Climate Emergency

So what is the impact of the climate crisis?

Climate and Environment crisis

This is our here and now...

There is overwhelming scientific evidence that the climate of the world we live in is changing at an unprecedented pace. Human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases are causing the Earth's atmosphere to warm, which poses significant risks to the planet and the ecosystems that we rely on.

Wirral have recognised that taking action now to address climate change and the ecological crisis is vital to ensure the environment is protected for future generations.

The Cool Wirral partnership have set a target to reduce carbon emissions within Wirral to net zero by 2041. A key partner of Cool Wirral, Wirral Council declared an environment and climate emergency on 15 July 2019 and committed to achieve net zero from their activities by 2030.

These pages provide further information about climate change.

Causes and Effects of Climate Change | National Geographic

What is Climate Change?

Climate change describes a change in the average conditions — such as temperature and rainfall — in a region over a long period of time and this is something that has been particularly more apparent in the past 20 years, with Earth’s surface warming, so producing many of the warmest years on record.

The developing Climate Change emergency...

Committee on Climate Change suggest that there is good scientific evidence to show the climate is changing because of emissions of greenhouse gases resulting from human activity. The bulk of emissions derive from our demand for energy. The largest contributor is carbon dioxide (CO2), emitted when fossil fuels are burnt to meet those demands. There are also other emissions attached to industrial processes and agriculture.

The Climate Change Act (2008) made the UK the first country to establish a long-term legally binding framework to cut carbon emissions. It contains a target requiring emissions reductions by at least 100% by 2050. To limit the most damaging impacts of climate change, we need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally. A wider legal commitment – The Paris Agreement also exists, spanning the UK, the EU and globally, to address climate change.

But it will take more than just legislation to ensure we tackle the problem. Change will involve a combination of new technologies, processes and human behaviour. So what needs to be done?

There are significant benefits of the UK acting now to reduce its emissions:

  • The world has committed to global action on climate change. By reducing its own emissions, the UK is supporting wider international efforts.
  • In a future world where greenhouse gases are restricted, the cost of emitting those gases (i.e. carbon price) will be high. Early action to reduce emissions – here and elsewhere – can help reduce future costs.
  • Investment in and development of low-carbon technologies will put the UK at the forefront of new and expanding global markets.

There will also be a need to adapt to climate change that cannot be avoided. The UK will need to prepare for more flooding, greater pressure on water resources, damage to natural habitats, and risks to human health from heat waves.  At the same time, there could be opportunities, including reduced energy demand and fewer cold-related deaths due to milder winters.

Worlds apart: A story of three possible warmer Worlds

The future will look different no matter what — just how different is our choice, A series of infographics from the IPCC — Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. 

Why do we call it a climate crisis?

Our planet has been warming rapidly since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution.

The average temperature at the Earth's surface has risen about 1.1C since 1850, external. Furthermore, each of the last four decades has been warmer than any that preceded it, since the middle of the 19th Century.

These conclusions come from analyses of millions of measurements gathered in different parts of the world. The temperature readings are collected by weather stations on land, on ships and by satellites, external.

Multiple independent teams of scientists have reached the same result - a spike in temperatures coinciding with the onset of the industrial era.

Scientists can reconstruct temperature fluctuations even further back in time.

Tree rings, ice cores, lake sediments and corals all record a signature of the past climate.

This provides much-needed context to the current phase of warming. In fact, scientists estimate the Earth hasn't been this hot for about 125,000 years.

Source: BBC News (Science and Environment)

The rising temperatures are important as it is causing a rapid shift in our weather patterns leading to increased frequency of extreme weather events such as hurricanes, droughts, wildfires and floods.

The melting of ice caps, glaciers and polar ice sheets contribute to rising sea levels, posing a threat to coastal and low lying areas. Climate change is also a major driver of biodiversity loss, with species facing habitat loss and an increased risk of extinction.

The interconnectedness of ecosystems mean that these disruptions can have wide reaching consequences.

Human health is also impacted by climate change, for example heat related illnesses, respiratory problems from poor air quality and the spread of diseases in changing environments.


Climate change and the evidence

Wirral Information

Cool Wirral

Cool Wirral is a campaign aimed at encouraging local climate-related action in support of the climate change strategy for Wirral. The Cool Wirral Partnership (formerly the Wirral Climate Change Group) co-ordinates local action on climate change. The partnership is supported by Wirral Council. Cool Wirral | wirral.gov.uk

Cool Wirral: Progress Report 2023 (June 2024)


Wirral Council Environment and Climate Emergency Response

Wirral Council declared an Environment and Climate Emergency at a meeting of full council on 15 July 2019 and through this committed to action to address the ecological and climate crisis that we face.

The commitment to action aims to:

  • cut climate damaging pollution locally in line with global targets, whilst developing resilience to more extreme weather patterns and rising sea levels that impact Wirral
  • protect and enhance biodiversity

Climate Emergency | wirral.gov.uk

Wirral Council Environment and Climate Emergency Response (June 2024)

National evidence and data

UK Climate Change Risk Assessment 2022

As required by the Climate Change Act 2008, the UK government has undertaken the third five-year assessment of the risks of climate change on the UK.

This report, UK Climate Change Risk Assessment 2022, outlines the UK government and devolved administrations’ position on the key climate change risks and opportunities that the UK faces today.

It is based on the Independent Assessment of UK Climate Risk, the statutory advice provided by the Climate Change Committee (CCC), commissioned by the UK government and devolved administrations.

Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) 5-year Climate Action Plan

The LCRCA Five Year Climate Action Plan sets out actions for the Combined Authority to 2028. These actions will be critical in helping ensure that the City Region achieves its 2040 net zero carbon emissions target.

This Plan is divided into 5 pillars; transport, buildings, industry, clean energy and natural environment, each with associated actions and complemented by a series of cross-cutting actions.

International evidence and data

In 2018, IPCC highlighted the unprecedented scale of the challenge required to keep warming to 1.5°C. Five years later, that challenge has become even greater due to a continued increase in greenhouse gas emissions. The pace and scale of what has been done so far, and current plans, are insufficient to tackle climate change.

Thousands of people from all over the world contribute to the work of the IPCC. For the assessment reports, experts volunteer their time as IPCC authors to assess the thousands of scientific papers published each year to provide a comprehensive summary of what is known about the drivers of climate change, its impacts and future risks, and how adaptation and mitigation can reduce those risks. An open and transparent review by experts and member governments is an essential part of the IPCC process to ensure an objective and complete assessment and to reflect a diverse range of views and expertise.

The IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) summarises the state of knowledge of climate change, its widespread impacts and risks, and climate change mitigation and adaptation.

This report recognizes the interdependence of climate, ecosystems and biodiversity, and human societies; the value of diverse forms of knowledge; and the close linkages between climate change adaptation, mitigation, ecosystem health, human well-being and sustainable development, and reflects the increasing diversity of actors involved in climate action.

https://www.ipcc.ch/report/sixth-assessment-report-cycle/


Climate and impacts on our health

Latest information

Health equity impacts of climate change (May 2024)
This rapid mapping review identifies and categorises evidence on the health equity impacts of climate change in the UK.

Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: the imperative for a health-centred response in a world facing irreversible harms - The Lancet

The Lancet Countdown is an international research collaboration that independently monitors the evolving impacts of climate change on health, and the emerging health opportunities of climate action. In its eighth iteration, this 2023 report draws on the expertise of 114 scientists and health practitioners from 52 research institutions and UN agencies worldwide to provide its most comprehensive assessment yet.

Wirral Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions report (2019)
A review of emissions for Wirral between 2005 and 2016 
Not all carbon emissions are within the scope of influence of local authorities**. Emissions that authorities do not influence include: Motorways; EU Emissions Trading System sites; Diesel railways; Land use, Land Use Change, and Forestry (all emissions belonging to the LULUCF Net Emissions). This report discusses Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions on an end-user basis (where emissions are distributed according to the point of energy consumption) assigned to Local Authority areas, as recorded between 2005 and 2016. (Note: our latest Cool Wirral Report 2024 contains latest CO2 data) 

The Lancet Planetary Health is an internationally trusted source of knowledge on the intersections of global environmental change, sustainable development, and human health and social justice. Visit the website for more information.

Heatwave and Cold weather plans
Published 27 April 2023, the Adverse Weather and Health Plan aims to protect individuals and communities from the health effects of adverse weather and to build community resilience.


Climate Change and the future

Risks, Impacts and Adaptations

Risks and projected adverse impacts and related losses and damages from climate change escalate with every increment of global warming. In the near term, every region in the world is projected to face further increases in climate hazards, increasing multiple risks to ecosystems and humans. Hazards and associated risks expected in the near term include an increase in heat-related human mortality and morbidity, food-borne, water-borne, and vector-borne diseases and mental health challenges, flooding in coastal and other low-lying cities and regions, biodiversity loss in land, freshwater and ocean ecosystems and a decrease in food production in some regions.

  • Water availability and food production

  • Infrastructure

  • Biodiversity and ecosystems

  • Health and wellbeing

https://www.adph.org.uk/networks/northwest/wp-content/uploads/sites/14/2024/07/FINAL-v-4.1-North-West-Climate-Change-and-Health-Narrative-.pdf


Key content

Key reports
Most recent JSNAs
Historic topic information

Lancet Countdown 2019 Report
This 2019 Report tracks the relationship between health and climate change across five key domains and 41 indicators. See an overview of the 2019 key findings below, or download the full report. Lancet Countdown 2019 Report.

Wirral Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions report (2019)
A review of emissions for Wirral between 2005 and 2016 
Not all carbon emissions are within the scope of influence of local authorities**. Emissions that authorities do not influence include: Motorways; EU Emissions Trading System sites; Diesel railways; Land use, Land Use Change, and Forestry (all emissions belonging to the LULUCF Net Emissions). This report discusses Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions on an end-user basis (where emissions are distributed according to the point of energy consumption) assigned to Local Authority areas, as recorded between 2005 and 2016.

Challenges and opportunities in planetary health for primary care providers - The Lancet Planetary Health (2018)
Primary care providers (PCPs) are trusted to provide a person-centred, comprehensive, and integrated response to health challenges. This article discusses the fact that through preventive health measures, PCPs also have a responsibility to strengthen the resilience of the communities they serve. Many environmental alterations, including climate change, air pollution, biodiversity loss, freshwater depletion, land use change, and exposures to toxic chemicals, threaten the advances in human health experienced in the past decades. PCPs can be instrumental in helping to address some of the causes and consequences of these environmental alterations.

Heatwave Plan for England 2018 (includes new resources)
The Heatwave Plan for England (PHE, 2018) is a plan intended to protect the population from heat-related harm to health. It aims to prepare for, alert people to, and prevent, the major avoidable effects on health during periods of severe heat in England.

Cold weather plan (CWP) for England (October 2015)
Includes plan and evidence summary on planning to protect health in cold weather. This plan is valid from October 2015 until further notice. (Remains operable until further notice)

Wirral’s Climate Change Strategy (2015)
Wirral’s Climate Change Strategy otherwise known as 'Cool' is designed to encourage and co-ordinate widespread local climate-related action and so boost its impact. It was developed by Wirral’s Climate Change Group, in consultation with the public, and covers the period 2014 to 2019.

Under the weather: improving health, wellbeing and resilience in a changing climate (March 2015) NHS Sustainable Development Unit
This toolkit is to assist health and wellbeing boards to protect people, services and communities from the impacts of climate change. The document also highlights how joint strategic needs assessments and joint health and wellbeing strategies can be used to achieve these aims.

Useful links


How can you get involved?

Community Climate Action

Collective action on climate change in Wirral - your one stop website to reduce your carbon footprint and support climate action as a Wirral resident.