Climate change pledges ‘significant’

Pledges to tackle climate change made by countries ahead of crucial global talks are “surpassing expectations”, the UN’s climate chief has said.

But while national climate plans put forward by 155 countries, covering 88% of the world’s emissions, make a “significant dent” in temperature rises that could have soared 4C or 5C above pre-industrial levels, they do not yet “cut it”, Christiana Figueres said.

Even if all the plans to cut emissions are fully implemented, it would not put the world on track to keep global temperature rises to 2C, the threshold above which dangerous impacts of climate change are expected, and would instead see it facing rises closer to 3C.