Climate & Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Abatement
The reduction or avoidance of emissions of greenhouse gases or other pollutants, widely used in climate policy as a synonym for mitigation, though without a single agreed definition.
Definition
The reduction, avoidance or removal of emissions of greenhouse gases or other pollutants. In climate policy the term is often used interchangeably with "mitigation", which the IPCC defines as human intervention to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance sinks. "Abatement" itself has no formal UNFCCC definition.
References
IPCC-based definition of mitigation as human intervention to reduce GHG emissions and enhance sinks (the closest formal anchor for abatement).
Absence of an official definition; IPCC AR6 SYR footnote defining "unabated" fossil fuels; controversy over abatement framing in COP negotiations.
Source report for the "unabated" footnote and mitigation framing.
Overview
What it means
Abatement describes actions and technologies that lower emissions relative to a baseline — from energy efficiency and renewable generation to methane capture. The IPCC's Sixth Assessment Synthesis Report uses "unabated" fossil fuels to mean production and use without interventions that substantially reduce lifecycle emissions (for example, capturing 80% or more of CO₂ from power plants).
How it is used
Governments run "abatement" programmes and purchase "carbon abatement" (for example under Australia's ACCU scheme). Companies assess "abatement levers" and costs. In UN climate negotiations, the scope of "abatement technologies" became contested at COP28 in 2023, particularly around whether fossil fuels with carbon capture count as abated.
Why it matters
Because the term lacks an agreed definition, its use can blur the line between genuine emissions reductions and technological extensions of fossil fuel use. Clarity about what counts as abatement — and whether offsets qualify — is material to the credibility of climate targets.
Definitions and controversy
No official treaty definition exists. Civil-society analysis argues the ambiguity is exploited to frame inadequate technologies as abatement; carbon offsets are contested as a form of abatement.
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