According to a recent World Meteorological Organization (WMO) research, greenhouse gas levels jumped to a new record in 2023, increasing by more than 10% in just 20 years.
Large vegetation fire CO2 emissions, a potential decrease in forest carbon absorption, and persistently high fossil fuel CO2 emissions from industrial and human activities all contributed to the increase in 2023.
In 2023, the average surface concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide were 420 parts per million (ppm), 1934 parts per billion, and 336.9 parts per billion (ppb) worldwide. Although it was less than the three years prior, the increase of CO2 in the atmosphere in 2023 was greater than that of 2022. The 2.3 ppm yearly increase was the 12th year in a row that the growth exceeded 2 ppm. WMO’s Global Atmosphere Watch network of monitoring stations recorded a CO2 level of 377.1 ppm in 2004; in the last 20 years, the level has risen by 11.4% (42.9 ppm).
Greenhouse gases will keep building up in the atmosphere as long as emissions persist, raising the earth’s temperature. Even if emissions are quickly reduced to net zero, the temperature level that has already been recorded will remain for several decades due to the incredibly long life of CO2 in the atmosphere.
The Earth last had a similar CO2 concentration three to five million years ago, when the temperature was two to three degrees Celsius warmer and the sea level was ten to twenty meters higher than it is today.