By Kim Jae-heun
Scholars from around the world have called for urgent action to limit the global average temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, saying a 2-degree rise will cause global catastrophe.
The 195 member countries of the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) adopted its special report on limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees, Monday, after its 48th session held in Songdo, Incheon.
The goal is 0.5 degrees down from the original goal agreed to during the Paris pact in 2015.
According to the report, if global warming continues between 2030 and 2052 at the current pace, temperatures are likely to rise by 1.5 degrees from the level in the mid-1800s when massive amounts of carbon dioxide began to be discharged during industrialization.
The average temperature has already risen by 1 degree compared to the industrialization era, and the speed of the temperature rise has hastened recently to increase 0.2 degrees every 10 years.
“One of the key messages that comes out very strongly from this report is that we are already seeing the consequences of 1 degree Celsius of global warming through more extreme weather, rising sea levels and diminishing Arctic sea ice, among other changes,” said Panmao Zhai, co-chair of IPCC Working Group I.
If global warming is limited to 1.5 degrees down from 2 degrees or more, a number of climate change impacts can be avoided, the scientist said.
For example, the sea level rise will be 10 centimeters lower when the world warms by 1.5 degrees compared with 2 degrees by 2100 ― which is expected to save 10 million lives around the world.
However, the IPCC said the world requires “rapid and far-reaching” transitions in all sectors of society to meet the 1.5-degree limit, such as drastically cutting carbon dioxide emissions and increasing the use of renewable energy sources.
“This report gives policymakers and practitioners the information they need to make decisions that tackle climate change while considering local contexts and people's needs. The next few years are probably the most important in our history,” said Debra Roberts, co-chair of IPCC Working Group II.