New climate projections by the CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology show Australia is already experiencing global warming and the impacts will get worse without serious action to cut pollution, the Australian Conservation Foundation said.
“Unless greenhouse pollution is slashed, Australia’s climate will change significantly, with a temperature of increase of between 2.8°C and 5.1°C by 2090,” said Victoria McKenzie-McHarg, Climate Change Program Manager for ACF.
“We can expect Sydney’s climate to become more like Brisbane’s, Melbourne’s more like Dubbo’s, and Perth’s more like Geraldton’s.
“These projections show Australia will suffer more extreme heat and drought, having massive implications for agriculture, tourism, water supply and liveability.
“In fact, some parts of Australia could become uninhabitable.
“The number of hot days in the country is set to increase substantially.
“The number of days over 35°C in Alice Springs is projected to almost double by 2090 with a business as usual scenario. In Melbourne rainfall could drop by 7 to 9 per cent by 2090.
“The projections show what is at stake for Australia and add volume to the drumbeat on climate change we’ve been hearing all summer.
“The news that 2014 was the hottest year on record globally, the last decade was the hottest on record for Australia and projections showing the increasing number of days we are exposed to extreme heat all point to the need for urgent action.
“It makes you wonder what it will take to get the federal government to take this issue seriously.
“This year must become the year our government starts to play a constructive role in the global effort to tackle climate change,” she said.
