United nations: Earth will cross the dangerous threshold of global warming by 2030. The United Nations announced that keeping global warming within 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels is now impossible, with this limit expected to be exceeded in the coming years, and this threshold will be crossed by 2030.
According to National Iraqi News Agency, the Earth’s temperature is currently about 1.4 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The consequences are evident in many regions, where drought threatens agricultural crops, forest fires are increasing in southern Europe, glaciers are melting at an accelerated rate, and the ocean is recording new record temperatures. Adding to this is the El Ni±o phenomenon, a natural phenomenon that temporarily raises temperatures and exacerbates these risks.
The report added: “The greatest danger lies in the emergence of tipping points, including the melting of the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica, the disruption of Atlantic Ocean currents, and the transformation of the Amazon rainforest from the ‘lungs of the planet’ into a carbon sink. These processes may be irreversible. Pacific island nations are particularly vulnerable.”
He pointed out that “opportunities still exist. If fossil fuels are rapidly phased out, the temperature could, according to experts, peak at around 1.8 degrees Celsius before beginning to decline. To achieve this, emissions must be reduced, ecosystems restored, and technologies developed to absorb carbon dioxide from the air.” He explained that “this will not only require reducing emissions to zero by 2050, but will also necessitate extracting one gigaton of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The proposed methods include natural means, such as reforestation and nature restoration, and technological ones, such as rock weathering and ocean alkalinization.”
The report continued, “The Paris Agreement has achieved some results. Whereas the world was previously heading towards a temperature increase of 3.6 degrees Celsius by 2100, the current trajectory indicates an increase of around 2.6 degrees Celsius. Recent years have witnessed a tremendous boom in solar energy and electric transportation.” While it took 70 years to install the first terawatt of solar power capacity, the third terawatt was installed in just two years.
He concluded: “Global emissions have now reached a plateau, but have not yet begun to decline. The climate crisis requires immediate and collective action.”