Extreme Heat Warning: A shocking report from Oxford University has come out, in which it has been said that, if global warming reaches 2.0 degrees Celsius, then by 2050, almost half of the world’s population i.e. 3.8 billion people will be forced to live in such extreme heat, where humans may fail to keep their bodies cool. It has been told that such heat is about to come that the earth will start boiling like water.
This study has been published in the journal ‘Nature Sustainability’ and in it India has been said to be especially in danger. According to the report, in 2010, 23 percent of the world’s population i.e. 1.54 billion people were facing such heat. But now this number may more than double to 41 percent.
Oxford researchers have placed India at the top among the countries where most people will be affected. Apart from India, crores of population in countries like Nigeria, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Philippines will be in danger. Oxford researcher Radhika Khosla has warned that education, health and agriculture will be destroyed as soon as the 1.5 degree limit is crossed. There will be a food crisis, crops will either burn or dry up and starvation will spread. Crores of people will leave their homes in search of suitable places to live.
The report also states that even cold countries like Russia, Canada or Finland will not remain untouched by this heat. The houses of these countries are built to protect from cold, which will act like a ‘furnace’ in summer. The transport and health systems here are also not prepared for such heat. Scientists say that the number of hot days may double in these countries.
Dr. Jesus Lijana, the lead author of the study, said that we have to adopt measures quickly. For example, it is important to increase air conditioning in homes, but at the same time work towards net zero emissions. The report emphasizes that this trend can be stopped only by reducing the use of fossil fuels. In developing countries like India, where crores of people do not have facilities like AC, governments will have to make preparations in the health and agriculture sectors.
Report made on the scale of cooling degree days
This Oxford study is a wake up call, which shows that climate change is no longer a distant thing, but a reality in the coming years. This report has been prepared by Oxford University’s Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment and parameters like Cooling Degree Days (CDD) have been used in it.