Page 3 - Un Climate Change Report

World racing to well past warming limit as carbon emissions rise: UN report

The globe is speeding to 2.5 to 2.9 degrees Celsius (4.5 to 5.2 degrees Fahrenheit) of global warming since pre-industrial times, set to blow well past the agreed-upon international climate threshold, a United Nations report calculated. To have an even money shot at keeping warming to the 1.5-degree Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) limit adopted by the 2015 Paris climate agreement, countries have to slash their emissions by 42% by the end of the decade, said the UN Environment Programme's Emissions Gap report issued Monday. Carbon emissions from the burning of coal, oil and gas rose 1.2% last year, the report said. This year Earth got a taste of what's to come, said the report, which sets the table for international climate talks later this month. Through the end of September, the daily global average temperature exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius above mid-19th century levels on 86 days this year, the report said. But that increased to 127 days because nearly all of the first two weeks o

COP28 : Petroleum ministry warns against curbs on hydrocarbon investments

India has until now strongly advocated for a phase-down of all fossil fuels, including oil and gas

Climate injustice: There's a US-shaped hole in every feasible solution

With the US unable or unwilling to make any credible commitments, the rest of the world is floundering around trying to compensate for its lack of leadership

In Brazil's Amazon, rivers fall to record low levels during drought

The Negro River, the Amazon's second largest tributary, on Monday reached its lowest level since official measurements began near Manaus 121 years ago. The record confirms that this part of the world's largest rainforest is suffering its worst drought, just a little over two years after its most significant flooding. In the morning, the water level in the city's port went as low as 13.5 metres (44.3 feet), down from 30.02 metres (98.5 feet) registered in June 2021 its highest level on record. The Negro River drains about 10% of the Amazon basin and is the world's sixth largest by water volume. Madeira River, another main tributary of the Amazon, has also recorded historically low levels, causing the halt of the Santo Antonio hydroelectric dam, Brazil's fourth largest. Throughout Brazil's Amazon, low river levels have left hundreds of riverine communities isolated and struggling to get access to drinkable water. The drought also has disrupted commercial navigation that supplies ...

How climate change is helping pests and diseases destroy our food

As temperature rise, you have this expanded geographic range and this expanded range of insects that will just increase those diseases that insects spread

Global carbon credits market expected to touch $250 bn by 2030, says expert

The global market for carbon credits is expected to witness an upward trend and touch the level of USD 250 billion by 2030, an industry executive said. The market for carbon credits took a hit due to multiple reasons, including Russia-Ukraine war, interest rate hikes, and reduced demand leading to falling prices up to 80 per cent, Manish Dabkara, Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of EKI Energy Services, said in an interview. "The market for voluntary carbon offsets which valued at around USD 2 billion in 2021 witnessed a downturn, and now valuing at USD 500 million. However, various ratings and research firms are bullish on the improvement in the carbon market," Dabkara said. Citing a Barclays report, the industry executive said, factors like stringent climate policies by various countries, their commitments under Paris agreement to reduce carbon emissions, and corporate sustainability goals are likely to contribute to the growth of the carbon credits market which is expected to

Climate change is Singapore's biggest challenge: Tharman Shanmugaratnam

Climate change is the biggest long-term crisis that Singapore faces and adapting to it will require infrastructural investments, the country's Indian-origin presidential hopeful Tharman Shanmugaratnam has said. Tharman, 66, resigned from public and political posts in July to run for the presidency and is likely to face a challenge from three other Chinese-origin Singaporeans who have submitted bids to contest the election. The Indian-origin former minister shared his knowledge of managing national reserves and explained how this experience will help him in his role as the president if he is elected. During the global financial crisis in 2008, precipitated by the bursting of the US housing bubble, Tharman said he was a finance minister and had proposed a draw of Singapore dollars 4.9 billion from the past reserves to fund a jobs credit scheme and a plan to encourage banks to lend money to businesses. For the second time, Tharman was a senior minister advising Prime Minister Lee Hsie

Amazon nations seek support on climate change, urge developed countries

Eight Amazon nations called on industrialized countries to do more to help preserve the world's largest rainforest as they met at a major summit in Brazil to chart a common course on how to combat climate change. The leaders of South American nations that are home to the Amazon, meeting at a two-day summit in the city of Belem that ends Wednesday, said the task of stopping the destruction of the rainforest can't fall to just a few when the crisis has been caused by so many. The members of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization, or ACTO, are hoping a united front will give them a major voice in global talks. The forest unites us. It is time to look at the heart of our continent and consolidate, once and for all, our Amazon identity, said Brazilian President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva. The calls from the presidents of nations including Brazil, Colombia and Bolivia came as leaders aim to fuel much-needed economic development in their regions while preventing the Amazon's ongoing dem

Hottest July ever signals 'era of global boiling has arrived': UN chief

As blazing wildfires rage across Southern Europe and North Africa, top UN climate researchers said on Thursday that it was "virtually certain" that July 2023 will be the warmest on record"

Have global temperatures reached these levels ever in last 100,000 yrs?

Without rapid and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, the Earth is currently on course to reach temperatures of roughly 3 C (5.4 F) above preindustrial levels

Price-sensitive Gen-Z prefers shopping recommendations made by friends

While Gen Z shoppers display a great deal of concern for climate change and sustainability, they are seldom willing to pay the additional cost that goes into making such products

Max temperature to rise by 3-5 degrees Celsius during next 3-5 days: IMD

There will be a gradual rise in maximum temperature by 3-5 degrees Celsius over most parts of the country during the next 3-5 days, said India Meteorological Department on Sunday

New green industrial age needed to achieve climate targets: United Nations

Financing Sustainable Transformations says urgent, massive investments are needed to accelerate transformations, including in electricity supply, industry, farming, transportation, and buildings

UN adopts resolution seeking court clarity on climate change obligations

The UN General Assembly has adopted a resolution to seek opinion of the world body's principal judicial organ on countries' obligations to address climate change

How China, US and others watered down a key UN climate document

The US State Department declined to comment. A senior administration official defended the final IPCC summary for policymakers, saying it was clear about the critical message

Livable future possible if drastic action taken this decade: IPCC report

The world is very likely to miss the most important climate target of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels but drastic and urgent action in this decade can prevent it, a UN panel on climate change said in a report on Monday. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) Synthesis Report is a summary of all the reports it produced since 2015 on the reasons and consequences of global temperature rise due to anthropogenic emissions. Releasing the report, the body of the world's leading climate scientists said keeping warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels requires deep, rapid and sustained greenhouse gas emissions reductions in all sectors. "The Synthesis Report underscores the urgency of taking more ambitious action and shows that, if we act now, we can still secure a liveable sustainable future for all," IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee said. Approved during a week-long session in Interlaken, Switzerland, the report .

Nations approve major UN science report on climate change amid conflict

Governments gave their blessing on Sunday to a major new UN report on climate change, after approval was held up by a battle between rich and developing countries over emissions targets and financial aid to vulnerable nations. The report by hundreds of the world's top scientists was supposed to be approved by government delegations on Friday at the end of a weeklong meeting in the Swiss town of Interlaken. The closing gavel was repeatedly pushed back as officials from big nations such as China, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, the United States and the European Union haggled through the weekend over the wording of key phrases in the text. The report by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change caps a series that digests vast amounts of research on global warming compiled since the Paris climate accord was agreed in 2015. A summary of the report was approved early Sunday but agreement on the main text dragged on for several more hours, with some observers fearing it might need to be ...

Fight between countries over emissions targets holds up UN climate report

Publication of a major new United Nations report on climate change is being held up by a battle between rich and developing countries over emissions targets and financial aid to vulnerable nations. The report by hundreds of the world's top scientists was supposed to be approved by government delegations Friday at the end of a weeklong meeting in the Swiss town of Interlaken. The deadline was repeatedly extended as officials from big nations such as China, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, as well as the United Nations and the European Union haggled through the weekend over the wording of key phrases in the text. The report by the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is meant to cap a series that digests vasts amounts of research on global warming compiled since the Paris climate accord was agreed in 2015. A summary of the report was approved early Sunday, but three sources close to the talks have told The Associated Press that there is a risk that agreement on the main tex

Bill Gates praises India's progress in heath, climate, technology sectors

Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates has commended the progress India is making in fields like health, development and climate and said the country is showing what is possible when investment is made in innovation. He also praised India for its "amazing ability to manufacture lots of safe, effective, and affordable vaccines, some of them supported by the Gates Foundation" and said they saved millions of lives during the COVID-19 pandemic and prevented other diseases around the world. Gates, who is co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday during his trip to India. Modi tweeted on Saturday, "Delighted to meet Bill Gates and have extensive discussions on key issues. His humility and passion to create a better as well as more sustainable planet are clearly visible." Gates said in a write-up, "At a time when the world has so many challenges, it's inspiring to visit a dynamic and creative place like ...

Chennai, Kolkata, in India, at particular risk due to sea level rise: Study

Sea level rise this century may disproportionately affect certain Asian megacities as well as western tropical Pacific islands and the western Indian Ocean, according to a new research. The research team identified several Asian megacities that may face especially significant risks by 2100 if society continued to emit high levels of greenhouse gases: Chennai, Kolkata, Yangon, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, and Manila. The study looked at the effects of natural sea level fluctuations on the projected rise due to climate change, it said. It did so by mapping sea level hotspots around the globe. The study is published in the journal Nature Climate Change. Scientists have long known that sea levels will rise with increasing ocean temperatures, largely because water expands when it warms and melting ice sheets release more water into the oceans. Studies have also indicated that sea level rise will vary regionally because shifts in ocean currents will likely direct more water to certain ..