Broad threat to humanity from cumulative climate hazards intensified by greenhouse gas emissions

Camilo Mora (), Daniele Spirandelli, Erik C. Franklin, John Lynham, Michael B. Kantar, Wendy Miles, Charlotte Z. Smith, Kelle Freel, Jade Moy, Leo V. Louis, Evan W. Barba, Keith Bettinger, Abby G. Frazier, John F. Colburn Ix, Naota Hanasaki, Ed Hawkins, Yukiko Hirabayashi, Wolfgang Knorr, Christopher M. Little, Kerry Emanuel, Justin Sheffield, Jonathan A. Patz and Cynthia L. Hunter
Additional contact information
Camilo Mora: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Daniele Spirandelli: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Erik C. Franklin: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Michael B. Kantar: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Wendy Miles: Pacific Islands Climate Change Cooperative
Charlotte Z. Smith: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Kelle Freel: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Jade Moy: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Leo V. Louis: Cornell University
Evan W. Barba: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Keith Bettinger: East-West Center
Abby G. Frazier: East-West Center
John F. Colburn Ix: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Naota Hanasaki: National Institute for Environmental Studies
Ed Hawkins: University of Reading
Yukiko Hirabayashi: Shibaura Institute of Technology
Wolfgang Knorr: Lund University
Christopher M. Little: Atmospheric and Environmental Research, Inc.
Kerry Emanuel: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Justin Sheffield: University of Southampton
Jonathan A. Patz: University of Wisconsin
Cynthia L. Hunter: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa

Nature Climate Change, 2018, vol. 8, issue 12, 1062-1071

Abstract: Abstract The ongoing emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) is triggering changes in many climate hazards that can impact humanity. We found traceable evidence for 467 pathways by which human health, water, food, economy, infrastructure and security have been recently impacted by climate hazards such as warming, heatwaves, precipitation, drought, floods, fires, storms, sea-level rise and changes in natural land cover and ocean chemistry. By 2100, the world’s population will be exposed concurrently to the equivalent of the largest magnitude in one of these hazards if emmisions are aggressively reduced, or three if they are not, with some tropical coastal areas facing up to six simultaneous hazards. These findings highlight the fact that GHG emissions pose a broad threat to humanity by intensifying multiple hazards to which humanity is vulnerable.

Date: 2018
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DOI: 10.1038/s41558-018-0315-6

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