Monitoring Climate Change
The Role of the IPCC and Their Environmental Assessment Reports
Sep 8, 2008
The IPCC, with its regular climate change assessment reports, exists to provide authoritative and objective sources of information on climate change. Writing in “16 Years of Scientific Assessment in Support of the Climate Convention”, published December 2004 by the IPCC, Mr. Rajendra K. Pachauri, IPCC Chairman said, “It was the First Assessment Report of the IPCC that was used by the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) as the scientific basis for arriving at the Framework Convention on Climate Change.” This treaty led to the Kyoto Protocol's adoption.
History of the IPCC
By the 1970s it was apparent that mankind might be having a serious effect on the world climate. In 1979 the first “World Climate Conference” was held in Geneva, sponsored by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). It called for “global cooperation to explore the possible future course of global climate.” The need for an independent world wide organization to monitor the climate grew. In 1988 the WMO and the United Nations Environment Programme set up the “Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change” in Geneva.
The Role of the IPCC
On the “About IPCC” section of its website, the IPCC states it does not carry out any scientific research of its own. According to the “Principles Governing IPCC Work”, published at the 25th Session in Mauritius in April 2006, the IPCC's role is:
- To assess on a comprehensive, objective, open and transparent basis the scientific, technical and socio-economic information relevant to understanding the scientific basis of risk of human-induced climate change.
- To monitor the potential impacts of such human induced climate change.
- To highlight the options available to adapt to such climate change and the means to mitigate against such changes.
- The issuing of major reports, including Assessment Reports, Special Reports and Methodology Reports.
IPCC Assessment Reports
The IPCC Assessment Reports have brought the organization and the dangers of global warming to public attention.
- The first assessment report was published in 1990. The executive summary of "Scientific Assessment of Climate Change – Report of Working Group 1", said, “CO2 has been responsible for over half the enhanced greenhouse effect; long-lived gases would require immediate reductions in emissions from human activities of over 60% to stabilize their concentrations at today's levels.”
- The Second Assessment Report (SAR), "Climate Change 1995", published in 1995 stated, “The atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases, inter alia, carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) have grown significantly: by about 30%, 145%, and 15%, respectively (values for 1992). These trends can be attributed largely to human activities, mostly fossil fuel use, land use change and agriculture.”
- The Third Assessment Report (TAR) was published in 2001. The “Summary for Policy Makers” (SPM) section of “Climate Change 2001: Working Group 1: The Scientific Basis” states, “The global average surface temperature has increased over the 20th century by about 0.6°C” and “Temperatures have risen during the past four decades in the lowest 8 kilometers of the atmosphere.”
- The Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) is the latest, published in 2007. In the SPM report on “Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis” the IPCC states, “Anthropogenic warming and sea level rise would continue for centuries due to the timescales associated with climate processes and feedbacks, even if greenhouse gas concentrations were to be stabilized”.
Its independence and use of only peer-reviewed work, give the IPCC world prominence as an organization central to the climate change battle. Its assessment reports, in addition to the attention given to the Kyoto Protocol, have helped bring climate change and global warming to the forefront of world attention.
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