The world population has been growing year after year, thus populating the planet.
For every inhabitant in the world in the years of Nero in the Roman Empire there are now 41. The world GDP also grew, thus improving the standard of living of the population;
Suffice it to say that in the 20th century world GDP multiplied no less than 19 times.
But the other side of this progressive evolution is the continuous increase in polluting emissions that are affecting all territories.
Before the Industrial Revolution, the harmful CO2 accumulated around the Earth reached 280 ppm, now it reaches 423 ppm.
This large increase is directly linked to the growing consumption of fossil fuels (coal, oil, gas) which are the protagonists of this serious increase in polluting emissions.
The rate of increase in these emissions has begun to decrease because the amount of energy associated with an increase in global GDP decreases.
This is partly explained by the growing importance of the generation of services compared to the production of goods and also technological advances.
At the same time, so-called non-polluting energies have begun to grow; this category includes hydraulic, nuclear, wind and solar energies.
There are already many nations, especially the most economically developed ones, where GDP has been growing but, at the same time, emissions are decreasing.
An example is the United States, where the current GDP is double that of 1990 but polluting emissions are 30% lower. Something similar has been happening in the industrialized countries grouped in the European Union.
An important case is China, which is by far the world's leading polluter.
China's GDP is already 14 times greater than in 1990, but its emissions grew less (5 times), something similar has been happening in India.
This is important because the total CO2 emissions generated by China, the United States, India, the European Union and Russia are 60 percent of global emissions.
The World Health Organization (WHO) expresses that climate change is the greatest threat to global health of the 21st century, expressing that health is and will be affected by climate changes through direct impacts (heat waves, droughts , severe storms and sea level rise) and indirect impacts (respiratory and vector-borne diseases, food and water insecurity, malnutrition and forced displacement).
Climate change exacerbates some health threats and creates new public health challenges.
Worldwide, an additional 250,000 deaths per year will occur in the coming decades as a result of climate change.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has confirmed that 2023 was the warmest year ever recorded.
The average annual temperature of the planet was on the verge of exceeding pre-industrial levels by 1.5 degrees. The WMO has confirmed that in 2023 the average annual temperature of the planet was 1.45 ± 0.12 °C above the pre-industrial levels (1850-1900
Sea surface temperatures were exceptionally high for much of the year, and pernicious marine heat waves of severe intensity occurred.
In Antarctica, sea ice extent was the lowest ever recorded for both the late summer minimum (in February) and the late winter maximum (in September).
These long-term changes in our climate manifest themselves daily in weather conditions.
In 2023, extreme heat affected people's health and helped fuel devastating forest fires, intense rains, floods, floods and tropical cyclones that rapidly intensified, leaving a trail of destruction, as well as significant economic losses.
“Climate change is the greatest challenge facing humanity.
No one escapes its consequences, and it especially affects the most vulnerable,” said Professor Saulo, Secretary General of the WMO.
“We cannot afford to wait any longer.
Although measures are already being taken, we have to do more and we have to do it quickly.
We must dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and accelerate the transition to renewable energy sources,” she declared.
Since the 1980s, each new decade has been warmer than the previous one.
The last nine years have been the warmest on record.
In 2023 we saw a preview of the future that awaits us if we do not act now.
We must respond to rising temperatures with innovative measures, said the Secretary-General of the United Nations: “we can still avoid the worst consequences of the climate catastrophe.
But only if we act immediately with the ambition necessary to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5 C,” Guterres declared.
We should not be surprised by these increases in global temperature that have been recorded for some time now, accompanying the increases in accumulated CO2 emissions that surround our Common Home.
At the current rate of increase in these emissions, we would cross the critical barrier of 450 ppm in less than 7 years.
There is no time to lose;
That is why it is essential that international agreements are implemented that are truly effective and that aim to take care of our Common Home.
Alieto Guadagni is former Secretary of Energy, member of the Argentine Academy of Environmental Sciences