[탄소배출 제로 시대]① Carbon neutral policy speeding up by joining the US

This year, the government will begin full-scale work to realize a carbon-neutral society in 2050.

Carbon neutrality is not just a topic in Korea. The international community has declared carbon neutrality as a comprehensive policy direction to cope with climate change, and is actively pursuing GHG reduction policies.

Carbon neutrality is the concept of making the net emission of carbon dioxide zero by taking measures to absorb carbon dioxide as much as it emits carbon dioxide.

According to the report’Directions and Implications for the International Society’s Carbon Neutral Policy’ released by the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy on the 10th, the Paris Agreement will limit the global warming mitigation target to 2°C or less compared to pre-industrialization by 2100 did.

In order to achieve this, stronger efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are needed. That is why, in the decision of the Paris Agreement and the 21st General Assembly of the Parties to the Climate Convention, all States Parties stipulate that a long-term low-carbon development strategy is established by 2050 and submitted by 2020.

The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) also urged the international community to reinforce action on reduction. This is because the current trend of greenhouse gas emissions is that the global average temperature will rise to 3.2°C at the end of this century.

Accordingly, all parties to the Paris Agreement submitted long-term low greenhouse gas emission development strategies (LEDS) that reflect mid- to long-term energy and climate policies up to 2050 last year.

The report said, “According to the 2018 Intergovernmental Council on Climate Change (IPCC) report, in order to achieve the 1.5°C target, the net-zero state must be reached by 2050.” A wide range of sectors, such as land and transportation, need to be converted.”

Global carbon neutrality accelerated with the launch of the Biden administration. The United States returned to the Paris Agreement on the 20th of last month as President Biden took office. The Trump administration moved away from the fossil fuel policy pursued by the Trump administration and returned to an eco-friendly policy.

The European Union (EU) is also continuing to push ahead with implementation plans to achieve its carbon-neutral goal.

In addition, about 20 countries, including Canada, have established carbon neutral plans. Excluding this, about 100 countries are considering carbon neutrality, and local governments, companies, and investors are also participating in the transition to a low carbon economy or carbon neutrality.

Korea is no exception. Korea announced its ‘2050 carbon neutral promotion strategy’ in December last year.

The government decided to develop a carbon-neutral scenario by June this year, establish a core policy implementation strategy, and reflect it in the national plan from 2022 to 2023.