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“The state of the planet is broken, humanity is declaring war on nature,” he said. “Nature always reacts and does so with increasing strength and fury”.

Referring to the interim report of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), The State of the Global Climate 2020 , which was released on Wednesday, reiterated that the last decade has been the hottest on record and that ice sheet has shrunk, melting of permafrost , vast climate fires and unprecedented hurricanes were just some of the consequences.

“Stop the looting,” Guterres added, referring to deforestation which is also fueling climate change. “And the healing begins.”

Climate policies have not been up to the challenge, Guterres said, noting that emissions in 2020 are 60% higher than in 1990. “We are heading towards a 3 to 5 degrees Celsius (by 2100). “

Yet the secretary general sees hope for 2021, saying it is time to “build a truly global coalition towards carbon neutrality”.

This goal will require zero net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. More than 110 countries have already committed to carbon neutrality by this date, he noted, accounting for more than 65% of emissions. Crucial to achieving this will be encouraging renewable energy by setting a carbon price and phasing out funding and subsidies for fossil fuels.

“There is no vaccine for the planet,” he said of the need to build a global movement for climate action.

The past six years are the six hottest on record

The WMO state of the climate report referred to by Guterres confirms that 2020 is currently ranked as the second warmest of the year since the start compared to equivalent periods in the past.

The annual climate scoreboard describes a litany of symptoms of a warming planet: a high frequency of severe droughts, unmatched hurricanes, retreating sea ice, heavy rains and floods in Asia and Africa, and vast marine heat waves.

The global climate report header confirms in 2020 that global warming is accelerating. Although 2016 remains the hottest year on record to date, it started with a very strong El Niño warm phase, through which warmer oceans raise global temperatures.

Four years later, these peak temperatures continued, despite a cooler weather phase in La Niña that began in September and relatively weak El Niño conditions. The global average temperature from January to October 2020 was approximately 1.2 ° C above the 1850-1900 baseline.

“With 2020 becoming one of the three hottest years on record, the last six years, 2015-2020, are probably the six hottest on record,” says the WMO climate report.

In Siberian Arctic temperatures were over 5 degrees Celsius above average in 2020, reaching 38 degrees Celsius in Verkhoyansk in late June, tentatively the highest known temperature north of the Arctic Circle.

“We have seen new extreme temperatures on land, on the sea and especially in the Arctic,” said WOM Secretary General Petteri Taalas. “The fires have consumed large areas in Australia, Siberia, the west coast of the United States and South America, sending plumes of smoke around the globe.”

Despite the pandemic, greenhouse gases are still on the rise

Blocks implemented to slow the coronavirus pandemic only led to a “temporary reduction in emissions” in 2020, according to the report. As a result, there will be a “virtually indistinguishable” slowdown in the rapidly increasing CO2 concentrations recorded in 2019.

Greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations largely generated by the combustion of fossil fuels reached new highs in 2019, with carbon dioxide (CO2), methane levels (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) increasing at a greater level since 2018 (2.6 parts per million) than the increases in the previous two years.

“Temporal data from specific locations, including Mauna Loa (Hawaii) and Cape Grim (Tasmania), indicate that CO2, CH4 and N2O levels continued to rise in 2020,” the report said.

This increase comes at a time when there should be rapid emission cuts in line with the IPCC’s special report on global warming of 1.5C.

Symptoms of global warming get worse

The report also notes that sea levels have risen at a higher rate year-on-year due in part to the increased melting of ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica.

Meanwhile, more than 80% of the ocean surface experienced at least one sea heat wave in 2020. In addition, 43% of the ocean experienced marine heat waves classified as “strong”.

2019 also saw the highest ocean heat content ever recorded.

Heavy rains and vast floods affected large parts of Africa and Asia in 2020, particularly in much of the Sahel, the Great Horn of Africa, the Indian subcontinent and neighboring areas, China, Korea and Japan. With 30 named storms (as of November 17, 2020), the North Atlantic hurricane season recorded the highest ever recorded number of named storms.

Additionally, severe drought affected much of the interior of South America in 2020, with areas severely affected, including northern Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil’s western border areas.

“Climate and weather events have triggered significant population movements and have severely affected vulnerable people on the move, including in the Pacific and Central America region,” the climate report said.

Reprinted with permission from DW .