GS Paper 3
Syllabus: Environmental pollution and degradation
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Source: Indian Express, DTE
Directions: This Article has been taken from the Indian Express and Down to Earth. Although the Article was long, we are providing only important points here.
Context: A study has found that even at the current levels of warming in the world, several climate ‘tipping points’ could be crossed, setting off irreversible, catastrophic, and self-perpetuating changes.
Findings:
- Visible changes: Several studies in the past 15 years have identified different tipping points such as the disintegration of the Greenland ice sheet, a spontaneous reduction in Amazon forest cover, melting of glaciers, or softening of the permanently frozen grounds in the polar regions that have large amounts of carbon trapped in them.
- Each of these tipping points is correlated with each other with different levels of temperature rise.
- The latest study has identified nine global and seven regional tipping points.
Tipping points at work
- Rising temperatures are causing large-scale changes in the climatic systems.
- It has also intensified the Glacial melt, thinning of Arctic ice, and rise in sea levels.
- However, it is still possible, at least theoretically, to arrest these changes, or even reverse them over time.
- According to the IPCC assessment report, with the current level of efforts, the world is on the path to becoming more than 2 degrees warmer by the year 2100.
- Threats to permafrost: The softening or melting of permafrost layers is already releasing some carbon into the atmosphere.
- Permafrost layers hold as much as 1,700 billion tonnes of carbon, mainly in the form of carbon dioxide and methane.
- In comparison, the global emissions of carbon in a year are in the range of 40 billion tonnes.
- Self-sustaining and cyclic system: Once the tipping point is crossed, this becomes a self-sustaining and cyclic system. The system does not reverse even if the global temperatures stop rising.
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), sixth assessment reports suggest that most of these tipping points would be crossed between 1 and 2 degree Celsius temperature rise.
- Permafrost layers hold as much as 1,700 billion tonnes of carbon, mainly in the form of carbon dioxide and methane.
Policy response
- Increase efforts to restrict global warming.
- Take the initiative to study the effects of rising temperatures.
- Countries need to increase the ambition of their climate action in the next few years.
- Because of the impacts of the Ukraine war on the energy supply chains across the world progress is likely to slow down.
Impact on India
- A one-metre rise in sea level will displace 7.1 million people in India.
The sixth assessment report of the IPCC released earlier this year said that global emissions of greenhouse gases needed to peak by 2025 and reduce by 43 per cent from current levels by 2030 if the 1.5 degree Celsius target was to be achieved.
What are Climate tipping points?
- Climate Tipping Points or CTPs are markers of a larger climate system that when triggered beyond a threshold, perpetuates warming on its own.
Insta Links
Prelims link
- Paris Climate Deal
- The outcome of COP 26
- About IPCC and its assessment report
- India’s National Action Plan on Climate Change
Mains Links:
Q. ‘Climate Change’ is a global problem. How India will be affected by climate change? How Himalayan and coastal states of India will be affected by climate change? (UPSC MAINS 2017)
Q. Assess the impact of global warming on the coral life system with examples. (UPSC Mains 2019)
