GHG TRACKER MECHANISM

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Context: The U.N.'s World Meteorological Organisation has come up with a new Global Greenhouse Gas Monitoring Infrastructure that aims to provide better ways of measuring planet-warming pollution and help inform policy choices.

Details:

Background:

• The three major greenhouses gases are carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. Of those, CO2 accounts for around 66% of the warming effect on the climate.
• The increase in CO2 levels from 2020 to 2021 was higher than the average growth rate over the past decade, and methane saw the biggest year-on-year jump since measurements started.
• The 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change saw countries agree to cap global warming at "well below" two degrees Celsius above levels measured between 1850 and 1900 – and 1.5C if possible.

Need:

• The WMO said there needed to be stronger scientific underpinnings of climate change mitigation actions taken under the agreement.
• There are still uncertainties, especially regarding the role in the carbon cycle of the ocean, the land biosphere and the permafrost areas.
• We therefore need to undertake greenhouse gas monitoring within an integrated framework in order to be able to account for natural sources and sinks.

Impact:

• The WMO's new platform will integrate space-based and surface-based observing systems, and seek to clarify uncertainties about where greenhouse gas emissions end up
• It should result in much faster and sharper data on how the planet's atmosphere is changing.

World Meteorological Organization (WMO):

• It is an intergovernmental organization with a membership of 193 Member States and Territories.
• It was established by the ratification of the WMO Convention in 1950.
• WMO became the specialised agency of the United Nations for meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology and related geophysical sciences a year later.
• The UN Economic and Social Council is the parent organization of WMO.
• WMO is headquartered at Geneva.
• WMO is dedicated to international cooperation and coordination on
  • the state and behaviour of the Earth’s atmosphere, its interaction with the land and oceans,
  • the weather and climate it produces, and
  • the resulting distribution of water resources.
• It facilitates and promotes
  • the establishment of an integrated Earth System observation network to provide weather, climate and water-related data
  • the creation of standards for observation and monitoring
  • the provision of weather, climate and water-related services - to reduce disaster risks and contribute to climate change adaptation etc.
  • the coordination of research and training in meteorology and related fields
• Major reports published by the WMO are - Status of World Climate; Greenhouse Gas Bulletin.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/un-takes-step-towards-new-way-of-tracking-greenhouse-gases/article66587986.ece