IPCC Synthesis ReportPart V

• Summary and relationship to other environmental issues

Robert Watson

Agricultural practices are affecting the environment and environmental degradation

threatens food availability

Climate change and other environmental issues are inter-linked

Underlying causes of change

• The primary factors underlying environmental degradation include: economic growth, broad technological changes, demographic shifts and governance structures. These can give rise to: – Increased demand for natural resources and energy – Market imperfections, e.g., subsidies that lead to the inefficient use of

resources and act as a barrier to the market penetration of climate sound technologies; the lack of recognition of the true value of natural resources; failure to appropriate the global values of natural resources to the local level; and the failure to internalize the social costs of environmental degradation into the market price of a resource

– Limited availability and transfer of technology, inefficient use of technologies, and inadequate investment in research and development for the technologies of the future

– Failure to manage adequately the use of natural resources and energy

Climate Change is an Integral Element of Sustainable Development

Major Conclusions

• The Earth’s climate is warming -- human activities are primarily responsible -- further climate change is inevitable without actions to reduce GHG emissions

• Most socio-economic sectors, ecological systems and human health will be adversely affected by climate change, with developing countries being the most vulnerable

• Technologies are available to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but policies and measures are needed to realize the technological potential

Projected concentrations of CO2 during the 21st century are two to four times the pre-industrial level

(BP 1950)

Projected (2100)

Current (2001)

CO

2 C

on

ce

ntr

ati

on

(p

pm

v)

Projected levels of atmospheric CO2

during the next 100 years would be higher than at

anytime in the last 440,000 yrs

Projected Temperatures During the 21st Century Are Significantly Higher Than at Any Time During the Last 1000 Years

The Challenge: Sustainable Management of an Ever-Changing Planet