Question

Read the New York Times Article: Major Climate Report Describes a Strong Risk of Crisis as Early as 2040, then answer the questions below.

1. What were the main conclusions of this climate report? What about this report was shocking?

2. What consequences are we likely to face by 2040 if changes are not made?

3. What needs to happen in order to prevent a dangerous level of warming?

4. What is a possible scenario if governments fail to avert 2.7 degrees of warming but are able to bring temperatures back down after reaching 3.6 degrees of warming?

5. What can you, as an individual, do to help avert climate change?

Answer 1

1. The report points at the immediate consequences of climate change and says that avoiding the damage requires transforming the world economy at a speed and scale that has “no documented historic precedent.” What’s shocking is that it describes a world of aggravating food shortages and wildfires, and a mass die-off of coral reefs as soon as 2040 — a period well within the lifetime of much of the global population.

2. Along with the consequences mentioned above, if greenhouse gas emissions carry on at the current rate, the atmosphere will warm up by as much as 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 degrees Celsius) above preindustrial levels by 2040, overpowering coastlines and escalating droughts and poverty.

3. As per the report, in order to prevent 2.7 degrees of warming, greenhouse pollution must be reduced by 45 percent from 2010 levels by 2030, and 100 percent by 2050. It also discovered that, by 2050, use of coal as an electricity source would have to drop from approximately 40 percent today to between 1 and 7 percent. Renewable energy like wind and solar, which make up about 20 percent of the electricity mix today, would have to elevate to as much as 67 percent.

4. In that scenario, the report has found that some damage would be irreversible. All coral reefs would lose their lives. However, the sea ice that would disappear in the hotter scenario would come back once temperatures had cooled off.

5. Personally, I can help avert climate change in these ways: wasting less food, consuming less energy and water, volunteering for a non-profit organization that focuses on helping the environment, and spreading the word and informing the world about the dangers of climate change.