‘Drop in gas emissions not enough to fix climate crisis’ Says World Meteorological Organization

Geneva: A drop in greenhouse gas emissions because of the coronavirus pandemic will not be enough to reverse the climate crisis, the World Meteorological Organization warned on Wednesday.

The five-year period from 2015 to 2019 was the warmest on record, with a global average temperature 1.1 degree C higher than in the pre-industrial era, the WMO said in a report released on Earth Day, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this year, Efe news reported. Despite a likely reduction in emissions during the Covid-19 outbreak, the WMO warned that it would only be temporary and that the health emergency would exacerbate problems for people affected by climate disasters.

WMO secretary-general Petteri Taalas said: “Extreme weather has increased, and it will not go away because of the coronavirus.

“On the contrary, the pandemic exacerbates the challenge of evacuating people and keeping them safe from tropical cyclones, as we saw with Category-5 strength Harold in the South Pacific. “And there is a risk that over-stretched health systems may not be able to cope with an additional burden of patients due to, for example, heatwaves.”. (IANS)

Also Read: Ozone Layer Recovery on Track, World Safer Than in 1980s

Also Watch: Hagrama Mohilary organizes a press-meet on Coronavirus situation and distribution of Rations