Human-caused global warming will reach 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to the pre-industrial era, from the years between 2030 and 2035, experts from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned Monday in their new report.
According to the report, deep and rapid reductions in emissions would lead to a clear slowdown in climate warming, in about two decades. To do so, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said, would require a rapid reduction of carbon pollution and fossil fuel use by about two-thirds, by 2035.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres put it more bluntly, calling for an end to exploration for new fossil fuels and for rich countries to abandon coal, oil and gas by 2040. Stepping up his pleas for action on fossil fuels, Guterres has not only called for no new coal, but also for its elimination in rich countries by 2030 and in poor countries by 2040.
The United Nations Secretary-General urged carbon-free electricity generation in the developed world by 2035, which means no gas-fired power plants either. And the Earth's temperature is rising rapidly, more than previously estimated, amid a strong warning by scientists that the Earth may reach a temperature beyond which it becomes difficult to find any quick solutions to save the planet.
Since 2015, the possibility of exceeding 1.5°C in a short period is increasing. In 2020, scientists estimated the probability of reaching this level at 20 percent, before raising that percentage last year to 40 percent. A global warming of 1.5°C could have severe impacts, such as the destruction of coral reefs and the decline of Arctic sea ice caps.
World leaders pledged under the 2015 Paris Agreement to prevent a threshold of 1.5°C in the long term, but they have so far failed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.
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