Exclusive: Warming set to exceed 1.5°C, slow economic growth - U.N. draft

[June 14, 2018]  By Alister Doyle Environment Correspondent

OSLO (Reuters) - Global warming is set to exceed the most stringent goal set in the Paris agreement 'by around 2040' on current trends, threatening economic growth, according to a draft U.N. report that is the starkest warning yet of the risks of climate change.

A man holds an umbrella as he walks next to his buffalo on the banks of the river Ganga on a hot summer day in Allahabad, India May 24, 2016. REUTERS/Jitendra Prakash

Governments can still cap temperatures below the strict 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7° Fahrenheit) ceiling only with "rapid and far-reaching" transitions in the world economy, according to the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The final government draft, obtained by Reuters and dated June 4, is due for publication in October in South Korea after revisions and approval by governments. It will be the main scientific guide for combating climate change.

"If emissions continue at their present rate, human-induced warming will exceed 1.5°C by around 2040," according to the draft, which broadly reaffirms findings in an earlier draft in January but is more robust after 25,000 comments from experts and a wider pool of scientific literature.

(Reporting By Alister Doyle; editing by John Stonestreet)

[© 2018 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2018 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.