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The latest climate report provides alarming figures: the temperature increase in Austria is much more pronounced than the global average. Austria has already warmed by around 3.1 degrees since 1900. The impact on the country, its people, and the environment is enormous. There is an urgent need for action.
“Especially since the 1980s, warming has increased noticeably by around 0.5 degrees per decade. This is also reflected in a significant increase in extreme events such as hot days or droughts,” explains Harald Rieder from BOKU in Vienna. Over the last few decades, the number of heatwave days in Austria has tripled in very hot years.
Without countermeasures, further rapid heating threatens
If the current global trend continues, an average global temperature rise of around 2.7 degrees is expected by 2100. For Austria, this is likely to mean an increase in the average air temperature of well over 4 degrees compared to pre-industrial times. In such a scenario, very hot years, which used to occur about once a decade, would become almost the rule in the future. Urban areas are particularly affected by these changes.
Austria is one of the regions particularly affected
The effects of rising temperatures are already alarming. For example, water availability is already declining in several regions, particularly in the east and southeast. Earlier snowmelt and decreasing snow volumes are further exacerbating the situation, especially in agricultural areas. Austria is therefore one of the most affected regions in Europe.
Extreme events in Austria already cause an average of 2 billion euros in damage per year. This could rise to between 2.5 and 5.2 billion euros per year by 2030. Numerous areas of society and the economy are coming under pressure. These include heat-related mortality, crop losses due to drought, damage caused by flooding and heavy rainfall, and water shortages.
Environment and Climate Minister Norbert Totschnig sees the new climate report as a “mandate to act,” because “climate change has long since reached us—and it affects all of our lives.” However, the fact that the ÖVP-SPÖ-NEOS government is also reducing its focus on climate protection has led to fierce criticism. Totschnig’s predecessor, Leonore Gewessler from the Greens, sees a “red alert in Austria.” “Our country has heated up more than twice as much as the global average. Given this scientific record, the government’s climate demolition dredge is a disaster.”
The government is under pressure
“But the most important message of the report is that it’s not too late. Every tenth of a degree counts,” says Gewessler. “The report clearly shows that Austria must take additional climate protection measures. In the first 100 days of government, however, exactly the opposite has happened.” Environmental and climate protection organisations are also calling for the rapid implementation of effective climate change mitigation measures.
In addition to the rapidly increasing problems, the report shows numerous effective solutions. Consistent climate protection measures are essential for Austria. Politicians must therefore finally listen to the voices of science and act immediately,” says WWF climate expert Karl Schellmann. Specifically, the WWF is calling for a nature conservation offensive, extensive energy-saving measures, and the reduction of environmentally harmful subsidies.
- source: heute.at/picture: pixabay.com
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