Climate and environment updates: UN issues vital warning on avoiding climate disaster

It's not too late to mitigate global warming.

ByABC Climate Unit
Last Updated: October 27, 2024, 4:45 PM EDT

The climate crisis is not a distant threat; it's happening right now and affecting what matters most to us. Hurricanes intensified by a warming planet and drought-fueled wildfires are destroying our communities. Rising seas and flooding are swallowing our homes. And record-breaking heatwaves are reshaping our way of life.

The good news is we know how to turn the tide and avoid the worst possible outcomes. However, understanding what needs to be done can be confusing due to a constant stream of climate updates, scientific findings, and critical decisions that are shaping our future.

That's why the ABC News Climate and Weather Unit is cutting through the noise by curating what you need to know to keep the people and places you care about safe. We are dedicated to providing clarity amid the chaos, giving you the facts and insights necessary to navigate the climate realities of today -- and tomorrow.

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Oct 24, 2024, 3:22 PM EDT

Study finds biodiversity isn't safe even in protected areas

In 2022, world leaders agreed to a landmark deal to protect the planet's biodiversity at the UN Conference of Parties convention (COP15) in Montreal. Dubbed "30 by 30," the historic agreement called for protecting 30% of the globe's land and waters by 2030. As a result, many of the participating nations strengthened and expanded protected areas for plants and animals.

But, according to new research conducted by the National History Museum in London, biodiversity in these protected areas is declining faster than in non-protected areas. Using their own "Biodiversity Intactness Index," which estimates how much of an area's biological diversity is left in an area in response to human interventions, the Museum found that life in protected areas declined by around 2% compared to 1.8% globally.

The difference was even more significant in areas with the most critical ecosystems. Protected areas saw a loss of 2.12% compared to 1.91% overall.

An aerial drone photo taken, Sept. 12, 2024, shows the Amazon rainforest shrouded in smoke in Porto Velho, state of Rondonia, Brazil.
Wang Tiancong/Xinhua via Getty Images

The study's authors don't know for sure why there is this discrepancy but say it could be because many protected areas only focus on protecting a specific species. They also say many of the protected areas were already in trouble, and that's why they were protected.

The team says we need to not only protect individual species but the land and ecosystem where they live. They are also calling for better monitoring of these critical areas.

The study comes while world leaders meet in Columbia for the UN's COP16 Biodiversity Conference—a global effort to protect the planet's biological diversity.

-ABC News Climate Unit's Matthew Glasser