Experts have warned that there could be global warming of 4C by the end of the 21st century despite pledges made at the COP26 climate summit.
The experts from the University of Exeter and the Met Office analysed worldwide policies and found that the Paris Agreement’s aim of limiting warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels is slipping out of reach.
Professor Richard Betts who led the research said that the agreements which were made at COP26 in Glasgow “have reduced the likelihood” of warming reaching 4C “but it remains possible”.
Betts noted that If this happens, the number of heat-related deaths in the UK is projected to increase from 2,000 a year at the moment to 7,200 by the 2050s and 12,800 by the 2080s.
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The report, which informed the government’s Third UK Climate Change Risk Assessment, concluded that climate change is already bringing substantial risks to Britain’s natural environment, infrastructure, human health, communities and businesses.
“This will further increase the shifts in weather patterns and extremes, further increasing risks to people and biodiversity, with higher warming leading to greater risks.
The report also had it that projections consistent with policies currently in place worldwide imply warming of between approximately 2C and 5C by the end of this century depending on the rate of greenhouse gas emissions and the response of the climate system to these emissions.
The report called for the UK to take more action to prepare for these impacts.
