Scientists, govts meet on "most important document" on climate change
Scientists and officials are meeting in Denmark to edit what is being touted as the “most important document” on climate change.
The IPCC Synthesis Report will summarise the causes and impacts of – and solutions to – rising temperatures.
It will be the bedrock of talks on a new global climate deal.
But there are concerns that political battles could compromise the final summary.
Over the past 13 months, the IPCC has released three major reports on the physical science, the impacts and the potential methods of dealing with climate change.
On Sunday they will release the Synthesis Report. This new study is meant to take the most important elements of all three and blend them into something new. The UN hopes to deliver a new global treaty on climate change at a meeting in Paris at the end of 2015. The IPCC Synthesis Report will, in the eyes of many, play a critical role in that.
The authors reiterate that each of the last three decades has been successively warmer at the Earth’s surface than any preceding decade since 1850.
Responsibility and impact
A major point of contention between the developed and developing world is the question of responsibility and impact.
Essentially poorer nations would like the language of the document to reflect the fact that they didn’t cause this problem but they will suffer the most from rising temperatures.
“We are not all facing the same situation,” according to Sanjay Vashist from the campaign group Climate Action Network.
“The IPCC has already predicted above 2 degrees C for South Asia, that means the disasters will be more threatening compared to other regions.
“Even if you tweak the scientific findings, it doesn’t change that reality and the reality is we are facing a bleak future in absence of any ambition on mitigation and that needs to be addressed.”
There is some sense that the voices of developing countries have been getting stronger over the past 13 months as the IPCC has worked through the three reports.
Credit: BBC
