An early warning system against weather events

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) to lead a project The goal To protect with Settings Early warning of attacks on the entire population of the planet Serious events caused by climate change, When helping her to adapt to that event.

Appropriate action plan Achieve that goal in five years It will be presented at the United Nations Climate Conference to be held in Egypt next November. The initiative was launched at the event World Weather DayThis year promotes early warning and action to reduce disaster risk.

Serious events related to weather, climate and water More and more frequent and intense In many parts of the world as a result of climate change. People are being exposed more than ever to the increasingly serious dangers posed by population growth, urbanization and environmental degradation.

Despite the importance of weather forecasts in saving lives and livelihoods, One-third of the world’s population is still unprotected With early warning systems, especially in less developed countries and small island developing states. In Africa, the insecurity rate reaches 60% of its population.

“This is unacceptable”, early warning systems save lives

The General Secretary The United Nations has described the lack of access as “unacceptable” as climate impacts continue to worsen.

Antonio Guterres warned that man-made climate change is affecting all regions and reminded that rising global temperatures will further increase the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. “Forced Invest equally in adaptability and resilience. Includes information that allows for the anticipation of storms, heat waves, floods and droughts. ”He announced the initiative in a message issued on the eve of World Weather Day.

Guterres added Everyone on the planet should benefit from the predictions And increase efficiency. “We recognize the value of early warning and action as important tools for mitigating disaster risk and supporting adaptation to climate change. Early warning systems save lives. We’ll make sure they all work. “Limited to the UN President.

Daily disaster

In the same way, the WMO insisted on it More integration is needed Improving disaster prevention, preparedness and response between national meteorological and hydrological services, disaster management authorities and development agencies.

In addition, to highlight the frequency of climate events, he pointed out that there has been in the last 50 years. ஐந்திணையாக Weather, climate or water-related disasters occur almost every day, killing 115 people and causing $ 202 million in losses.

However, despite these high numbers, the WMO clarified this amount The number of lives lost was almost tripled Over the same period, thanks to better warnings and forecasts, as well as active and integrated disaster management.

The specialty agency points out that epidemiology shows the need to follow a practice in today’s interconnected world. Many risk and cross the border To make progress in achieving the global goals of climate change, disaster risk reduction and sustainable development.

“Being prepared and being able to act at the right time and in the right place can save many lives To protect livelihoods Of communities around the world, now and in the future. ”The WMO said.

Invest now to save in the future

According to the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization, Bettery Thalas, this is a must Invest about $ 1.5 billion over the next five years To improve the quality of services and infrastructure associated with early warning systems, “Especially in less developed countries and small island developing states”.

Data from the Global Commission on Adaptation indicate that early warning systems provide more than ten times the investment return. 24 hour warning only In the event of an impending storm or heat wave, the damage can be reduced by up to 30%. They also insist that $ 800 million be invested in such organizations in developing countries 3,000 and 16,000 million losses can be avoided Dollars per year.

“As the number of disasters caused by climate change increases, there is a risk of implementing a greater number of disasters. Sustainable development goals. In addition to the most important mitigation, this is increasingly important Invest in climate adaptation. Improving weather, water and climate forecasting services will increase investment returns ”Thalas insisted.

What are early warning systems?

He explained that a pre-warning system has been developed for floods, droughts, heat waves or storms A series of integrated tools and resources It notifies people that dangerous weather is coming and how governments, communities and individuals can act to reduce the immediate impact.

These settings Allows you to monitor weather conditions in real time Effectively predict future weather and weather events using land and sea and advanced computer number models. The purpose is to understand the dangers of anticipating storms to the affected area.

Pre-alarm systems are required The agreed response includes plans For governments, communities and individuals, to minimize expected impacts. To further improve responses to future weather, climate, water and related environmental hazards, a comprehensive early warning system should also take into account the lessons learned from past events.

Source: UN

Reference article: https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/03/1506022