Diffusing the Climate Change Time Bomb

According to a new United Nations report, there are multiple, feasible and effective options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to human-caused climate change. Details are discussed by scientists in the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report.

Global temperatures are likely to surge to record levels in the next five years, fueled by heat-trapping greenhouse gases and a naturally occurring El Niño. According to the World Meteorological Organization, there is a 66% likelihood that the annual average near-surface global temperature between 2023 and 2027 will be more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels for at least one year. There is a 98% likelihood that at least one of the next five years, and the five-year period as a whole, will be the warmest on record. The Paris Agreement refers to the 1.5°C threshold for long-term warming over many years. This report predicts the level will be breached temporarily, with increasing frequency, but not permanently.