Climate experts have issued a warning about the effects of climate change and the urgency for human intervention to prevent global temperatures from rising too high, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has revealed in its latest report.
The IPCC's report has concluded it is still not too late to avert the worst of the climate disaster. Credit: Markus Distelrath / Pexels
The report details that climate change is intensifying across the globe and will continue to get worse unless drastic human action is taken. It claims global temperatures will rise by at least 1.5°C by 2040, putting it ahead of the ideal scenario put forth by the Paris Climate Accord.
However, "strong and sustained" emissions reductions could limit the climate crisis which would have immediate effects on air quality and see global temperatures start to stabilise after a few decades.
Read more: 14,000 scientists come together to declare "climate emergency"
The "Physical Science Basis" is the first of four instalments of the IPCC's Sixth Assessment report, set to be completed by September 2022. This first instalment was released to the public on August 9.
It is the first full IPCC assessment since 2013 and comes just a few months ahead of vital UN talks on the climate crisis.
The report details that carbon dioxide is currently the leading cause of climate change, despite the effects of other greenhouse gases like methane and was responsible for global temperatures rising by as much as 1.1°C between 1850 and 1900 - around the time the Industrial Revolution hit full steam.
The levels of global warming currently being observed are "unprecedented for thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of years," the authors claim and warns that many of the effects - such as rising sea levels - may be irreversible through normal means.
The report also suggests even the 2°C global temperature targets may already be out of reach unless there are "immediate, rapid and large-scale" reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
The world is currently on the cusp of a green revolution, as the coronavirus pandemic has spurred renewed interest in reducing carbon emissions and pollution as well as other contributors to the climate crisis, such as plastic waste.
Many governments have set in motion schemes to decarbonise their countries by the mid-century, but the IPCC's report hints these goals may be too little, too late.
Read more: G20 urged to speed up renewables development
There are also concerns with fossil fuels consumption reaching its pre-pandemic levels, which could slow down any moves towards sustainability, despite fossil fuel supply chains being ravaged by the pandemic.
For the first time, the IPCC's report has also given a decent picture of climate trends from the past, to properly learn how humans have changed global climates.
"This is a reality check, IPCC member Valérie Masson-Delmotte said in a statement. "We now have a much clearer picture of the past present and future climate, which is essential for understanding where we are headed, what can be done, and how we can prepare."
“It has been clear for decades that the Earth’s climate is changing, and the role of human influence on the climate system is undisputed,” she added.
The data suggests the effects of climate change can be seen everywhere on Earth, but what people actually experience often differs from the global average.
According to the figures presented in the report, warming on land is larger than the global average, whereas the temperatures over the Arctic are rising at more than twice the global average.
Read more: US may not reach halfway to net-zero by 2050, study suggests
Should global temperatures rise above 2°C, heat extremes could often rise above "critical thresholds" that could have calamitous effects on public health and agriculture. This could also lead to droughts in some parts of the world, but increase flooding and rainfall in other parts, particularly at higher altitudes.
Rising sea levels will continue to batter coastal regions. The report warns that the kinds of "extreme sea-level events" that would previously only happen around every 100 years could occur "once per year".
Sea levels will also be affected by melting permafrost and glaciers. Permafrost also has the added benefit of storing many greenhouse gases, such as methane, which could be released into the atmosphere should the layers recede.
The full report is due to go into more detail about how each region can best deal with the effects of climate change, providing risk assessment, adaptation and suggestions for legislature and framework changes to help reduce overall emissions as well as how the effects of the crisis will change various ecosystems.
Other issues that stem from climate change include severe infrastructure damage and potential future conflicts over Earth's dwindling resources, which could cause population displacements that make the current refugee crisis seem insignificant.
Read more: Cities are unprepared for climate change risks, CDP warn
Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) research hints as many as 800 million people could be affected should cities in high-risk areas fail to adapt to climate risks.
Back to Homepage
Back to Politics & Economics
Back to Energy & Utilities