EU must prepare for 'catastrophic' effects of climate change - European Environment Agency
Kyiv • UNN
If no action is taken, Europe will face the catastrophic consequences of climate change, such as deadly heat waves, floods, and more than €1 trillion in annual economic losses from coastal flooding by the end of the century.
European countries must prepare for "catastrophic" dangers due to climate change this century - from floods to deadly heat waves. This was warned on Monday by the European Environment Agency (EEA), UNN reports with reference to Reuters.
Details
As noted, the temperature of the European continent is twice as high as the global average. Even if countries manage to slow down warming, global temperatures are already more than 1C higher than in the pre-industrial era.
According to the EEA, the impacts will depend in part on whether policymakers act now to prepare society - for example, by rebuilding infrastructure and introducing laws to protect outdoor workers from deadly heat.
According to experts, most of the 36 climate risks facing Europe could reach "critical or catastrophic levels" this century. These include risks to health, crop production, and infrastructure.
In the pessimistic scenario, by the end of the century, according to the data, "hundreds of thousands of people will die from heat waves, and economic losses from coastal floods alone could exceed 1 trillion euros per year.
According to Reuters, the European Commission will publish its response to the European Environment Agency's report on Tuesday.