Multiple climate tipping points to be triggered as corals die, ice sheets collapse
It was after the Stockholm Conference in 1972 that governments around the world began to frame policies and treaties related to the environment.The current course of these policies is worrying, as it could lead to multiple 'tipping points,' as pointed out by scientists in a new research paper published in the journal Earth System Dynamics.When a small change drives or tips the system into a new state, causing significant and long-term transformation, it is known as a 'tipping point.' These tipping points are irreversible.
Scientists stress the need for more sustainable practices for a sustainable future. (Photo: Getty)
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The paper mentions that, on average, current policies could trigger the risk of 62% of tipping points, which could be reduced by practising more sustainable pathways, such as lower greenhouse gas emissions.While analysing the influence of one tipping point on the other, a study done by the Universities of Exeter and Hamburg on Amazon rainforest dieback and permafrost thaw has found no interlinking influence.On controlling the effects of tipping points on the Earth, lead author of the study, Jakob Deutloff, said, 'The good news from our study is that the power to prevent climate tipping points is still in our hands.''And it appears that breaching tipping points within the Amazon and the permafrost region should not necessarily trigger others.'The study assessed tipping point probabilities in five different scenarios, known as shared socioeconomic pathways (SSPs). advertisementWhile mentioning the dangers posed by tipping points, Professor Tim Lenton, from Exeter's Global Systems Institute, said, 'Climate tipping points could have devastating consequences for humanity.''It is clear that we are currently on a dangerous trajectory, with tipping points likely to be triggered unless we change course rapidly.'We need urgent global action – including the triggering of 'positive tipping points' in our societies and economies – to reach a safe and sustainable future.'Scientists stress the need for more sustainable practices for a sustainable future. This could be achieved with lower emissions of fossil fuels and by upgrading the current policies.
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