A stark summary of the Stern Report on CO2 and Climate Chaos
November 11, 2006 11:59 AM
Before the Industrial Revolution, which began in Britain in about 1780, the atmospheric level of carbon dioxide (the principal greenhouse gas) stood at 280 parts per million by volume (ppm). The level today is 382 ppm.
£200bn, or 1% of global GDP, must be spent every year to get carbon dioxide levels to 'stabilise' at 550 ppm. This figure will rise as world GDP increases, and could be three times as large by 2050.
40% of the worlds's species would face extinction if temperatures rose by 2C
200 million people are at risk of being driven from their homes by flood or drought by 2050
6C is a 'plausible' estimate of how much world temperatures could rise by the end of the century if greenhouse gas emissions are unchecked.
60 million more Africans could be exposed to malaria if world temperature rise by 2C.
35% drop in crop yields across Africa and the Middle East is expected it temperatures rise by 3C.
200 million more people could be exposed to hunger if world temperatures rise by 2C.
550 million more people could be at risk of hunger if world temperatures rise by 3C.
4 million square kilometres of land, home to one-twentieth of the world's population, is threatened by floods from melting glaciers.
35,000 Europeans died in the 2003 heatwave, an event likely to become 'commonplace'.
4 billion people could suffer from water shortage if temperatures rise by 2C
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