Other threats highlighted in the IPCC’s latest assessment report in the near-term are large declines in sea-ice dependent species, mass mortality of animals and plants during heatwaves, and mass tree mortality in some regions.
The UK will not be immune to the changes we are seeing now. The large spike in sea surface temperature will have impacts on marine species across the world, and if it continues could have significant impacts on global marine food webs, ocean currents and storm activity. It is very hard to predict exactly what these changes might be, as short-term scenarios of hazards for the next one to five years are not available.
So far the current UK Government has stayed silent on the climate trends being reported by scientists around the world. At The Wildlife Trusts, we reiterate our call on UK Government to accelerate action to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible, to work with other countries globally to do the same, and to do much more to help the country to adapt, wherever possible, to the changes we are seeing now. In particular, we need much more information on what could happen in the next 1-5 years, and there is an urgent need for the Government to resource efforts to create plausible scenarios of short-term risk.
In the meantime, The Wildlife Trusts will continue to do whatever we can to protect wildlife in this country, on land and in the sea, and to take action to address the twin nature and climate crises globally.
