Reaching net zero and reducing the impact of climate change

Climate change caused by the release of carbon from burning fossil fuels is already affecting our wildlife. We know spring is arriving earlier, meaning wildlife is having to rapidly adapt to keep up. Take Blue Tits, they’re changing habits formed over millions of years of evolution to make sure they time their breeding with the emergence of caterpillars, which arrive when the trees come into leaf. If they get their timings wrong, it means there are fewer caterpillars to go around. Less food means fewer chicks are likely to survive. Many species that are highly adapted to their ecological niche can’t adapt so quickly and the consequences can be disastrous. 

We need to take drastic action to reduce the significant harm that the climate crisis is wreaking on our planet. Reaching net zero is critical for nature, but nature can also play a vital role in creating a sustainable future. Read on to find out more.  

We know that climate change is happening faster than expected. The science paints a harrowing picture for both nature and climate, and halting our emissions is the first step in turning the tide. The term net zero describes the balance between reducing emissions and removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. Reaching net zero is essential to a world that’s richer in wildlife. 

We can’t tackle the nature and climate emergency without decarbonising all sectors of the economy. This will require rapid fossil fuel phase-out, a transition to renewable energy that works in harmony with nature, and behaviour changes to encourage us to think about planet-friendly diets, energy usage and the efficiency of our homes. 

In 2019, the UK committed to a legally-binding target of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. The Welsh Government and Northern Irish Executive have set targets to reach net zero by 2050, and the Scottish Government by 2045. At the RSPB, we want to see a more ambitious target of net zero for all UK countries – by 2045 at the latest. Since our UK-wide target was set in 2019, action on climate change has not happened fast enough. The Government’s climate advisors, the Climate Change Committee, say that we need to be making progress much faster in the race to decarbonise our economy. Urgent action is needed to avoid devastating outcomes for people and nature.

That means building more renewable energy, which should always be planned carefully so that it avoids areas that are important for nature. We support an increase in solar, onshore wind and offshore wind to reach net zero. We want to see a strategic approach to planning policy and use of our land and seas, one that ensures we make the most efficient use of the limited land we have, to support nature, renewables and food production.

We must rapidly move away from fossil fuel use – if we continue to rely on them, we will exceed the globally-recognised safe limit of warming — 1.5 degrees. This also means improving the energy efficiency of our homes and businesses, using greener transport and making other changes to our behaviour like switching to planet-friendly diets. 

The irony is, nature can help us fight climate change, if we invest in it. It’s literally a win-win situation. Many of the places where wildlife thrives, such as peatlands, woodlands and seagrass meadows, when in a good condition, can store the carbon dioxide that causes climate warming and in plants and soil.

Take the UK’s peatlands – they only cover 12% of the UK, but they hold more carbon than the forests of the UK, France and Germany combined. Protecting and restoring natural environments like our peatlands is vital and these nature-based solutions will be crucial if we’re to halt and reverse the climate and nature crises.     

Research, planning, and a strategic approach are needed tomake sure our response response to climate change supports nature’s recovery.

When action to address climate change is strategic, properly planned and focused on using nature-based solutions, the benefits can be wide-ranging for climate, for nature and for people too.

For example, at Haweswater in the Lake District, we've been using nature-based solutions like  tree planting, peat restoration and natural flood management to improve the environment and its carbon-storing potential. Not only does the local community benefit directly from having a well-cared-for nature site to enjoy, they benefit indirectly from the improved air and water quality these nature-based solutions bring. The work also helps to improve soil health and increase resilience to extreme weather events – good news for farmers in the area.     

We’re doing what we can to build resilience, to strengthen species populations and restore as much nature as possible. But our climate is changing so rapidly and dramatically that we increasingly need to live with new climate conditions, rather than against them. We’ll still need nature reserves, of course. In fact, we need more of them, bigger ones, better-connected ones, and they need to be managed as much as possible with climate change in mind.   

Recently, the UK Government announced plans to delay green policies such as delaying the ban of new petrol and diesel cars and delaying plans for greener, warmer homes. For the planet, for us and for our wildlife this is a backwards step. The Government has legally binding commitments to meet interim emissions reduction targets in the decades ahead. The Climate Change Committee has already raised concerns about the UK’s ability to meet these interim targets in light of the policy change.   

If we’re serious about hitting the UK’s net zero emissions target by 2050 we need to ramp up our efforts to reduce carbon emissions, not put them into reverse.