Speeding towards climate disaster

When G-7 says their emissions have peaked, which is disputable, the implication is that the main responsibility for curtailing emissions would now be on others

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has issued fresh warnings about climate change and the impact of extreme weather conditions on the world. It has predicted that the earth’s 1.5-degree Celsius temperature rise over pre-industrial levels would materialise over the next five years because of the El Nino factor. That is sooner than the 2033-37 timeline foreseen by experts earlier. The temperature rise may be temporary and may not breach the timelines of the Paris Agreement. But it may be an indication of the possibility of many temporary incidents caused by unexpected factors upsetting both immediate and longer-term timelines. The WMO has presented the scenario in an updated report on the consequences of global warming in the past 50 years by analysing over 12,000 weather and climate events around the world. It has found that climate change has killed two million people and caused economic loss worth $4.3 trillion between 1970 and 2021. The human cost was more in the developing countries and the economic damage most in the US.

The WMO reported in March that the global mean temperature last year was 1.15 degrees above pre-industrial levels. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said that 2022 was the fifth warmest year on record and the last decade was the hottest in the country’s history. There were many climate events in India and other countries which showed the growing impact of climate change. The recent cyclone Mocha, which hit Bangladesh and Myanmar, was an extreme climate event. Climate change is an everyday reality now touching everyone’s life, but the world is still refusing to take effective action to counter it.

The communique released by the G-7 grouping, which represents the world’s most developed countries, after its summit in Hiroshima recently, urged all countries to ensure that individual carbon emissions do not rise after 2025. It also said that the G-7 countries would achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. When the G-7 says that their emissions have peaked, which is disputable, the implication is that the main responsibility for curtailing emissions would now be on others, especially India and China, who have set their zero emission targets for 2070 and 2060 respectively. New observations and reports like the WMO update show that there is a need to rethink the present targets and strategies about climate change and to better implement adaptation and mitigation measures. Most importantly, developed countries should extend adequate financial and technical assistance to the developing countries to fight climate change. This is not being done, and even the aid committed is not being given to the developing countries.