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PML Welcomes Ministerial Calls at COP29 for Urgent Action on Cryosphere Loss

20 November 2024

An international high-level group is warning of disruption at global scales

Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) welcomes today’s publication at COP29 of a Ministerial Statement from the Ambition on Melting Ice (AMI) high-level group on Sea-level Rise and Mountain Water Resources, highlighting the urgent need for 1.5°C-consistent Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to address the accelerating crisis of cryosphere loss.

The AMI group was founded by 20 government ministers in 2022 at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt with the aim of ensuring that the “irreversible and devastating global impacts of cryosphere loss are understood by political leaders and the public alike”.

Since its founding, the AMI Group has highlighted the far-reaching risks associated with cryosphere loss, which extend beyond polar and mountain regions to affect every nation on Earth. It emphasises that recent scientific findings reveal alarming feedback loops across regions, driven by current emission trajectories, that could lead to irreversible economic, social, and environmental damage on a planetary scale.

Today’s ministerial announcement calls for:

  • Deep, rapid, and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions aligned with the 1.5°C Paris Agreement target.
  • The adoption of fully 1.5°C-consistent NDCs by 2025 to avert long-term and irreversible impacts.
  • Immediate pre-2030 actions to course-correct and maintain a viable pathway toward 1.5°C.

The cryosphere – comprising the world’s glaciers, ice sheets, and permafrost – is critical for regulating the planet’s climate and supporting billions of people who rely on mountain water resources and stable coastlines. Without decisive action, ongoing cryosphere loss is expected to lead to rising sea levels, destabilized ecosystems, and widespread human displacement, resulting in a fundamentally altered planet.

PML’s Professor Helen Findlay, who is a scientific reviewer on the recently published State of the Cryosphere report said: “The science is clear: the choices we make now will determine whether we preserve a stable cryosphere or face catastrophic, irreversible impacts. We support calls for nations to prioritize ambitious NDCs and policies to limit global warming to 1.5°C. The window for meaningful action is still open, but it is narrowing rapidly.”

Warning to COP29 from cryosphere scientists as glacier loss hits record highs >>

Signatories at time of writing include: Chile (Co-chair), Iceland (Co-chair), Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, Georgia, Kyrgyz Republic, Liberia, Mexico, Monaco, Nepal, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Samoa, Senegal, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, and Vanuatu.

 

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