Record levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Actions needed now, Greenpeace says

A report from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) says greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere set records in 2024. Globally, CO2 near the Earth's surface averaged 423.9 ppm in 2024, up 3.5 ppm from 2023. For October 2025, the concentration is expected to be about 425 ppm, another record.

The WMO report says carbon monoxide (CO) had an unusually high seasonal peak in 2024, mostly because of very large wildfire emissions in South America. CO from wildfires oxidises into carbon dioxide. The WMO report adds that Amazon deforestation over the past 15 years lowers rainfall and raises temperatures. Half of the CO2 that people release, such as by burning fossil fuels, stays in the atmosphere. Plants and the oceans take up the rest. As the planet warms, the oceans can absorb less. Higher temperatures dry out plants and lead to forest fires. Present emissions will affect the climate for millennia, the WMO report says. Climate action must concentrate on reaching net-zero anthropogenic CO2 emissions.

Stephen Platt, senior climate scientist at the institute NILU, told the Barents Observer that its observatories, among them the Zeppelin Observatory in Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, also recorded their highest greenhouse gas levels in 2024. He called this a cause for concern. The Paris Agreement aim of holding warming to well under 2 °C over pre-industrial levels needs the rate of increase to slow. He said the Arctic warms much faster than other regions. Ice sheets are melting, fisheries and ecosystems are disrupted, and permafrost thaw threatens infrastructure. Roads, buildings and pipelines are at risk as permafrost melts, he said, and communities relying on local ecosystems must adapt. Shrinking sea ice opens new shipping routes and resource extraction areas. With geopolitical tensions, this raises the strategic importance of the Arctic.

Frode Pleym, head of Greenpeace Norway, said that politicians have the power and responsibility to cut emissions quickly. He said Norway is lowering domestic emissions very slowly. He said the recent state budget fails the environment and future generations, since billions go to fossil fuel subsidies and paper decorations. Climate activists called for more action from politicians.