UN climate body: New climate plans cut emissions by only 6 to 9 percent by 2035
Pledges by 154 countries fall far short of the Paris goals, the NDC synthesis report finds. Limiting warming to 1.5C would require cuts of about 60 percent from 2019 levels.
Archive image · Photo: Press Information Department / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain (cropped and resized)
UN Climate Change (UNFCCC) has released its synthesis report on national climate plans (NDCs) ahead of the COP31 climate conference in Turkey. It covers pledges from 154 countries, representing 71 percent of global emissions. If unconditional pledges are implemented, global greenhouse gas emissions would fall by about 6 percent by 2035, and by about 9 percent if conditional targets are also met. The previous UN estimate, from 2025, was about 10 percent.
For comparison, limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius would require emissions to fall by about 60 percent from 2019 levels by 2035. The planet has already warmed by about 1.4 degrees. The report's figures are projections based on pledges, not measured emissions, and whether countries deliver on their plans remains open. The UN Environment Programme's (UNEP) Emissions Gap Report of Oct. 21 projects in model scenarios 2.8 degrees of warming this century under current policies and 2.6 degrees if all NDCs are fully implemented.
The UN also published new climate finance figures: global climate finance averaged $1.9 trillion a year in 2023 and 2024, 32 percent more than in 2021 and 2022. UN climate chief Simon Stiell said COP31's focus on practical measures could help close key gaps.