CCAC Super Pollutant Ministerial 2024 - Communique

The New York "Now We Can: Supercharging Action on Super Pollutants" Communique was adopted at the 2024 CCAC Super Pollutant Ministerial that took place on 23 September 2024 in New York.

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We, the Ministers representing the Climate and Clean Air Coalition’s State Partners, in cooperation with our non-state partners, call for a “Now We Can” approach to increase ambition to slow near-term warming and improve air quality, through fast cuts to super pollutantsi such as methane, black carbon, tropospheric ozone, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and nitrous oxide.  

By February 2025, Parties to the Paris Agreement are to submit their next nationally determined contribution (NDC) under the Agreement.”ii Given the rapid environmental and health benefits that come with taking action on super pollutants, we reiterate our commitment in line with the outcome of the first global stocktake under the Paris Agreement to include economy-wide 1.5-aligned emission reduction targets covering all GHGs in our new NDCs. In communicating countries’ NDCs, we welcome including, as appropriate and according to national processes and circumstances, for clarity, transparency, and understanding information on how reductions in short- and long- lived climate pollutants are expected to contribute to the achievement of NDCs, noting the importance of short-lived climate pollutants to deliver quicker reductions in global average temperatures.

Super pollutants often cause air pollution and adversely affect our health and economies, with over 8 million premature deaths each year, and trillions of dollars lost annually due to healthcare expenditures, declines in productivity, and other economic burdens associated with poor air quality. ‘Now We Can’ raise the ambition to improve air quality standards, leading to improved health outcomes for all – and call on all countries to review national air quality strategies. Taking rapid action on super pollutants is also our best chance to counteract anticipated warming from reducing climate coolers such as sulfate.

Additionally, we acknowledge that over 70% of methane emissions reductions are feasible at low or net negative cost. Following today’s launch of the CCAC Fossil Fuel Regulatory Programme, we commit to work toward the establishment of new oil and gas methane regulations and policies if they are not already in place or under development. Also, recognizing that not all jurisdictions have robust reporting frameworks, we encourage private companies operating in these jurisdictions to join the Oil & Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP) 2.0, to improve the accuracy of methane emissions data.  

The waste sector represents nearly 20% of anthropogenic methane emissions. Given over 50% of municipal solid waste is organic waste that emits methane, and nearly 1/3 of all food produced is lost or wasted each year, we agree to increase ambition on improving waste management, including through targets to reduce organic waste from landfills and dumpsites.

We recognize that action on super pollutants is often under-funded, under-utilized, and under-implemented, although emissions from these pollutants are responsible for half of current of global warming. The increased ‘Now We Can’ ambition proposed by this communique attempts to bridge this gap. With the COP Presidency Troika’s focus on super pollutants, there is a clear path to rapidly cut dangerous pollutants. This includes the spotlight on methane at COP28, the spotlight on waste emissions and the second U.S.-China Summit on Methane and Non-CO2 Greenhouse Gases at COP29, as well as Brazil’s prioritisation of super pollutant action as the new CCAC Co-Chair and host of COP30.

Now We Can: tackle super pollutants, with existing and cost-effective measures to help avoid the worst of the climate crisis and clean the air we breathe.  

Now We Can: work together, across both the public and private sector and across all levels of government, to lower super pollutant emissions from key sectors.  

Now We Can: catalyze climate finance to support action on super pollutants, e.g. including by integrating SLCP mitigation measures in the design of NDCs and urgently scale up investments from all sources in this critical area. 

Statement and speech

• Elevating action on super pollutants for rapid climate gains, Inger Andersen, Executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme