Climate Change/Sustainable Living Resources

There is a huge amount of material on climate change. This is just a sample of the most recent. Much of it is in our library - 1st floor, 71 Murray St.

Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency www.climatechange.gov.au

This site has a great deal of material on climate change science, impacts, mitigation and adaptation. It provides information for individuals, households, communities, business and industry to act on climate change. There is also a summary of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions, as well as reports and fact sheets covering wide ranging issues associated with climate change – such as energy, biodiversity, coastal vulnerability, etc. It includes downloadable versions of fact sheets, books and reports including:
* Implications of climate Change for Australia's World Heritage properties - 2009

* The Impacts and Management Implications of Climate Change for the Australian Government's Protected Areas

* Climate Change Adaptation Actions for Local Government - 2009

* National Climate Change Adaptation Framework - COAG, 2007

* Climate change in Australia - CSIRO and Bureau of Meteorology, 2007

* Australia's National Greenhouse Accounts 2007 - released in 2009

* Climate Change 2009 – Faster Change & More Serious Risks

Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Accounting

www.greenhouse.crc.org.au/ (including eCarbon.news)
Also hosts Climate Change, Carbon and Plants, a series of briefings on the latest science and policy issues affecting plants and plant-based industries, from a recent conference. (This CRC is closing down soon.)

International Panel on Climate Change

The full story on the science and the modelling of future impacts, depending on our response. The text of the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) was released in 2007 can be downloaded from www.ipcc.ch/ where you will also find the Third Asseessment Report, *‘Climate Change 2001’ (3 vols),.
The Summary for Policy Makers at http://www.ipcc.ch/SPM6avr07.pdf contains a powerful collection of diagrams summarising the state of the science.

Read a critique of government intervention in the wording of the IPCC Sumnmary for Policy Makers here

Tasmania Specific

Chris Sharples 2006 *‘Indicative Mapping of Tasmanian Coastal Vulnerability to Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise: Explanatory Report

Melanie Fitzpatrick 2006 **’The Impacts of a Changing Climate on Industry Sectors in Tasmania’

The Tasmanian State Government Draft Strategy on Climate Change http://www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/inter.nsf/WebPages/PMAS-6UF323?open

The Tasmanian Climate Change Office ‘Tasmanian Framework for Action on Climate Change’. Download it from http://www.climatechange.tas.gov.au

The Tasmanian Climate Change Office "Wedges Report" www.earnyourstars.tas.gov.au/government_action/wedges_report

The Tasmanian Wedges Project has modelled Tasmania's greenhouse gas emissions under a business-as-usual scenario to 2050. It has identified potential emission reduction options for each sector of the economy and evaluated the abatement potential and cost of each option. The project has also considered opportunities for early action, barriers to implementation and the impact of the proposed national Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS) and the expanded national Renewable Energy Target (RET) on Tasmania's emission profile.

Climate Action Hobart - 10 Steps to a Safe Climate - Download a copy

This community plan is offered to the Tasmanian Government and people with the plea that all groups in society – political parties, community groups and businesses – embrace and commit to this plan as a way of contributing to a safe climate for all Tasmanians and playing an appropriate role in a global climate solution.

Climate Tasmania keeps you abreast of latest climate news and issues as they affect the lives of Tasmanians, discussing questions about science, politics, economics, business, community action and the arts, among many other topics. Updated weekly, it features writing by Peter Boyer, whose "Climate challenge" column has been running in the Mercury newspaper since 2007.

Other Sites and Resources

CSIRO and Bureau of Meteorology - State of the Climate Report

Australia’s two lead climate science agencies – the CSIRO and Bureau of Meteorology - have produced a snapshot of the state of the climate to update Australians about how their climate has changed and what it means. Download the report from www.csiro.au/resources/State-of-the-Climate.html.

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology - 2009 Climate Report 

Data collected throughout 2009 show that it was a year of extreme weather events throughout Australia.  View the summary at www.sustainablelivingtasmania.org.au/documents/BOMreport.DOC

The Garnaut Climate Change Review (2008), available at http://www.garnautreview.org.au/domino/Web_Notes/Garnaut/garnautweb.html

An independent (government commissioned) study into Australian climate change, with an economic focus. Prepared by the economist Professor Ross Garnaut.

A. Barrie Pittock, 2009, ‘Climate Change: The Science, Impacts and Solutions (Second Edition)’. A thoroughly researched, well-presented overview of climate change information.

Griffith Review 12 *‘Hot Air - how nigh’s the end?’
Wide ranging accessible essays from a variety of authors including Ian Lowe, Robyn Williams, Geoffrey Blainey

Tim Flannery *’The Weather Makers – The History and Future Impact of Climate Change’ A good, racy read inspiring individual action

A. Barrie Pittock ‘Climate Change: Turning up the Heat’
A very clear expanlation of the scientific basis, adaptation and mitigation, politics and international context by a world recognised Australian atmospheric scientist

Al Gore ‘An Inconvenient Truth – the planetary emergency of global warming and what we can do about it’
The book of the film, persuasive and heart-felt - the evidence of global warming right now; stunning images and diagrams.

‘Meeting the Climate Challenge – Recommendations of the International Climate Change Taskforce’ Jan. 2005
A cross-party, cross- sector international collaboration from the public service, business, science and civil society.

Lowy Institute **‘Heating up the Planet: Climate Change and Security”
http://www.lowyinstitute.org/

* Greenhouse 2005 –Action on Climate Change. Abstracts of papers presented at this conference. – science, carbon cycle and sequestration, , impacts and adaptation,, mitigation emissions, water, climate modelling, communication climate change.

http://www.realclimate.org/
This is a site on which climate scientists tackle climate science and debunk the sceptics. Recommended by scientists.

www.greenfleet.com.au
This site and its e-newsletter provide information on sustainable transport technology – alternative fuels, hybrid vehicles etc- and also promotes carbon offsetting (through tree planting) for your vehicle use. It does not provide a full rationale for that offset however.

http://www.stcwa.org.au/ The Sustainable Transport Coalition in WA , leading the way in promoting changes in technology, planning and behaviour

** ‘Can We Still Avoid Dangerous Human-Made Climate Change?’ James E. Hansen. February 10, 2006.

www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/newschool_text_and_slides.pdf
The best discussion of the imminent ‘tipping points’ and the urgency of action.

Sir Nicholas Stern
‘Review on the Economics of Climate Change’
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/independent_reviews/
stern_review_economics_climate_change/sternreview_index.cfm
A report for the UK government that shook the world – arguing that it will be economically more costly to delay action on climate change than to act strongly now. ** Look at the Executive Summary

Clive Hamilton, Director of the Australia Institute
* ‘Running from the Storm – the development of climate change policy in Australia’
** ‘The Political Economy of Climate Change’ (The Milthorpe Lecture, June 2006)

Amory Lovins, Rocky Mountian Institute www.rmi.org
** “Nuclear power: economics and climate-protection potential’ Sept 2005
A rigorous critique of the dodgy economics of nuclear energy.

CSIRO Sustainability Network Updates
www.bml.csiro.au/SNnewsletters.htm
This is a really accessible resource of sustainability information.

Sustainable Development in a Dynamic World – World Bank Development Report 2003
http://econ.worldbank.org/wdr/wdr2003/
The next 50 years could see a fourfold increase in the size of the global economy and significant reductions in poverty but only if governments act now to avert a growing risk of severe damage to the environment and profound social unrest.

United Nations Millenium Ecosystems Assessment Report, in particular ‘Living Beyond Our Means’, a broad summary of the state of the planet with especial reference to human well-being, downloadable from
http://www.maweb.org/en/products.aspx

http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/change/ Australian Bureau of Meteorology

http://www.cana.net.au/ Climate Action Network Australia.
An activist site that provides briefing information about Kyoto, nuclear power and developments in Australia – energy, health and biodiversity issues.

Australia New Zealand Solar Energy Society
http://www.anzses.org/Why/Myths/Solar.html

George Monbiot ‘Heat’
Monbiot cuts through the smoke and mirrors and shows how we can make very deep cuts in emissions.

People who say either the world is not heating up or say that it is but it’s not due to human influence.
http://www.climatechangeissues.com/cci-about-us.php
http://www.co2science.org/scripts/CO2ScienceB2C/Index.jsp
http://www.climatechangeissues.com/cci-about-us.php
(Cross reference with the Real Climate site)

Personal action:

* Paul Holper and Simon Torok, “Climate Change – What you can do about it”. CSIRO Publishing 2008. Easy to read, highly accessible yet full of the latest research and up-to-the-moment science. Information about what you can do in your daily life as well as changes in business, government and industry.

AGO * ’Global Warming Cool it! A home guide to reducing energy costs and greenhouse gases’

Sustainable Living Tasmania www.sustainablelivingtasmania.org.au
Information on the website and in the Resource Library
Website includes links to the DIY Home Energy Audit Manual and Sustainable Living Guides
Check for the Carbon Offsetting Guide in the Sustainable Living Guides.

Climate Action Hobart www.climateactionhobart.org

Climate Action Hobart is a recently formed and rapidly growing group of ordinary Tasmanians who are deeply concerned about climate change.  They meet every 2nd Tuesday, from 5.30pm at the Community Meeting Room (in Sustainable Living Tasmania) Level 1, 71 Murray St, Hobart.

The Powerdown Project http://powerdown-tas.org/

An initiative of the Waterworks Valley Community, this website has tips and tools for reducing your carbon footprint, valuable information about behaviour change and why we do or don’t make personal changes, and a five step plan for Tasmanians to reduce their carbon footprint and feel good about it.

Sign on to the Environment Challenge at www.up2me.com.au and click on the
‘How can I do this’ links for lots of ideas for household action.

Find your own ecological footprint – here is one of the many sites. http://www.myfootprint.org/

* in the Sustainable Living Tasmania library ** in the SLT Global Warming file, for your reference on our Centre