UN Chief Says Climate Crisis Is A "Death Sentence" For Some Countries

The rate at which sea levels are rising across the world could lead to "a mass exodus of entire populations on a biblical scale", United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned. He said that coastlines of some countries have already seen triple the average rate of sea level rise and noted that communities in low-lying areas could disappear forever. Addressing the UN Security Council debate on the implications of rising sea levels for international peace and security, Mr Guterres drew attention towards the climate crisis.

"We must meet this rising tide of insecurity with action across three areas. First - we must address the root cause of rising seas, the climate crisis. Our world is hurtling past the 1.5-degree warming limit that a livable future requires, and with present policies, is careening towards 2.8 degrees - a death sentence for vulnerable countries," the UN chief said.

"We urgently need more concerted action to reduce emissions and ensure climate justice," he added.

Mr Guterres said that the climate crisis is causing sea levels to rise faster than for 3,000 years, bringing a torrent of trouble to almost a billion people, from London to Los Angeles and Bangkok to Buenos Aires.

"If temperatures rise by 2 degrees, that level rise could double, with further temperature increases bringing exponential sea level increases. Under any scenario, countries like Bangladesh, China, India and the Netherlands are all at risk," said the UN chief.

"Mega-cities on every continent will face serious impacts including Lagos, Maputo, Bangkok, Dhaka, Jakarta, Mumbai, Shanghai, Copenhagen, London, Los Angeles, New York, Buenos Aires and Santiago," he added.

Last year, a report released by UN's World Meteorological Organization showed that last eight years are on track to be the eight warmest on record. It added that the rate of sea level rise has doubled since 1993.

The report added that for the first time in history, no snow outlasted the summer season even at the very highest measurement sites.