Janice R. Andrews
In Nuku’alofa, Tonga, In a strong and emotional speech from the Pacific Island nation of Tonga, António Guterres, Secretary-General of the UN, warned the whole world about the terrible effects of rising sea levels, especially in the Pacific Islands, where the crisis is worsening faster than anywhere else. Guterres said at the Pacific Islands Forum on Tuesday that the world needs to “massively increase finance and support for vulnerable countries” that are facing the harsh effects of the climate crisis that humans have caused.
“The Ocean is Overflowing”
Guterres said, “The ocean is overflowing,” referring to the shockingly large size of the problem. “This is a crazy situation: rising seas are a problem that people have caused.” This situation is getting worse quickly and we don’t have an escape to get us back to safety. His words showed how serious the situation was as he called for strong action to be taken right away to lessen the terrible effects.
At the same time as Guterres’s plea, two frightening UN studies came out showing how quickly and badly the oceans are changing because of climate change. These reports make it clear that sea levels are rising at a rate almost twice as fast as the world average in the Pacific. This is a problem that puts the survival of these island countries at risk.
Effects that are too strong on the Pacific Islands
The State of the Climate report from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) says that since 1980, sea surface temperatures in the Southwest Pacific have risen three times faster than the world average. Because of this warming, sea levels have risen a lot. Over the past 30 years, sea levels in this area have risen almost twice as fast as sea levels around the world. The study also said that coastal heatwaves have happened twice as often and are stronger and last longer, which makes the situation even worse.
Even though they only release 0.02% of the world’s greenhouse gases, the Pacific Islands are being hit hard by the climate problem. These islands are being hit by a “triple whammy” of heat waves, rising sea levels, and acidity of the water. This mix is killing environments, hurting crops, polluting freshwater sources, and making it impossible for people to make a living. The WMO study said that 34 hydrometeorological hazard events, mostly storms or floods, killed more than 200 people and affected 25 million people in the region in 2023 alone.
A threat to everyone
This situation in the Pacific is not just a local problem; it has world effects that will be felt for a long time. “Human activities have weakened the capacity of the ocean to sustain and protect us and – through sea level rise – are transforming a lifelong friend into a growing threat,” Celeste Saulo, WMO Secretary-General, said. Once a source of life and food, the ocean is now a very dangerous place to be because of climate change caused by humans.
This is the second study from the UN’s climate action team. It says that the climate crisis and rising sea levels are now real threats, especially for the Pacific. According to the study, the Pacific Islands could see an extra 15 centimetres of sea level rise by 2050 if global temps keep going up to 3 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The islands could also experience more than 30 days of coastal floods each year.
Urgent Call for Action Around the World
Both UN reports say that the world needs to move right away to stop the climate problem. They want world leaders to improve early warning systems for communities that are most at risk, give a lot more money to building resilience and adapting to climate change, and cut greenhouse gas emissions very quickly and deeply so that global warming stays below 1.5 degrees Celsius, which is the critical level that world leaders agreed upon to avoid catastrophic climate impacts.
Guterres made her point clear: “Rising seas are coming for all of us.” The Pacific is where the world should look and listen to science… We will be safe if we save the Pacific. The Pacific Islands are at the centre of this problem, but if nothing is done, the effects will be felt all over the world, as his call to action shows.
Now is a very important time for everyone on Earth to pay attention to this SOS and do what needs to be done to protect not only the Pacific Islands but also the future of the whole world. If we don’t move quickly, we could do damage that can’t be fixed, which would be terrible for millions of people around the world.
