The results are particularly alarming: the concentration of CO2 on Amsterdam Island has crossed the threshold of 420 ppm, or 24% more than the first measurements taken on this island in 1980. Even more worrying, the annual growth rate has reached a record of +3.7 ppm between April 2023 and April 2024, surpassing the previous record of +3.6 ppm observed in 2015-2016. These growth peaks coincide with El Niño episodes, which, by increasing global temperatures, fuel numerous extreme events and disrupt CO2 exchanges with natural ecosystems (droughts, fires, etc.).
These climatic disturbances result in a temporary acceleration in the growth of CO2, which is added to the emissions of human origin responsible for the increase in concentrations observed everywhere, including in very distant observatories such as Amsterdam Island and the Reunion Island. On the methane side, concentrations now exceed 1850 ppb on Amsterdam Island. If its growth has moderated in recent months (less than 5 ppb/year), it had reached record levels between 2020 and 2022 (more than 15 ppb/year).
This acceleration appears to be attributable to several factors, including significant emissions from tropical wetlands and an increase in the lifetime of methane in the atmosphere, the latter linked to the drop in nitrogen oxide emissions during lockdowns. of 2020.
Canada
