Gutteres Says Sea Level Rise Will Cause 'Mass Deaths Of Biblical Proportions'

The effects of rising sea levels will be appalling, according to the UN. UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Tuesday in the Security Council of a "mass death of biblical proportions" due to the rise in sea levels caused by global warming and called for changes in refugee and international law for those affected.

According to the UN, 900 million people in low-lying coastal areas – or one in ten people on earth – are particularly at risk. Guterres warned, "Whole countries could disappear forever."

According to the UN, melting poles and glaciers and the expansion of an ever warmer ocean will not only wipe out small island states in the future. "In any scenario, countries like Bangladesh, China, India and the Netherlands are all at risk," Guterres said. Rising sea levels are accompanied by more frequent storms and flooding: seeping salt pollutes land and water, making areas uninhabitable before they flood.

Guterres further said, "Mega-cities on every continent will suffer severe consequences: Cairo, Lagos, Maputo, Bangkok, Dhaka, Jakarta, Bombay, Shanghai, Copenhagen, London, Los Angeles, New York, Buenos Aires and Santiago."

According to UN climate experts, sea levels rose by 15 to 25 centimeters between 1900 and 2018. In the scenario of a world that would be two degrees warmer in 2100 compared to the pre-industrial era, it is projected to rise another 43 cm. At plus three or plus four degrees Celsius, it could be up to 84 centimeters.

Guterres called on the council to fill loopholes in international and refugee law to protect people forced into exile by these disasters and to settle the future of countries that lose their territories entirely. There is still no sign of agreement in the Security Council on this issue.

The international Paris climate agreement of 2016 sets the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees if possible, but at least well below two degrees compared to the pre-industrial age. The target is considered as good as lost. In fact, on the current course, the world is heading for between 2.4 and 3 degrees of warming.