NBC meteorologist cites controversial UN study claiming extreme heat will make US south unlivable for humans
An NBC meteorologist suggested Sunday that the United Nations’ prediction that extreme heat could make certain US areas in the south unlivable for humans in the future is “probably closer than you might think.”
During a discussion about the extreme heat waves expected to impact parts of the US this summer, NBC meteorologist Angie Lassman cited a controversial 2022 U.N. climate report claiming that rising temperatures in the US will make parts of Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana and California “less suitable” for human habitation by 2070.
“The human body simply can’t handle these levels of heat and will go into heat stress,” guest host Joe Fryer said on NBC’s “Sunday Today.” “With much of the country and the world experiencing these record temps, at what point do certain areas just simply become uninhabitable for humans?”
Lassman said Fryer’s concern is “actually, probably closer than you might think,” highlighting the widely denounced report which warned that in some areas of the US south and others regions of the world, heatwaves will become so dangerous in less than fifty years that human life there will be unsustainable if no action is taken to reassess the world’s climate policies.
“That report also states that up to one-third of the global population will start experiencing life-threatening heat conditions, something that we currently only see in places like the Sahara,” Lassman added.
“This all means climate migration, people in the hottest areas with the most vulnerable populations moving to avoid the heat and drought conditions,” Lassman continued. “That of course, will put pressure on the cities and towns they move to and the heat [is] projected to cause this ripple effect this century.”
“The clock is ticking,” Fryer replied.
The study in question, released in October 2022 by the United Nations and the Red Cross, predicted that by 2070, rising temperatures could make climate conditions in certain areas of the world “warmer than conditions deemed suitable for human life to flourish.”
The study also claimed that cutting down on greenhouse gasses could reduce the number of people affected by up to 50%.
Critics dismissed the report as just another study in a long string of catastrophic climate change warnings and calls to action from the U.N. dating back decades.
The NBC discussion was prompted by reports circulating last week suggesting that Earth hit its hottest day in at least 44 years and likely much longer and comes as excessive heat warnings were issued across the US over the Fourth of July holiday.
Many heat advisories remain in place across the world as sweltering temperatures are expected to break records across various regions this summer.
