarm bells ringing among decision-makers,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo. “These are more than just statistics. Every part per million and every fraction of a degree temperature increase has a real impact on our lives and our planet.”

The WMO says CO2 emissions grew faster last year than in 2022, though more slowly than in the three previous years. Just under half of those emissions remain in the atmosphere, with just over 25% absorbed by the oceans and nearly 30% by land ecosystems.

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https://www.theenergymix.com/atmospheric-co2-hits-420-ppm-rises-11-in-just-two-decades-2/