The number of natural disasters caused by climate change, such as floods and heat waves, has quadrupled over the past 40 years, killing more than two million people and costing various governments $ 3.64 trillion.
This was stated by the UN agency today (Wednesday).
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has published a comprehensive report reviewing some 11,000 disasters that occurred between 2019 and 1970, including major disasters such as the 1983 Ethiopian drought, which was the deadliest event with 300,000 dead, and Hurricane Katrina in 2005 the most costly. , With a cost of damages of $ 163.6 billion.
At 240 mph: Hurricane Ida hit New Orleans // Photo: Reuters
The report, released a few days after Hurricane "Ida" hit southern Louisiana, attributed the growing frequency of natural disasters to both climate change and rising disaster reports. "They are that the economic losses have grown very fast and this is a trend that will continue," said the organization's member, General Petri Tallas.
He added that "we are going to see more and more extreme weather in the coming years, this is due to climate change. This negative trend will continue in the coming decades," he said.
Country in flames: Greece's fire does not subside, 586 fires per week // Photo: Reuters
The report also showed an accelerating trend in the number and extent of natural disasters, with the number of incidents increasing fivefold from the 1970s to the last decade. This is another sign that extreme weather events are becoming more frequent due to global warming. Damage costs have also risen - $ In the 1970s to $ 1.38 trillion in the last decade, after storms like Harvey, Maria and Irma hit the United States.
But while the risks became more expensive and frequent, the annual death toll dropped.
From 50,000 deaths in the 1970s to about 18,000 in the 1920s, which suggests better planning pays off.
The WMO hopes the report, which provides detailed regional details, will be used to help governments develop policies to better protect people.
People evacuated from their homes due to the floods // Photo: Photo: AFP,
Meanwhile, a report released today by the BGCI, the International Botanical Society, found that nearly a third of the world's tree species are endangered. While of 440 species less than 50 individuals remained in the wild.
In total the number of endangered tree species is double the number of mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles threatened together.
Among the trees at risk are species that include magnolias and diprocarps - common in the rainforests of Southeast Asia.
Oak and maple trees are also under threat, according to the report.
Fire in the rainforests in Brazil - the green lung and the main oxygen supplier of the earth // Photo: AFP,
"The report is a wake-up call for humanity around the world, the trees need help," BGCI secretary general Paul Smith said in a statement.
"Every type of tree matters - to the millions of other tree-dependent species, and to people all over the world," he added.
As is well known, trees help support the natural ecosystem and are considered essential for the fight against global warming and climate change.
The extinction of a single tree species can result in the loss of many others.
Thousands of tree species in the world's six leading species in tree species are at risk of extinction, the report said. The largest number is in Brazil, where 1,788 species are at risk. The other five countries are Indonesia, Malaysia, China, Colombia and Venezuela.
The three immediate threats to tree species are crop production, deforestation and animal husbandry, the report said, while climate change and extreme weather are broader threats. At least 180 species of trees are directly threatened sea level rise and severe weather, it said. In the report, especially species that grow on islands such as the magnolias in the Caribbean.
