World unlikely to limit temperature rise to 2C, warns climate scientist
1 year, 8 months ago

World unlikely to limit temperature rise to 2C, warns climate scientist

The Independent  

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A leading climate scientist has said he is “very pessimistic” about the world reducing emissions to limit the global average temperature to 2C above pre-industrial levels. We need to try and hold governments to start to act sensibly now and reduce emissions Professor Robert Watson, Tyndall Centre Many countries including the UK have made pledges to go net zero – balancing the amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere with those absorbed – but most are several decades away from achieving that. In response to a question about the economic impacts on people of cutting emissions rapidly, Prof Watson said: “It’s in their absolute best interest to tackle climate change, net zero by 2050, large reductions this decade. “We’ll see more floods, more sea level rises displacing people on coastal areas, lots of adverse health effects.” In a separate interview with the former BBC and now independent environment journalist Roger Harrabin, Prof Watson said current policies are “totally inadequate” and that world leaders had made a “terrible mistake” in prioritising inflation, the pandemic and the Ukraine war over the climate.

History of this topic

World in worse situation because of inaction, says UN climate science panel chief
2 weeks, 4 days ago
Is there any hope for Paris Agreement targets after 2024 record temperatures?
1 month, 2 weeks ago
Top climate scientist declares 2C climate goal 'dead'
1 month, 3 weeks ago
Earth is 'off-track' to limit global warming to 1.5°C, scientists warn - as satellites show a 'very large rise' in CO2 across the globe
2 months, 1 week ago
Planet crossed 1.5 degrees in 2024: A global climate wakeup call
2 months, 2 weeks ago
Hottest year on record sent planet past key target 1.5C of heating for first time in 2024
2 months, 2 weeks ago
Record hot 2024 was first year to break 1.5C warming threshold, scientists say
2 months, 2 weeks ago
Earth crossed this climate milestone in 2024. Effects will be visible in 2025
Trending News
2 months, 2 weeks ago
Last 2 years crossed 1.5°C global warming limit: EU monitor
2 months, 2 weeks ago
Earth records hottest ever year in 2024 and crosses key 1.5C threshold
2 months, 2 weeks ago
UN declares ‘decade of deadly heat’, calls for action against climate breakdown
Trending News
2 months, 4 weeks ago
Climate change led to 41 additional days of extreme heat in 2024: new report
3 months ago
What climate records were broken in 2024?
3 months ago
2024 on its way to being the hottest year ever, break record set in 2023
3 months, 2 weeks ago
Scientists sound alarm about terrifying ocean event that could bring global devastation
3 months, 3 weeks ago
CoP-29: Prospects of a climate breakthrough look extremely bleak
4 months, 2 weeks ago
World nears 1.5°C warming threshold, carbon budget dwindling
Trending News
4 months, 2 weeks ago
The world has ALREADY exceeded the critical 1.5°C warming threshold, study warns - and scientists say time is running out to curb climate change
4 months, 2 weeks ago
2024 set to be hottest year on record as temperatures breach 1.5C threshold
4 months, 2 weeks ago
Mint Primer: Your two-minute guide to COP29... and dystopia
4 months, 2 weeks ago
A shadow ‘financial crisis’ has cost the world $2 trillion
4 months, 2 weeks ago
Earth on track for hottest year in recorded history, passing critical 1.5º warming threshold
4 months, 2 weeks ago
European climate agency says this will likely be the hottest year on record — again
Trending News
4 months, 3 weeks ago
2024 'virtually certain' to be hottest year on record: EU climate agency
Trending News
4 months, 3 weeks ago
European climate agency says this will likely be the hottest year on record — again
4 months, 3 weeks ago
Year 2024 to be the first to breach 1.5C warming limit: EU climate agency
4 months, 3 weeks ago
The world is “miles short” of its target to limit climate change, UN reports
4 months, 4 weeks ago
World is on track for a ‘catastrophic’ rise in temperature, UN report says
5 months ago
Global warming will be TWICE as bad as predicted: Earth is on track for 'catastrophic' 3.1°C of warming this century, the UN warns
5 months ago
World on pace for significantly more warming without immediate climate action, report warns
5 months ago
How is the world doing on climate change? Not great
5 months ago
Climate Crisis: World Paying a Terrifying Price for Inaction, UN Warns
5 months ago
A new study unpacks the last 485 million years of Earth's temperature history
6 months ago
Researchers warn methane emissions ‘rising faster than ever’
6 months, 2 weeks ago
Watch: The Paris Agreement: countdown to 1.5°C
6 months, 3 weeks ago
Can we avoid 1.5º of global warming? Probably not and our best case scenario is 1.6º, scientists say
7 months, 1 week ago
UN chief calls for action to stem ‘extreme heat epidemic’
8 months ago
Global temperatures reach Paris Agreement target of 1.5C above average for 12 months in a row
8 months, 3 weeks ago
Nearly 5 billion people lived under extreme temperatures in June, study finds
9 months ago
New study finds Earth warming at record rate, but no evidence of climate change accelerating
9 months, 3 weeks ago
The long road ahead in the battle against global warming
10 months ago
Countries’ carbon removal plans not enough for 1.5C warming limit, study warns
10 months, 3 weeks ago
Data Munching | The numbers don’t lie: the Earth is warming, and rapidly
1 year, 1 month ago
UAE, Azerbaijan, Brazil join forces to limit global warming to 1.5C
1 year, 1 month ago
World breached 1.5° Celsius limit for entire year for first time: European climate agency
1 year, 1 month ago
First time world exceeds 1.5C warming limit over 12-month period
1 year, 1 month ago
2023 confirmed as hottest year ever as climate records ‘tumbling like dominoes’
1 year, 2 months ago
2023 becomes hottest year on record as earth nears warming limit
1 year, 2 months ago
How the climate crisis hit critical stage in 2023
1 year, 2 months ago
2023 declared hottest year on record as UN slams climate inaction
1 year, 3 months ago

Discover Related