Britain faces severe warming by 2080s: study

By Peter Griffiths

LONDON (Reuters) - Climate change could lead to a rise in average summer temperatures in parts of Britain that is nearly double the level which the European Union and others say is dangerous, a study said on Thursday.

The government-backed report warned that southeast England could see a 3.9 Celsius (7 Fahrenheit) rise in average summer temperatures by the 2080s unless global action was taken to curb planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions.

That would lead to heatwaves, droughts, lower crop yields and more pests and disease, the long-awaited report by Britain's leading climate change scientists said.

The European Union wants global average temperatures not to exceed 2 degrees above pre-industrial levels, although many see that target as being increasingly hard to meet.

Britain's Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said it was too late to reverse the damage likely to be caused over the next 20 to 30 years by emissions already released into the atmosphere.

However, he said countries could still influence what happens in the 2080s and beyond if they agreed to cut emissions at international climate change talks in Copenhagen in December.

"These results are sobering and we know that these changes will affect every aspect of our daily lives," Benn told parliament. "Only by cutting emissions through a global deal in Copenhagen can we avoid some of these extreme changes."

The report was released two days after U.S. President Barack Obama's government warned that climate change had already caused "visible impacts" in the United States, especially for farmers and the energy industry.