Hong Kong Observatory publishes second edition of climate change pamphlet

12 July 2016

The Hong Kong Observatory (HKO) published the second edition of "Hong Kong in a Warming World" pamphlet on climate change today (July 12). The new edition updated the likely future climate scenarios for the world and Hong Kong, with new projections of extreme weather events for Hong Kong in various scenarios.

The world moved along the trajectory of a high greenhouse gas concentration scenario in the past decade. Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration and global temperature have set high records again and again with more frequent extreme weather observed over different parts of the world. The agreement made by countries at the Paris climate summit to limit the global average temperature rise within 2 degrees (compared to pre-industrial levels) has brought new hope for mitigate climate change. In this pamphlet, the HKO has updated the likely future climate scenarios for the world and Hong Kong, taking into consideration the emission reduction pledges made by countries attending the summit. New projections of extreme temperature and extreme rainfall for Hong Kong in the 21^st century for various scenarios are also incorporated.

"Even with the current emission reduction pledges made by countries, we still need to work harder to achieve the 2^oC target. While we should make every effort to reduce carbon emission, we also need to be prepared for a warming world. A new section on adaptation to climate change has been added in the second edition of "Hong Kong in a Warming World" to highlight possible action that we could take together to make Hong Kong more capable in adapting to climate change and the associated extreme weather, so that we will become a more resilient city," a spokesman for the HKO said.

Members of the public can access the online version of the pamphlet at HKO's website (www.hko.gov.hk/climate_change/climate_change_e.pdf). A limited number of free copies are available to the public at the Hong Kong Observatory Resource Centre.