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The COP26 Climate Change Conference in Glasgow starts Sunday. This is the last chance for world leaders to stop the worst effects of human-induced planetary heating.
As studies show that it will take as little as nine years before the most devastating effects of climate change begin to set in and are unstoppable, time is critical for global unity.
“The effects of human-caused global warming are happening now, are irreversible on the timescale of people alive today, and will worsen in the decades to come,” the US space agency NASA said in a Brief.
Here are five things you need to know about climate emergencies as COP26 starts:
‘Catastrophic’ warming worse than ever
Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide trap heat near Earth’s surface and when they become too concentrated, global warming results.
The landmark 2015 Paris climate agreementThe agreement by nations around the globe to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degree Fahrenheit) was a significant improvement over the period prior to the Industrial Revolution in 1760, in Europe, and in the United States.
Already, the globe has warmed 1C (1.8F) more than preindustrial levels. Climate disasters are a result. According to the United Nations, global warming will continue to be below 1.5C (2.7F). Countries need to work towards this goal. “net-zero”gaz emissions by 2050 Since the Paris agreement, however, efforts to reduce carbon emissions have been stymied.
Global emissions would be 16 percent higher in 2030 than they were in 2010 under current national commitments – nowhere close to a 45 percent reduction by 2030 that scientists say is needed to halt climate catastrophe.
A 16 percent increase would result in warming 2.7C (4.9F), at the end of the century – a figure meaning life on Earth would be disastrous for millions, if not billions, of people.
Many countries – including the US, the world’s second-largest gas polluter behind China – have pledged to meet the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050 or 2060. UN issued a September report stating that climate commitments are so weak that even if all pledges are met, temperatures will still rise to 2.7C by 2060.
This would have more devastating effects than the ones already hammering nations around the world, such as raging flooding to out-of control wildfires or super-storms.
“The world is on a catastrophic pathway to 2.7-degrees of heating,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Not noted.
Without swift action, grim future
After another year of extreme weather events, COP26 is the result.
The future could be even worse if world leaders don’t take action to eliminate emissions. The World Bank BewareRecently, more than 221 million people were forced from their homes to become climate refugees.
Water scarcity will become a serious problem. It will reduce crop productivity and lead to uninhabitable environments.
According to one study, envisioning the potential worst scenarios, the world’s most populous cities — including Chennai, Mumbai, Jakarta, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Hong Kong, Ho Chi Minh City, Shanghai, Lagos, Bangkok and Manila — could be abandonedBy 2050
Scorching temperatures will also wreak havoc on people’s lives.
About 35 percent of the global land area and 55 percent of the world’s population would be subject to more than 20 days a year of lethal heat conditions, “beyond the threshold of human survivability”, the paper Not noted.
Climate adaptation is now necessary
Although scientists have long sought to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to zero to mitigate climate change, it is now obvious that humans will have to learn how to live with the consequences of a changing Earth. Planetary warming will continue for the foreseeable future, and people will need to learn how to deal with it.
All over the world, there are efforts to mitigate the effects of increasing extreme weather events and their frequency. These include reducing the effects of ocean acidification, sea level rise, shifting precipitation patterns, increasing temperatures, and minimizing the impact of rising sea levels.
“Adaptation can range from building flood defences, setting up early warning systems for cyclones, and switching to drought-resistant crops, to redesigning communication systems, business operations and government policies,” the UN’s climate change agency.
But critics argue that much more must be done. Current climate adaptation finance from donor countries and multilateral banks of development is only $16.7bn per annum, which is just a fraction compared to the $70bn annually.
The cost of adaptation is expected to rise to $300 billion by 2030. The funding for adaptation must be increased rapidly to at least 50% of the total public climate finance spending.
“Far greater efforts are needed to build resilience in vulnerable countries and for the most vulnerable people. They do the least to cause climate change – but bear the worst impacts,” the UN noted.
Activists take part in a ‘climate strike’ demonstration in Parliament Square in London in September [David Cliff/AP Photo]‘Time rapidly running out’
Leading climate scientists have warned that human activities are heating the atmosphere for decades. Plans for action have only been developed in the last few decades, however.
According to the most recent estimates, there are less than 10 years left to avoid potentially disastrous effects of a warming world. Report from the world’s top scientists.
The survival of the human race on the planet will depend on the next 10-20 year.
Approximately 70 countries have so far indicated that they intend to reach carbon neutrality goals by 2050.
However, the world’s biggest economies – responsible for 80 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions – must lead the way in taking urgent action to avoid climate catastrophe.
“Saving this and future generations is a common responsibility. We are at the edge of the cliff. Wake up. Reconsider your course. Change your course. Unite,” UN chief Guterres told world leaders in September.
There are reasons to be hopeful
Despite the grim reality of climate emergency becoming ever more apparent, there is hope that its worst effects can still not be caused.
“The recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was a code red for humanity. It also highlighted the fact that it is possible to reach the 1.5-degree Paris Agreement target. We have the tools necessary to reach this goal. But we are rapidly running out of time,” said Guterres.
Most countries need to urgently improve their climate action plans.
However, the technology is becoming more affordable and can be used to help achieve net-zero emissions by mid-century.
Renewable energy – such as solar or wind farms – is now not only cleaner but sometimes cheaper than fossil fuels. Plans are in place for mass production electric vehicles. New forms of food production are also coming online – a positive development to end major emissions from livestock.
Efforts to increase “nature-based solutions” to suck up greenhouse gases have been launched, including mass tree-planting and underwater seaweed forests. Carbon capture technology is improving. Some facilities are already in operation, while others will soon open.
However, it is up to politicians around to make the transition to the green economy.
“No more ignoring science. No more ignoring the demands of people everywhere,” said Guterres. “It is time for leaders to stand and deliver, or people in all countries will pay a tragic price.”
