COVID 19 AND CLIMATE CHANGE

UN report: Covid crisis does little to slow climate change.

Wildfires are being linked to climate change in many parts of the world

• The global response to Covid-19 has barely made a dent in the causes of climate change, according to a major new report.
• While emissions of CO2 plummeted during lockdown, concentrations of the long-lasting gas have continued to rise in the atmosphere.
• The period from 2016 to 2020 will likely be the warmest five years on record, the study finds.
• The study from many organizations shows that global lockdowns had a significant and immediate impact on emissions of greenhouse gases, with daily levels in April 2020 falling by 17% compared with 2019.
• This report shows that whilst many aspects of our lives have been disrupted in 2020, climate change has continued unabated.
• The report highlights the growing gap between the action that's needed to keep under temperature thresholds and the reality of efforts to cut emissions.
• The study says that by 2030, the world would need to cut the combined emissions of the top six carbon-producing countries to have a reasonable chance of staying below the 1.5C "guard rail".

"Never before has it been so clear that we need long-term, inclusive, clean transitions to tackle the climate crisis and achieve sustainable development," said UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, in a foreword to the report.