Читать книгу Sociology - Anthony Giddens - Страница 227

Based on global average surface temperature, 2016 was the warmest year on record, followed, in order, by 2019, 2015 and 2017. Nine of the ten warmest years recorded since reliable records began in the late nineteenth century have occurred since 2005 (NOAA 2019). Although the planet, on average, has warmed by around 1°C since 1880, the warming trend is forecast to continue, and even small rises such as this can have large impacts (IPCC 2015: 2). The effects of very hot weather from heatwaves can be catastrophic. The Earth Policy Institute, an environmental think tank, estimated that a heatwave in 2003 killed almost 40,000 people in Europe. France suffered the most, as 14,802 people died from causes attributable to the high temperatures, with older people being particularly affected (Bhattacharya 2003). Heatwaves are forecast to become more common in the future as warming alters the climate.