As Australia neared its highest ever recorded summer temperatures, the impact of extreme weather events topped the agenda of the Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society and Meteorological Society of New Zealand conference in Canberra gathered from Feb. 7-10.
“Climate change related disasters are now inevitable,” Gordon McBean, president of the International Council for Science, told the audience. As he spoke, bushfires raged in Australia, set off by a blistering summer.
“The evidence is very clear. There is an increasing occurrence of disasters — floods, storms, droughts and heatwaves,” he said. “When we look at the number of [natural] disasters around the world, 75 or 80 percent of them are climate and weather related.” These extreme events, he continued, are both more frequent and of a stronger magnitude.
About the author
Lisa Cornishlisa_cornish
Lisa Cornish is a former Devex Senior Reporter based in Canberra, where she focuses on the Australian aid community. Lisa has worked with News Corp Australia as a data journalist and has been published throughout Australia in the Daily Telegraph in Melbourne, Herald Sun in Melbourne, Courier-Mail in Brisbane, and online through news.com.au. Lisa additionally consults with Australian government providing data analytics, reporting and visualization services.
