Special Report

26 Climate Crisis Disasters That Will Get Worse If We Do Nothing

In September, the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was released, highlighting the importance of acting to lower global climate emissions and keep global temperature to below 1.5 C above preindustrial levels. Today, average temperatures have already risen by about 1.0 C.

The report notes that even if the global community immediately and drastically reduces greenhouse gas emissions, the locked-in long-term effects of climate change will be dire. For example, the IPCC predicts that “extreme sea level events,” which once only occurred every 100 years, will become annual events by 2050.

Depending on whether global temperatures increase by 1.5 C and 2.0 C the difference in outcomes could be extreme, according to the IPCC. The half degree difference could result in more ice loss, sea level rise, species extinction, and severe changes in weather. Here are 20 places where weather is getting worse because of climate change.

Climate scientists agree that global carbon emissions largely impact climate change. They project different scenarios depending on the amount and rate at which emissions will fall, remain the same, or increase.

The “business-as-usual” scenario, referred to as RCP8.5, considers no change in the world’s greenhouse gases emissions. Under this scenario, some climate scientists estimate that temperatures would rise by over 4.0 C over preindustrial levels by the end of the century. Some anticipate even higher temperature increases. The consequences of such an increase would likely be disastrous to humanity.

Click here to see 26 disaster scenarios caused by climate change.

24/7 Wall St. consulted reports by groups such as the IPCC, NASA, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association, the U.S. Global Change Research Program, and more to identify the potential effects of global climate change on the Earth and its inhabitants. Many of these predictions are based on average global temperature increases of at least 4 C above preindustrial levels by 2100. Even if we manage to avoid the worst-case scenarios, many serious consequences of climate change are already being seen and felt around the world. Here are 27 effects of climate change that can’t be stopped.

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