CSIRO - 0.4C Increase In Average Temps = 25% Increase In Bushfire Risk In 10 Years - Canberra Times

[hatrack]

Australia's bushfire risk will increase by 25 per cent in less than a decade if climate change pushes up average temperatures by just 0.4 degrees by 2020, according to CSIRO research.

But that risk could more than double by 2020, with the number of extreme fire danger days increasing by up to 65 per cent, if average temperatures rise by one degree, CSIRO climate scientist Kevin Hennessey said.

In a newly published CSIRO collection of peer-reviewed research outlining the climate challenges facing Australia, Dr Hennessey said it was likely the world would see a 2-degree rise in global temperatures ''on top of changes already experienced within the lifetime of a current generation''.

He said Australia's cities would also feel the impacts of climate change through an increasing ''urban heat island effect'' caused by the heat-retaining building materials and road infrastructure ''putting more demand on energy for air-conditioning''.
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http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/general/warning-of-huge-rise-in-risk-of-bushfire/2123872.aspx