Relationship Between Australia And Climate Change

Introduction: Australia and Climate Change Australia is an Oceanic country comprised of 23.8 million citizens and it is set to be one of the countries most affected by climate change. Climate change is defined as a change in weather patterns of a regional or global scale. It has recently come to mean the change humans have affected through use of fossil fuels and other activities leading to greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide emissions. Because Australia consists of an entire continent, climate change will affect different parts of the country in different ways. Coastal regions will be affected by the rising sea level caused by the melting polar ice caps. 247,600 houses in Australia are predicted to be flooded by one meter by the rising sea
Since 1979, the United Nations has been working by setting up meetings and conferences between nation-states to discuss and possibly create treaties on the issue of climate change. One of the biggest efforts was an international treaty known as the Kyoto Protocol. There are 192 countries that are party to the Kyoto Protocol and 83 have both signed and ratified it. The treaty was signed in 1997 but it did not go into effect until 2005. The UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) nations that the treaty is not applicable to are Andorra, Canada, the United States, and South Sudan. The Holy See and Palestine are also not party to Kyoto Protocol despite being UNFCCC observers. It begs the question as to why countries would be members of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and not work to endorse its greatest success. Perhaps countries care more about their self-image rather than combatting climate change however it’s important to remember that self-image won’t matter if your country is devastated from climate change’s effects. To describe the UNFCCC, it is an international environmental treaty that many say serves as a parent treaty to the Kyoto Protocol. The UNFCCC was signed in 1992 and ratified in 1994 and it has been signed and ratified by all United Nations member states which a great feat to accomplish. The Kyoto Protocol is the
Aforementioned, Australia has signed and ratified the Kyoto Protocol and the Doha Amendment because Australia believes in environmental security for the future generations of Australians. Climate change is an international problem and it needs an international solution. Air has no borders so if one nation pollutes heavily, the whole world suffers the consequences. It is in the self-interest of all nations to cut back and eventually end the use of fossil fuels and the human production of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and dinitrogen oxide. Australia encourages all nation-states to ratify and comply with the Kyoto Protocol and the Doha Amendment. Rising sea levels isn’t just an Australian problem – it’s a reality that all nations face. In the United States, rising sea levels threaten coastal cities, especially in states such as Florida. In Asia, the Maldives have already voiced their concern about their vanishing country. To put it simply, the Commonwealth of Australia can do its best to prevent and mitigate the effects of climate change and even if Australia reduces the use of fossil fuels and creates a majority green energy sector; it would mean nothing if the rest of the world did not follow suit. Australia stands united with all nations who are willing to create a safer future for the next generations on our