A landmark report released on Monday has warned that rising oceans and climate-change-induced flooding could affect 1.5 million Australians by 2050. The warning comes ahead of the government’s upcoming announcement of its emission reduction targets this week.

The long-awaited climate risk assessment, prepared independently for the government, highlighted that rising temperatures will create “cascading, compounding, concurrent” impacts across Australia, home to more than 27 million people.

Climate Minister Chris Bowen stated: “We are living climate change now. It’s no longer a forecast, a projection or prediction — it is a live reality, and it’s too late to avoid any impacts.”

Implications

• Sea level rise will directly threaten coastal communities, with the number of people at risk doubling by 2090.
• Economic costs are expected to be enormous, with property losses estimated at hundreds of billions of dollars.
• Public health impacts are severe, with extreme heat expected to cause a dramatic increase in heat-related fatalities, particularly in densely populated urban areas such as Sydney.

Australia has long been criticised for treating climate action as a political and economic liability, despite being one of the world’s largest fossil fuel exporters.

The centre-left Labor government has recently intensified efforts to reduce emissions and expand renewable energy infrastructure.

The report coincides with the nation’s planned announcement of its next round of emission reduction targets, a critical commitment under the Paris Climate Agreement.

Observers hope that the upcoming targets will be more ambitious, signalling stronger national action to tackle climate change and its cascading impacts on coastal populations, urban centres, and the economy.Top of Form

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