A NEW report reveals Welsh species and habitats at risk if warming is not limited to 1.5°C.

Some of Wales' and the world’s most treasured species are in danger if world leaders, including Welsh Government representatives, fail to deliver strong commitments for the COP26 climate summit, according to a new report published today by WWF.

‘Feeling the Heat: The fate of nature beyond 1.5°C of global warming’ outlines the effects of the global climate emergency on people and nature, and how the future of us all depends on humanity’s urgent response.   

Jessica McQuade, Head of Policy and Advocacy at WWF Cymru said: "If we are to secure a future for some of Wales and the planet’s most iconic species and habitats, then 2021 must be a turning point in tackling the climate and nature crisis.

"Wales, alongside other countries must seize the chance at COP26 to build a fairer, greener future with nature at its heart.

“With the eyes of the world on COP26, Wales has an opportunity to show what its new Climate Ministry is capable of by sharing an action plan with the world outlining the steps it will take to cut harmful emissions and reach net zero by 2050.

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"This must recognise nature's critical role in tackling emission reduction. Programmes which invest in nature restoration such as seagrass meadows, will not only help reduce emissions but also provide a much needed habitat for nature."

The report highlights 12 species from around the world that are already experiencingthe impacts of climate change; from puffins on our Welsh coast, to penguins in the frozen wilderness of Antarctica, to monkeys deep in the Amazon jungle. The vast scale and variety of impacts are now being felt on every continent, across all types of animal and plant life.  

Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme events, such as heatwaves, floods, droughts and wildfires, as well as warming oceans and rising sea levels, putting species - and their homes - under greater pressure.

Many animals and plants cannot cope with the changing environment where their habitats may alter, food and water become scarcer, and seasons shift.

Here in Wales, one of our much-loved iconic birds, the puffin is starting to feel the heat.

Warmer waters mean the food chain will be pushed out of sync depriving the puffins of their food source.

Warmer temperature will see bluebells blooming out of sync with the seasons which could see them become a distant memory as conditions become inhospitable; and our busy bumblebees are overheating as they work hard to pollinate our plants and crops.

Further afield, snow leopards, sea turtles, frogs, coral, hippos and coffee plants are all at risk if global warming continues at its current rate.

WWF’s global conservation efforts include the use of nature-based solutions to mitigate climate change and benefit people and nature.

The report spotlights four projects around the world, including the restoration of seagrass meadows in Pembrokeshire. The biggest seagrass restoration project ever undertaken in the UK has seen 1 million seeds planted in Welsh waters.

Within a human lifetime, we have already seen extraordinary and unparalleled changes to our planet. Global wildlife populations have fallen an average of 68 per cent since 1970, while 2020 marked the end of the hottest decade on record.

WWF warns that the current trajectory for our climate will create an unsafe home for people and nature, with every half-degree increase in temperature bringing additional pressures.  

The report outlines why it is essential for the UK government, as hosts of the critical UN climate conference (COP26) in Glasgow in November, to ensure the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C is kept on the table. 

Current pledges and targets are projected to lead to a temperature rise of 2.4°C above pre-industrial levels by the end of the century, which will be catastrophic for people and nature.   

The report states that limiting warming to 1.5°C will not be possible without urgently halting nature loss around the world – failure to do so will undermine all other efforts to tackle the climate crisis. WWF is calling for strengthened global efforts to restore nature, alongside rapid and deep cuts to harmful emissions, including transforming the way we use our land. 

Mike Barrett, executive director of science and conservation, at WWF, said,  “Nature is our life support system, and its continued destruction is not only devastating local wildlife and communities, but creating a hotter, less stable planet, putting our very survival at risk. This isn’t a far-off threat; the impacts of climate change are already being felt and if we don’t act now to keep global warming to 1.5°C we will slide faster and faster towards catastrophe. 

“While a half-degree increase beyond this may not sound significant, it will permanently damage a variety of natural ecosystems, leading to the extinction of even more species across the globe and risking the lives of millions more people worldwide.”