Techno-fixes to climate change aren’t living up to the hype

Illustration by Hugo Herrera / The Verge

An updated road map for combating climate change pours cold water on the idea that unproven technologies can play a major role in averting disaster.

Today, the International Energy Agency (IEA) updated its road map for the energy sector to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. It doubles down on the need to swiftly switch to renewable energy while minimizing the use of technologies that are still largely in demonstration and prototype phase today, including carbon capture and hydrogen fuels.

The IEA, initially created to safeguard the world’s oil supply, debuted its landmark road map in 2021 with a stark forecast for fossil fuels: calling for no more investment in new oil, gas, and coal projects. It laid out steps every...

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