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New report: Reducing black carbon

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Black carbon
Credit: Ezhukov / iStock

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In a report published today, Project Drawdown scientists provide the most comprehensive look yet at how addressing black carbon – more commonly known as soot – would reduce global warming while preventing millions of premature deaths and saving trillions of dollars annually worldwide. 

Key Report Takeaways: 

  • Black carbon is a powerful climate pollutant that stems from the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and biomass.
  • Black carbon has unparalleled impacts on human well-being, the environment, and climate change.  
  • Black carbon has a short-term warming potential up to 1,500 times greater than carbon dioxide and is responsible for millions of premature deaths annually worldwide.
  • Black carbon emissions are highest in low- and middle-income countries with half of all emissions coming from just five countries.
  • Around 48% of all black carbon emissions are attributable to the residential sector, particularly from the use of dirty cooking fuels.
  • Targeted solutions across the residential, transportation, and industrial sectors in high-emitting regions would dramatically reduce black carbon emissions while preventing millions of premature deaths and saving trillions of dollars per year. 

Black carbon, which largely results from the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and organic matter used for cooking, transportation, industrial production, and more, is a major pollutant and greenhouse gas with a short-term warming potential up to 1,500 times greater than carbon dioxide. 

Worldwide, black carbon is responsible for millions of premature deaths annually, increasing the risk of cardiovascular, respiratory, and other diseases. This results in the loss of trillions of US dollars globally in economic productivity each year. These impacts are felt most acutely in low- and middle-income countries, which still rely heavily on unclean fuels, such as wood, for heating, cooking, and energy production. 

In the groundbreaking report, Project Drawdown researchers highlight global hotspots and sources of black carbon across geographies providing policymakers and funders with the best insight yet into what solutions, deployed where, will result in the greatest emissions reductions.

It’s imperative that country leaders and funders start to take black carbon seriously and incorporate the solutions identified in this report into their climate action plans.

Yusuf Jameel, Ph.D.

“Globally, we are nowhere near reaching the black carbon emissions targets set by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change,” says Project Drawdown scientist and report author Yusuf Jameel, PhD. “Fortunately, all of the solutions we need to get back on track are already at our fingertips, they just need to be strategically deployed. It’s imperative that country leaders and funders start to take black carbon seriously and incorporate the solutions identified in this report into their climate action plans. Our planet and the millions of lives at risk each year can’t wait.”

Black carbon hotspots by location and sector

By analyzing two of the most comprehensive datasets on global greenhouse gas emissions, the researchers present country- and region-level black carbon trends across major sectors. They found that the residential sector was the largest source of black carbon accounting for 48% of global emissions, largely driven by the 2.6 billion people, mostly in low- and middle-income countries, who rely on solid fuels such as wood, charcoal, dung, or coal for heating and cooking. 

“Dirty air kills more people each year than all lives lost of cancer, smoking, and war combined,” says Project Drawdown scientist and report author Paul West, PhD. “Switching to cleaner cooking fuels improves household air quality, which improves people’s hearts and lungs, and cuts out the time required to gather fuelwood.”

Transportation – specifically diesel-based vehicles and ships – and industry – through inefficient iron and steel production using brick kilns, boilers, and coke ovens – were the next highest contributors at 24% and 12%, respectively.

At the country level, the researchers found that China and India are by far the highest emitters of black carbon contributing to one-third of global emissions, followed by Brazil, Indonesia, and Nigeria. Together, these five countries produce half of global black carbon emissions each year, however, the relative contributions of various high-emitting sectors differed across regions. 

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Black carbon emissions broken down by sector for the top 20 highest-emitting countries in 2017. Data: (A) PKU-FUEL and (B) CEDSGBD-MAPS. (DRC: Democratic Republic of Congo)

Prioritizing high-impact solutions

Beyond identifying major geographic and sectoral sources of black carbon, the researchers also suggest the most promising solutions available today to provide the greatest benefit for people and the planet. 

“Though the problem might seem intractable, there are actually several affordable, low-effort solutions. Targeting widespread adoption in a few key places would quickly and dramatically reduce global black carbon emissions,” West says. 

The most urgent solution the researchers identified is to provide universal access to clean cooking devices and fuels, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. According to the researchers, doing so by 2030 would cost roughly US$8–10 billion per year and would result in a reduction of around 42% of global residential black carbon emissions while simultaneously improving the well-being of billions of people and curbing deforestation for woodfuel. 

“Worldwide, more than 40 countries have a population that relies heavily on dirty cooking fuels,” Jameel says. “Yet, only eight of those have adequate policy measures in place to accelerate the adoption of clean alternatives. This presents a major opportunity for policymakers and funders to work together to reduce black carbon emissions and human suffering.” 

Other solutions identified in the report include phasing out diesel vehicles or equipping them with readily available filters to reduce related emissions by as much as 90%; setting stricter air quality standards, such as those in North America and the European Union, that would require the modernization of high-polluting industrial technologies; and, among the most important actions that can be taken, updating the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s list of climate pollutants to include black carbon, which would accelerate reduction efforts. 

To learn more about the report, view it here, or to get in touch with the authors for media requests please reach out at press@drawdown.org.


About Project Drawdown
Project Drawdown is the world’s leading resource for climate solutions. By advancing science-based climate solutions, fostering bold climate leadership, and promoting new narratives and voices, we are helping the world stop climate change as quickly, safely, and equitably as possible. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Project Drawdown is funded by individual and institutional donations.

Press Contacts

To request a media interview with one of our experts or scientific researchers, please contact press@drawdown.org.