Several key metrices of planet Earth have already crossed the tipping points, according to a new study part of a project signed by over 13,900 scientists from 153 countries.
The west Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets, warm-water coral reefs and the Amazon rainforest were particularly highlighted in the analysis for the record deterioration of their conditions.In 2019, more than 11,000 scientist signatories talked about the need for declaring a climate emergency. They emphasised that conservation endeavours have to be scaled up immensely to avoid unprecedented suffering due to the climate crisis.
Now, as many as 18 of the 31 vital signs / variables that the researchers tracked reached new most-dangerous levels, according to the paper published July 28, 2021 in the journal Bioscience.
Ruminant world livestock numbers soared past 4 billion for the first time and exceeded mass of all humans and wild animals combined, the authors observed. This rise in numbers means a rise in deforestation as forests are cut to make way for agricultural land and livestock ranches.
Annual forest loss at the Brazilian Amazon reached a 12-year-high of 1.11 million hectares destroyed between 2019 and 2020. Forest degradation due to fires, drought, logging and fragmentation has transformed the region to act as a carbon source rather than a carbon sink, according to a paper published in Nature in April this year.
The global emissions-weighted average price per tonne of carbon dioxide has remained too low ($15.49 as of 2020). This will need to increase several times to be highly effective in curbing fossil fuel use, according to the new study - Down to Earth - link - Susan Chacko - link
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