Climate change indicators broke records in 2021, report says

Written by Jamie Epstein, Countable News

What’s the story?

• The United Nations’ World Meteorological Organization (WMO) released its “State of the Climate” report this week, highlighting how extensively human activities influence climate change. The major indicators that the report emphasizes are rising temperatures, greenhouse gas concentrations, and ocean heat. 
• The release of the report has prompted renewed calls by activists’ for policymakers and business leaders to take responsibility for and action against climate change. 

Rising temperatures

• The WMO report shows the past seven years were the warmest period on record. 2021 was a cooler year, only around 1.11 degrees C warmer than pre-industrial levels, due to the La Niña event in the Pacific Ocean. 
• New records are expected to be set once the La Niña event ends and the next El Niño cycle sets in. 

Greenhouse gas concentrations

• Greenhouse gas concentrations reached a new high, hitting 420.23 parts per million (ppm) in April 2022. 
• Climate scientists have warned that passing carbon dioxide levels of 400 ppm would push the world into the danger zone of climate change. The 400 ppm threshold was first exceeded in 2015. 
• Temperatures will continue to increase as emission levels rise. 

Ocean heat, acidification, and sea-level rise

• The ocean is where the planet absorbs most of its heat, and ocean heat levels hit record highs at multiple depth ranges in 2021. 
• This is dangerous for marine species and coastal cities. Oceans are acidifying, forcing species to move to safer parts of the world, and massive amounts of sea ice are melting, leading to sea-level rise and dangerous flooding events. 
• The global mean sea level reached a new record in 2021, rising by an average of 4.5mm per year over the 2013-2021 period.
• Arctic sea ice extent decreased rapidly in June and July, reaching a record low for the time of year. Sea ice melt slowed in August and September due to a rapid shift in conditions, representing the 12th lowest level in the 43-year record of satellite imaging. Antarctic sea ice reached its 22nd largest extent, nearing the average magnitude.

Is action being taken?

• In response to the report, the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, announced a five-point plan to jumpstart the transition to renewable energy. Guterres said at a press conference:

“Today’s State of the Climate report is a dismal litany of humanity's failure to tackle climate disruption…We must end fossil fuel pollution and accelerate the renewable energy transition, before we incinerate our only home.”

• Guterres called upon the management and shareholders of multilateral development banks and financial institutions to take responsibility, align themselves with the Paris Agreement by 2024, and put an end to nonrenewable energy sources and pollution. The five critical actions to jumpstart the energy transition are as follows. 

1. Treating renewable energy technologies as essential global public goods
2. Secure, scale-up and diversity the supply components and raw materials for renewable energy technologies 
3. Build frameworks and reform fossil fuel bureaucracies
4. Shift subsidies away from fossil fuels
5. Triple private and public investments in renewable energy



• Guterres ended the report by saying: 

“Every country, city and citizen, every financial institution, company and civil society organization has a role to play. But most of all, it’s time for our leaders–public and private alike–to stop talking about renewables as a distant project of the future. Because without renewables, there can be no future.”

Are you taking action to combat climate change?

(Photo credit: iStock/FatCamera)