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Historic Content you are reading content from a previous reporting year.

Showing 30 of 919 results

Climate change

2016
Inland water
Risks
Report Content
Updated projections of climate change in Australia were released in 2015, and are explored ... Futures Assessment (NAWFA) included risks arising from climate change and development ( Close et al. 2012 ). The ...
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Climate change

2016
Heritage
Pressures
Report Content
Climate change is already affecting Australia’s heritage ( ANU 2009 , Australia ICOMOS 2011 ). Australia’s climate has warmed significantly, rainfall regimes have ... will need to identify and better integrate climate change and extreme weather risk into forward planning and ...
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Climate change

2016
Ambient air quality
Pressures
Report Content
Climate change may also have a significant effect on air pollution. Warming and drying of the climate is projected to lead to an increase in extreme ...
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Climate change

2016
Ambient air quality
Risks
Report Content
Climate change poses a threat to urban air quality and health through ...
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Climate change

2016
Marine environment
Pressures
Report Content
... warming and ocean acidification, superimposed on natural climate variations—in particular, ENSO and decadal ... 2011 ). Changes in the marine environment associated with climate change provide a progressively changing baseline on top of ...
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Global climate change and climate variability

2016
Biodiversity
Pressures
Report Content
... territory SoE reports note the adverse effects of global climate change on biodiversity. These increasingly include extreme ... weather, as well as bushfire, drought, cyclones and flood. Climate change is predicted to generally exacerbate existing ...
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Climate change–induced pressures

2016
Land
Pressures
Report Content
Our climate is changing. Climate records, such as for rainfall and temperature, ...
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Effectiveness of climate change management

2016, 2011
Climate
Effectiveness of management
Assessment summary

Climate Effectiveness of management Planning and strategyManagement outputs and outcomesUnderstanding and researchRole and coordination of different levels of government...

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Climate change pressures affecting the land environment

2016, 2011
Land
Pressures
Assessment summary

Land Pressures Climate change–induced pressuresClimate Change Year...

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Climate change will affect Australian regions differently

2016
Atmosphere
Key Finding

2016  Climate change will result in location-specific vulnerabilities. Australia is predicted to experience increased heatwaves, leading to increased bushfire incidence and health problems (heat stress); longer droughts, extending further geographically; flooding from more intense storm...

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Emissions continue to contribute to climate change

2016
Atmosphere
Key Finding

2016  Australia’s emissions of CO2 per person in 2013 were nearly twice the average of countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, reflecting Australia’s heavy reliance on fossil fuels as a primary energy source, particularly the use of coal in the production of...

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Climate change is a key pressure on the Australian environment

2016
Pressures
Report Content
Climate change is an increasingly important and pervasive pressure on ... all aspects of the Australian environment. Although our climate and its high natural variability from year to year ... at a rate unprecedented in the geological record. Climate change is altering the structure and function of natural ...
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Box BIO16 National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility

2016
Biodiversity
Effectiveness of management
Case Study
The National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility (NCCARF) was established ... needed by decision-makers to adapt effectively to climate change . During its first phase of operation, NCCARF ...
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Climate change is the most serious threat to land management

2016
Land
Key Finding

2016 The many consequences of climate change, from changing species distributions to shorter agricultural growing seasons and more intense bushfires, pose the greatest medium-term pressure on Australia’s land environment.

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Climate change brings particular challenges for our built environments

2016
Built environment
Key Finding

2016  In recent years, heatwaves, floods, fires and storms have occurred more frequently in many cities. Major heatwaves are Australia’s deadliest natural hazards, particularly for cities, and average maximum temperatures are predicted to increase for a range of cities. Our coastal cities...

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Resistance to change

2016
Coasts
Resilience
Report Content
... habitats, species and processes, strong resistance to change is often related to high biodiversity and healthy ...
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Changed hydrology

2016
Biodiversity
Pressures
Report Content
... varied considerably since 2011, largely in response to climate. Changes to flows and water levels are described in ...
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Resilience of our climate

2016
Climate
Resilience
Report Content
The ability of the climate system to recover from changes to the composition of ...
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Climate and system variability

2016
Marine environment
Pressures
Report Content

2016 Marine environment Pressures Tasmania Marine Temperate East Marine South West Great Barrier Reef Marine North...

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Pressures affecting Australia’s climate

2016, 2011
Climate
Pressures
Assessment summary

Climate Pressures Direct (primary) effects of pressures on climateTrends in emissionsKyoto Protocol targetsAustralia’s emissions in contextIncreases in greenhouse gasesIndirect (secondary and tertiary) effects of pressures on...

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Outlook for Australia’s climate 2016

2016
Climate
Outlook
At a glance

At a glanceThe outlook for Australia’s climate depends on the effectiveness of international and national efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Without mitigation, surface temperature increases of 3.7–4.8 °C above 1850–1900 temperatures are projected. To remain below 2 °C warming above...

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Resilience of Australia’s climate 2016

2016
Climate
Resilience
At a glance

At a glanceOur planet is somewhat resilient to increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) levels because atmospheric CO2 is absorbed by the oceans. During recent decades, the oceans have taken up approximately 25 per cent of the annual anthropogenic CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. However, the...

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Risks to Australia’s climate 2016

2016
Climate
Risks
At a glance

At a glanceAn understanding of the risks associated with Australia’s climate will lead to improved action plans to adapt to the changes predicted to occur. Our climate is a dynamic system; therefore, the risks need to be re-evaluated frequently. Recent climate change projections for...

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Climate: 2011–16 in context

2016
Climate
Introduction
Report Content
As reported in SoE 2011, climate change continues to be a global problem. A major development ... to 2 °C above pre-industrial levels. International climate science has also advanced significantly. The ...
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Pressures affecting Australia’s climate 2016

2016
Climate
Pressures
At a glance

At a glanceGreenhouse gases (GHGs)—carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, short-lived tropospheric and stratospheric ozone, nitrous oxide and synthetic GHGs—together with water vapour, and natural and industrial aerosols, influence Earth’s energy balance. Human activity, primarily the burning of...

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Climate change is an increasingly important and pervasive pressure on all aspects of the Australian environment...

2016
Pressures
Key Finding

2016Climate change is an increasingly important and pervasive pressure on all aspects of the Australian environment. It is altering the structure and function of natural ecosystems, and affecting heritage, economic activity and human wellbeing. Climate change will result in location-...

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Figure ATM17 Summary of climate change projection scenarios for Australia

2016
Climate
Pressures
Map

Download as png Figure ATM17 Summary of climate change projection scenarios for Australia Direct (primary) effects of pressures on climate

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The nature of impacts of climate change on biodiversity is becoming better understood

2016
Biodiversity
Key Finding

2016Broad understanding of potential impacts of climate change on some Australian species (e.g. birds) has increased. In the past 5 years, all jurisdictions have put in place climate change strategies or have significantly advanced planning for adaptation. However, the level of detail...

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The main pressures affecting the Australian environment today are the same as in 2011: climate change...

2016
Pressures
Key Finding

2016The main pressures affecting the Australian environment today are the same as in 2011: climate change, land-use change, habitat fragmentation and degradation, and invasive species. There is no indication that these have decreased overall since 2011. Some individual pressures on...

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Population and climate change are the biggest pressures on air quality

2016
Atmosphere
Key Finding

2016  The population of Australia’s major cities will continue to grow, meaning that human activity, and consequent power and transport requirements, will increase. This will increase air pollution. Climate change also plays a role in air pollution. The increasing prevalence of extreme...

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Australia State of the Environment 2016 has been prepared by independent experts using the best available information to support assessments of environmental condition, pressures, management effectiveness, resilience, risks and outlook.

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We, the authors, acknowledge the traditional owners of Country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community; we pay respect to them and their cultures and to their elders both past and present.

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