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The world is “heading in the wrong direction” when it comes to climate change, according to officials.

The World Meteorological Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, is warning that unless far more ambitious actions are taken to address the issue, the physical and socioeconomic impacts from climate change will be “increasingly devastating,” according to a press release published Tuesday.

Nothing about the scale of these disasters are natural either, according to UN Secretary-General António Guterres. These increasingly severe events, he said, “are the price of humanity’s fossil fuel addiction.”

“This year’s United in Science report shows climate impacts heading into uncharted territory of destruction,” Guterres said in a video message. “Yet each year we double-down on this fossil fuel addiction, even as the symptoms get rapidly worse.”

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The last seven years (2015 to 2021) “were the warmest on record,” according to Tuesday’s release. The warmest year on record is 2016, though there is a 93% chance that at least one of the next five years could be warmer.

The United in Science report says there are now five times as many weather, climate and water-related disasters than there were 50 years ago, costing an average of $202 million in losses daily worldwide.

The world has witnessed several catastrophic events this year alone, including the historic flooding in Pakistan and the heat wave in China that occurred over the summer, per the release. Various U.S. states saw historic heat and flooding over the summer, as well.

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Emissions reduction pledges for 2030 need to be at least seven times higher than they are now to meet the 1.5 °C goal set in the Paris Agreement, according to Tuesday’s press release.

“Enhanced mitigation action is needed to prevent the goals of the Paris Agreement from slipping out of reach,” the release states.

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One the the actions suggested in the report is to ensure everyone on the planet is covered by a Multi-Hazard Early Warning System, which “can prevent loss of life and reduce the economic and material impacts of hazardous events including disasters,” per the WMO website.

WMO Secretary-General Prof. Petteri Taalas said the agency “is spearheading a drive to ensure Early Warnings for All in the next five years,” per Tuesday’s release.

“It is more important than ever that we scale up action on early warning systems to build resilience to current and future climate risks in vulnerable communities,” Taalas explained.

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But the time to address climate change is very limited, with more than 3.3 billion people living in areas that are “highly vulnerable to climate change,” per the report.

“The science is clear – urgent action is needed to mitigate emissions and adapt to the changing climate,” the release states.