World's
environmental outlook grim, UN warns
Little progress made on goals set by nations
Posted: Jun 6, 2012 2:18 PM
ET
Last Updated: Jun 6, 2012 5:16 PM ET
Two weeks before the start of a global conference on sustainable development in Rio de Janiero, the United Nations
is warning that progress has stalled on key environmental goals the world's
nations have set for themselves, like tackling climate change, combating
desertification and protecting biodiversity.
"The world continues to speed down an unsustainable path
despite over 500 internationally agreed goals and objectives to support the
sustainable management of the environment and improve human well-being,"
the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) said when it released its
Global Environmental Outlook Wednesday.
The world has made progress on only four out of 90 of the most
pressing environmental
goals and objectives
agreed upon as part of the Millennium Development Goals and other international pacts, the
UNEP said.
The four areas where the UN agency found significant progress are:
- Reducing substances
that deplete the ozone layer.
- Removing lead from
fuel.
- Increasing access to
improved water supplies.
- Boosting research on
ways to reduce pollution of the marine environment.
Little to no progress was made on climate change-related goals
such as limiting the increase in average global temperature to less than 2 C
above pre-industrial levels or in areas such as revitalization of depleted fish
stocks, protection of biodiversity and the combating of desertification.
The article goes on to say:
The report also produced regional outlooks. It singled out North
America and Europe for their "unsustainable levels of consumption"
and highlighted the fact that North America lags behind other parts of the
world when it comes to use of renewable energy.
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