(MENAFN- Emirates News Agency (WAM)) ABU DHABI, 10th August, 2021 (WAM) -- "This is one report that the world could have done without during the pandemic. But a delay in releasing it would have meant massive destruction sooner than previously forecast by scientists," noted a local English-language daily about the UN report on climate change.
"Monday's report by 234 scientists was indeed a bombshell. The warning signs are there if one looks at floods in Europe and Asia. All three scenarios predicted by a United Nations report on the climate point to extreme weather where heat waves, drought and floods would hit the world in rapid succession," Khaleej Times said in its editorial on Tuesday.
The daily said that the Paris Agreement had planned to cap temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, but those measures have proved ineffective, though the pandemic has slowed down development and emissions. Travel has been curbed due to a health crisis and industry has been hit, but a revival is expected by next year. There appears to be no escape as we lurch from one crisis to another.
"Countries must, therefore, collectively find solutions to weather the climatic storms that are rapidly closing in on us," it explained.
"It is just guaranteed that it's going to get worse," said Linda Mearns, a senior climate scientist at the US National Centre for Atmospheric Research, who co-authored the report. "Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide," she said. "We are already witnessing rising seas and melting ice caps. Storms and cyclones are getting more fierce as they advance. Greenhouse gas emissions are to blame with carbon and methane being the main culprits.
"We will not mince words here: These are doomsday scenarios. A shift in global climate policy is, therefore, critical and immediate action is called for. And who is supposed to enforce these measures to prevent global warming."
The editorial continued, "Global institutions have been less than convincing during the pandemic. The United Nations is a toothless body that lacks enforcement powers. The World Health Organisation is battling a credibility crisis during the pandemic as countries scramble to get their populations vaccinated before the next wave.
"Meanwhile, information is being used as a weapon of war on the Web and social media by organisations and even countries. Climate sceptics abound, and COVID-19 anti-vaxxers are disseminating fake news at will. The current health crisis is our immediate concern; heat and climate tragedies are viewed as random phenomena.
"But thousands are dying from flooding and droughts, and millions have been displaced. Homes have been washed away and livelihoods are in peril as poverty stalks. Sadly, governments prioritise in these situations, and the immediate concern is the pandemic, a global tragedy that has destroyed billions of lives and livelihoods."
The Dubai-based daily concluded by saying, "Leaders realise they don't have time to catch their breath. However, there is hope. If Big Governments can collaborate with Big Pharma to produce life-saving vaccines within a year, they can also find ways to prevent a global climate catastrophe in record time."
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