At the 26th UN Climate Change Conference which opened yesterday at Glasgow in Scotland, 200 countries are being asked to provide targets for cutting polluting gas emissions until they reach zero by 2050. Among the ways to reach this goal is to phase out coal-fired electricity plants, switch to electric vehicles, and protect forests.

As many as 25,000 officials, experts, and activists are to take part in the deliberations which are set to continue until November 12th, with world leaders meant to make commitments next weekend. Honouring commitments is essential if humankind is to meet the challenges of heat waves, drought, fires and floods, rising seas, and extinction of entire plant, insect and animal species.

Ahead of the conference, the World Environment Programme issued a stern warning that if long-term zero goals for cutting emissions are not met, the globe could face a disastrous rise in temperatures which could make entire regions uninhabitable. The agency predicts that the world could warm by about 2.7 degrees Celsius unless key countries rein their emissions and meet the target of no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius during this century.

Scientists argue that the world has already warmed by 1.1 degrees.

To make the situation crystal clear, the World Meterological Organisation (WMO) pointed out that the build-up of warming gases in the atmosphere increased by record levels during 2020 and is more than 149 per cent of the pre-industrial level despite national pledges to make major cuts in emissions.

The authors of the report say the last time the planet suffered a comparable amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere was three to five million years ago, when temperatures hovered around about the 2.7 degree figure and the sea level was 10-20 metres higher than now. CO2 is not the only contributor to this dire situation. Methane released by livestock farming, fossil fuels, landfill burning, and, as temperatures rise, activities of microbes in wetlands also produce methane. The rise in temperatures means the reduction of rainfall and the demise of forests, with decaying trees and other plants contributing to emissions.

Last year, it was reported that parts of the vast Amazon river rainforest — which have been considered the lungs of the globe because they absorb CO2 — were emitting more CO2 than they were absorbing. Brazilian academics and scientists have warned that if climate change denier Jair Bolsonaro remains president, protection for the Amazon forest will be lifted and the area will open to an assault by miners, loggers, and other predator industries. According to the UN, the ten largest emitters produce 68 per cent of global emissions. These are China, the US, the European Union, India, Russia, Japan, Brazil, Indonesia, Iran, and Canada. The top three contribute 46 per cent, 16 times the emissions of the bottom 100.

The largest pollutors, led by China and the US — are meant to donate to a $100 billion fund to aid developing countries where populations are already experiencing the impacts of climate change — and, in the case of Africa in particular, migrating northwards to Europe.

The switch to green energy technologies utilising water, wind and sun for power generation has begun but is advancing too slowly due to opposition from major polluters and politicians who are at their beck and call.

Coal is a major contributor not only to climate change but to the coffers of exporting countries which refuse to end this trade and have adopted a paradoxical approach to this issue.

For example, Beijing has made a commitment to stop building coal-fired power plants outside China but not within the country where it continues and will continue to construct and operate such facilities using imported coal. Since half the world’s coal-fired power stations are in China, world leaders will have to exert pressure on Beijing to halt this programme and switch to other types of fuel. The Economist argues that China does not need so many facilities but some provincial and local administrations want to build their own plants while others seek to maintain coal mining.

Australia has announced it could decommission all coal-fired power plants by 2035 but refuses to end the export of coal to China and elsewhere. India depends on coal from Australia, Indonesia, and South Africa.

Conference host British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has called on developed countries to stop using coal by 2030 and for other countries to phase it out by 2040. However, the Group of Seven — the US, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Japan and Canada — failed to agree on a date to stop using coal. China and India, which have recently faced energy crises partly due to coal shortages, have also resisted committing to ending dependency on coal.

Attaining goals set by the conference depends on the commitment of polluters to act. Although, most have dragged their feet over meeting declared goals, optimists suggest they are achievable if governments take action urgently. The BBC has drawn up a short list of successes on dealing with pollution to show that concerted action can produce results.

During the 1980s and 1990s, trees in forests in Europe and North America lost their leaves and fish in lakes and streams were dying due to acid rain caused by clouds of sulphur dioxide produced by coal-burning power pants. Once governments forced companies to reduce emissions, levels of sulphur dioxide fell in those countries. However, acid rain remains a problem in Asia where regulations have not been imposed.

In the mid-eighties, above the Antarctic a large and expanding hole emerged in the ozone layer which protects the earth from the sun’s harmful rays. This was caused by greenhouse gases used in aersols and refrigerants which, once banned, have shrunk the hole.

Finally, the shift from leaded to unleaded petrol in most of the world has reduced health problems, particularly among children, from inhaled particles of lead.

While the world has benefited from partially resolving these problems, climate change is far more difficult to tackle because it is caused by a host of pollutants and emissions which have to be tackled together and urgently. For this, governments, organisations, and forward-looking firms will have to deal with deniers, fake news, and powerful companies which have fought and continue to fight cleaning up our act in order to save the planet.