What Is Net-Zero and Is It Possible?

In an attempt to improve their carbon footprint, many companies, organizations, and countries are promising to get ‘net-zero’ emissions by 2050. When I first heard of these propositions, I wondered how companies so reliant on fossil fuels could stop using greenhouse gases entirely in less than thirty years. However, at this point, I didn’t realize the difference between ‘zero’ emissions and ‘net-zero’ emissions; having net-zero emissions means creating a form of climate neutrality where the amount of greenhouse gases used is balanced out by the amount removed from the atmosphere. 

Having net-zero emissions is a prominent goal of the Paris Agreement. Specifically, the Paris Agreement entails that global warming must be kept well under 2.0°C, and ideally at 1.5°C or lower. The current rise of 1.1°C has already shown catastrophic effects, and an unregulated increase would devastate polar regions and coastal cities worldwide. To keep warming at 1.5°C, involved countries must reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, and net-zero greenhouse gas emissions must be reached by 2063-2068. As of 2020, 20 countries, including France, Japan, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and New Zealand, have passed laws or policies adhering to the net-zero goal. Although suffering from poverty and relative isolation, the South Asian country of Bhutan is one of the world’s most sustainable and has fully adopted the net-zero emissions policy. Norway and Finland have also promised net-zero emissions by 2030 and 2035, respectively. These countries have taken great strides, but large countries such as the United States and China must take serious action for the Paris Agreement’s net-zero requirements to be plausible.

How to get to net-zero emissions. Source: World Resources Institute 

Although having net-zero emissions differs from eradicating greenhouse gas emissions completely, fossil fuel use must still be greatly reduced. In a net-zero situation, renewable energy is projected to provide 70-85% of electricity by 2050. Increasing the efficiency of food production, lessening the amount of food waste, halting deforestation, and restoring degraded lands are also necessary to combat rising carbon emissions. The process of retrofitting buildings, which involves modifying buildings to improve energy efficiency and decrease energy demand, is also a useful step. 

The other piece of the net-zero puzzle is undoing the damage that’s already been done. This is the piece that separates ‘net-zero’ from just ‘zero’. In areas such as aviation where reducing emissions is more difficult, carbon removal techniques that take carbon dioxide (CO2) out of the atmosphere are most important. Land-based approaches that increase photosynthesis, such as the replanting of trees in deforested areas and the boost of soil’s carbon uptake, are one possibility. Another is a technological approach, which includes direct air capture and storage as well as mineralization.