IPCC report on impacts of climate change
The second of three reports from the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has concluded that climate change will have significant impacts on the environment including increased water stress and a widening threat of extinction.The second of three reports from the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has concluded that climate change will have a significant impact on the environment.
The report, focusing on impacts, adaptation and vulnerability to climate change identifies changes that have already taken place and predicts the effects of projected changes.
The report concludes that climate change could cause:
- Between 75 and 250 million people in Africa to face increased water stress by 2020.
- Approximately 20-30% of plant and animal species to be at increased risk of extinction.
- The overall ecosystem to lose some of its ability to take up carbon, thus amplifying the effect of climate change.
- Crop yields to increase slightly in higher latitudes, but to decrease in lower latitudes, particularly in seasonally dry and tropical regions.
Anne Lauvergeon, CEO of Areva and co-chair of the World Business Council of Sustainable Development's Energy and Climate focus area said "The world has reached an unsustainable trend in greenhouse gas emissions, so we now need to take action to decarbonize as much as possible the world's energy mix. Resources are to be used more efficiently at the same time as we meet growing energy needs."
The IPCC have three Working Groups producing reports for its Fourth Assessment Report. The first Working Group's report, issued in February, identified the scientific evidence for climate change. The third group's report will be published in May. This will examine what actions are possible to mitigate climate change. This will include comment on the role of nuclear energy as a low carbon form of generation.
Further information
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
World Business Council for Sustainable Development
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