Environment Day : More than 3 billion people are affected by degraded ecosystems

               

More than 3 billion people are affected by degraded ecosystems. Pollution is responsible for  some 9 million premature deaths each year. More than 1 million plant and animal species  risk extinction, many within decades, said the United Nations General Secretary António Guterres on the  world Environment Day. 

On June5 , the world celebrates the environment day . This year the theme is “Only One Earth”. In his speech the UN GS said that the planet is our only home.'' It is vital we safeguard the health of its atmosphere, the  richness and diversity of life on Earth, its ecosystems and its finite resources. But we are  failing to do so. We are asking too much of our planet to maintain ways life that are  unsustainable. Earth’s natural systems cannot keep up with our demands'', he emphasized  

Talking about the world environment day, Global citizen said that is the first time in history, climate change is causing the Amazon Rainforest to emit more greenhouse gases that it is able to absorb. Global added that today a combination of manmade and natural disasters has displayed millions of people who call this region home, and devastated over 8,000 square miles of precious forest.

Antonio regrets that close to half of humanity is already in the climate danger zone – 15 times more likely to die  from climate impacts such as extreme heat, floods and drought. He reminded that there is a 50:50 chance that  annual average global temperatures will breach the Paris Agreement limit of 1.5 degrees  Celsius in the next five years. More than 200 million people each year could be displaced by  climate disruption by 2050. 

In his conclusion, United Nations General Secretary António Guterres ensured that the United Nations is committed to leading these cooperative global efforts, because the only  way forward is to work with nature, not against it.