A neutral carbon economy is possible in Latin America and the Caribbean and would bring great benefits, according to UNEP report

atin America and the Caribbean would gain substantial economic, environmental and social benefits if it transits to a carbon neutral economy by the middle of this century, according to a report published by the United Nations Environment Programme, UNEP, now available in Spanish.

The report Zero Carbon Latin America: a pathway for net decarbonisation of the regional economy by mid-century, published by the research center UNEP-DTU Alliance, based in Denmark, analyses the route the region should follow in four sectors that represent 90% of greenhouse gases emissions: electricity generation, transportation, land use, and industry.

The region contributes relatively little to global emissions, but is highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change: it is estimated that the associated costs with this phenomenon reached 100 billion dollars in 2015.

The report makes recommendations mainly to Latin America in the light of its emissions and potential; however, many of them could be applied in the Caribbean.

"Latin America and the Caribbean is not a large emitter, produces about 10% of greenhouse gases emissions, but it can make a major contribution to the efforts of controlling climate change," said Director and Regional Representative of UNEP, Leo Heileman, in reference to the universal agreement that will officially open for signature on Friday April 22nd at the United Nations headquarters in New York.

It is expected that at least 170 countries attend to the signing ceremony of the Paris Agreement, which seeks to keep the rise in global temperatures below 2 degrees Celsius in this century and boost efforts to limit the increase even further, below 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels.

"This report indicates that it is feasible to achieve the total elimination of these emissions in Latin America and the Caribbean with concrete and bold actions that can dramatically improve the quality of life of people," Heileman said.

In the energy sector, for example, the decarbonisation implies ensuring that all the new demand is provided by renewable energy and by the integration of national power grids. This is plausible, considering that the regional renewable energy resource amounts to an estimated 93 PWh, according to the publication.

Decarbonisation has already begun in our region, Heileman said. "Take the case of Costa Rica, during the last year its electricity generation was exclusively based on renewable sources; or Brazil, Uruguay and Nicaragua, where the transition to renewable energy is consolidating," he said.

According to Zero Carbon Latin America report, in countries like Brazil or Uruguay public tenders on electricity generation have been obtained by solar or wind plants over the past two years, demonstrating that these technologies are already at a cost low enough to compete with other sources, and that public policies that facilitate investment returns are being implemented.

The report also projects the massive electrification of transportation - road, railway, and fluvial - and concludes that this transformation is possible, given the technological developments and the reduction of 14% per year in storage costs (batteries). This change could generate new jobs in the region, increase productivity and reduce hundreds of thousands of deaths from respiratory diseases due to the radical improvement of air quality produced by new technologies.

As for land use, the study concludes that a transformation is key to convert the field into a drain rather than a source of greenhouse gases by mid-century. The challenge is enormous considering that the deforested area in the region is equivalent to more than two-thirds of the surface of Costa Rica per year. To achieve this, the need to completely eliminate forest deforestation and promote reforestation of 50 million hectares and restoration of 200 million hectares of degraded land is identified.

Zero Carbon Latin America illustrates how each industrial subsector in Latin America and the Caribbean could reduce its emissions by mid-century; despite the absence of a carbon market (only countries like Mexico or Chile have made progress in this area). The report indicates that one of the main barriers to the decarbonisation of the region is subsidies to fossil fuels, which amount to one billion dollars a year, according to the International Monetary Fund.

The publication also identifies regulatory and political barriers that this option of development faces. "We showed that, despite the obstacles, a zero emissions economy is a good deal for our communities, governments, private enterprise and the planet," said Walter Vergara, the lead author of the study.