NEW DELHI: Delivering a stark warning to the world, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made a surprising statement, when he said that after the end of the era of global warming, we have now entered what he called an "era of global boiling."
This alarming statement came even as scientists around the globe contend that July 2023 is likely to be declared as the hottest month that’s ever recorded in human history.
"Climate change is here. It is terrifying. And it is just the beginning," Guterres said, while emphasizing that although it is still possible to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, immediate and dramatic climate action would be required.
Global temperatures over the past three weeks have been the hottest since records were kept, shattering all previous records.
According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the EU's Copernicus Earth observation programme, this unprecedented heat has been attributed to the burning of fossil fuels and this has led to extreme weather patterns.
This July's scorching temperatures have been so extremely high that scientists are predicting that this month will be the warmest globally on record.
The WMO and Copernicus Climate Change Service announced Earth's temperature to have temporarily crossed the internationally accepted limit in increase of global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Although this limit has been crossed before, it has never happened in July.
The U.N. World Meteorological Organization (WMO) also stated on Thursday it was "extremely likely" that July 2023 would break all records, but preferred to wait until all finalised data was available.
Meanwhile, Guterres underlined the immediate need for fast political action to combat this escalating crisis. "Humanity is in the hot seat," he said. "For vast parts of North America, Asia, Africa, and Europe, it is a cruel summer. For the entire planet, it is a disaster. And for scientists, it is unequivocal – humans are to blame."
He slammed the unacceptable levels profits from fossil fuel and inaction on climate, urging leaders not to delay in taking decisive steps.
"The air is unbreathable, the heat is unbearable, and the level of fossil fuel profits and climate inaction is unacceptable. Leaders must lead. No more hesitancy, no more excuses, no more waiting for others to move first. There is simply no more time for that," Guterres said.
Despite a little progress achieved like in the robust rollout of renewables and positive steps taken in sectors like shipping, Guterres stressed that these efforts are not achieving much or fast enough.
As the world continues to come to terms with the devastating impacts of climate change, the call for immediate and dramatic action has never been more urgent.
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