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Graphic shows energy-related CO2 emissions and annual change from 1990 to 2020.
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مناخ

وباء كوفيد-١٩ يساهم في انخفاض كبير لانبعاثات الكربون

By Jordi Bou

May 11, 2020 - Global CO2 emissions are expected to fall by 2.6 billion tonnes in 2020, a reduction of eight percent, as the coronavirus pandemic causes the biggest ever drop in demand for fossil fuels.

Global energy-related CO2 emissions are expected to to reach 30.6bn tonnes in 2020, almost 8% lower than in 2019.

Such a reduction would be the largest ever, six times larger than the previous record reduction of 0.4bn tonnes in 2009 due to the financial crisis and twice as large as the combined total of all previous reductions since the end of World War II.

Of the almost 2.6bn tonne reduction in CO2 emissions, reduced coal use would contribute over 1.1bn tonnes, followed by oil (1bn tonnes) and gas (0.4bn tonnes).

The U.S. would undergo the largest absolute declines at around 0.6bn tonnes, with China and the European Union not far behind.

However, the head of the International Energy Agency, Fatih Birol, has warned against viewing the steep decline in emissions from fossil fuels as a climate triumph.

Birol has warned that the decline could be easily wiped out if governments do not support clean energy in the new economic stimulus packages once Covid-19 is brought under control.

Sources
PUBLISHED: 11/05/2020; STORY: Graphic News; PICTURES: Getty Images
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