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2012 risks becoming a record for the number of natural cataclysms in the world. Extreme temperatures, droughts, floods and unprecedented loss of arctic ice – all this the year 2012 will be remembered, and this caused concern climatologists around the world: there is clearly something wrong with the weather. – Climate change is happening before our eyes, and then this trend will continue, said the Secretary General of the World meteorological organization (WMO, the World Meteorological Organization) Michel Jarraud presenting a report on Weather Changes at Qatar’s UN Conference on climate change. According to the WMO report, the period from January to October 2012 entered the top ten (became ninth) in the ranking of the warmest years in the history of meteorological observations, which have been conducted since 1850. Global air temperature and the surface of the oceans beyond these 10 months were 0.45 degrees Celsius (0.81 degrees C Fahrenheit) is higher than the values of 1961–1990 and amounted to 14.2 C (57.56 Fahrenheit). According to experts, extreme weather phenomena were observed this year around the world, but the main extremes affected primarily the northern hemisphere. Heat waves hit the United States, which only in March was 15 thousand temperature records were recorded, as well as the southern Europe, most of Russia and northwest Asia. Drought covered many countries, in particular from the lack of rain hit Yunnan and Sichuan provinces in China, where 9600 live thousand people. But at the same time in southern China in April and May fell record rainfall over the past 32 years. In July – September flooded most regions of West Africa and the Sahel (tropical savannah in Africa) – nearly three affected by the flood million people and killing at least 300 people.
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In the Krasnodar Territory in the southwestern part of Russia in July the flood claimed the lives of about 200 people, and the property damage is estimated at 630 million dollars. Third year strong storms are recorded in a row in the Caribbean and East US coast. A total of 10 months of 2012 occurred 19 tropical storms, of which 10 developed to destructive hurricanes. The damage is only from the last hurricane Sandy, which fell upon New York and New Jersey are valued at more than $ 60 billion. how experts say the consequences of such hurricanes today are much more serious than 100 years ago, since sea level during this time rose by almost 20 cm, which leads to stronger waves, and therefore, the destruction they cause. WMO also notes the alarming state of arctic sea ice, area which in September reached record low – 18% less than the previous minimum recorded in 2007 – total only 3.4 million km2. Arctic and Greenland ice sheets “melted” this year faster than meteorologists predicted Five years ago. And, as the authors of the report note, in the future this speed will only increase. WMO predicts that all of these alarming climate trends will only get worse – they are the result of global warming caused by an increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, level which continues to grow. WMO plans in early December provide a more detailed report on the state of climate on the planet for 2001-2010 years. Meanwhile, at the annual Doha Climate Change Conference global warming, the issue of expanding aid to the poor was raised countries during the economic crisis. Rich states already provided them with the promised in 2009 grants and loans total worth $ 30 billion, but this year the deadline arrangements expire, and the Green Climate Fund, which will transfer to poor countries up to $ 100 billion, act yet began. Creating a climate finance framework for this the moment is one of the few tangible results climate negotiations that the UN has been organizing for the past twenty years old. However, the main goal is to reduce greenhouse emissions. gases into the atmosphere, which, according to scientists, lead to climate warming, so far has not been achieved. Only the treaty limiting these emissions – the Kyoto Protocol – this year expires. The conference raised the issue of its extension. But they are ready to join the second contract only The European Union and several other countries. US refused to sign The Kyoto Protocol, since it did not affect China and India. There is hope for US support this time, as the new the contract already includes China, ranking first in the world in carbon emissions. Assumed that this new the contract will be ratified in 2015, and will enter into force in 2020. Developing countries that have already identified program types and projects in need of funding until they receive it. EU and other states, according to Meena Raman of non-profit organization “Third World Network” (Third World Network) “continue to feed them breakfasts”, and millions of people continue to suffer. “Meanwhile, the concentration of carbon dioxide in atmosphere continues to grow. According to a report that last week published by the UN, since 2000 its indicators have soared by 20%, mainly due to the burning of fossil fuels – coal and oil. By the latest World Bank forecasts, in this century the average temperature may increase by more than 4 ° C compared to pre-industrial era, thus exceeding the bar at 2 ° C, which established by the UN as the target.
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