Cutting Short-Lived Pollutants Vital for Climate and Health

Short-lived climate pollutants cause up to 45 percent of current global warming and severely worsen air pollution.

What Happened

These pollutants, also called short-lived climate forcers, stay in the atmosphere from a few days to two decades. They include black carbon, methane, ozone, hydrofluorocarbons, and aerosols. According to a 2018 IPCC report, cutting these emissions can avoid over half a degree of warming by 2050. It can also prevent over 50 percent of predicted warming in the Arctic and stop dangerous tipping points like thawing permafrost.

Sources and Impacts

Black carbon comes from burning biomass, fossil fuels, stubble burning, and forest fires. The Indo-Gangetic Plain is a major hotspot due to dense population and open crop burning. Methane is generated by rice farming, livestock, fossil fuel extraction, and waste, possessing about 80 times more warming power than carbon dioxide in its first 20 years. Hydrofluorocarbons are used in cooling equipment like refrigerators and air-conditioners. Tropospheric ozone forms when gases interact with sunlight, hurting human health and crop yields. Globally, air pollution causes about 7 million premature deaths every year.

India's Situation

A Lancet Planetary Health study linked air pollution to 1.67 million deaths or 17.8 percent of all deaths in India in 2019, causing a US$36.8 billion economic loss. A 2025 Clean Air Fund report notes that black carbon accelerates glacier melting in the Himalayas, posing water risks for the Indus, Ganga, and Brahmaputra basins. The Global Methane Status Report 2025 states India emitted 9 percent of global methane, ranking third behind the US and China. India ratified the Kigali amendment in 2021 to phase down hydrofluorocarbons, but has not joined the Global Methane Pledge due to concerns over farming livelihoods. India uses programs like the National Clean Air Programme and Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana to curb pollution and expand clean fuel access.

Context

Short-lived climate pollutants complement carbon dioxide reduction because cutting them yields fast results within years instead of centuries. Managing these emissions requires practical shifts in everyday activities like farming, waste management, and household cooking fuels.