UN warns of climate risks, says 1.5°C breach likely within years

Global temperatures are likely to cross the 1.5-degree Celsius threshold within the next few years, intensifying extreme weather, ecosystem loss and the risks facing small island developing states and low-lying coastal cities, according to a new UN report released on Wednesday.The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) report, titled Limiting Overshoot, stressed the need for immediate and sustained cuts in greenhouse gas emissions to limit the duration and magnitude of warming beyond the 1.5°C threshold.“It is still possible to bring temperatures down and achieve global goals in the Paris Agreement,” the report said.However, it also warned that above 1.5°C, climate risks and impacts would intensify with every additional fraction of a degree and each passing year.