The Distribution of Australia's Population Needs to Shift in Preparation for Climate Change Impacts

1
THE DISTRIBUTION OF AUSTRALIA’S POPULATION NEEDS TO SHIFT IN
PREPARATION FOR CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS
Student’s Name
Name of Course
Professor’s Name
University
City
Date

2
Human Geography
Introduction
There is a need to shift Australia's population distribution in preparation for unfavourable climate
changes such as heat and drought which are harmful to the health of the people. Studies by the
climate scientists show that Australia is one of the countries that is vulnerable to climate crisis
due to its industrial activities such as coal mining. Community activists have also intensified
their fight against climate changing developments such as coal mining as a solution to adverse
climate changes. It is clear that Australia is experiencing long-term climate changes that involve
higher sea-surface and surface air temperatures, fewer cold extremes, and more hot extremes
(The Climate Reality Project, 2019).
The significance of the climate and environment in modelling population settlement in Australia
after colonization by European was noticed by geographers a century ago. However, the role of
the environment has been ignored with the drop in the ratio of the population who work in the
primary industry, medical advances, large developments in transport and communication, and
technological advances.
Studies in Australia have found that risk of climate change has been increased by the climate
change with severe hot and dry conditions. The fire season in southeast Australia is lengthening,
reducing the opportunities for hazard reduction burning. There is high likeliness of Australia to
experience more occurrences of extreme bushfires. It is therefore fundamental for health
services, communities, authorities and other emergency services to prepare for the increasing
cases of extreme wild fire conditions. This essay presents various ways in which climate change
is impacting Australia, its people and their distribution (Leysley & Will, 2013).

3
Impacts of Climate Change
Australia is known to be a hot and dry country; this situation is expected to worsen with climate
change. The warmth of Australia's climate has been increasing by 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit
annually since 1910 and is expected to increase by 5 degrees Fahrenheit by 2090 if appropriate
action is not taken. Rising temperatures make heat waves to be severe, more common and long-
lasting. Impacts of heat waves include human health complications which lead to heat stroke and
exhaustion. As temperatures rise, evaporation rates increase thus more water is lost to the
atmosphere leading to droughts (Sobels, et al., 2010).
Possible effects of climate change such as atmospheric temperature increase raises the incidences
of lightning hence increasing chances of ignition. As the number of hot days increase the higher
the chances of the occurrence of wildfires and once they start, they easily spread and get more
intense (Sevoyan & Hugo, 2014).
Bushfire season in Australia has been increasing since the 1950s especially in the eastern and
southern parts of the country. The climate change has made the country to be hotter and drier
hence providing conducive conditions for drying up and dying of plants which then fuel the fire
when ignited. The threat of bushfire is basically associated with strong winds, high temperatures
and high fuel load. The combination of all of these factors makes fire to be more disastrous
(Attiwill & Adams, 2011).
Wildfires cause respiratory and cardiac problems which occur in steps. First, fossil fuel
combustion pollutes the air we breathe in directly with soot and small particles. During this
process greenhouse gases are released to the atmosphere causing temperatures to rise and
develop higher level ozone that leads to long-term and acute respiratory problems (McMichael,
et al., 2010).