Source link : https://news7.asia/news/2024-was-the-hottest-year-on-record-in-china/
In Shanghai (China), in May 2023. ALY SONG / REUTERS China, the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases, is not immune to global warming. “In 2024, the national average temperature was 10.92 degrees Celsius, or 1.03 degrees higher over a year. This is the hottest year since 1961, when comprehensive observation records began,” the Chinese meteorological administration announced on the evening of Wednesday, January 1, on its website. “The last four years have been the warmest on record. The ten hottest years since 1961 have all occurred in the 21st century,” she said. China had already recorded in 2024 the hottest July and August since 1961. Its summer was marked by extreme weather phenomena and heat waves which hit large parts of its northern and western regions. Climate change triggered extreme weather and record heat last year, the UN World Meteorological Organization warned on Monday. Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers Climate: what gives you hope? Read later Dozens killed in floods Global warming, largely due to the use of fossil fuels, is not just a matter of rising temperatures, but has significant implications due to all the additional heat accumulated in the atmosphere and in the seas. Warmer air can hold more water vapor, and warmer oceans cause more evaporation, which can lead to heavy rains and more intense storms. The repercussions can be significant, deadly, and are increasingly costly, causing property damage and destroying crops. In China, several dozen people were killed during floods in 2024. In May, intense rains caused the collapse of a highway in the south of the country. The tragedy left 48 dead. Read also | In China, floods in the south of the country kill 38 people Read later Residents of Guangzhou, in the south, experienced an exceptionally long summer in 2024. According to state media, the average temperature there exceeded 22 degrees for 240 days, beating the previous record of 234 days set in 1994. China, like the rest of the globe, is facing a significant increase in its average temperatures, leading to episodes of heat waves, drought and increasingly frequent flooding. But the country has promised that its CO₂ emissions – a factor, scientists say, of global warming – will peak in 2030 before reaching carbon neutrality in 2060. It is actively developing renewable energy to achieve this goal. Today, China remains behind the United States and other countries in terms of per capita emissions. Le Monde with AFP Reuse this content
Author : News7
Publish date : 2025-01-02 11:03:52
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