To avoid the worst consequences of climate change, we’ll need to reach “net zero” carbon emissions by 2050 or sooner. 1. Carbon emissions contribute to climate change, which can have serious consequences for humans and their environment. • Urbanization has a negative effect on CO2 emissions. While climate change cannot be stopped, it can be slowed. Carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases are the main drivers of global warming. These changes are linked to the climbing levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, caused by human activities such as burning fossil fuels for energy. When carbon emissions cost money, we produce less of them. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, carbon emissions, in the form of carbon dioxide, make up more than 80 percent of the Carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases are the main drivers of global warming. Reducing carbon dioxide emissions as much as possible and off-setting the remaining emissions by planting trees, for example, or supporting alternative energy efforts, will help to reduce the negative effects of carbon footprints. • Less democratic countries are more …

These effects aren’t wholly unexpected. To avoid the worst consequences of climate change, we’ll need to reach “net zero” carbon emissions by 2050 or sooner. • Both renewable and nonrenewable energy contribute to carbon dioxide emissions. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the United States doesn’t hurt the economy—in fact, it can actually benefit the economy by saving businesses and consumers money and improving public health. Influence of climate change on cumulative carbon dioxide emissions to the year 2100 via pathways of population, per-capita productivity, energy intensity of productivity, and carbon intensity of energy, reported relative to a base-case projection that considers only purely biogeophysical carbon–climate feedbacks. On the other hand, a petroleum tax is less effective in reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions as it reduces carbon emission and energy consumption by approximately 0.9 and 1.9%, respectively. It also reduces carbon emissions by approximately 16% compared with 18% for the carbon tax. Fig. The scale of risks that can be avoided through mitigation actions is influenced by the magnitude of emissions reductions, the timing of those reductions, and the relative mix of mitigation strategies for emissions of long-lived greenhouse gases (namely, carbon dioxide), short-lived greenhouse gases (such as methane), and land-based biologic carbon. History suggests that global disasters, particularly those with major effects on the economy, tend to drive a temporary decline in carbon emissions.