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Polar bears pictured in the northwestern Murmansk region of Russia on Aug. 13, 2015.
(Photo: Alexander Petrosyan/Kommersant via Getty Images)
Russia Warming Over Two Times Faster Than Rest of Planet
Country's environment ministry issues climate change warning in annual report
Dec 25, 2015
Russia is warming 2.5 times the global average. The country's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection revealed Friday in its annual report that it faces a dramatic rise in related threats, from floods to fires.
"Growth of average temperatures in Russia in 1976-2014 was 0.42 degrees Celsius in 10 years, which is 2.5 times more than global temperatures on Earth for the same period--0.17 degrees Celsius in 10 years," the ministry wrote, according to media reports.
"Climate change leads to growth of dangerous meteorological phenomena," the ministry continued, citing dramatic floods and severe forest fires last year. According to the agency's calculations, Russia faced 569 events in 2014--marking the greatest number since the ministry began keeping track.
The report charts temperature fluctuations affecting the climate, leading to ice melting, sea levels rising, floods, droughts and other phenomena.
Coming in the wake of the Paris climate talks, the ministry's findings underscore the urgency of climate change. The conclusions are further significant given President Vladimir Putin's historic refusal to acknowledge the crisis.
What's more, the ministry's findings follow a report released released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration earlier this month which found that loss of sea ice, and climbing temperatures in the Barents Sea, off the coast of Norway and Russia, are already causing "a poleward shift in fish communities."
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Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is web editor at In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
climate changeclimate crisisearthenvironmentfloodsglobal warmingnorwayparis agreementrussiasea icesea level risevladimir putinclimate emergency
Russia is warming 2.5 times the global average. The country's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection revealed Friday in its annual report that it faces a dramatic rise in related threats, from floods to fires.
"Growth of average temperatures in Russia in 1976-2014 was 0.42 degrees Celsius in 10 years, which is 2.5 times more than global temperatures on Earth for the same period--0.17 degrees Celsius in 10 years," the ministry wrote, according to media reports.
"Climate change leads to growth of dangerous meteorological phenomena," the ministry continued, citing dramatic floods and severe forest fires last year. According to the agency's calculations, Russia faced 569 events in 2014--marking the greatest number since the ministry began keeping track.
The report charts temperature fluctuations affecting the climate, leading to ice melting, sea levels rising, floods, droughts and other phenomena.
Coming in the wake of the Paris climate talks, the ministry's findings underscore the urgency of climate change. The conclusions are further significant given President Vladimir Putin's historic refusal to acknowledge the crisis.
What's more, the ministry's findings follow a report released released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration earlier this month which found that loss of sea ice, and climbing temperatures in the Barents Sea, off the coast of Norway and Russia, are already causing "a poleward shift in fish communities."
Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is web editor at In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
Russia is warming 2.5 times the global average. The country's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection revealed Friday in its annual report that it faces a dramatic rise in related threats, from floods to fires.
"Growth of average temperatures in Russia in 1976-2014 was 0.42 degrees Celsius in 10 years, which is 2.5 times more than global temperatures on Earth for the same period--0.17 degrees Celsius in 10 years," the ministry wrote, according to media reports.
"Climate change leads to growth of dangerous meteorological phenomena," the ministry continued, citing dramatic floods and severe forest fires last year. According to the agency's calculations, Russia faced 569 events in 2014--marking the greatest number since the ministry began keeping track.
The report charts temperature fluctuations affecting the climate, leading to ice melting, sea levels rising, floods, droughts and other phenomena.
Coming in the wake of the Paris climate talks, the ministry's findings underscore the urgency of climate change. The conclusions are further significant given President Vladimir Putin's historic refusal to acknowledge the crisis.
What's more, the ministry's findings follow a report released released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration earlier this month which found that loss of sea ice, and climbing temperatures in the Barents Sea, off the coast of Norway and Russia, are already causing "a poleward shift in fish communities."
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