MELBOURNE, Australia – Australia’s environment and wildlife face even greater threats than previously acknowledged, according to a new report that outlined a “story of crisis and decline” according to the environment minister.
“It shows that we are in the midst of a catastrophic environmental degradation, with wildlife populations declining dramatically,” he said. Brendan Wintle, a professor of ecosystem and forest sciences at the University of Melbourne, who was not involved in the Report on the state of the environment released Tuesday. “It’s a harbinger of an extinction crisis in Australia unless we see transformative change.”
According to the report, about 200 plant and animal species have been added to the list of endangered species since 2016, or their vulnerability status has improved. Among those moved to the endangered list: the country’s iconic koala.
Climate change, habitat loss, invasive species, pollution and mining have contributed to the problems, the report said. The document assessed the cumulative impact that years of extreme weather, including droughts and the devastating wildfires in the summer of 2019-2020, have had on the country.
Tanya Plibersek, the environment minister, said in a statement before the report’s publication that it was “a shocking document – it tells a story of crisis and deterioration in the Australian environment.”
“If we continue on the trajectory we follow, the precious places, landscapes, animals and plants that we think of when we think of home may not be there for our children and grandchildren,” she told reporters on Tuesday.
Koalas were moved to ‘endangered’ from ‘vulnerable’ in February in the states of New South Wales, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory. Koala populations declined in those states due to disease and habitat destruction, which was exacerbated by the 2019-2020 wildfires. conservation groups estimation that 60,000 koalas were killed, injured or affected by the fires.
The bigger gliderwhich resembles a flying squirrel and was once common in national parks, has also been moved to the endangered species list, along with the pink and black gang gang cockatoo.
The State of the Environment is a large-scale survey conducted every five years by a group of independent scientists. The report, which was completed last year but has not yet been published, said that while many of the factors influencing the environment were the same as in previous reports, their effects have intensified.
The 2021 report was the first to document in detail the widespread effects of climate change on animals and ecological systems, its authors told local news media.
“Climate change in the form of more severe drought, extreme weather, fire and habitat change is becoming a new driver for habitat change and species loss,” the report said.
The 2019 and 2020 fires increased the risk of extinction for many plants and animals, including many that were already endangered, it said. Extreme heat played a role in the mass extinction of fish, with more than a million dead in rivers.
The report said climate change continues to warm and acidify the ocean, and several offshore heatwaves on the Great Barrier Reef, off the country’s northeast coast, have been accompanied by significant coral bleaching events. Conditions on the inner reef were approaching “a tipping point” that would cause the decline of juvenile coral.
The report also found that there is insufficient investment and a lack of coordination between authorities to address the growing impact of environmental threats. Government spending on biodiversity conservation has fallen as risks have increased, it said.