{"id":27143,"date":"2022-04-21T03:01:39","date_gmt":"2022-04-21T07:01:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/?p=27143"},"modified":"2022-04-21T03:03:14","modified_gmt":"2022-04-21T07:03:14","slug":"un-climate-report-its-now-or-never-to-limit-global-warming-to-1-5-degrees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/?p=27143","title":{"rendered":"UN climate report: It\u2019s \u2018now or never\u2019 to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .<\/p>\n

An article from the United Nations<\/a><\/p>\n

A new flagship UN report on climate change <\/a> out Monday (April 4) indicating that harmful carbon emissions from 2010-2019 have never been higher in human history, is proof that the world is on a \u201cfast track\u201d to disaster,\u00a0Ant\u00f3nio Guterres has warned<\/a>, with scientists arguing that it\u2019s \u2018now or never\u2019 to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\n\u00a9 UNICEF\/Sebastian Rich. A young boy collects what little water he can from a dried up river due to severe drought in Somalia.<\/center><\/p>\n

Reacting to the latest findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC),\u00a0the UN Secretary-General\u00a0insisted that unless governments everywhere reassess their energy policies, the world will be uninhabitable.<\/p>\n

His comments reflected the IPCC\u2019s insistence that all countries must reduce their fossil fuel use substantially, extend access to electricity, improve energy efficiency and increase the use of alternative fuels, such as hydrogen.<\/p>\n

Unless action is taken soon, some major cities will be under water, Mr. Guterres said in a video message, which also forecast \u201cunprecedented heatwaves, terrifying storms, widespread water shortages and the extinction of a million species of plants and animals\u201d.<\/p>\n

Horror story<\/strong><\/p>\n

The UN chief added: \u201cThis is not fiction or exaggeration. It is what science tells us will result from our current energy policies. We are\u00a0on a pathway to global warming of more than double the 1.5-degree (Celsius, or 2.7-degrees Fahreinheit) limit\u201d that was agreed in Paris in 2015.<\/p>\n

Providing the scientific proof to back up that damning assessment, the IPCC report \u2013 written by hundreds of leading scientists and agreed by 195 countries – noted that greenhouse gas emissions generated by human activity, have increased since 2010 \u201cacross all major sectors globally\u201d.<\/p>\n

In an op-ed article penned for the Washington Post, Mr. Guterres described the latest IPCC report as “a\u00a0litany of broken climate promises”, which revealed a “yawning gap between climate pledges, and reality.”<\/p>\n

He wrote that high-emitting governments and corporations, were not just turning a blind eye, “they are adding fuel to the flames by continuing to invest in climate-choking industries. Scientists warn that we are already perilously close to tipping points that could lead to cascading and irreversible climate effects.”<\/p>\n

Urban issue<\/strong><\/p>\n

An\u00a0increasing share of emissions can be attributed to towns and cities, the report\u2019s authors continued, adding just as worryingly, that emissions reductions clawed back in the last decade or so \u201chave been less than emissions increases, from rising global activity levels in industry, energy supply, transport, agriculture and buildings\u201d.<\/p>\n

(article continued in right column)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Question for this article:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n 
\n Despite the vested interests of companies and governments, Can we make progress toward sustainable development?<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

(Article continued from the left column)<\/p>\n

Striking a more positive note – and insisting that it is still possible to halve emissions by 2030 – the IPCC urged governments to ramp up action to curb emissions.<\/p>\n

The UN body also welcomed the significant decrease in the cost of renewable energy sources since 2010, by as much as 85 per cent for solar and wind energy, and batteries.<\/p>\n

Encouraging climate action<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are at a crossroads. The decisions we make now can secure a liveable future,\u201d said IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee. \u201cI am encouraged by climate action being taken in many countries. There are policies, regulations and market instruments that are proving effective. If these are scaled up and applied more widely and equitably, they can support deep emissions reductions and stimulate innovation.\u201d<\/p>\n

To limit global warming to around 1.5C (2.7\u00b0F), the IPCC report insisted that global greenhouse gas emissions would have to peak \u201cbefore 2025 at the latest, and be reduced by 43 per cent by 2030\u201d.<\/p>\n

Methane would also need to be reduced by about a third, the report\u2019s authors continued, adding that even if this was achieved, it was \u201calmost inevitable that we will temporarily exceed this temperature threshold\u201d, although the world \u201ccould \u00a0return to below it by the end of the century\u201d.
\nNow or never<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s now or never, if we want to limit global warming to 1.5\u00b0C (2.7\u00b0F); without immediate and deep emissions reductions across all sectors, it will be impossible,\u201d said Jim Skea, Co-Chair of IPCC Working Group III, which released the latest report.<\/p>\n

Global temperatures will stabilise when carbon dioxide emissions reach net zero. For 1.5C (2.7F), this means achieving net zero carbon dioxide emissions globally in the early 2050s; for 2C (3.6\u00b0F), it is in the early 2070s, the IPCC report states.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis assessment shows that limiting warming to around 2C (3.6F) still requires global greenhouse gas emissions to peak before 2025 at the latest, and be reduced by a quarter by 2030.\u201d<\/p>\n

Policy base<\/strong><\/p>\n

A great deal of importance is attached to IPCC assessments because they provide governments with scientific information that they can use to develop climate policies.<\/p>\n

They also play a key role in international negotiations to tackle climate change.<\/p>\n

Among the sustainable and emissions-busting solutions that are available to governments, the IPCC report emphasised that rethinking how cities and other urban areas function in future could help significantly in mitigating the worst effects of climate change.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese (reductions) can be achieved through lower energy consumption (such as by creating compact, walkable cities), electrification of transport in combination with low-emission energy sources, and enhanced carbon uptake and storage using nature,\u201d the report suggested. \u201cThere are options for established, rapidly growing and new cities,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

Echoing that message, IPCC Working Group III Co-Chair, Priyadarshi Shukla, insisted that \u201cthe right policies, infrastructure and technology\u2026to enable\u00a0changes to our lifestyles and behaviour, can result in a 40 to 70 per cent reduction\u00a0in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. \u201cThe evidence also shows that these lifestyle changes can improve our health and wellbeing.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . . An article from the United Nations A new flagship UN report on climate change out Monday (April 4) indicating that harmful carbon emissions from 2010-2019 have never been higher in human history, is proof that the world is on a \u201cfast track\u201d to disaster,\u00a0Ant\u00f3nio Guterres has warned, with scientists … Continue reading UN climate report: It\u2019s \u2018now or never\u2019 to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[76,10,93],"tags":[11,94],"class_list":["post-27143","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-global","category-sustainable","category-united-nations","tag-global","tag-united-nations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27143","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=27143"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27143\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=27143"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=27143"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=27143"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}