Climate change puts world at ‘tipping point’
WWF and Allianz climate report
If tipping points that are mainly triggered by rising global temperatures were unleashed, the world’s diverse regions and ecosystems would suffer from devastating environmental, social and economic changes, according to a new report by WWF and Allianz.
Current discussions consider global warming a process similar to a steady flow of water in our bathrooms and kitchens, where temperature goes up gradually, controlled by a turn of the tap. But the Major Tipping Points in the Earth’s Climate System and Consequences for the Insurance Sector states that warming of global temperatures is likely to take a much more unpredictable turn – one that could cost the world hundreds of billions.
If action is not taken immediately, sea level rise on the East Coast of the USA, the shift to an arid climate in California, disturbances of the Indian Summer Monsoon in India and Nepal or the dieback of the Amazon rainforest due to increasing drought, are likely to affect hundreds millions of people and cost hundreds of billions.
The study explores impacts of these “tipping points,” including their economic consequences and implications for the insurance sector. It also shows how close the world is to reaching “tipping points” in many regions of the world, or rises in temperature that will tip the scales toward disaster.
https://www.allianz.com/en/press/news/commitment_news/environment/news_2009-11-23.html
