Time to act to avoid even worse consequences of climate change: Grant Goodrich

With the 30th annual “Conference of the Parties” (COP30) now underway in Brazil, much of the news over the next two weeks will report that far more needs to be done to ensure a livable planet for all. In advance of this annual conference convened for nations to address climate change, U.N. Secretary General António Guterres stated that “the world has failed to ensure that global warming remains below 1.5 degrees C,” a threshold that he himself called a “red line for humanity.”

As the lead for the research team that contributed the technical volumes for the Cleveland-Elyria Metropolitan Statistical Area’s comprehensive climate action plan this year, three things in particular struck me about the role that Clevelanders, our companies, and our communities play in addressing global warming.

First, our region is not on track to reduce emissions to net zero by 2050 without taking bold and decisive action, and without key investments in our natural and manmade infrastructure.

While our “business as usual” scenario points to modest but important reductions in emissions by 2030, our glide path currently does not take us to zero. Put another way, we have a lot of work ahead of us to meet our targets.

Second, while there are measures that everyone can take – individuals, businesses and communities – to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, there are still important choices to make.

For example, do our heavy industries invest in new technologies and electrify their processes, or do we invest in a regional carbon capture system – or both? Do we build another nuclear reactor out at Perry power plant, or do we invest more in renewable energy?

The best measures available to our region were rigorously assessed, and analysis of cost, emissions reductions benefits, and accompanying “co-benefits” are all presented in the plan and in its technical volumes. Nevertheless, the choice as to which to adopt and invest in remains with our business and elected leaders.

Third, many of the choices will change over time, for better and for worse.

For better: As technology improves and becomes more widely adopted, costs come down and these technologies become more attractive choices.

We’ve already seen the cost of solar panels come down while their performance and reliability have improved dramatically over the last 20 years. Electric vehicles have better batteries, better range, more charging stations, and more affordable models hitting the market. These and other building, transportation and energy technologies are giving us more and better tools to reduce our emissions.

For worse: The longer we wait to take action, the likelihood increases that an option available to us today won’t be there tomorrow.

A large technology company could come along and buy the Perry nuclear power plant to power their data centers, depriving our community of reliable, zero-emissions electricity. A farm sold today and turned into a subdivision is no longer available to be reforested, and becomes a source of carbon emissions, instead of a carbon sink. Finally, the longer we wait, the more carbon we put into the atmosphere, ensuring more warming.

These and other opportunity costs face us, and the clock is ticking.

I encourage our business and elected leaders (especially those newly elected!) to review the report, available on the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) website. As world leaders gather in Belem, we should consider what role Cleveland has to play, and do what we have always done – act boldly.

Goodrich is the former Executive Director of the Great Lakes Energy Institute at Case Western Reserve University. He writes from Cleveland.

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