Over
recent years the land-based effects of climate change have become increasingly
obvious.
Severe
droughts are occurring more frequently. All of NSW is now in drought.
During August there were serious bushfires locally as well as elsewhere in NSW and
Queensland. Severe winter fires raise concerns about what summer will bring,
given the record summer temperatures in recent years.
In other
parts of the world huge fires have been destructive once again in California
and even above the Arctic circle in Sweden.
The
oceans are also increasingly showing the effects of climate change. Ocean warming’s effect on the world’s coral
reefs, including the Great Barrier Reef, has been widely publicised.
Warming
oceans have had other impacts with changes to ocean ecosystems more widely.
A recent
United Nations report, with contributions from more than 90 experts from 20
countries, looked at fisheries and
climate change around the world. Their report
shows that marine systems around the world are undergoing rapid environmental
change.
Many
fish species are changing their distribution. For example the northern movement
of European mackerel into Icelandic waters has led to conflict with southerly
fishing countries.
While
some species will increase, models predict seafood stocks in tropical regions
will decrease, where people can least afford alternative foods.
There is
rapid ocean change around Australia with waters off the southeastern and
southwestern coasts being particular warming hotspots. Our tropical oceans are warming almost twice
as fast as the global average.
More
than 100 of our marine species have begun to shift their distributions
southwards. Seagrass, kelp forests and
mangroves, as well as coral reefs, have been affected by marine heatwaves and
other extreme events such as cyclones.
The
report states that Australian commercial fisheries are clearly already being
affected by climate change. This
industry will obviously need to adapt to remain sustainable.
While humankind
may introduce adaption strategies to cope with the current effects of climate
change, it needs to act urgently to curb emissions to limit future global
temperature increases.
We need
a Federal Government that takes this threat seriously and acts effectively.
- Leonie Blain
This article was originally published in the VOICES FOR THE EARTH column in The Daily Examiner on August 27, 2018.
