Blazing: A wildfire that broke out in a woodland spread further in the Kinik district of Izmir, Türkiye, on 26 July. The Mediterranean area has been hit by heatwaves that fuel runaway fires. Photo: Mehmet Emin Menguarslan/Getty Images
What on earth is going on with the climate? July has been a ridiculous month so far. We’ve experienced heatwaves, wildfires and are on a path to a collapse of an important global current. All are a result of climate change according to scientists.
Scientists are also alarmed by a new study published in Nature. The study shows that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Current (AMOC), a large system of ocean currents that carry warm water from the tropics into the North Atlantic, could collapse as early as 2025.
On the importance of the current, CNN said the following: “It plays a crucial role in the climate system, helping regulate global weather patterns. Its collapse would have enormous implications, including much more extreme winters and sea level rises affecting parts of Europe and the US, and a shifting of the monsoon in the tropics.”
In 2019, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change believed that AMOC would not weaken before 2100, so the fact that it’s possible it may collapse in the next few years tells us how glaring the climate crisis is.
Regarding heatwaves, climate change is a key driving factor for their intensity and frequency, according to some scientists.
Temperatures were shattered in a few parts of the world this past month. Parts of the United States, Europe and China all saw hotter than normal weather. Researchers and scientists attribute this to climate change.
It is directly responsible for significantly raised temperatures.
The Guardian reported that more than 500 extreme weather events have been analysed by scientists and they found that 93% of heatwaves and 68% of droughts had been made more severe and more likely by human-caused emissions.
The El Niño climate phenomenon was likely to have added to the heat these countries face. The pattern is usually associated with hotter drier weather.
South Africa is on the path for an El Niño event. Given how the last one went (remember Day Zero), we should start conserving water better. Not only Cape Town but Johannesburg almost reached dangerously low water levels. The less said about water in the Eastern Cape the better.
Our leaders need to take steps to combat its effects.
In some parts, it is also known to contribute to wildfires. One step that can be taken is removing alien vegetation in areas prone to wildfires. These are known to make the fires worse.
Parts of the Western Cape are especially prone and leaders should look at what’s happening in Greece.
Parts of Greece have been hit by severe wildfires. The fires led to the evacuation of thousands of people. The Greece Prime Minister was quoted in various media as saying “The climate crisis is already here, it will manifest itself everywhere in the Mediterranean with greater disasters.”
In total, there have been about 82 wildfires across Greece. Temperatures hit over 40°C and many Greek Islands have been ravaged by fires. There are fears of more as another heatwave is expected to hit Greece.
The fires hit North Africa as well. In Algeria, there were reports of about 25 people losing their lives to the fires. Many had to be evacuated. The fires hit Tunisia as well where temperatures hit 49°C in some parts.
The high heat, winds and dry land all contribute to the fires starting and spreading.
Some of the high temperatures this month have hit over 50°C. These were in parts of China and the US.
The BBC reported that China had seen its highest ever temperature. “China provisionally broke its record for all-time highest temperature on Sunday when it recorded 52.2°C in its western Xinjiang region, according to the UK Met Office.”
Parts of Italy are also expected to reach record-breaking highs this week. In Spain there are regions that have also hit temperatures of around 44°C this week with wildfires causing people to evacuate in parts.
Scientists believe that climate change makes heatwaves longer, more intense, and happen more often.
Cities need to learn to cope with a warming world. People need to adjust as necessary, these climatic changes will not go away.
If you still don’t believe that climate change is here and happening now and needs urgent action, I don’t know what more to say. There have been several incidents this year that are evidence of a changing climate.
With the world currently estimated to be heating up at about 1.2°C, I shudder to think what will happen if we reach the 2°C threshold. One thing that’s sure is that the vulnerable will be the hardest hit.
The time for our leaders dragging their feet on cutting fossil fuel use and curbing emissions is long past. It needs to happen yesterday. The UN climate change conference, COP28, being held in the United Arab Emirates in December, is crucial.
It cannot be another event where leaders acknowledge climate change and barely anything changes. All eyes are on Dubai this year.