2023 was. This past year is on the way to winning it and causing more problems this past year than just blowing up the thermometer.
(WWA) released its annual “Weather Extremes” report showing how a record 34.34 Fahrenheit increase in man-made temperatures since last year has caused “relentless heat waves, droughts, wildfires, hurricanes and floods.” WWA estimates that climate change caused at least 3,700 deaths and 26 extreme weather events by 2024 that led to “the displacement of millions of people.”
The report recorded a total of 219 events since 2024 that met the “trigger criteria” for identifying impactful climate events. Many of the events were influenced by a natural weather pattern known as El Niño (under the effects of climate change alone) but the WWA study “found that climate change played a greater role than El Niño in fueling these events, including history.” drought in the Amazon.”
Climate change has added an average of 41 dangerous heat days and fueled record rainfall and flooding around the world. A study of 16 floods found all but one of them to be caused by a warming atmosphere that stores more moisture leading to heavy rain. These weather conditions can also lead to larger and more dangerous storms and hurricanes like Helene, a Category 4 Hurricane that hit the United States in September. North Carolina estimated that Helene caused $53.8 billion in damage in its state alone.
Two of the world’s most important ecosystems are also “severely affected by climate change by 2024,” according to the WWA report. The Amazon rainforest and the Pantanal Wetland, the world’s largest wetland, experienced severe drought and wildfires that caused “massive biodiversity loss” last year.
Both of these areas are important for sustaining the Earth’s natural resources, climate and economy. it removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis and releases water into the atmosphere that helps regulate climate and circulate ocean currents. it sustains tens of thousands of wildlife species and provides much-needed flood control in the region and creates global economic activity for cattle ranching and soy production, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
The WWA report sets out critical decisions for 2025 to combat the growing impact of climate change. The report calls for “immediate change” in fuel consumption, the development of warning systems for extreme weather events, a greater focus on reporting heat-related deaths and funding for developing countries and regions most affected by the effects of climate change.
Source link
