The latest UN climate change report was finally released as climate experts met in a meeting in Yokohama, Japan. The results are looking grim as the report indicates that the impacts brought about by climate change may be "severe pervasive and irreversible."
The latest report is part of a comprehensive and detailed study about the effects of climate change. It was put together by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) Working Group II and the report shows that current trends in global warming could likely lead have far ranging effects. If the trends continue, climate change will have a severe and detrimental impact on the economies of every country in the world.
"We live in an era of man-made climate change," said Working Group II Co-Chair Vicente Barros. "In many cases, we are not prepared for the climate-related risks that we already face. Investments in better preparation can pay dividends both for the present and for the future."
The IPCC's work shows that the negative effects of global warming can already be observed around the world. If global temperatures continue to rise, the effects will definitely get worse. At best, global temperatures will rise by 2C by the year 2100. While this is the lower predicted limit, a 2C increase will still increase the negative impacts of climate change. IPCC climate experts have also said that if the temperatures go over 4C, the results will be devastating and catastrophic.
"Climate-change adaptation is not an exotic agenda that has never been tried. Governments, firms, and communities around the world are building experience with adaptation," said Working Group II Co-Chair Chris Field. "This experience forms a starting point for bolder, more ambitious adaptations that will be important as climate and society continue to change."
Field has also stressed that the problem is here and the impacts being discussed in the Yokohama meeting are not simply hypothetical scenarios. In fact, the effects of climate change are already affecting many countries.
"With high levels of warming that result from continued growth in greenhouse gas emissions, risks will be challenging to manage, and even serious, sustained investments in adaptation will face limits," said Field.
The current report is the second of a set of three reports. The first was released September last year while the third will be released this coming April.
"The report concludes that people, societies, and ecosystems are vulnerable around the world, but with different vulnerability in different places. Climate change often interacts with other stresses to increase risk," Field said.
