Dubai - The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has reported a significant acceleration in the rate of climate change between 2011 and 2020, labeling it the warmest decade on record. This report, presented at the Conference of the Parties (COP28) in Dubai, underscored the increasing difficulty in limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
According to Philippines News Agency, The WMO's report, compiled from data analyses and assessments by experts in meteorology, hydrology, statistics, and various United Nations partners, calls for urgent and effective climate action. It revealed that public and private climate financing nearly doubled in the decade but needs to increase sevenfold by 2030 to meet climate goals.
Significant findings in the report include unprecedented glacier and ice sheet loss, accelerated sea level rises, and detrimental effects on marine ecosystems due to increased ocean heat and acidification. Additionally, extreme weather events have impeded sustainable development goals. However, the report offers a ray of hope, noting the smaller Antarctic ozone hole in the last decade, attributed to the successful global efforts under the Montreal Protocol to eliminate ozone-depleting substances.
WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas stated, "Each decade since the 1990s has been warmer than the previous one, with no signs of this trend reversing." The report also highlights that about 90 percent of the Earth's accumulated heat is stored in the oceans, with ocean warming rates showing a significant increase in the past two decades. The ocean's acidification, a result of increased carbon dioxide absorption, poses challenges for marine life. Greenland and the Antarctic continental ice sheet experienced record mass losses, with the latter losing ice at a rate 75 percent higher than in the previous decade, mainly from West Antarctica.