IPCC Synthesis Report

The IPCC has published its Synthesis Report which completes its 4th Assessment Report. The IPCC conclude that it is necessary in both the short and long term that adaptation and mitigation complement each other to combat the risks of climate change. The report states that:

• An increase of temperature between 1.5C to 2.5C will put 20-30% of species at an increased risk of extinction
• An increased risk of extreme weather events would cause droughts, flash floods and storms, especially affecting low lying land and small islands
• Oceans have become more acidic due to an increased uptake of anthropogenic carbon, thus having a negative impact on marine-shell forming organisms and their dependant species
• The risk of sea level rise from the melting of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets may be larger than once thought.