IPCC report: France recalls the need to continue reducing carbon emissions and to accelerate the adaptation of vulnerable territories

On this occasion, France recalls the need to continue to reduce carbon emissions and to accelerate the adaptation of territories. It is strongly committed to this, in particular through the Climate and Resilience law, but also with its European partners in support of the most vulnerable countries.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) today released Volume 2 of its 6th Assessment Report, entitled “Climate Change: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability”. The result of an international collaboration of 270 scientists from 67 countries, it presents the current state of knowledge on the perceptible impacts of climate change on humans and ecosystems. The report thus presents the short, medium and long-term impacts and risks according to the levels of warming, as well as the means of adapting to them.

The IPCC report is worrying: extreme climatic events (heat waves, heavy rainfall, floods, intense tropical cyclones, droughts, fires), effects of climate change caused by man, already have significant impacts on populations, ecosystems and infrastructure. The consequences on access to water and food security, health, the functioning of economies and biodiversity are very serious.

The risks will increase with increasing global warming, in all regions of the world. The report emphasizes that beyond 1,5°C of warming, climate change will have irreversible impacts, particularly on biodiversity. For the IPCC, adaptation solutions exist but they require a systemic transformation. Among these solutions, there is in particular the implementation of early warning systems or nature-based solutions, which have co-benefits for biodiversity, the climate and populations. Delaying these actions and the policies needed to implement them undermines their effectiveness, diminishes their potential and increases their cost.

In addition, the IPCC presents the notion of “climate-resilient development”. This is sustainable development, which requires the implementation, in an integrated manner, of policies for adaptation to climate change, policies for the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems, and policies for the rapid reduction of emissions of greenhouse gas.

This report confirms France in its determination to continue its action to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, in particular through the Climate and Resilience law, but also to prepare for the inevitable impacts of climate change, with the second national plan for adaptation to climate change.

It also reinforces the leading role of France and the European Union in achieving its climate objectives with the Fit For 55 package while helping the most vulnerable countries to cope with the effects of climate change. The President of the Republic has undertaken to increase France's climate finance in favor of developing countries to 6 billion euros per year, from 2021 to 2025, of which a third is for adaptation.

For Jean-Yves Le Drian, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs: "This IPCC report confirms, for all countries in the world, the urgency of acting to implement the objectives of the Paris Agreement, both in terms of adaptation and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. . As such, France calls on countries that have not yet done so to raise their climate ambition before COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh. While this report also confirms that the climate and biodiversity crises are intrinsically linked, French diplomacy is mobilized to adopt an ambitious new global strategic framework for the protection of biodiversity, at COP15 in Kunming, which will be held in the coming months. »

For Barbara Pompili, Minister for the Ecological Transition: “The IPCC's findings are clear and confirm the need to act both on the cause of climate change, by reducing global greenhouse gas emissions, and on its consequences to try to limit its impacts. France is playing its full part in the effort and the work on the new French energy-climate strategy will enable us to strengthen our actions in this direction. As part of its Presidency of the Council of the European Union, France is mobilized to implement European commitments through the “Fit For 55” package. The ministerial conference on the climate that I am organizing in Nantes on March 7 and 8 will contribute to the mobilization given the urgency pointed out by the IPCC. »

For Frédérique Vidal, Minister of Higher Education, Research and Innovation: “The international research community is engaged in the production of knowledge on the origin, the consequences and the responses to be provided in the face of ongoing climate change. I would like to express my gratitude to the French scientific community for the immense work of integration and analysis carried out within the framework of the preparation and publication of this volume 2 of the 6th report of the IPCC. On the one hand, it is essential to continue our efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change by reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, in order to achieve carbon neutrality. On the other hand, it is essential to prepare our societies for impacts that cannot be avoided by strengthening our adaptation strategy, with ambitious policies to reduce vulnerabilities and increase resilience to climate change. The IPCC Group II report shows the need to better understand the socio-economic dimensions of adaptation and the impacts of global change. The scientific communities are fully mobilized and supported to develop operational adaptation solutions, in particular those based on nature, and to support the response capacities of individuals and territories, with a concern for equity. »