New research says that high sea level rises that are triggered by climate change can continue that can span almost as long as the entire human civilization, unless governments will do something drastic to permanently cut carbon emissions for good in the next few decades.
To date, world leaders agreed upon a target that global temperatures will not go over two degrees Celsius which is a different challenge. Scientists have predicted that 20 percent of the world's population who are also living near coastal cities would have to migrate away from coastlines due to dangerously rising oceans. The cities that are predicted to be submerged are New York, London, Shanghai and Calcutta.
According to Peter Clark of Oregon State University, carbon emissions that are already in the atmosphere from fossil fuel burning will probably remain there for thousands of years and these are serious effects of climate change that will not go away for thousands of generations.
According to Thomas Stocker from the University of Bern in Switzerland, this long term view of what the future will look like because of climate change can show telltale signs of real risks and consequences about the fossil fuel era. Massive adaptation efforts are needed such as migration and dislocation, becoming the only option left.
Prior studies only looked at global warming impacts only up to the year 2100, not considering long term melting of polar ice caps and rising sea levels.
In this new study, researchers reveal how massive ice sheets will take thousands of years to fully feel the effects of warmer temperatures which leads to this long term view of what kind of environment is being passed down to future generations.
Even if climate change is now controlled at two degrees Celsius by stricter regulations and emission cuts, scientists say that despite these efforts, sea levels will rise for more than 25 meters in the next 25,000 years which is twice as long the history of human civilization.
If gas emissions are not curbed, seas will rise at 50 meters that can change the world geographically. Clark says that entire city populations will be forced to move since seawalls can no longer hold 25 meters high.
This new study is published in the journal Nature Climate Change.