Energy-related carbon emissions stayed flat for the second consecutive year last year, new data show, even though the global economy kept growing, in a sign that efforts to tackle climate change may be bearing fruit faster than thought.
A surge in renewable power around the world was the main reason pollution levels stalled, the International Energy Agency has found, reflecting rising levels of clean power investment that last year reached a record $328.9bn globally.
More than 90 per cent of new electricity generated last year came from renewables, the highest level since 1974, with half the growth coming from wind farms alone, according to the Paris-based monitoring organisation.