Climate Action

It's any change in the climate, lasting for several decades or longer, including changes in temperature, rainfall or wind patterns.

Our climate is changing quite dramatically – it’s getting hotter. The global average temperature has already risen by 1.1°C since the pre-industrial period (1700s).

While the earth’s climate has changed throughout history, scientists agree that the significant changes we’ve seen over the past 100 years or so have been due to human activities. Recent warming is also happening at a rate that is much faster than previous climatic changes.

Since the Industrial Revolution (which began in the mid to late 1700s), greenhouse gases have built up in the atmosphere, which is trapping more heat close to the earth’s surface resulting in warmer global temperatures. This is because humans began digging up and burning coal, oil and gas, as well as scaling up agriculture and tree-clearing (deforestation), and increasing waste (landfill), which are all processes that produce greenhouse gases.

Temperature rise has resulted in warmer average temperatures, heat waves, flooding, poor air quality, species loss, rising sea levels and bushfires.

• Increased frequency and severity of floods, heatwaves and droughts.
• Impacts on wildlife due to heat stress, drought and habitat changes.
• Impacts on health due to changes in air pollution and aeroallergens (such as pollen), vector-borne diseases, extreme weather events and other factors.
• Increased pressure on emergency services and health systems to deal with the health impacts of climate change.