It is an unfortunate reality that we are in the midst of a significant environmental crisis. Global warming, droughts, wildfires, and floods are becoming increasingly commonplace, a trend that should not be accepted as the new normal. Immediate action is essential, as activists and campaigners around the world consistently remind us. The Planetary Health Check report reaffirms this urgency.

The Planetary Health Check initiative unites researchers from diverse fields, including Earth science, artificial intelligence, and observational data. Its mission is to comprehensively assess the critical aspects of planetary health that sustain human civilisation. Specialists are examining how well the Earth is coping with the ongoing environmental crisis, but unfortunately, their findings are far from encouraging.

As we read on radiozet.pl, the Planetary Health Check report is based on the concept of the so-called planetary boundaries, which define areas of safe human activity that allow for maintaining the stability of ecosystems. The nine key boundaries include:

• climate change,
• biosphere changes,
• land system change,
• freshwater change,
• biogeochemical flows,
• ocean acidification,
• atmospheric aerosol loading,
• ozone layer depletion,
• and the introduction of novel entities, such as synthetic chemicals, to the environment.

"Typically, environmental challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution have been addressed separately, but these issues are interconnected and collectively impact our planet’s health, as well as human health. The Planetary Health Check report documents the latest scientific information on the diverse Planetary Boundary processes, identifies the underlying causes and the interconnectedness of various processes and connects Planetary Boundary processes to different tipping points, emphasizing the need for a whole Earth approach to ensure humanity's future," reads the PHC report.

According to the data presented in the PHC report, mankind has breached as many as six of the nine boundaries mentioned above. Moreover, experts stress that we are close to breaching the seventh boundary, ocean acidification. As radiozet.pl reports, only two processes remain safe: ozone layer depletion and atmospheric aerosol loading.

"Our updated diagnosis shows that vital organs of the Earth system are weakening, leading to a loss of resilience and rising risks of crossing tipping points. (…) The message is clear, local actions impact the planet, and a planet under pressure can impact everyone, everywhere. Securing human wellbeing, economic development, and stable societies requires a holistic approach where the protection of the planet takes centre stage," said the report’s co-author Levke Caesar,

Source: radiozet.pl