Only seven years left for global warming target: UN panel chief
The head of the UN’s Nobel-winning panel of climate scientists on Friday said only seven years remained for stabilising emissions of global-warming gases at a level widely considered safe.
Rajendra Pachauri, chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), delivered the bleak warning at a gathering of European Union ministers where he pleaded with the EU to take the lead in global talks on tackling climate change.
The UN negotiations “must progress rapidly, otherwise I am afraid that not only future generations but even this generation will treat us as having been irresponsible,” said Pachauri.
“The EU has to lead. If the EU does not lead, I am afraid that any attempt to bring about change and to manage the problem of climate change will collapse,” said Pachauri.
“Today there is a high level of expectation. If the EU does not lead, you will not be able to bring the US on board, North America, on board. You will not be able to bring on board other countries in the world as well.”
Pachauri said the IPCC’s Fourth Assessment Report — which helped earn the panel the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize alongside US climate campaigner Al Gore — had dispelled any doubts about human impact on the climate system.
He issued a stark warning that time was running out for dealing with the threat.
In the 20th century, the temperature had already risen on average by 0.74 degrees Celsius (1.32 degrees Fahrenheit), he said.
The EU wants to limit the overall warming since pre-industrial times to 2 C (3.6 F), a goal that is shared by many scientists.
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