Recent results of EC's climate research
The Climate and Natural Hazards Unit of the European Commission (DG XII/D-2) has published a brochure highlighting some of the main results of climate research supported, over the past two years, by the Community's specific RTD programme in the field of Environment and Climate. The brochure, "Recent results of EC's climate research", outlines highlights of recent research work in the following main areas: - Climate process and climate system studies; - Modelling and prediction, including global circulation models; - Research on the impacts of climate change. In general, three points emerge clearly. Firstly, the European climate research community, supported by the Environment and Climate programme, has significantly contributed to the IPCC's Second Assessment Report (1995). An important conclusion of this report - that there is a discernible human influence on climate - is largely based on European research efforts. The IPCC does, however, acknowledge that there are still many uncertainties. Secondly, research shows that atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases (CO2, CH4, N2O) are increasing, leading to an expected warming, whilst regional aerosol loading increases are expected to have a net cooling effect. These changes are mainly due to fossil fuel combustion and other industrial processes, agriculture and land-use/land-cover changes whose combined effect is expected to alter the climate on a European and global scale, affecting the temperature, soil, moisture, precipitation, sea-level and ecosystems. Thirdly, some European regions have become more vulnerable to climate extreme events, such as storms, floods and droughts, mainly due to increasing population densities in risk-prone areas and due to the increasing tendency of climate hazards on a regional scale. The economic and ecological impact of these changes is currently being assessed.