A group of leading climate scientists has issued a stark warning that global warming is increasing at an “unprecedented rate” and that the pace and scale of climate action has been insufficient. According to the scientists, human-induced warming is now increasing at a pace of over 0.2°C per decade, and greenhouse gas emissions are at an all-time high. The findings come as climate experts meet in preparation for COP28, a major climate conference to be held in the UAE in December.
The scientists have launched an open data, open science platform called the Indicators of Global Climate Change and website. The platform will update information on key climate indicators annually to provide up-to-date and robust scientific evidence for decision-making. It will provide the latest information on average temperatures, greenhouse gas emissions, and concentrations of greenhouse gases. The researchers hope that policymakers and negotiators will be able to access more up-to-date information on climate change when making key decisions.
One of the major findings of the research is that the world is entering a critical period in terms of its attempts to halt global heating. The scientists warn that the amount of carbon dioxide that can still be added to the atmosphere – known as the carbon budget – before warming of more than 1.5C is to be avoided is running out fast. Carbon budgets have fallen from 500 billion tonnes to 250 billion tonnes, with current rates of greenhouse gas emissions meaning that the budget will be exhausted before 2030.
The report’s lead author, Professor Piers Forster of Leeds University, states that the critical decade for avoiding catastrophic climate change is now upon us. Governments are currently meeting at COP28 in Bonn to prepare for a major UN climate summit in November.
The scientists behind the Indicators of Global Climate Change platform stress the importance of being “nimble footed” and adjusting policy as quickly as possible in the face of rising temperatures. They have launched the platform to bridge the information gap created by the five-to-ten-year turnaround time of major IPCC assessments. The platform will enable scientists to base decisions on the latest and most robust evidence.
The research has also found that a group of wealthy countries, led by the UK, the US, Germany, Japan, and Russia, should pay $6.5tn to poorer nations that have yet to use their fair share of the global carbon budget but which must now transition to low-carbon economies. The proposed compensation measure, called the Equitable Access to Sustainable Development scenario, would assess how 168 countries have either overused or underused their fair share of the global carbon budget since 1960 based on population size. The study found that poorer nations, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa and India, would have to sacrifice over 75% of their fair share of the budget.
In conclusion, the scientists’ report presents a grim picture of the current state of global warming. The report’s findings should serve as a wake-up call to decision-makers around the world that urgent action is needed to stop the world from passing the point of no return. The Indicators of Global Climate Change platform can provide policymakers and negotiators with the latest information to enable them to make informed decisions that consider the long-term global implications of their actions.