“Carbon Sinks in Crisis: Climate Scientists Warn of Urgent Action Needed to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions”

Climate scientists are sounding the alarm on a concerning trend in the Earth’s ability to remove carbon from the atmosphere. A recent pre-print paper highlighted by Cosmos Magazine revealed that global carbon sinks reached a 20-year low in 2023, raising concerns about the impact on greenhouse gas emissions.

Dr. Josep (Pep) Canadell, a chief research scientist at Australia’s CSIRO and executive director of the Global Carbon Project, explained that natural carbon sinks on land and in the ocean play a crucial role in removing CO2 emissions from human activities. However, these sinks are becoming less efficient at pulling CO2 from the atmosphere as the climate warms.

The warming climate, land use changes for agriculture and development, and warmer oceans holding less CO2 are all contributing factors to the decline in carbon sinks’ efficiency. Canadell emphasized that the future presents a “tug of war” between the processes that remove CO2 from the atmosphere and those that contribute to its increase.

The study highlighted that the land sinks in 2023 had the smallest sink since 2003, with a significant amount of CO2 being released from plant and soil respiration, as well as wildfires. The record-breaking heat of 2023, coupled with it being an El Niño year, further exacerbated the situation.

Canadell warned that if the efficiency of carbon sinks continues to decline rapidly, it could lead to a smaller remaining carbon budget to meet the targets set by the Paris Agreement. This would require a faster reduction in emissions than currently projected by IPCC scenarios.

The findings underscore the urgent need for more aggressive action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect the Earth’s natural carbon sinks. Failure to do so could have far-reaching consequences for the planet’s climate and the ability to limit global warming to safe levels.