Carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere is now 50 per cent higher than the pre-Industrial Revolution era, reaching levels not seen in more than four million years, according to a study.
Emissions peaked at 421 parts per million in May, an increase of 1.8 ppm since 2021, scientists from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in a report released on Friday. Parts per million, or ppm, is a weight-to-weight ratio used to describe concentrations.
The Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego, the NOAA's partner in the report, calculated a monthly average of 420.78 ppm.
The NOAA noted that prior to the Industrial Revolution, carbon dioxide levels were consistently around 280 ppm for almost 6,000 years of human civilisation. Since then, humans have generated an estimated 1.5 trillion tonnes of carbon dioxide pollution – much of which will continue to warm the atmosphere for thousands of years.
“The science is irrefutable: humans are altering our climate in ways that our economy and our infrastructure must adapt to,” Rick Spinrad, the administrator of the NOAA, wrote in the report.
“We can see the impacts of climate change around us every day. The relentless increase of carbon dioxide is a stark reminder that we need to take urgent, serious steps to become more climate-ready.”
Governments, businesses and societies have been joining hands to temper global warming with several initiatives to promote the use of more sustainable alternatives.
The International Energy Agency had already reported that global carbon dioxide emissions reached their highest annual level in 2021, rising 6 per cent to 36.3 billion tonnes.
Almost all regions posted an increase in emissions last year, with the annual change ranging from growth of more than 10 per cent in Brazil and India, to less than 1 per cent in Japan, the Paris-based agency said. Emissions in China rose by 5 per cent, while the US and EU both registered increases of around 7 per cent, it added.
The clock, however, is ticking, and immediate action is needed. US climate change envoy John Kerry, at a London summit last month, urged the world to implement green changes "up to 20 times faster" if it is to meet climate commitments made at the Cop26 gathering in Glasgow last year.
Industries are taking note. The transport sector, for instance, is increasingly shifting towards greener means of transport as more consumers realise their benefits and become responsible towards the environment.
To become a net-zero global fleet by 2050, zero-emission vehicles must account for 61 per cent of global new passenger vehicle sales by 2030 and 93 per cent by 2035, BloombergNEF said in a report this week. The last internal combustion engine vehicle of any segment must be sold by 2038, it added.
The NOAA explained that pollution from carbon dioxide is generated by burning fossil fuels for transportation and electrical generation, and by several other practices including manufacturing, deforestation and agriculture, among others.
Along with other greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide traps heat radiating from the Earth's surface that would otherwise escape into space, causing the planet’s atmosphere to warm steadily.
This, in turn, unleashes a domino effect of weather impacts, including episodes of extreme heat, drought and wildfire activity, as well as heavier precipitation, flooding and tropical storm activity.
"CO2 levels are now comparable to the Pliocene Climatic Optimum, between 4.1 and 4.5 million years ago, when they were close to, or above 400 ppm," the NOAA said.
At that time, sea levels were between 5 and 25 metres higher than at present — which were high enough to drown many of the world’s largest modern cities — and temperatures averaged 7 degrees Fahrenheit higher than in pre-industrial times, it added.
“It's depressing that we've lacked the collective will power to slow the relentless rise in CO2. Fossil-fuel use may no longer be accelerating, but we are still racing at top speed towards a global catastrophe," Ralph Keeling, a geochemist who runs the Scripps programme at Mauna Loa, wrote in the study.
The NOAA began measurements in 1974, and along with Scripps have since made co-ordinated and independent observations.
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
The specs
Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: six-speed and 10-speed
Power: 271 and 409 horsepower
Torque: 385 and 650Nm
Price: from Dh229,900 to Dh355,000
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
How to improve Arabic reading in early years
One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient
The goal should be for grade 1 and 2 students to become fluent readers
Subjects like technology, social studies, science can be taught in later grades
Grade 1 curricula should include oral instruction in Standard Arabic
First graders must regularly practice individual letters and combinations
Time should be slotted in class to read longer passages in early grades
Improve the appearance of textbooks
Revision of curriculum should be undertaken as per research findings
Conjugations of most common verb forms should be taught
Systematic learning of Standard Arabic grammar
if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
How to book
Call DHA on 800342
Once you are registered, you will receive a confirmation text message
Present the SMS and your Emirates ID at the centre
DHA medical personnel will take a nasal swab
Check results within 48 hours on the DHA app under ‘Lab Results’ and then ‘Patient Services’
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
