Urgent need for climate change adaptation in Australia's Lake Eyre region

Phys.org: The first stage of University of Adelaide research released today shows that South Australia's Arabunna country, which includes Lake Eyre in the far north, is likely to get both drier and hotter in decades to come.

"Temperatures could increase up to four degrees Celsius in Arabunna country in the next century, threatening the survival of many plants and animals," says the author of the report, Dr John Tibby from the University of Adelaide's Discipline of Geography, Environment and Population. "My report suggests that the climate may change in a series of 'jumps' rather than in a gradual manner, hence the need to make plans to adapt to this risk," Dr Tibby says.

"If the climate does change as predicted it will have major impacts on Arabunna country, its people and culture, meaning they will have to adapt to these changes," says Dr Melissa Nursey-Bray, lead researcher with the University of Adelaide's Arabunna Country Community-Based Adaptation to Climate Change project.

"To work out how to adapt, a collaboration between traditional owners and university researchers has been established to identify culturally appropriate adaptation options, allowing both Indigenous and Western expertise to help inform the plan."...

Lake Eyre South, shot by Matt Malone, Wikimedia Commons. The copyright holder of this file allows anyone to use it for any purpose, provided that the copyright holder is properly attributed. Redistribution, derivative work, commercial use, and all other use is permitted