North Queenslanders should not have to pay the cost of the government’s climate inaction
Queensland conservation councils are calling on the State Government to recognise and address the role of climate change in the ongoing floods in North Queensland.
The mining and burning of fossil fuels is driving the severity and frequency of disasters like this, and the Crisafulli Government must commit to the urgent climate action necessary to protect Queenslanders now and in the future.
North Queensland Conservation Council’s Coordinator, Crystal Falknau, said
The climate crisis is quite literally on our doorstep.
Just six years on from 2019 where the Townsville region experienced its largest rainfall event in 120 years, we received almost a metre of rain over this weekend, leading to flash flooding and mass evacuations.
A year ago, Cyclone Kirrily’s destructive winds brought down trees and powerlines, damaging roofs and leaving 66,000 households and businesses without power for up to six days, during a heatwave.
North Queenslanders have a reputation for resilience. We like to believe we're capable of wrestling crocodiles and walking barefoot across burning bitumen. We're known for embracing floodwaters by casting a line or setting off down the street in a kayak.
But when it comes to the real impacts of natural disasters, things are heating up quickly, and we're not as prepared as we think we are.
Each year that we don't bring our emissions down, we're a step closer to locking future generations into an uninsurable, unliveable future in the tropics.
When it comes to what the Australian Government and the Queensland Government can do, the science is clear. Keep our coal in the ground. Invest in renewables and batteries. Protect and restore our carbon sinks, mangroves, wetlands and riparian zones. Help frontline communities adapt to increasing hazards.
That's climate action. We shouldn't have to fight for it, but we do and we will.
Queensland Conservation Council’s Director, Dave Copeman, said
The situation in North Queensland is devastating. Even more so because we know these extreme disasters are increasing year on year, and we know why. The North Queensland floods are what climate change looks like.
But we also know what can be done to protect Queenslanders now and into the future. The science is clear – if the Queensland Government wants to keep Queenslanders safe, they need to stop approving new climate-wrecking coal and gas projects, ensure the renewables transition stays on track to reduce our dependence on aging coal power stations, and support our communities and local councils to adapt to the climate impacts we are already experiencing.
That climate action is the response this crisis requires, and anything less than this is an insult to those evacuating their homes across North Queensland right now. These communities are resilient, but everyday Queenslanders should not have to pay the cost of the government’s climate inaction.
Image courtesy of Meteorological Satellite Center of JMA
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