David Attenborough asks ‘can we curb climate change?’

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The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC) report explains dire impacts climate change is already causing for millions of people around the world. But it warned no region will be safe from the horrifying future impact climate change is expected to bring. UN Secretary-General António Guterres said following the report’s publication: “I have seen many scientific reports in my time, but nothing like this. Today’s IPCC report is an atlas of human suffering and a damning indictment of failed climate leadership.”

This comes just a week after the UN warned wildfires are also becoming more frequent and intense, threatening to change landscapes into “tinderboxes”.

It also comes after the IPCC issued a “code red” for humanity last year ahead of the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, urging immediate action to prevent environmental disaster.

There were fears the second edition of the “sixth assessment report” would spell even more chilling warnings.

Alok Sharma, who was COP26 President, told The Guardian: “Based on the science [of recent years], there is an expectation that the report will tell us that over the past decade, climate change impacts have been much greater than anticipated. Policymakers need to see this as another wake-up call to take action now.

“Countries need to take action now. If we don’t take action now, the costs will be much higher, and the impacts higher, in future years.”

The “code red” warning sent back in August marked the first edition of the six-part assessment.

Following its release, Mr Guterres said that, although “we must act decisively now, to keep 1.5 alive”, there are clear solutions for this.

He said: “Inclusive and green economies, prosperity, cleaner air and better health are possible for all, if we respond to this crisis with solidarity and courage.”

The report was prepared by 234 scientists from 66 countries and suggested human activities affect all major climate system components.

But the UN’s latest report appears even more terrifying.

It warned between 3.3 billion and 3.6 billion people live in areas “highly vulnerable” to climate change – around 40 percent of the world’s population.

It added that some low-lying coastal areas facing inundation if temperatures are not limited.

Worryingly, if temperatures soar to between 1.7 and 1.8C above the 1850s level, half the human population could be vulnerable to life-threatening climatic conditions arising from heat and humidity, the report warned.

It also explained how extreme weather events, like floods and heatwaves, are to cause ever more severe impacts to humans than previous studies estimated.

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The first IPPC report was already aware that “human-induced climate change is likely the main driver” of heavier and more frequent torrential rainfall since the 1950s.

The report added: “It is very likely that heavy precipitation events will intensify and become more frequent in most regions with additional global warming.”

Food production and food security will also be threatened by even a small amount of additional warming.

Prof Debra Roberts, co-chair of the IPCC, said: “Our report clearly indicates that places where people live and work may cease to exist, that ecosystems and species that we’ve all grown up with and that are central to our cultures and inform our languages may disappear.

“So, this is really a key moment. Our report points out very clearly, this is the decade of action, if we are going to turn things around.”

Madeleine Diouf Sarr (Senegal), Chair of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in the UN climate talks, said: “I read this report with a great deal of fear and sadness, but not surprise.

“It’s very clear to us that no amount of adaptation can compensate for failing to limit warming to 1.5C. The report confirms what we are already seeing and experiencing – climate change is causing devastating loss and damage, and disproportionately affecting our vulnerable people.

“Efforts to adapt and adapt early must urgently be enhanced. Accessible finance is a key barrier according to this report, and we will be seeking dedicated public finance in the international negotiations, both for adaptation, and for addressing loss and damage.”

The full IPCC report can be found here Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability – IPCC Working Group II contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report

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