In response to the floods in Queensland and New South Wales, the Australian Conservation Foundation’s CEO Kelly O’Shanassy said:
“The ongoing flood crisis in Queensland and NSW is devastating communities and wildlife.
“It has been heart-breaking to witness the damage being done to people’s homes and lives – including those of ACF’s staff and supporters – and the impact these floods have had on animals and the landscape.
“Climate change, fuelled mostly by burning coal, gas and oil, is making extreme weather events like floods more likely, more extreme and more unpredictable.
“In the last fortnight the world’s most authoritative climate science body, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, warned again about the severe costs of global warming and emphasised that the need for action is more urgent than ever.
“The IPCC report found Australia will be one of the countries affected most by climate damage.
“Australians are already paying a high price from worsening bushfires, heatwaves and floods.
“Further delaying climate action puts us all at risk.
“It does no one any good to keep talking about disasters like this as one-in-a-hundred-year events when human-driven climate change is making them happen with devastating frequency.
“It does no one any good to deny the reality of what is going on.
“Acknowledging that we are witnessing climate change is an important first step in doing something about the problem.
“A responsible government would not only step up to help affected communities but prioritise climate action to mitigate future disasters.
“Over its nine years in office the Coalition government has failed to listen to climate science, failed in its responsibility to take action to reduce climate pollution to safe levels and has done too little to keep Australians safe from extreme weather events like the devastating foods wreaking havoc across NSW and Queensland.
“We urge Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Labor leader Anthony Albanese to set targets to cut climate pollution at least in half this decade – and announce policies to get us there.
“Without faster emissions cuts, more Australians will face more devastating floods, longer droughts and more ferocious bushfires.”
Together We Can is a movement of Australians, groups and businesses from all over the country who are raising their voices for stronger action on climate change this decade.
Header pic by Jason Lyddieth, March 2022
