• Worldwide emissions of carbon dioxide are forecast to drop about 8% in 2020.
• An energy expert calls it “a historic shock to the entire energy world.”
• Coal use has been especially hard hit during the lockdowns, as has natural gas use.

The coronavirus pandemic has led to an “unprecedented decline” in global carbon emissions, a new report says.

Worldwide emissions of carbon dioxide – the greenhouse gas most responsible for global warming – are forecast to drop about 8% in 2020, a record annual decline that’s due to COVID-19 lockdowns. The restrictions have caused a massive plunge in fossil fuel use, according to a report released Thursday by the International Energy Agency.

“This is a historic shock to the entire energy world,” said Fatih Birol, the IEA executive director, in a statement. “Amid today’s unparalleled health and economic crises, the plunge in…