Our hearts go out to the many thousands of residents impacted by yet another major flooding event in the greater Sydney region.
At least three major floods this year alone.
This cannot be the new normal.
Extreme weather events are exacerbated by a changing climate and we are living through the consequences time and time again in our very own backyard.
“Climate change is not just an environmental issue, it is an economic and a human rights issue,” said ACF spokesperson Paul Sheridan.
“It is devastating to see repeated floods push people into a spiralling cycle of distress.
“Enhanced disaster mitigation by state and federal governments is needed, but it does not go far enough to address the major crisis we have unfolding before us.
“Governments cannot continue to approve new coal and gas on one hand and talk about climate action on the other.
“This is the not the decade to be approving new coal and gas – we need to urgently transition away from heavy polluting industries into clean renewable power – and make sure no regional community is left behind in the process.”
As the national environment organisation, the Australian Conservation Foundation is also deeply concerned with the impact extreme flooding events have on native wildlife and ecosystems.
“A changing climate not only has devastating impacts on human life, but also on our precious species which are already being pushed to the brink by the declining state of habitats,” said ACF Nature campaign manager Basha Stasak.
“In two weeks, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek will release the 2021 State of the Environment report, which will reveal the status of nature in Australia over the last five years.
“We are bracing ourselves for a grim report, but there are solutions at hand to better protect the places we love, like strengthening nature laws and installing a federal EPA.”
