United Nations weather agency: Greenhouse gas concentrations hit new record

The British Met Office said global temperatures in January-September were 1.02 C above the 1850-1900 average, adding that the remainder of the year is expected to remain hot because of the El Nino weather phenomenon.

“We will soon be living with globally averaged Carbon dioxide levels above 400 parts per million as a permanent reality”, said Jarraud.

“This means we are now really in uncharted territory for the human race”, he warned.

But many scientists are more anxious that the rise in greenhouse gases and global temperatures, whatever the pace, has not stopped. It releases carbon dioxide and methane into the air. The report also highlighted the “enhanced greenhouse effect” that more water vapor in the atmosphere is having. During the Industrial Revolution, carbon levels only ever came as high as 280ppm. This was a time where machines were discovered to make work easier and fossil fuels were burned without regulation. On average, Co2 levels reached 397.7 ppm. Afterwards, they rose significantly and continued to incline.

Every year, new records for Carbon dioxide concentrations are being announced, according to Jarraud, and actions to manage global temperatures should include cutting emissions from factories, power plants and cars.

The Met Office reports two important findings: two thirds of the two degrees Celsius budget for Carbon dioxide emissions have already been used and we’ve already seen one-third of the sea level rise that could be seen by 2100 in a two degrees Celsius world.

During a news conference held in Geneva, Switzerland, WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud told the press, “We have broken a new record once again – over the last 25 years, between 1990 and 2014, there was a 36% increase in the radiative forcing of greenhouse gases”. It’s worth noting that the WMO only publishes figures relating to atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases-the work doesn’t consider emissions. Many politicians and citizens alike have been lobbying for change, and have made considerable headway with their campaigns.

World leaders are meeting in Paris this month with the aim of limiting emissions.

Two significant thresholds on climate change have been crossed this year, with ominous consequences for the future.

Oceans swallow about a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions, while the biosphere sucks up another quarter.

2013, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reported that the combined land and ocean temperature showed warming of 0.85C between 1880 and 2012.

Speaking from the White House garden, a US National Park, he urged Americans to become engaged on the climate change issue. In this spirit, President Barack Obama has recently rejected the Keystone XL oil pipeline. Regarding this decision, he told the public the following in a country-wide address.