Choices made now are critical for future of our ocean, cryosphere

(IPCC, MONACO, Sept 25) – The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report highlights the urgency of prioritising timely, ambitious and coordinated action to address unprecedented and enduring changes in the ocean and cryosphere.

The report reveals the benefits of ambitious and effective adaptation for sustainable development and, conversely, the escalating costs and risks of delayed action.

The ocean and the cryosphere – the frozen parts of the planet – play a critical role for life on Earth. A total of 670 million people in high mountain regions and 680 million people in low-lying coastal zones depend directly on these systems. Four million people live permanently in the Arctic region, and small island developing states are home to 65 million people.

The #Commonwealth Secretariat’s Head of Ocean and Natural Resources (#CommonwealthONR) @nmco2 spoke at the @OA_Alliance meeting of #Ocean and Climate leaders: ‘Blue Charter is moving commitments into action by addressing the implementation gap’ #BlueCharter #UNGA pic.twitter.com/YP7oXeluGQ

— The Commonwealth (@commonwealthsec) September 25, 2019

Global warming has already reached 1°C above the pre-industrial level, due to past and current greenhouse gas emissions. There is overwhelming evidence that this is resulting in profound consequences for ecosystems and people. The ocean is warmer, more acidic and less productive. Melting glaciers and ice sheets are causing sea level rise, and coastal extreme events are becoming more severe.

The IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate, approved on 24 September 2019 by the 195 IPCC member governments, provides new evidence for the benefits of limiting global warming to the lowest possible level – in line with the goal that governments set themselves in the 2015 Paris Agreement. Urgently reducing greenhouse gas emissions limits the scale of ocean and cryosphere changes. Ecosystems and the livelihoods that depend on them can be preserved.

Read more at: IPCC

Source: CARICOM TODAY