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UNEP says 1.5°C warming limit is now unattainable as emissions stay high

The UN Environment Programme’s 2026 Emissions Gap Report warns the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C guardrail has been breached.

Sources: Carbon Brief, KION News 46, Down To Earth3 sources ↓|· 1 min read
UNEP says 1.5°C warming limit is now unattainable as emissions stay high
Photo: Carbon Brief

KEY POINTS

  • 1.5°C warming threshold is now unattainable
  • Global GHG emissions were 58.4 Gt CO₂e in 2025
  • Fossil sources account for more than two-thirds of emissions
  • September 2026 was 1.63°C above pre-industrial levels

The United Nations Environment Programme says holding global warming below 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels with no or limited overshoot is no longer possible.

Crossing the 1.5°C guardrail set under the Paris Agreement would further intensify the climate emergency, the report warns.

“The chance of holding global warming to below 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels with no or limited overshoot is gone.”

— Emissions Gap Report 2026

Global greenhouse gas emissions reached 58.4 gigatons of CO₂ equivalent in 2025, a slight decline of 0.1 Gt CO₂e from 2024 levels.

More than two-thirds of all greenhouse gas emissions come from fossil sources, with the rest from land use, land-use change and forestry.

The report calls for accelerated mitigation efforts to minimize overshoot and return to safer levels by the end of the century.

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