Wildfires are burning more severely and more often, urban noise pollution is growing into a global public health menace, and phenological mismatches – disruptions in the timing of life-cycle stages in natural systems – are causing ecological consequences. These critical environmental issues, requiring greater attention, are highlighted in the new Frontiers Report published today by the UN Environment Programme ( UNEP ).
This is the fourth edition of the Frontiers Report, which was first published in 2016 with an alert to the growing risk of zoonotic diseases , four years before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic .
“The Frontiers Report identifies and offers solutions to three environmental issues that merit attention and action from governments and the public at large,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP. “Urban noise pollution, wildfires and phenological shifts – the three topics of this Frontiers report – are issues that highlight the urgent need to address the triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss.”
The latest edition of the Frontiers report, Noise, Blazes and Mismatches: Emerging Issues of Environmental Concern , is released days before the resumed fifth session of the UN Environment Assembly ( UNEA ):
A raucous killer: Noise pollution in cities is a growing hazard to public health
Dangerous wildfire weather is projected to get worse
Climate change disrupts natural rhythms in plants and animals
NOTES TO EDITORS
About the UN Environment Assembly ( UNEA )
UNEA is the world’s most powerful decision-making body on the environment, and responsible for tackling some of the most critical issues of our time. This year, hundreds of key decision makers, businesses and representatives of intergovernmental organizations and civil society will gather for the second part of UNEA-5, taking place at the UN Environment Programme Headquarters in Nairobi.
About the UN Environment Programme ( UNEP )
UNEP is the leading global voice on the environment. It provides leadership and encourages partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations.
UNEP@50 : A time to reflect on the past and envision the future
The 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, Sweden, was the first-ever UN conference with the word “environment” in its title. The creation of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) was one of the most visible outcomes of this conference of many firsts. UNEP was created quite simply to be the environmental conscience of the UN and the world. Activities taking place through 2022 will look at significant progress made as well as what’s ahead in decades to come.
For more information, please contact:
Keisha Rukikaire , Head of News & Media, UNEP
Moses Osani , Communications Officer, UNEP
Observational study