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The New Ultra Low Emission Zone
The document advocates for the expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) in London, scheduled for 25 October 2021, to address illegal levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and the resulting public health risks. It highlights that air pollution disproportionately affects vulnerable groups and low-income households, while noting that without such policies, London would have taken 193 years from 2016 to meet legal NO2 limits. The briefing calls for further support through scrappage schemes and a comprehensive plan to tackle pollution hotspots near schools and hospitals.
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Document type: Briefing
How London Uses Road Fees to Tackle Air Pollution and Inequality
London's Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) uses road fees to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and toxic air pollution, which disproportionately affect low-income and non-white residents. Integrated with broader clean mobility measures, the ULEZ has significantly reduced the number of polluting vehicles in central London and lowered NO2 concentrations. The program is supported by financial funds to help low-income residents and small businesses transition to compliant vehicles, with the goal of reducing air pollution exposure disparities by 85% by 2030.
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Document type: Case study
Targets not markets
The author contends that expanding carbon pricing to the transport and buildings sectors would shift the burden of emission reductions from polluting companies to consumers and undermine the EU's goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030. The text argues that the Effort Sharing Regulation (ESR), which covers approximately 60% of EU emissions, should be improved by raising binding national targets and removing 'loopholes'—specifically flexibilities related to the EU emissions trading scheme and the land-use sector—rather than being repealed or reduced in scope.
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Document type: Statement
Decarbonising the Indian transport sector: pathways and policies
The report analyzes pathways for decarbonizing India's transport sector, which is the country's fastest-growing source of carbon emissions. It explores two primary paradigm shifts: scaling up rail transport and the electrification of road transport. The analysis identifies policy-driven interventions—including urban planning, electrification, modal shifts to public transport, and alternative fuels—to determine their mitigation potential compared to a 'Current Policies' scenario. While the report reviews international policy examples to initiate transformation, it does not quantify the international financial support required for these transitions.
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Document type: Report
Paris Misaligned: An Assessment of Global Power Sector Investment
The report finds that while renewable energy investment is growing, continued funding for fossil fuel power plants and the presence of 'locked-in' emissions from existing assets keep the global power sector on a temperature trajectory exceeding 3.2°C. It highlights a significant gap between actual 2018 investment carbon intensities and the negative thresholds required by 2030 to achieve Paris alignment. The analysis identifies specific misalignments among major economies like China, India, and Japan, and among financial actors such as commercial banks and export credit agencies. The document recommends halting new carbon-intensive investments, accelerating the retirement of existing fossil fuel plants, and harmonizing climate risk reporting.
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Document type: Report
Why bringing transport and buildings under the EU carbon market is not a good idea
Carbon Market Watch argues that including road transport and buildings in the EU carbon market would fail to reduce emissions and instead provide an excuse for inaction. For transport, the author suggests CO2 standards for new vehicles are more effective, while for buildings, they advocate for energy efficiency standards and deep renovations. The document warns that adding these sectors would risk market instability by increasing the number of pollution permits and potentially undermining existing regulations.
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Document type: Statement
Emission Inventory Tool Côte d’Ivoire
The document details the use of the GAPF-EI tool in Côte d’Ivoire, highlighting its ability to capture emission sources specific to low- and middle-income countries, such as biomass cooking and vegetation fires, to support integrated air quality and climate change mitigation strategies.
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Document type: Research paper
Why London’s new Ultra Low Emission Zone is vital for the health of the capital
The document supports the introduction of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) in London to combat illegal air pollution, which is primarily caused by road transport and diesel vehicles. It highlights the severe health impacts on children, including reduced lung capacity and increased risk of asthma, and notes that ULEZ could bring London's air within legal limits by 2025. The author criticizes the UK government for failing to hold car manufacturers accountable or provide sufficient financial support for low-income drivers to switch to cleaner vehicles, contrasting this with actions taken in Germany.
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Document type: Statement
Inequitable Exposure to Air Pollution from Vehicles in California
The Union of Concerned Scientists finds that PM2.5 pollution from cars, trucks, and buses in California is inequitably distributed, with African American, Latino, and Asian residents, as well as low-income households, facing significantly higher exposure than white and wealthier residents. The analysis identifies Southern California, particularly Los Angeles County, as having the highest average exposure, and estimates that on-road transportation leads to approximately 3,100 premature deaths annually in the state.
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Document type: Fact sheet
Clean Air Parents Network: General Election 2019 Toolkit
The Clean Air Parents’ Network, supported by ClientEarth and the British Lung Foundation, issued this toolkit for the 2019 UK General Election. It urges voters to pressure candidates to adopt a pledge focusing on protecting children's health, implementing Clean Air Zones, and meeting World Health Organization particulate matter guidelines by 2030. The document provides factual talking points on the public health crisis caused by road transport emissions and offers practical tools for campaigning, including email templates, social media strategies, and questions for hustings.
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Document type: Guide
Konsumtionsbaserade utsläpp i Umeå kommun
The report analyzes the consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions of Umeå residents, finding an average footprint of 9.77 tonnes CO2e per person for survey participants (aged 20-84), which scales to 7.6 tonnes CO2e per person for the total population. Travel, particularly aviation and car use, is identified as the primary emission source, followed by food. The report identifies 'hotspots' including meat consumption, aviation, and housing energy, and recommends administrative, economic, and informative policy tools to reduce these impacts.
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Document type: Report
Reducing Emissions from Transportation in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic
The document argues that Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states can significantly reduce CO2 pollution and consumer fuel spending by transitioning to electric vehicles and low-carbon fuels. It highlights specific targets for emissions cuts and emphasizes the need for equitable investments that prioritize polluted communities and marginalized populations.
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Document type: Fact sheet
For the Talanoa Dialogue: Input from the Climate Action Tracker
The Climate Action Tracker reports that current national commitments and policies are insufficient to meet the Paris Agreement's warming limits, projecting temperature increases of 3.2°C to 3.4°C by 2100. To align with a 1.5°C limit, global emissions must peak by 2020, requiring rapid decarbonization across the electricity, transport, building, industry, and agriculture sectors.
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Document type: Report
Royal DSM is driving the market for the world’s most sustainable fuels
Royal DSM is developing patented bioconversion technologies, such as yeast and enzymes, to optimize biofuel production and maximize yields. In partnership with POET, the company established the first commercial-scale cellulosic biofuel plant in the United States, which converts corn crop residue into fuel. As a founding member of the below50 campaign, DSM advocates for a multi-stakeholder approach to overcome legislative and financial barriers to low-carbon fuels. The company argues that sustainable biofuels are essential for decarbonizing aviation, maritime, and road transport, particularly for existing combustion engine vehicles. DSM emphasizes that consistent and proactive government policies, such as the US Renewable Fuel Standard, are critical to providing the investment certainty needed to scale these technologies globally.
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Document type: Case study
CLIMATE FINANCE IN THE PACIFIC: AN OVERVIEW OF FLOWS TO THE REGION
Between 2010 and 2014, Samoa received US$98.2 million in grant-equivalent finance specifically targeting climate change, with 68.5% dedicated to adaptation and 30% to mitigation. The largest funding sources were the Climate Investment Funds and the Global Environment Facility, with primary sectoral allocations going toward environmental policy, renewable energy, and road transport. Additionally, Samoa was allocated US$6.1 million from the Global Environment Facility between January 2015 and September 2016 for renewable energy system improvements.
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Document type: Research paper
Health impacts of atmospheric pollution in a changing climate
The paper examines the severe health and economic burdens of air pollution, noting that global premature deaths could double by 2050. It details the Impact Pathway Approach (IPA) for monetizing health damages and analyzes European industrial emissions data, identifying the power generating sector as the largest contributor to damage costs. The authors propose enhancing these assessments by integrating satellite-based Earth observation data from the MACC/Copernicus services to reduce model errors and provide higher resolution global and regional air quality analysis.
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Document type: Research paper
Policy Pathways towards Achieving a Zero Carbon Transport Sector in the UK in 2050
The paper evaluates pathways to decarbonise the UK transport sector by 2050, finding that while road and rail can reach zero CO2 emissions, aviation and shipping remain significant barriers.
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Document type: Research paper
TACKLING 60% OF THE EU’S CLIMATE PROBLEM
The report analyzes the implementation of the Effort Sharing Decision (ESD), which targets non-ETS sectors responsible for nearly 60% of EU emissions. While 15 Member States are projected to over-achieve their 2020 targets, others face significant gaps, particularly in road transport and buildings. The document highlights that while the overall EU 2020 target is likely to be met, several countries rely on flexibility mechanisms or planned additional measures rather than existing policies to close their emission gaps.
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Document type: Report
Climate Change and the Transport Sector
The transport sector in Kenya, which accounts for approximately 10 per cent of GDP, is highly vulnerable to climate impacts such as flooding and sea level rise, while simultaneously contributing 10 per cent of national greenhouse gas emissions as of 2010. The document outlines specific physical risks to infrastructure, such as the warping of rail tracks from higher temperatures and damage to ports from storms, noting that the 1997-98 El Niño floods caused transport infrastructure damage of Ksh 62 billion. To mitigate emissions, which are projected to reach 19 per cent of total national emissions by 2030, the briefing recommends the 'avoid-shift-improve' approach, increasing fuel efficiency in vehicle fleets, and shifting freight from road to rail. It also highlights the potential and controversies surrounding biofuels in Kenya, specifically the 'food versus fuel' debate.
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Document type: Briefing
2012 Seattle Community Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory
The 2012 Seattle Community Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory finds that core emissions (road transportation, building energy, and waste) declined 4% from 1990 to 2012 after accounting for offsets. While absolute core emissions remained relatively flat, per person core emissions decreased by 22% over the same period, despite a 23% increase in population and a 14% increase in jobs. Road transportation remains the largest core emission source at 64%, while building energy and waste account for 33% and 3% respectively. In an expanded view including industry and air/marine travel, total emissions were 6.0 million tons CO2e in 2012, representing a 1% reduction from 1990 levels, falling short of a 7% reduction target.
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Document type: Report