Climate change will lead to devastating consequences, including rising global temperatures, more extreme weather events, and altered ecosystems. A 1°C temperature increase has already been recorded over the past 40 years, and a 4°C increase by the end of the century is predicted. This will result in:
* More frequent and severe heatwaves, killing thousands of people and affecting agriculture and infrastructure.
* Changes in the water cycle, leading to floods in some areas and droughts in others.
* Sea-level rise, causing coastal flooding and affecting millions of people.
* Melting glaciers, impacting water sources and affecting agriculture.
* Disruption to ecosystems, including coral reefs, and the migration of animal and plant species.
* Increased risk of hurricanes, wildfires, and water scarcity.
To mitigate these consequences, it is essential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as quickly as possible. The speaker emphasizes that every tenth of a degree will have significant consequences for millions of people, and adaptation will be challenging for many populations.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. The overall temperature of the planet has risen by 1°C within 40 years.
2. The average temperature is a mathematical construction, representing the average air temperature close to the surface for the whole planet.
3. The continents heat up faster than the oceans.
4. The Arctic region is more greatly affected by temperature rise than Africa.
5. In some small zones, the average temperature has fallen.
6. Climate change threatens infrastructure, agriculture, and human life.
7. Heatwaves can kill, and the 2003 heatwave in Europe resulted in 70,000 deaths.
8. The human body needs water to sweat and cool down, and high humidity can prevent sweat from evaporating.
9. In a 35°C environment with high humidity, a human being can die within a few hours.
10. Researchers have developed a curve to predict the conditions that lead to excess deaths due to heat.
11. The conditions on the right side of the curve almost always lead to excess deaths.
12. Climate change affects the water cycle, leading to more rainfall in some regions and droughts in others.
13. The increase in rainfall can lead to floods, which can kill and affect infrastructure and agriculture.
14. In dry regions, evaporation will increase, but the low quantity of water available will not be enough to form clouds and cause rain.
15. This will lead to an aridification of these zones in dry spells.
16. Climate change will have major impacts on agriculture, particularly in regions where over half of the river flow depends on ice melt.
17. Melting glaciers contribute to sea-level rise and the expansion of oceans.
18. Sea-level rise will fall within several tens of centimeters and up to one meter by 2100 and will continue to rise.
19. Some territories risk being engulfed by water, and coastal flooding will become more frequent.
20. Tens of millions of people will be affected by coastal flooding by the end of the century if no measures are taken.
21. Small island nations and coastal zones are among the worst-affected areas.
22. The warming of water and atmosphere will influence hurricanes, leading to an increase in violent hurricanes.
23. Climate change adds pressure to ecosystems, particularly coral reefs, which risk extinction due to ocean temperature rise and acidification.
24. Coral reefs harbor a wealth of biodiversity and provide means of subsistence to millions of people.
25. Animal and plant species will try to adapt to climate change by migrating to the poles, but this will have negative consequences, such as the migration of mosquitoes causing additional deaths due to malaria.
26. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the migration of mosquitoes will cause 60,000 additional deaths due to malaria each year from 2030.
27. The list of consequences is not exhaustive, but it helps understand the scope of the problem.
28. The zones concerned, particularly the populations, are numerous, and adaptation to these consequences will be challenging.
29. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions as quickly as possible is the one thing that can be done to limit the consequences of climate change.