I've been writing about the devastating effects of Climate Change [ http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/01/07/1177106/-Sea-level-rise-could-be-way-way-worse-than-we-thought ] due to extreme weather including rising seas, more severe storms and drought. The articles always attract some commenters who talk about the many ways to escape the weather extremes especially movement to higher elevations and away from water and immigrating to cooler areas that they believe will be made more habitable due to warming temperatures. There is always talk of how higher temperatures will make some areas a farming paradise so some are considering an early migration to claim these prize locations before the rest of humanity catches on. The truth is all areas of our planet will be affected by rising C02 which in high concentration has the effect of reducing the nutrient value of our farmed food.
In the next 100 years the combination of more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and increased temperature could be “catastrophic” for an overpopulated world, according to one of the scientists involved. With food supply drastically reduced, evolutionary forces suggest hobbit-sized humans who needed to eat less would have the greatest chance of survival. These findings are the work of an international group of 30 scientists looking at the vast fossil deposits in rock strata in Wyoming in the US, charting the period 55 million years ago when the Earth’s temperature rose suddenly – as it is expected to do this century.
On that occasion it took 10,000 years for the temperature to rise by 6°C. There were mass extinctions, but the timescale gave some plants and animals time to adapt and move north and south to survive. Many species evolved quickly – dwarfism being one of the most widespread and successful strategies.
[...]
What worries the scientists is that this current warming period will take as little as 200 years, if the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is correct. This gives many long-lived species, for example trees, no time to evolve and migrate. Even mammals will struggle to move to new areas, because man has placed farmland and cities in the way.
The result will be mass extinction, and for the survivors, humans, animals and insects, there will be a scramble to eat a diminishing and less nutritious food supply. Lower plant nutrition is caused by higher atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, rather than temperature itself. Plant growth experiments have shown that concentrations of both nitrogen and the protein Rubisco, which regulates carbon dioxide fixation, decrease under higher CO2 conditions, making many plant tissues less nutritious.
The timeline predicting mass extinction does seem ambiguous and perhaps is between 100-200 years. But the warning is very clear. If we are to avoid the worst effects of climate change we must have some fast solutions. Because C02 emissions remain in the atmosphere for hundreds of years, even if we went completely C02 neutral today, there would still be the damaging remains of the past use of C02 lingering in the atmosphere preventing us from stopping the most damaging effects of Climate Change. We need a short term solution which will buy us the time to reduce the long living C02.
I've been writing about the need for short term solutions in conjunction with the necessary long term solution of reducing C02 here . There is no time to lose.
This just shows & tells the story of The Tasmanian Bushfire's in Jan 2013, as is still unfolding, the Bravery of our Emergency Services, depicting the Aussie fighting spirit when Needed .. Please Take Care & Stay safe....OZ is with you !!!
It is starting to come to the general attention that, because Al Gore sold his TV network to the Hezbollah, and because crafty scientists have convinced latte-drinking liberals and the Hollywood Elite of the Great Climate Change Hoax so that they can ram through Agenda 21 and unleash the UN secret army to steal all our golfs, Australia is simultaneously burning down and melting .. http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/09/us-australia-wildfires-maps-idUSBRE90806V20130109 , which is a considerable climatic feat when you think about it. There are gas stations that can't pump fuel because it vaporizes too quickly. It's gotten so bad that they have had to change the weather maps.
~~~~~~ The Australian Bureau of Meteorology has added dark purple and magenta to its color-coded weather forecasting map to represent temperatures of 51 to 54 degrees Celsius (123.8 to 129.2 Fahrenheit), officials said. Temperatures on the map were previously capped at 50 degrees Celsius, represented by the color black. "In order to better understand what temperatures we might see ... we introduced two new colors," said Aaron Coutts-Smith, manager of climate services at the Bureau of Meteorology. ~~~~~~
~~~~~~ This time, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard is listing climate change as a background cause, and is warning of more extreme weather to come. "Whilst you would not put any one event down to climate change," she told reporters in Tasmania as she toured the damage, "we do know over time that as a result of climate change we are going to see more extreme weather events and conditions." While that's been said before in Australia in the context of bushfires, it's significant this year because the prime minister's carbon tax-which aims to avert the devastating effects of climate change by reducing the amount of carbon in the air-will feel the full brunt of a brutal election campaign against an opposition that vehemently opposes the tax. ~~~~~~
And if they win the political argument, what do they suppose will happen? The temperatures will continue to rise anyway. The fires will go on burning. Things will continue to get worse and worse. This is a problem that has moved beyond politics, at least beyond politics as we know them in this vital moment. If you can still argue that the evidence is under dispute when it's 129 degrees outside and the country is both burning and melting all at once, and if you can find a strong enough political constituency for that point of view, there's really not much any of the rest of us can do.
climate of denial in Australia? .. believe it .. two nights ago i created a global warming 'discussion' at the pub .. unbelievable .. EVERYone there either in denial, or who cares .. i said, simply, some 95% of scientists believe that humans contribute to it .. the evidence is there ..
someone came out with "who is a scientist?" .. :) .. someone who works in any field of science and uses the scientific method .. go onto the internet, if you are interested for evidence of human contribution ..
the bouncer even came up with, scientists said the world was going to end in 2012 .. ROTFLMAO! .. ALMOST CRIED .. i said, NOT ONE SCIENTIST SAID THAT .. he, i saw it on the internet .. it's unbelievable, how determined so many are to stay ignorant .. he wanted to bet me $5 .. hey, i don't want to take your money .. finally, screw him, i bet him .. really .. the ignorance and fear of looking at own thinking in so many people is... deadpanning ..
ps: to keep it all in some perspective Australia's record temperatures are normal temperatures in some wonderful regions in the USA ..
TOTAL fire bans are in force across all of Victoria, NSW and the ACT as firefighters brace for a return of heatwave conditions today.
Cooler weather yesterday eased the plight of communities in Tasmania, Victoria and NSW after scenes of havoc earlier this week.
But temperatures are forecast to soar back into the 40s today and on the weekend, heightening the fire danger as it spreads north into Queensland.
The weather bureau predicted temperatures in the mid-40s in some parts of NSW on Friday, with even higher temperatures forecast for Saturday.
"The good news is that the wind is not expected to be as strong as it was,'' said senior meteorologist Julie Evans, to the relief of firefighters who earlier this week battled flames fanned by winds of over 70km/h, gusting to 100km/h in some places.
Police today warned "moron" arsonists they will be caught after a string of fires were deliberately lit in southwest Sydney.
They are expected to appear before Campbelltown Children's Court today.
Five people were penalised for breaching the state's total fire bans on Tuesday and Wednesday, including three teenagers charged with deliberately lighting bushfire in Newcastle.
In NSW fires have burnt around 370,000 hectares but only one home was lost, at Yarrabin in the Cooma-Monaro region.
Three fires still causing concern in southern regions of the state are in the Kybeyan Valley, 20km from Cooma, at Dean's Gap near Sussex Inlet and at Cobblers Road, west of Yass.
More than 400 firefighters are tackling the blazes, and the Rural Fire Service .. http://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/ .. has warned residents in affected areas to remain vigilant and monitor conditions.
RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said he was not expecting the "catastrophic'' conditions experienced on Tuesday wide areas of the state would experience "high, severe and even extreme fire danger conditions", including northern and northwestern NSW, the Great Dividing Range, the eastern seaboard and the Riverina.
More than 151 firefighters and 27 trucks are working to contain the Dean's Gap fire burning to the south of Sussex Inlet Road, near Shoalhaven, which is a potential threat to the village of Sussex Inlet and the township of Wandandian. The fire has burnt more than 8,400 hectares.
In the Kybeyan Valley, 250 firefighters are working to control a bushfire burning about 20km east of Cooma which has burnt through more than 9.500 hectares. The RFS said the fire was burning in "Very High fire danger conditions" and warned flying embers from the blaze could ignite spot fires in the area.
Meanwhile, police are investigating a fire near Lithgow which has destroyed about 40,000 hectares, which may have been deliberately lit.
Cooler weather in southern NSW helped an estimated 2000 firefighters stay on top of a volatile situation yesterday, but authorities are gearing up for a busy weekend, with sweltering conditions forecast to return.
RFS Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers said authorities were braced for more dangerous conditions over the weekend.
"We're looking at deteriorating weather on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. So the temperatures will be elevated again," he told reporters in Sydney.
"We're going to go into another hot spell and we're looking at potentially three days of that."
Premier Barry O'Farrell said the fact that Tuesday had passed without loss of life or homes was a "remarkable tribute" to the planning of the RFS and other emergency services.
Stunned resident Ray Ellen returns to the scene of the Carngham blaze in western Victoria. Picture: Andrew Brownbill
He said an estimated 10,000 sheep had been lost in the Yass shire alone, equivalent to $1 million of losses to farmers.
NSW had learned from the devastating 2009 Victorian fires, Mr O'Farrell said on a tour of the Yass shire.
"Whether it's the neighbourhood safety places, the early warnings, the bushfire survival plans and the clarity around whether to come and whether to go, we have learned those lessons," he said.
As three teenage boys charged with deliberately lighting a fire in Sydney's west were released on bail, Mr O'Farrell backed a suggestion from Yass Shire mayor Rowena Abbey that firebugs should be made to face the terrible consequences of fires.
Ms Abbey said arsonists should be made to help put down animals injured in fires they lit.
Mr O'Farrell said he was angry and expressing "community frustration" that the three teenagers were released immediately.
"I still think that keeping them in overnight, for two nights, might have helped sink the message in," he said.
The blaze at Deans Gap crosses the Princes Highway on Tuesday night. Picture: NSW Rural Fire Service
NSW residents in 37 communities fire-affected communities will be able to access emergency natural disaster assistance.
And, NSW farmers affected by this week's bushfires will be able to access subsidised transport for their livestock.
The subsidy would be available up to a maximum of $15,000 per year.
A fodder donation register had also been set up to assist bushfire-affected farmers.
The government estimates that more than around 10,000 stock, mostly sheep, have perished in the blazes this week.
Country Fire Authority (CFA) spokesman Chris Clugston said "excellent work" was done by the firefighters, but the backburning brought the size of the fire to almost 12,000ha.
Fire Services Commissioner Craig Lapsley said the Goroke bushfire, along with a blaze at Kentbruck, were major concerns to authorities with parts of Victoria expected to hit 42C tomorrow.
The fast-moving fire began in bushland about 15km southeast of the Goroke area in the Wimmera region on Tuesday.
One side of the 120-hectare fire became active today and spotted over about 20 hectares, fire authorities say.
Bulldozers and waterbombing aircraft worked to contain the blaze and by about 4pm (AEDT) it was no longer spreading.
Residents of Gymbowen, Mitre, Tooan, Jilpanger are still advised to monitor fire conditions ahead of tomorrow's dangerously high temperatures.
The nearby town of Horsham, located about 70km from the fire, is expecting 40 degrees tomorrow.
Crews from the Department of Sustainability and Environment will patrol the fire front into this evening having controlled a spotover southeast of the original blaze.
Fire burned more than 1300 hectares around the Chepstowe area, west of Ballarat, on Tuesday and destroyed nine houses, including the 120-year-old Carngham Station homestead.
An estimated 600-1000 livestock also perished as the fire tore through farmland.
Bendigo Bank has launched a Carngham bushfire appeal for the community.
This comes after the State Government said it will audit its bushfire alert system after irate residents revealed they did not receive SMS alerts during Tuesday's fast-moving fire near Ballarat.
Earlier, Acting Premier Peter Ryan said all Victorians should remain vigilant for bushfires on Friday.
Residents who were forced to flee their homes earlier this week say authorities failed to keep them informed about the blaze.
A historic house gutted at Carngham, Victoria. Picture: Nicole Garmston
In the Northern Territory, a bushfire in central Australia has destroyed four buildings at a resort.
Bushfires NT chief fire officer Geoff Kenna said the fire reached the Ross River Resort, 85km east of Alice Springs, in the early hours of Thursday morning.
"There has been some damage sustained to the camp ground at Ross River Resort,'' Mr Kenna said.
"Four structures were basically burned to the ground.''
The four buildings included workers' accommodation areas, a shed and a food preparation area.
Nobody was at the campground at the time and no one was evacuated from the resort.
Other fires are still burning out of control in central Australia including at Kings Canyon, Kings Creek Station and at Napperby.
The mercury may have dropped in Sydney but for many people living in bushfire zones across the country the fear and anxiety remain
The townships affected by fires that swept through the region from Forcett to the Tasman Peninsula have been in virtual lockdown for the past week as Tasmania Police continued the search for any sign of bodies.
Police have allowed some residents back to their homes but the majority have been asked to stay out of the area.
Up to 90 homes and businesses were destroyed or damaged in and around the Tasman Peninsula fishing village.
Health and safety concerns have meant residents who fled the area have not been allowed back and the Arthur Highway to the peninsula has stayed closed.
Acting Commissioner Scott Tilyard said yesterday it would be a traumatic experience for many as police confirmed yesterday that 50 homes had been destroyed and a further 106 seriously damaged.
"People need to prepare themselves for what they might find," he said.
"It can be very traumatic when you go back and see the house you lived in, the street you lived in, the town you lived in, has been so fire affected.
Tammy Holmes and grandchildren Charlotte, Esther, Liam, Matilda and Caleb take refuge under a jetty as a wildfire rages near-by in the Tasmanian town of Dunalley. (AP Photo/Tim Holmes)
People whose homes have not been permanently damaged by fire are expected to be allowed to move back into their homes today.
Premier Lara Giddings said counselling services would be available for residents returning to their homes today.
Acting Commissioner Tilyard said police were still to account for everyone but hopes were rising after searches of 850 sites.
"We have no missing persons reports in circumstances where we hold grave fears for the safety of any individual, which is a very positive position to be in," he said.
The Red Cross Tasmania Bushfires Appeal is nearing $2 million, including what the organisation described as a significant donation from the Prince of Wales.
Tasmania is widely considered to have suffered its worst fires since 1967, when 62 lives and 2000 properties were lost.
The blazes which began last Thursday have destroyed 130 properties and burnt 110,000 hectares.
"We certainly were expecting that we might find deceased people given the ferocity of the fire, particularly as it moved through the peninsula last Friday," Mr Tilyard said.
"So the outcome has been better than what we anticipated."
There have also been few injuries, with only minor burns, scratches, bruises and smoke inhalation reported, much of it among firefighters.
Cool conditions in Tasmania had allowed authorities to downgrade most of the state's 30 bushfires by Wednesday evening.
Watch and act warnings are in place for the Tasman Peninsula, Montumana in the northwest and Curries River in the state's north with winds still causing problems.
Paddocks stripped by flames in Victoria. Picture: Nicole Garmston
And the state government was warning Tasmanians to be wary of people seeking to profiteer from the fires.
Minister for Consumer Protection Nick McKim says people should be careful of businesses overcharging or of fraudulently collecting donations.
Sixteen crews have remained at the scene to strengthen containment lines.
While the Department of Community Safety says no properties are being affected, an alert for residents remains in place.
Residents near White Patch have been advised to listen for radio updates.
Camping grounds on the island remain closed.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Meteorology says thunderstorms expected in the western part of the state will do little to reduce the state's fire threat.
A spokesman says temperatures are expected to top 30C across the state and climb over 40C in the west.
By Wednesday afternoon, 17 fires were burning across the state.
The Bureau of Meteorology said a fire weather warning was current for Queensland's Channel Country and Maranoa and Warrego districts, and parts of the Darling Downs and Granite Belt districts.
High to very high daytime temperatures, well above the January average, will continue over much of the state until Saturday, the bureau said.
No more properties are expected to be threatened by a major bushfire burning out of control in north west New South Wales.
The Rural Fire Service says milder overnight conditions have helped it contain sections of the blaze which has burnt 40 000 hectares of the Warrumbungle National Park.
The blaze, which is burning in a northerly direction just south of Bugaldie, has destroyed 33 homes and 50 sheds.
The deputy incident controller Steve Rayson says crews have made a lot of progress.
"We've had a very successful night overnight," he said.
"We've participated in a little bit of property protection where it was needed.
"We've started to develop the containment lines and have secured some of, a small part of the edge of this fire and have started developing strategies for the remaining edges of this fire."
Mr Rayson says the outlook is positive.
"We have a favourable weather forecast over the next 24 hours so we are not expecting any significant problems," he said.
"We have pulled additional resources into this area so today we'll be working solidly on developing the containment lines.
"When conditions allow we'll be undertaking some back burning."
The fire has destroyed infrastructure in the Warrumbungle National Park.
The regional manager Rob Smith says it is not yet known how much the damage bill will be.
"It appears at this stage, unfortunately that we've lost a number of key pieces of infrastructure in the park," he said.
"Including the visitors centre, the old historic woolshed and at this stage I'm not sure about some of the other infrastructure in the park.
"It's burnt tremendously fierce and hot and we're still assessing the damage at this stage."
Mr Smith says it appears the blaze started during a storm.
"We got a report of smoke on Saturday, we think it was lightning that's caused the start of the fire.
"There's an investigation going on currently to how the fire started, but that appears to be the case at the moment."
The Department of Primary Industries says it is unable to assess livestock as the fire ground is still too dangerous.
It says at least 50 properties have been affected and significant losses are expected.
Emergency fodder is being sent to the area.
Meanwhile, health authorities are warning people may be affected by smoke in the Coonabarabran district.
The co-ordinator of environmental health services, Ingo Steppat, says smoke carries contaminants and could cause serious health problems.
"The long term is that you get an infection on top of your cough.
"What happens is your throat is already raw from coughing and you get more dust in it and then you end up with a secondary infection from that."
He says young people, the elderly and those with asthma are most at risk.
"If they can they need to stay indoors, stay away from the actual smoke itself if they can.
"They need to maintain their regular medication whether it be for asthma or whatever the condition might be, and they need to stay cool because the heat is compounding the problems."
The Red Cross says it will continue to work with residents affected by the fire in the aftermath of the disaster.
The regional manager Jackie Wright says volunteers have been helping at the evacuation centre in Coonabarabran.
"We tend to go and talk to people to make sure that they have been ok during the event.
"Sometimes people power through the actual crisis and then they have a bit of a slump, when the worst of the crisis is over."
She says plans are being made for when the immediate threat has passed.
"We tend to do follow up calls and door knocks, just to chat to people and ask how they're going, make sure they know what resources are available to help them.
"Sometimes people just want to have a discussion about how it was for them."
The RFS says it hopes to have another bushfire burning north of Coonabarabran contained within the next day.
The blaze has burnt almost 650 hectares and has closed the Newell Highway between Coonabarabran and Narrabri.
The RFS says the fire is not moving very fast and crews will use today to build containment lines and carry out back burning if possible.
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