Final Statement of the Second World Climate Conference
Climate issues reach far beyond the atmospheric and oceanic sciences, affecting every aspect of life on this planet. The issues are increasingly pivotal in determining future environmental and economic well-being. Variations of climate have profound effects on natural and managed systems, the economies of nations, and the wellbeing of people everywhere. A clear scientific consensus has emerged on estimates of the range of global warming which can be expected during the 21 st century. If the increase of concentrations of ‘greenhouse’ gases is not limited, the predicted climate change would place stresses on natural and social systems unprecedented in the past 10,000 years.At the First World Climate Conference, in 1979, nations were urged ‘to foresee and to prevent potential man-made changes in climate that might be adverse to the well-being of humanity’. The Second World Climate Conference concludes that, notwithstanding scientific and economic uncertainties, nations should now take steps towards reducing sources and increasing sinks of ‘greenhouse’ gases through national and regional actions, with due negotiation of a global convention on climate change and related legal instruments. The long-term goal should be to halt the build-up of ‘greenhouse’ gases at a level that minimizes risks to society and natural ecosystems. The remaining uncertainties must not be the basis for deferring societal responses to these risks. Many of the actions that would reduce risk are also desirable on other grounds.A major international observational and research effort will be essential to strengthen the knowledge-base on climate processes and human interactions, and to provide the basis for operational climate monitoring and prediction.