Climate scientists call for global response

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) would adopt and present a Synthesis of the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) marking a pivotal moment in the fight against climate change,

The report was a consensus reached on the latest authoritative science behind climate change impacts, risks and opportunities for response, which was made available to the Ghana News Agency by the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP).

This comes weeks ahead of the UNFCCC climate talks in Lima, where negotiators will endeavor to broker an ambitious post-2015 climate agreement.

The report offers conclusive scientific evidence that human activities continue to cause unprecedented changes in the Earth’s climate with the conclusion that we need to elevate the level of political commitment and action, if we are to avoid the impacts of climate change.

Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director said, “The latest IPCC report has provided us with not only with the latest climate science and data but also with a better understanding of the best options for action. The IPCC thus represents the foundation and a compass for the negotiations at Lima this December and Paris in 2015.”

“UNEP together with the IPCC and the scientific community recognize that knowledge gaps remain and that further research is needed. But the empirical evidence is not only sufficient to judge the risks of inaction; it is also compelling in terms of the many co-benefits of acting now to maintain a reasonable chance of limiting global warming to below 2°C,” he added.

Building on AR5 scenarios, UNEP’s soon-to-be launched 2014 Emissions Gap Report focuses on the global carbon emissions budget for staying within the 2°C limit while updating the near-term emissions gap situation. It will send another strong message on the need for urgent action and that every year counts.

It said inaction now in curbing greenhouse gas emissions will require costlier interventions later to keep global temperature rise below 2°C this century. If the necessary action is not taken, adaptation costs for Africa alone could reach $50 billion per year by 2050.

The proposed post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals underscore the multiple synergies between development goals and climate change mitigation.

For example, efforts to eradicate energy poverty and promote universal access to cleaner forms of energy, if fully realized, would, along with the goals for increased energy efficiency and utilization of renewable energy sources, go a long way toward bringing the world back on a path that is consistent with the Climate Convention’s 2°C target.

UNEP’s work on ecosystems-based adaptation shows that the response to climate change is not only a challenge and a cost, but is also an opportunity to move towards a more inclusive green economy in which measures deliver both immediate benefits in terms of reducing emissions and multiple benefits in improvements in public health, energy efficiency, food security and the ability to invest in mitigation measures while adapting to climate impacts and building long-term resilience.

Linking development with climate mitigation will help developing countries positively “lock-in” to an energy efficient, low-emissions infrastructure for the coming decades.

However, barriers need to be overcome before emissions reduction options achieve full potential, most notable among those is the lack of adequate, large-scale financial incentives.

The report said there is evidence, nonetheless, that significant public and private investments are beginning to flow into energy efficiency; up to $365 billion in 2012, with $254 billion entering the renewable energy sector in the same year.