Carbon emissions tracking methods must be improved and updated, some researchers say, if we are to deal with the realities of pollution in a rational manner.
During last year’s COP26 climate talks in Glasgow, government leaders agreed that they would limit global warming to 2.7 degrees by the end of this century.
This information is based on self-reported data, compared with the emissions tracked by satellites and sensors.
In addition, in this day of lighting-fast satellite telecommunications and technology of every kind, there are inexplicable time lags in the reporting of carbon emissions.
The European Union, ever at the forefront of Green initiatives, is using data from 2016/17 at the present time.
Climate Secretariat collects reports from almost 200 countries that have agreed to limit greenhouse gas emissions, there is little standardization regarding which emission sources are included.
They encourage the creation of a “public ledger” on which data ownership and governance is distributed using blockchain technology.
Hsu and Schlets state that these are just a few possible solutions that will enable us to make more intelligent decisions regarding greenhouse gas emissions.