The world must shift to solar and wind power rapidly to avoid catastrophic global warming, say UN scientists in major report | Mail Online

A rapid shift to wind and solar power is needed if the world is to avoid catastrophic global warming, the United Nations warns in a crucial report today.

Emissions of greenhouse gases need to be cut by up to 70 per cent before 2050 to control climate change, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) says.
‘Large-scale changes in energy systems’ are required, with coal power stations to be switched off and replaced by wind and solar.

And the transformation needs to be made in the next 15 years or controlling climate change will become increasingly harder and more expensive.

The report was published in Berlin today after a week of line-by-line drafting and re-drafting.

The final version, written by 235 international scientists and economists, says that efforts so far have failed to stop spiralling emissions of greenhouse gases – which have risen to ‘unprecedented levels’ in the past decade.

Ottmar Edenhofer, co-chair of the authors, said: ‘There is a clear message from science: to avoid dangerous interference with the climate system, we need to move away from business as usual.’

The IPCC report is the first major assessment in seven years of the options for dealing with climate change.