Detailed Global Emissions Inventory ‘a Critical Resource for Business Leaders Working to Decarbonize Supply Chains’, Says Secretary-General

Following are UN Secretary General António Guterres’ remarks at the launch of Climate TRACE’s emissions inventory, in Sharm el-Sheikh today:

It is an enormous pleasure to be with Al Gore.  He has been the voice of reason.  The voice that that all the time has inspired us to fight against climate change, and to make sure that we mobilize the international community as a whole to rescue our planet.

So, dear Al Gore, thank you so very much for everything you have been doing and thank you very much for this fantastic initiative that you are launching today.  Let me begin by once again by thanking the Climate TRACE coalition and Al Gore for this critical initiative.

The climate crisis is in front of our eyes — but also hidden in plain sight.  We have huge emissions gaps, finance gaps, adaptation gaps.  But, those gaps cannot be effectively addressed without plugging the data gaps.  After all, it is impossible to effectively manage and control what we cannot measure.

Timely and granular data on the sources of the emissions is essential.  But, we are still lacking a full picture.  Many significant sources of emissions are not yet on our radar in real time.  That is where this initiative comes in.  And indeed, Climate TRACE will be ushering in an era of radical transparency for emissions tracking — providing independent emissions data based primarily on direct observation of emitting activities.

You are making it more difficult to greenwash or — to be more clear — to cheat.  One of the most striking early insights from this work is the scale of emissions from oil and gas production — particularly those that have not yet previously been reported.

Climate TRACE and its data show that, because of underreporting of methane leaks, flaring and other activities associated with oil and gas production, emissions are many times higher than previously reported.  This should be a wake‑up call for Governments and the financial sector, especially those that continue to invest in and underwrite fossil fuel pollution.

The problem is even greater than we were led to believe and that means we must work even harder to accelerate the phase out of all fossil fuels.

Today, the Climate TRACE coalition is releasing a detailed inventory of global emissions.  This dataset is a critical resource.  For business leaders working to decarbonize their supply chains.  For Governments working to align policymaking with their national climate action plans.  And for investors working to track private sector progress towards net zero.  Climate action must be guided by science, data and facts.

Thank you for helping to reveal the full picture of the challenge that underscores the need to act, and act now.  Congratulations on this initiative and thank you.