Another warning on climate change as UN Climate Action Summit opens in NY
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Ahead of Monday’s United Nations Climate Action Summit, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said that signs and impacts of global heating are speeding up.
The data, compiled by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), says the five-year period from 2014 to 2019 is the warmest on record.
Sea-level rise has accelerated significantly over the same period, as CO2 emissions have hit new highs.
The WMO says carbon-cutting efforts have to be intensified immediately.
The gathering in New York is an attempt to kick-start the global campaign against climate change.
In two sessions, roughly 60 world leaders will announce concrete steps they will take to tackle global warming.
Among the speakers: France’s President Emmanuel Macron and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The UN is denying the spotlight to countries who are not making commitments bold enough to reach the goals set in the Paris Climate Agreement.
“Don’t come to the summit with beautiful speeches,” UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said at a press conference in August. “Come with concrete plans.”
At the end of August, young climate activist Greta Thunberg had made headlines by sailing from the UK to New York City on a zero emissions yacht. She attended the Climate Strike in New York on Friday and spoke at the afternoon rally in Battery Park.
The WMO report also highlights the threats to the oceans, with more than 90% of the excess heat caused by climate change ending up in the waters. The WMO analysis says 2018 had the highest ocean heat content values on record.
