IEA says global CO2 emissions rising again after nearly 6% fall last year

Global carbon dioxide emissions dropped by 5.8 percent in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic slowed economic activity, but they rebounded at the end of the year and are on course to rise further, the International Energy Agency said on Tuesday.

Major economies led a rebound in December when emissions were 2 percent, or 60 million tonnes, higher than in December 2019, as a pick-up in economic activity increased energy demand. China, the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, was the only country that experienced an increase in emissions last year of 0.8 percent, or 75 million tonnes, from 2019 levels, the IEA said in a report.

In India, the world’s third-biggest emitter, emissions rose above 2019 levels from last September as economic activity increased and restrictions were relaxed. ”The rebound in global carbon emissions toward the end of last year is a stark warning that not enough is being done to accelerate clean energy transitions worldwide,” Fatih Birol, IEA executive director, said. "If current expectations for a global economic rebound this year are confirmed, and in the absence of major policy changes in the world’s largest economies, global emissions are likely to increase in 2021,” he added.