Climate change mitigation refers to actions taken to decrease or prevent emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases (GHG), including using new technologies and renewable energies, improving existing equipment to increase its energy efficiency, changing management practices and consumer behavior, among other measures.
These efforts are crucial as their health co-benefits include reduced deaths from extreme weather events, improved food production and less pressure on water resources.
1. Reducing the use of fossil fuels
Fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas contribute significantly to climate change; we must limit their use if we wish to prevent dangerous levels of global warming. Mitigation strategies therefore focus on decreasing energy use while expanding clean alternatives.
Reducing demand for fossil fuels can be accomplished through incentives or disincentives that support cleaner activities, such as providing subsidies for electric vehicles and taxing high-emission technologies. Also, switching consumption habits such as walking or biking instead of driving, eating more plant-based meals and cutting food waste are effective solutions to lowering fossil fuel demand.
Carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology may also help. CCS works by chemically extracting CO2 from power plant flue gases and storing it underground rock formations or deep seafloor aquifers – though such measures require substantial investments to implement effectively.
2. Increasing the use of renewable energy
As energy production is responsible for most human emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases, mitigating climate change requires replacing fossil fuels with renewable energies such as solar or wind power and protecting critical ecosystems that act as carbon sinks. Other important strategies include reducing deforestation and protecting important ecological zones as carbon sinks.
These measures may also bring other benefits for sustainable development, including improving food security, supporting local economies and improving water quality. In addition, these strategies can increase social trust while aiding transitions toward low-carbon futures – but it is vitally important that mitigation strategies carefully balance any tradeoffs they might bring about.
3. Making buildings more energy efficient
Employing a whole building approach, improving insulation, and switching to energy-saving heating, cooling, and appliance technologies can all help reduce carbon emissions from buildings. Federal, state and local incentives may even make these upgrades cost-effective.
These measures aim to shift away from fossil fuel usage by replacing it with technologies that do not directly emit greenhouse gases, including renewable and nuclear power, carbon capture and storage (CCS), which chemically captures carbon dioxide emissions from power plants before depositing them underground in geological formations such as un-mineable coal seams or deep saline aquifers.
Many mitigation strategies also contribute to sustainable development in other ways, such as reducing poverty, expanding economic opportunities and safeguarding ecosystems. Unfortunately, they can have adverse social and environmental ramifications if implemented improperly.
4. Increasing the use of biofuels
Recent investments in mitigation remain far below those required to meet the Paris Agreement goal, with stringent mitigation scenarios requiring large scale deployment of bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies.
CCS could involve pumping sulphur aerosols into the atmosphere to reflect sunlight back out into space or using biomass power plants to generate electricity before capturing and storing CO2 underground, although such methods come with risks that must be balanced against by taking measures that lower energy use.
Conserving ecosystems and engaging in regenerative agriculture are powerful ways to combat climate change. Both practices can lower carbon intensities associated with food production, limit wastefulness, promote sustainability diets, as well as helping lower methane and nitrous oxide emissions – two major greenhouse gas sources. But such changes must also coincide with improved energy efficiency for buildings, power generation and transport systems.
5. Increasing the use of electric vehicles
Electric vehicles play a key role in mitigating global warming to 2degC or less and are part of an effective climate strategy. Their benefits depend on which electricity mix is used to charge them; as renewable energy grows, carbon intensity of electricity usage will decline and EVs become even greener.
Other demand-side options, such as walking or cycling to work, reducing air travel, eating plant-based meals and cutting food waste are equally essential. Policies designed to make these choices simpler – for instance by encouraging more sustainable alternatives or changing product presentation – can further facilitate these changes.
Restoring forests and natural ecosystems is another strategy to combat climate change. Not only does this sequester carbon, improve biodiversity and make communities more resilient against extreme events, such as wildfires or flooding; but it can also help mitigate wildfires more easily while providing additional carbon sequestration opportunities.