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UN climate scientists warned last month that if greenhouse gas emissions are not slashed the world must face a reality of cities vanishing under rising seas, rivers running dry and marine life collapsing.

In its Fiscal Monitor report on Thursday, the IMF noted the long-term goal of the 2015 Paris Agreement was to limit temperature rises to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), but that current global commitments to reduce emissions were consistent with warming of 3 degrees Celsius.

The Fund also noted that many countries are set to miss their own targets and that the United States has said it will pull out from the Paris climate deal in 2020.

“Implementation of existing commitments is therefore a first-step priority, but mechanisms to boost action at a global level are urgently needed,” the report said.

Carbon taxes, which would raise the cost of fossil fuels, would be the most comprehensive means of tackling global warming, according to the report, as it would make people and businesses reduce emissions, convert energy or switch to greener power sources.

Implementing a carbon tax of US$75 per ton would have the greatest impact in reducing emissions, with the price of coal rising more than 200 per cent above baseline levels in 2030.

The cost of electricity and gasoline would also rise considerably and by varying degrees in countries. Gasoline prices would rise 5 per cent to 15 per cent in most countries, the IMF said, “well within the bounds of price fluctuations experienced during the past few decades.”