carbon emissions in 2021 close to the levels reached before Covid-19

It is a warning for the countries meeting in Glasgow (Scotland), for the COP26: everything remains to be done. The Covid-19 was only a parenthesis for the planet. Indeed, even if CO2 emissions fell 5.4% in 2020, the rebound is also impressive. According to a consortium of scientists, these emissions are expected to approach their pre-pandemic level, with an increase of 4.9% in 2021.

At issue: the use of coal and gas, which is on the rise. However, oil consumption is not catching up to its pre-crisis level, but the rebound is likely to accelerate with the resumption of road and air transport. In detail, the situations vary from country to country. “We are seeing a rapid increase in emissions in China, particularly driven by economic stimulus plans, while other countries have tended to follow the pre-pandemic trajectory, and therefore decrease in emissions in the United States and Europe, and increased emissions in India“, Explain Corinne Le Quéré, climatologist and co-author of the Global Carbon Project study. In France, an 8% rebound in CO2 emissions was recorded in the first half of 2021, but this is a level lower than 2019.