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Simple Summary: Invasive alien species, such as Carpomya vesuviana Costa (Diptera: Tephritidae), threaten global biodiversity, agriculture, and public health. This study used advanced modelling techniques to predict the potential distribution of C. vesuviana and understand its environmental impacts. The findings suggest that climate change is driving the geographic expansion of C. vesuviana, primarily in Asia, Africa, and Australia. The species is projected to shift poleward by the 2090s, as the species will have shifted to the polar regions under the influence of climate change. Effective management strategies are crucial to mitigate the environmental and health impacts of its expansion. Invasive alien species (IAS) significantly affect global native biodiversity, agriculture, industry, and human health. Carpomya vesuviana Costa, 1854 (Diptera: Tephritidae), a significant global IAS, affects various date species, leading to substantial economic losses and adverse effects on human health and the environment. This study employed biomod2 ensemble models, multivariate environmental similarity surface and most dissimilar variable analyses, and ecological niche dynamics based on environmental and species data to predict the potential distribution of C. vesuviana and explore the environmental variables affecting observed patterns and impacts. Compared to native ranges, ecological niche shifts at invaded sites increased the invasion risk of C. vesuviana globally. The potential geographical distribution was primarily in Asia, Africa, and Australia, with a gradual increase in suitability with time and radiation levels. The potential geographic distribution centre of C. vesuviana is likely to shift poleward between the present and the 2090s. We also show that precipitation is a key factor influencing the likely future distribution of this species. In conclusion, climate change has facilitated the expansion of the geographic range and ecological niche of C. vesuviana, requiring effective transnational management strategies to mitigate its impacts on the natural environment and public health during the Anthropocene. This study aims to assess the potential threat of C. vesuviana to date palms globally through quantitative analytical methods. By modelling and analysing its potential geographic distribution, ecological niche, and environmental similarities, this paper predicts the pest's dispersal potential and possible transfer trends in geographic centres of mass in order to provide prevention and control strategies for the global date palm industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses a 30 m record of valley alluviation in the Lockyer Creek, a major tributary of the mid-Brisbane River in Southeast Queensland, to document the timing and nature of Quaternary fluvial response. A combination of radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence dating reveals a sequence of major cut and fill episodes. The earliest aggradation phase is represented by a basal gravel unit, dating to ~220 ka (marine isotope sub-stage 7d), and although little evidence supports higher fluvial discharges during MIS 5, a MIS 3 fluvial episode characterised by incision and aggradation dates to ~60 ka. A penultimate phase of incision to a depth of 30 m prior to ~14 ka saw the lower Lockyer occupy its current position within the valley floor. The Lockyer Creek shows evidence of only minor fluvial activity during MIS 2, suggesting a drier LGM climate. The appearance of alternating fine- and coarse-grained units at about 2 ka is notable and may represent higher-energy flood conditions associated with a strengthening of El Niño Southern Oscillation activity as observed in the flood of 2011. The aggradation rate for this Holocene floodplain unit is ~11 times higher than the long-term rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Existing food production systems and dietary behaviours are not healthy nor sustainable due to the higher environmental footprint of animal-derived foods. Alternative dietary choices could provide better outcomes. We investigated Generation Z (Gen Z)'s alternative food preferences within a planetary health framework which combines human and ecological well-being. The paper is based on data from a 2021 cross-national survey conducted in the main Australian cities, which explored Gen Z's attitudes towards meat consumption in relation to climate change and alternatives to animal-based proteins. Climate change is seen as a result of human activities by 86% of the survey participants. More than a third (38%) of them believe that livestock production and the consumption of animal-sourced foods are contributing significantly to climate change and environmental deterioration. The remaining majority (62%), however, has a low awareness and understanding of the food systems' impacts, disbelieving that diet is a major contributor to climate change. We discuss how these findings will shape Australia's Gen Z, climate change and the future of alternative proteins. Scientific evidence shows that current food systems are impacting the planet in ways that are unsustainable and detrimental to human health. Various technological advances have been made in response, one of them being the development of new food products known as novel alternative proteins, including cultured meat, plant-based meat analogues, algae- and insect-based foods. The future of these alternative proteins to a large extent depends on consumer acceptance from young people. This study investigates the attitudes of Australia's adult Generation Z (Gen Z), born between 1995 and 2003, regarding climate change and more sustainable food choices. Gen Z is a diverse, important and trendsetting group known for organising globally on causes related to climate, social justice and health. The study of Australia's Gen Z is based on a 2021 cross-national survey in the main Australian cities. It shows that, although 86% of the participants perceive climate change as anthropogenic, only 38% believe that livestock-based foods are contributing significantly to global warming and environmental deterioration. The paper discusses the implications for Gen Z and novel alternative proteins given that the majority of Australia's young people has low awareness of the environmental impacts of food systems and dietary choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an analysis of the temporary variation of the area-orientated annual maximum daily rainfall (AMDR) with respect to the three spatial properties: location, size and shape of the region-of-interest (ROI) in Great Britain and Australia using two century-long datasets. The Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian Markov-Chain-Monte-Carlo methods are employed to quantify the time-varying frequency of AMDR, where a large proportion of the ROIs shows a non-decreasing level of most frequent AMDR. While the most frequent AMDR values generally decrease with larger-sized ROIs, their temporal variation that can be attributed to the climate change impact does not show the same dependency on the size. Climate change impact on ROI-orientated extreme rainfall is seen higher for rounded shapes although the ROI shape is not as significant as the other two spatial properties. Comparison of the AMDR at different return levels shows an underestimation by conventionally used stationary models in regions where a nonstationary (i.e., time-varying) model is preferred. The findings suggest an overhaul of the current storm design procedure in view of the impact of not only climate change but also spatial variation in natural processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climatic events express the dynamics of the Earth's oceans and atmosphere, but are profoundly personal and social in their impacts, representation and comprehension. This paper explores how knowledge of the climate has multiple scales and dimensions that intersect in our experience of the climate. The climate is objective and subjective, scientific and cultural, local and global, and personal and political. These divergent dimensions of the climate frame the philosophical and cultural challenges of a dynamic climate. Drawing on research into the adaptation in Australia's Murray Darling Basin, this paper outlines the significance of understanding the cultural dimensions of the changing climate. This paper argues for greater recognition of the ways in which cultures co-create the climate and, therefore, that the climate needs to be recognised as a socio-natural hybrid. Given the climate's hybrid nature, research should aim to integrate our understanding of the social and the natural dimensions of our relationships to a changing climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analysis of observations, reanalysis, and model simulations, including those using machine learning methods specifically designed for regime identification, has revealed changes in aspects of the Southern Hemisphere (SH) circulation and Australian climate and extremes over the last half-century that indicate transitions to new states. In particular, our analysis shows a dramatic shift in the metastability of the SH climate that occurred in the late 1970s, associated with a large-scale regime transition in the SH atmospheric circulation, with systematic changes in the subtropical jet, blocking, zonal winds, and storm tracks. Analysis via nonstationary clustering reveals a regime shift coincident with a sharp transition to warmer oceanic sea surface temperatures and increased baroclinicity in the large scales of the Antarctic Circumpolar Circulation (ACC), extending across the whole hemisphere. At the same time, the background state of the tropical Pacific thermocline shoaled, leading to an increased likelihood of El Niño events. The SH climate shift in the late 1970s is the first hemispheric regime shift that can be directly attributed to anthropogenic climate change. These changes in dynamics are associated with additional regional tipping points, including reductions in mean and extreme rainfall in south-west Western Australia (SWWA) and streamflow into Perth dams, and also with increases in mean and extreme rainfall over northern Australia since the late 1970s. The drying of south-eastern Australia (SEA) occurred against a background of accelerating increases in average and extreme temperatures across the whole continent since the 1990s, implying further inflection points may have occurred. Analysis of climate model simulations capturing the essence of these observed shifts indicates that these systematic changes will continue into the late 21st century under high greenhouse gas emission scenarios. Here, we review two decades of work, revealing for the first time that tipping points characteristic of regime transitions are inferred to have already occurred in the SH climate system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Simple Summary: In northern Australia, large native herbivorous mammals (weighing over 1000 kg) disappeared about 46 kya, and they have been replaced in the last 200 years by a range of introduced mammalian herbivores up to 1000 kg in bodyweight. Only one native herbivore has an adult bodyweight approaching 100 kg, and for the past 200 years, the total biomass of introduced domestic and wild vertebrate herbivores has massively exceeded that of native herbivorous species. Following a comprehensive review, we conclude that the current guild of native and introduced mammalian herbivores differentially utilises the landscape ecologically. However, climate- and anthropogenically related changes due to fire, drought, flooding, predation and introduced weeds are likely to have significant impacts on the trajectory of their relative ecological roles and populations. Given their differing ecological and dietary characteristics, against this backdrop, it is unclear what the potential impact of the dispersal of deer species could have in northern Australia. There is a dearth of supporting evidence to inform appropriate sustainable management should deer range expansion occur. We identify suitable research required to fill the identified knowledge gaps. We explored the ecological and historical factors that led to formation of the unique guild of native and introduced mammalian herbivores between 5 and 1000 kg in northern Australia. Following the disappearance of large native herbivores about 46 kya, and until the arrival of Europeans and their livestock, the only herbivorous mammals were mid-sized endemic marsupial macropods, which continued to utilise the same vegetation as their much larger former neighbours. Only one species of contemporary native herbivore has an adult bodyweight approaching 100 kg, and for the past 150–200 years, the total biomass of introduced domestic and wild vertebrate herbivores has massively exceeded that of native herbivorous species. We conclude that the current guild of native and introduced mammalian herbivores differentially utilises the landscape ecologically. However, climate- and anthropogenically related changes due to fire, drought, flooding, predation and introduced weeds are likely to have significant impacts on the trajectory of their relative ecological roles and populations. Given their differing ecological and dietary characteristics, against this backdrop, it is unclear what the potential impact of the dispersal of deer species could have in northern Australia. We hence focus on whether sufficient knowledge exists against which the potential impacts of the range expansion of three deer species can be adequately assessed and have found a dearth of supporting evidence to inform appropriate sustainable management. We identify suitable research required to fill the identified knowledge gaps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change has resulted in a worldwide increase in intensity and frequency of extreme weather events including bushfires. Previous research has shown that communities often do not engage in disaster preparedness, even when sufficient education and resources are provided. With the projected increase in natural disasters, preparedness is paramount, and more research is needed to gain an understanding into what impacts community preparedness in the face of climate change. This study investigated one rural Australian community's preparedness for the 2019–2020 bushfires. Thirteen Australian adults who resided within a small rural community in New South Wales during the 2019–2020 bushfires participated in semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. Participants reported being unprepared for the 2019–2020 bushfires and that the community has started to prepare for future bushfires. However, they also described a belief in 'climate cycles' rather than climate change, limiting engagement in preparedness for future hazards. Participants also reported that they did not talk about the 2019–2020 bushfires, although described experiencing residual anxiety. Recommendations included support needed for rural communities to help with future preparedness efforts and mental health symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although Australia remains committed to the Paris Agreement and to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions, it was late in joining the 2021 Global Methane Pledge. Finding suitable methane (CH4) mitigation solutions for Australia's livestock industry should be part of this journey. Based on a 2020–2023 systematic literature review and multicriteria decision approach, this study analyses the available strategies for the Australian beef and dairy sector under three scenarios: baseline, where all assessment criteria are equally weighted; climate emergency, with a significant emphasis on CH4 reduction for cattle in pasture and feedlot systems; and conservative, where priority is given to reducing costs. In total, 46 strategies from 27 academic publications were identified and classified as 'Avoid', 'Shift', or 'Improve' with respect to their impact on current CH4 emissions. The findings indicate that 'Avoid' strategies of conversion of agricultural land to wetlands, salt marshes, and tidal forest are most efficient in the climate emergency scenario, while the 'Improve' strategy of including CH4 production in the cattle breeding goals is the best for the conservative and baseline scenarios. A policy mix that encourages a wide range of strategies is required to ensure CH4 emission reductions and make Australia's livestock industry more sustainable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To quantify the climate change impacts of forestry and forest management options, we must consider the entire forestry system: the carbon dynamics of the forest, the life cycle of harvested wood products, and the substitution benefit of using biomass and wood products compared to more greenhouse gas intensive options. This paper presents modelled estimates of the greenhouse gas balance of two key native forest areas managed for production in New South Wales for a period of 200 years, and compares it to the option of managing for conservation only. These two case studies show that forests managed for production provide the greatest ongoing greenhouse gas benefits, with long-term carbon storage in products, and product substitution benefits critical to the outcome. Thus native forests could play a significant part in climate change mitigation, particularly when sustainably managed for production of wood and non-wood products including biomass for bioenergy. The potential role of production forestry in mitigating climate change, though substantial, has been largely overlooked in recent Australian climate change policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change is threatening water security in water-scarce regions across the world, challenging water management policy in terms of how best to adapt. Transformative new approaches have been proposed, but management policies remain largely the same in many instances, and there are claims that good current management practice is well adapted. This paper takes the case of the Murray–Darling Basin, Australia, where management policies are highly sophisticated and have been through a recent transformation in order to critically review how well adapted the basin's management is to climate change. This paper synthesizes published data, recent literature, and water plans in order to evaluate the outcomes of water management policy. It identifies several limitations and inequities that could emerge in the context of climate change and, through synthesis of the broader climate adaptation literature, proposes solutions that can be implemented when basin management is formally reviewed in 2026. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite huge differences in population, household income and development levels, Australia and Brazil have some temporal convergences in their water governance systems. Over the last 20 years, both countries have significantly reformed their water policies and practices by introducing a legal foundation for more integrated and participatory catchment/basin management based on the best information available. A critical test of any water reform is how effective it is in meeting the challenges of extreme and unpredictable conditions of drought and floods, which are expected to increase under climate changes scenarios. This paper compared the contemporary water governance frameworks of Australia and Brazil in relation to three elements of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM): integration, participation, and information/knowledge. We focused on insights from Brazil's recent drought and Australia's fluctuating water crises to derive lessons and recommendations for future changes. Among the main recommendations, we stress the need for both systems to improve effective participation and to embrace a more comprehensive approach to cope with water scarcity in future scenarios. Furthermore, water related decisions should be based on a transparent and well informed process, and take into account the lessons from similar situations worldwide in order to avoid unnecessary or ineffective measures. As demonstrated in the Australian case during the Millennium Drought, the most effective initiatives were those involving government, the private sector and society to achieve a more sustainable consumption pattern in all sectors. There is much to learn from the Brazilian and Australia experiences in water reforms and crises, but it is imperative to understand the social, economic and environmental context within which these took place. Continuing to develop the capacity and willingness of researchers and policy makers to work together can make an important contribution towards meeting the growing and spreading challenges in water resource management around the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extreme heat has been linked to increased mortality and morbidity across the globe. Increasing temperatures due to climatic change will place immense stress on healthcare systems. This review synthesises Australian literature that has examined the effect of hot weather and heatwaves on various health outcomes. Databases including Web of Science, PubMed and CINAHL were systematically searched for articles that quantitatively examined heat health effects for the Australian population. Relevant, peer-reviewed articles published between 2010 and 2023 were included. Two authors screened the abstracts. One researcher conducted the full article review and data extraction, while another researcher randomly reviewed 10% of the articles to validate decisions. Our rapid review found abundant literature indicating increased mortality and morbidity risks due to extreme temperature exposures. The effect of heat on mortality was found to be mostly immediate, with peaks in the risk of death observed on the day of exposure or the next day. Most studies in this review were concentrated on cities and mainly included health outcome data from temperate and subtropical climate zones. There was a dearth of studies that focused on tropical or arid climates and at-risk populations, including children, pregnant women, Indigenous people and rural and remote residents. The review highlights the need for more context-specific studies targeting vulnerable population groups, particularly residents of rural and remote Australia, as these regions substantially vary climatically and socio-demographically from urban Australia, and the heat health impacts are likely to be even more substantial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The 2019–2020 Black Summer bushfires had a devastating impact on Australian biodiversity. Many affected human communities felt compelled to intervene by organizing and providing food, water, and/or shelter to affected wildlife in situ ('wildlife provisioning'). While well intentioned, due to the unprecedented scale and intensity of the fires, a lack of institutional support for wildlife provisioning, and what was revealed to be a lack of scientific evidence, this response was largely uncoordinated and a substantial amount of research is required to determine the beneficial and/or negative outcomes of such practices as a response to habitat destruction by bushfires. We propose a 'One Welfare' approach that recognizes the interconnection of human, animal, and environmental welfare and examines the existing literature; local legislation; views of stakeholders; emerging data; and modelling from fire events. There is strong evidence indicating that future bushfire seasons will become longer and more intense in Australia and elsewhere, putting the welfare and survival of millions of wild animals at risk every year. If this approach were implemented, we anticipate that best practice recommendations for stakeholders in different contexts would emerge to determine if, when, and how wildlife provisioning best be conducted, now and into the future. Australia's 2019–2020 bushfires had a devastating impact on animals, humans, and ecosystems. They also demonstrated the lack of evidence or guidance for wildlife provisioning in response to severe fire events when volunteers and wildlife organisations rose to respond. In addition, the unprecedented scale and intensity of the fires and an absence of institutional support for wildlife provisioning meant that well-intentioned interventions were largely uncoordinated and lacked clear short-term, mid-term, and long-term objectives. Fundamentally, a lack of consensus was revealed on whether any such interventions are advisable. Given the strong evidence indicating that future bushfire seasons will become longer and more intense in Australia and elsewhere, the welfare and survival of millions of wild animals are at risk every year. Understanding the impacts of supplementary resource interventions and contributing to the development of best practice information is crucial to inform the response to the next major fire event. Here, we contextualize the arguments for and against provisioning within a 'One Welfare' framework that recognizes that animal welfare, biodiversity, and the environment are intertwined with human welfare and community resilience. We propose that the One Welfare approach can facilitate appropriate consideration of the extant scientific and lay literature; local legislation; views of stakeholders; emerging data; and modelling from historic fire events. As a further step, we see merit in engaging with wildlife provisioners and the broader conservation community to build an evidence base for future wildlife provisioning activities. From an informed position, we can encourage beneficial interventions and reduce the risk of negative outcomes. Finally, we propose controlled experiments (e.g., using hazard reduction burns), ongoing data collection using emergent technology, and longitudinal analysis to address shifting research priorities as the climate changes. We conclude that the ordered collection of the necessary evidence relevant to each of the three stakeholder groups in the One Welfare framework has the greatest potential to support an informed policy platform on wildlife provisioning across Australia that is feasible, legal, and sustainable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The exacerbation of wildfires, attributed to the effects of climate change, presents substantial risks to ecological systems, infrastructure, and human well-being. In the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those related to climate action, prioritizing the assessment and management of the occurrence and intensity of extensive wildfires is of utmost importance. In recent times, there has been a significant increase in the frequency and severity of widespread wildfires worldwide, affecting several locations, including Australia, Italy, and the United States of America. The presence of complex phenomena marked by limited predictability leads to significant negative impacts on biodiversity and human lives. The utilization of satellite-derived data with neural networks, such as convolutional neural networks (CNNs), is a potentially advantageous approach for augmenting the monitoring capabilities of wildfires. This research examines the generalization capability of four neural network models, namely the fully connected (FC), one-dimensional (1D) CNN, two-dimensional (2D) CNN, and three-dimensional (3D) CNN model. Each model's performance, as measured by accuracy, recall, and F1 scores, is assessed through K-fold cross-validation. Subsequently, T-statistics and p-values are computed based on these metrics to conduct a statistical comparison among the different models, allowing us to quantify the degree of similarity or dissimilarity between them. By using training data from Australia and Sicily, the performances of the trained model are evaluated on the test dataset from Oregon. The results are promising, with cross-validation on the training dataset producing mean precision, recall, and F1 scores ranging between approximately 0.97 and 0.98. Especially, the fully connected model has superior generalization capabilities, whilst the 3D CNN offers more refined and less distorted classifications. However, certain issues, such as false fire detection and confusion between smoke and shadows, persist. The aforementioned methodologies offer significant perspectives on the capabilities of neural network technologies in supporting the detection and management of wildfires. These approaches address the crucial matter of domain transferability and the associated dependability of predictions in new regions. This study makes a valuable contribution to the ongoing efforts in climate change by assisting in monitoring and managing wildfires. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The trend to a hotter and drier climate, with more extended droughts, has been observed in recent decades in southern Australia and is projected to continue under climate change. This paper reviews studies on the projected impacts of climate change on groundwater and associated environmental assets in southern Australia, and describes groundwater planning frameworks and management responses. High-risk areas are spatially patchy due to highly saline groundwater or low-transmissivity aquifers. The proportional reduction in rainfall is amplified in the groundwater recharge and some groundwater discharge fluxes. This leads to issues of deteriorating groundwater-dependent ecosystems, streamflow depletion, reduced submarine discharge, groundwater inundation and intrusion in coastal regions and reduced groundwater supply for extraction. Recent water reforms in Australia support the mitigation of these impacts, but groundwater adaptation is still at its infancy. Risk management is being incorporated in regional water and groundwater management plans to support a shift to a more sustainable level of use and more climate-resilient water resources in affected areas. The emerging strategies of groundwater trade and managed aquifer recharge are described, as is the need for a national water-focused climate change planning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen is fast becoming a new international "super fuel" to accelerate global climate change ambitions. This paper has two inter-weaving themes. Contextually, it focuses on the potential impact of the EU's new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on fossil fuel-generated as opposed to green hydrogen imports. The CBAM, as a transnational carbon adjustment mechanism, has the potential to impact international trade in energy. It seeks both a level playing field between imports and EU internal markets (subject to ambitious EU climate change policies), and to encourage emissions reduction laggards through its "carbon diplomacy". Countries without a price on carbon will be charged for embodied carbon in their supply chains when they export to the EU. Empirically, we focus on two hydrogen export/import case studies: Australia as a non-EU state with ambitions to export hydrogen, and Germany as an EU Member State reliant on energy imports. Energy security is central to energy trade debates but needs to be conceptualized beyond supply and demand economics to include geopolitics, just transitions and the impacts of border carbon taxes and EU carbon diplomacy. Accordingly, we apply and further develop a seven-dimension energy security-justice framework to the examples of brown, blue and green hydrogen export/import hydrogen operations, with varying carbon-intensity supply chains, in Australia and Germany. Applying the framework, we identify potential impact—risks and opportunities—associated with identified brown, blue and green hydrogen export/import projects in the two countries. This research contributes to the emerging fields of international hydrogen trade, supply chains, and international carbon diplomacy and develops a potentially useful seven-dimension energy security-justice framework for energy researchers and policy analysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to evaluate the life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of importing electrical power into Singapore, generated from a large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant in Australia, through a long-distance subsea high-voltage direct current (HVDC) cable. A cost optimization model was developed to estimate the capacities of the system components. A comprehensive life cycle assessment model was built to estimate emissions of manufacturing and use of these components. Our evaluation shows that, for covering one fifth of Singapore's electrical energy needs, a system with an installed capacity of 13 G W P V , 17 GWh battery storage and 3.2 G W subsea cable is required. The life cycle GHG emissions of such a system are estimated to be 110 g CO 2 eq/ kWh , with the majority coming from the manufacturing of solar PV panels. Cable manufacturing does not contribute largely toward GHG emissions. By varying full-load hours and cable lengths, it was assessed that sites closer to Singapore might provide the same energy at same/lower carbon footprint and reduced cost, despite the lower insolation as compared to Australia. However, these sites could cause greater emissions from land use changes than the deserts of Australia, offsetting the advantages of a shorter HVDC cable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate and anthropogenic change, particularly agricultural runoff, increase blue-green algae/cyanobacteria blooms. This article researches cyanobacteria alert-level identification, management, and risk communication in Lake Hume, Australia. Two methods, document and content analysis, evidence contamination events and risk communication, reflect water governance and data management limitations. Results found that Lake Hume had amber or red alerts for only one week, December 2021–December 2022. This failed to prevent government tourism promotion of recreational usage, contravening water authority red alert advice. Lake-use restrictions lacked compliance enforcement. Events during amber alerts lacked risk communication to vulnerable populations (children). Lake Hume's governance by the Murray–Darling Basin Authority restricted risk communication to one authority that reproduced generic advice in minimal outlets/time points. Geophysical signage failed to address diversity needs (language, literacy, age, and disabilities). No risk communication was found for residents with diseases exacerbated by aerosolization. Despite WHO promoting cyanotoxin investigation, Australian research is absent in international literature. Further, Lake Hume cyanobacteria produce potentially carcinogenic microcystein. This coexists with census data revealing cancer rates higher than the national average in a waterside town. The results demonstrate the need to incorporate robust public health risk assessments, communication, and management into water management and advocate international legislation changes based on evidence-based research to reduce blooms and prevent agricultural runoff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Citizens' attitudes towards and their perceptions of climate change are widely believed to influence citizens' actions related to climate change. Knowledge of these attitudes and willingness to pay (WTP) for environmental improvement can be useful in designing an environmental policy. Although citizens' attitudes and perceptions are likely to affect their WTP, they are rarely included in the non-market valuation. Furthermore, over time, attitudes and perceptions of environmental issues are likely to change. An understanding of temporal stability of attitudes towards climate change could shed the light on changes in citizens' WTP for environmental quality over time. This study examined changes in perceptions, attitudes, and actions towards climate change using two surveys in Queensland, Australia. The surveys were administered 10 years apart (2009 and 2018). The effect of attitudes over time on WTP was analysed using a contingent valuation (CV) method. The results confirmed that attitudes and perceptions of climate change were important factors affecting actions of respondents. Furthermore, over time, some attitudes and perceptions changed significantly. However, only some attitudes and perceptions were significant predictors of consumers' WTP for a change in environmental quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Blind cave spiders of the genus Troglodiplura are large, enigmatic spiders, which show a number of adaptations to an underground existence, including elongated limbs and a complete lack of eyes. They are known only from the Nullarbor Plain, Australia and prior to this study the species were only known from juveniles or fragments of dead spiders. We investigated the distribution of Troglodiplura in South Australia, providing detailed observations of the behaviour of living adult and juvenile spiders in their natural habitat and in captivity. Given the adaptations of the spiders to an underground existence, plus the barriers to above-ground dispersal posed by the arid climate of the Nullarbor Plain, we expected species to be confined to single caves. However, our molecular evidence showed that the species T. beirutpakbarai was distributed across multiple caves in South Australia, each separated by between 10–27 km, and that there had been connection between the caves in recent history. These findings provide intriguing evidence for subterranean between-cave dispersal mechanisms for these spiders. A number of threats to cave fauna and the fragile cave ecosystem are posed, and we recommend further research to better define the distribution of vulnerable cave taxa and their conservation profiles. Previously described from only fragments of exoskeleton and juvenile specimens, the cave spider genus Troglodiplura (Araneae: Anamidae), endemic to the Nullarbor Plain, is the only troglomorphic member of the infraorder Mygalomorphae recorded from Australia. We investigated the distribution of Troglodiplura in South Australia, collecting and observing the first (intact) mature specimens, widening the number of caves it has been recorded in, and documenting threats to conservation. Phylogenetic analyses support the placement of Troglodiplura as an independent lineage within the subfamily Anaminae (the 'Troglodiplura group') and provide unequivocal evidence that populations from apparently isolated cave systems are conspecifics of T. beirutpakbarai Harvey & Rix, 2020, with extremely low or negligible inter-population mitochondrial divergences. This is intriguing evidence for recent or contemporary subterranean dispersal of these large, troglomorphic spiders. Observations of adults and juvenile spiders taken in the natural cave environment, and supported by observations in captivity, revealed the use of crevices within caves as shelters, but no evidence of silk use for burrow construction, contrasting with the typical burrowing behaviours seen in other Anamidae. We identify a range of threats posed to the species and to the fragile cave ecosystem, and provide recommendations for further research to better define the distribution of vulnerable taxa within caves and identify actions needed to protect them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

TEs are known to be among the main drivers in genome evolution, leading to the generation of evolutionary advantages that favor the success of organisms. The aim of this work was to investigate the TE landscape in bird genomes to look for a possible relationship between the amount of specific TE types and environmental changes that characterized the Oligocene era in Australia. Therefore, the mobilome of 29 bird species, belonging to a total of 11 orders, was analyzed. Our results confirmed that LINE retroelements are not predominant in all species of this evolutionary lineage and highlighted an LTR retroelement dominance in species with an Australian-related evolutionary history. The bird LTR retroelement expansion might have happened in response to the Earth's dramatic climate changes that occurred about 30 Mya, followed by a progressive aridification across most of Australian landmasses. Therefore, in birds, LTR retroelement burst might have represented an evolutionary advantage in the adaptation to arid/drought environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of climate change have been observed in the Murrumbidgee River basin, which is one of the main river basins in the southeast region of Australia. The study area is the largest and most important agricultural production area within the Murray Darling Basin (MDB). It produces more than AUD 1.9 billion of agricultural products annually and accounts for about 46% of Australia's total agricultural production. Since Australia's economy largely depends on its natural resources, climate change adversely impacts the economy in various ways. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's fifth assessment report (IPCC, AR5), the adaptive capacity and adaptation processes have increased in Australia. The country has implemented policies and management changes in both rural and urban water systems to adapt to future drought, unexpected floods, and other climatic changes. In this study, future catchment runoff has been estimated using the hydrological model, Simplified Hydrolog (SIMHYD), which is integrated with data from three different General Circulation Models (GCMs) and future emission scenarios. Two different representative concentration pathway (RCP) emission scenarios, RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5, have been used to obtain downscaled future precipitation and evapotranspiration data for the period of 2016 to 2100. Modeling results from the two emission scenarios showed an anticipated warmer and drier climate for the Murrumbidgee River catchment. Runoff in the Murrumbidgee catchment is affected by various dams and weirs, which yields positive results in runoff even when the monthly rainfall trend decreases. The overall runoff simulation result indicated that the impact of climate change is short and intense. The result of the Simplified Hydrolog (SIMHYD) modeling tool used in this study under the RCP 4.5 scenario for the period 2016 to 2045 indicates a significant future impact from climate change on the volumes of runoff in the Murrumbidgee River catchment. For the same period, the climate change prediction showed a decrease in total annual rainfall within the range of 2% to 62%. This reduction in rainfall is projected to decrease river runoff in the upper catchments (e.g., Tharwa, and Yass) by 17% to 58% over the projected periods. However, the runoff trends in the lower sub-catchments (e.g., Borambola) have increased by 137% to 87% under RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5, respectively. This increasing potential runoff trend in the lower Murrumbidgee catchments gives an indication to build irrigation dams for dry season irrigation management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tropical cyclones (TCs) have long posed a significant threat to Australia's population, infrastructure, and environment. This threat may grow under climate change as projections indicate continuing rises in sea level and increases in rainfall during TC events. Previous Australian TC risk assessment efforts have focused on the risk from wind, whereas a holistic approach requires multi-hazard risk assessments that also consider impacts of other TC-related hazards. This study assessed and mapped TC risk nationwide, focusing on the impacts on population and infrastructure from the TC-related hazards of wind, storm surges, flooding, and landslides. Risk maps were created at the Local Government Area (LGA) level for all of Australia, using collated data on multiple hazards, exposure, and vulnerability. The results demonstrated that the risk posed by all hazards was highest for coastal LGAs of eastern Queensland and New South Wales, followed by medium risk across Northern Territory and north-western Western Australia. Further enhancement and validation of risk maps developed in this study will provide decision makers with the information needed to reduce TC risk, save lives, and prevent damage to infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innovative digital twins (DTs) that allow engineers to visualise, share information, and monitor the condition during operation is necessary to optimise railway construction and maintenance. Building Information Modelling (BIM) is an approach for creating and managing an inventive 3D model simulating digital information that is useful to project management, monitoring and operation of a specific asset during the whole life cycle assessment (LCA). BIM application can help to provide an efficient cost management and time schedule and reduce the project delivery time throughout the whole life cycle of the project. In this study, an innovative DT has been developed using BIM integration through a life cycle analysis. Minnamurra Railway Bridge (MRB), Australia, has been chosen as a real-world use case to demonstrate the extended application of BIM (i.e., the DT) to enhance the operation, maintenance and asset management to improve the sustainability and resilience of the railway bridge. Moreover, the DT has been exploited to determine GHG emissions and cost consumption through the integration of BIM. This study demonstrates the feasibility of DT technology for railway maintenance and resilience optimisation. It also generates a virtual collaboration for co-simulations and co-creation of values across stakeholders participating in construction, operation and maintenance, and enhancing a reduction in costs and GHG emission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study addresses the difference in media coverage of the Australian bushfires and the pandemic, using an Australian and a Hungarian news site. After a frame analysis of text and imagery, a narration analysis was conducted. Our results provided evidence that crises were covered in different ways. For a distant news portal, it was an obvious option to use the bushfires in order to visualize climate change. In contrast, the bushfire–climate link has been a politicized subject in Australia for decades; hence, the exceptional bushfire season was also unable to get the issue on the agenda. Although the Australian news media in our sample strived to portray a crisis under control, when compared to the pandemic, it was not so effective. Therefore, localization is a major challenge for effective climate communication, where lessons from the pandemic, using more economic and social frames, could be helpful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents a review of recent rainwater harvesting (RWH) research by a bibliometric analysis (based on performance analysis and science mapping method). Following the inclusion/exclusion criteria, a total of 3226 publications were selected for this bibliometric analysis. From the selected publications, the top journals were identified according to number of publications and number of citations, as well as the authors with the highest number of publications. It has been found that publication rate on RWH has been increasing steadily since 2005. Water (MDPI) journal has published the highest number of publications (128). Based on the literature considered in this review, the top five authors are found as Ghisi, E., Han, M., Rahman, A., Butler, D. and Imteaz, M.A. in that order. With respect to research collaborations, the top performing countries are USA–China, USA–Australia, USA–UK, Australia–UK and Australia–China. Although, the most dominant keywords are found to be 'rain', 'rainwater', 'water supply' and 'rainwater harvesting', since 2016, a higher emphasis has been attributed to 'floods', 'efficiency', 'climate change', 'performance assessment' and 'housing'. It is expected that RWH research will continue to rise in future following the current trends as it is regarded as a sustainable means of water cycle management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent work attributing decadal regime changes in temperature to radiative forcing is extended to atmospheric moisture. Temperature, and specific and relative humidity (T, q, RH) from the HadISDH data set were analyzed for regime shifts using the bivariate test. Most shifts in q and T for global and northern hemisphere (NH), and tropical land occurred within a year of each other. Only one shift of q was recorded in the southern hemisphere (SH). RH increased in the NH in 1990–91 and decreased in a series of shifts from the late 1990s, while in the SH decreased from 2001. The tropics have remained neutral, shifting negative over land and positive over the ocean. The global decreases in 2001 and 2011 was −0.56%. Global RH from 32 climate models from the CMIP5 RCP4.5 archive all contained regime shifts but only 4 reached or exceeded the observed decreases by 2100, the earliest in 2056. Regime shifts in RH and fire danger over Australia are consistent with the SH decreases in RH, shifting within one year of global fire season length in 2002, showing that impacts are also being underestimated by current analyses. Methods for nonlinear attribution and the contributing processes for nonlinear change are discussed. These results show that developing a better understanding of nonlinear change in moisture-related climate risk is an urgent task. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to climate change, freshwater supply will be limited at many locations around the globe. Rainwater harvesting (RWH) has emerged as an alternative and sustainable freshwater source. In this study, the impacts of climate change on water saving as well as the reliability of a RWH system are investigated using data from eight Australian capital cities. Both historical and projected rainfall data were incorporated into a daily water balance model to evaluate the performance of a RWH system in relation to its reliability, water savings and scarcity. Indoor (toilet and laundry), outdoor (irrigation) and combined (indoor plus outdoor) water demands were considered for a 5 m3 tank size. It has been found that in the future period, the water savings and reliability of a RWH system will reduce slightly across the selected cities. Different capital cities of Australia will experience different level of performance for a RWH system depending on their locations, water uses and seasons. The findings of this study will be useful to water authorities and policy makers to plan for a sustainable RWH system under changing climate conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modelling investigations into the local changes in the shoreline resulting from enhanced atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations and global climate change are important for supporting the planning of coastal mitigation measures. Analysis of Global Climate Model (GCM) and Regional Climate Model (RCM) simulations has shown that Lakes Entrance, a township located at the northern end of Ninety Mile Beach in south-eastern Australia, is situated in a region that may experience noticeable future changes in longshore winds, waves and coastal currents, which could alter the supply of sediments to the shoreline. This paper will demonstrate a downscaling procedure for using the data from GCM and RCM simulations to force a local climate model (LCM) at the beach scale to simulate additional nearshore wind-wave, hydrodynamic and sediment transport processes to estimate future changes. Two types of sediment transport models were used in this study, the simple empirical coastline-type model (CERC equation), and a detailed numerical coastal area-type model (TELEMAC). The two models resolved transport in very different ways, but nevertheless came to similar conclusions on the annual net longshore sediment transport rate. The TELEMAC model, with the Soulsby-Van Rijn formulation, showed the importance of the contribution of storm events to transport. The CERC equation estimates more transport during the period between storms than TELEMAC. The TELEMAC modelled waves, hydrodynamics and bed-evolutions are shown to agree well with the available observations. A new method is introduced to downscale GCM longshore sediment transport projections using wave-transport-directional change parameter to modify directional wave spectra. We developed a semi-empirical equation (NMB-LM) to extrapolate the ~3.7-year TELEMAC, storm dominated transport estimates, to the longer ~30-year hindcast climate. It shows that the shorter TELEMAC modelled period had twice as large annual net longshore sediment transport of the ~30 year hindcast. The CERC equation does not pick up this difference for the two climate periods. Modelled changes to the wave transport are shown to be an order of magnitude larger than changes from storm-tide current and mean sea level changes (0.1 to 0.2 m). Discussion is provided on the limitations of the models and how the projected changes could indicate sediment transport changes in the nearshore zone, which could impact the coastline position. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, areas of high-quality wildlife habitat of significant environmental value are at risk of permanent damage from climate change. These areas represent social-ecological systems that will require increasing management intervention to maintain their biological and socio-cultural values. Managers of protected areas have begun to recognize the inevitability of ecosystem change and the need to embrace dynamic approaches to intervention. However, significant uncertainty remains about the onset and severity of some impacts, which makes planning difficult. For Indigenous communities, there are intrinsic links between cultural heritage and the conservation of place and biodiversity that need to be better integrated in protected area planning and management. In New South Wales, Australia, management of public conservation reserves and national parks is the responsibility of a State government agency, the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS). This paper describes the outcomes of a participatory planning process with NPWS staff to, firstly, identify the options available, the available 'tool kit', to manage biodiversity and cultural heritage in protected areas; secondly, explore how the selection of management actions from the 'tool kit' is associated with the level of climate risk to biodiversity or cultural heritage assets; and thirdly, to understand how the form of individual management actions might adapt to changes in climate risk. Combining these three elements into a series of risk-based, adaptive pathways for conservation of biodiversity and cultural heritage is a novel approach that is currently supporting place-based planning for public conservation areas. Incorporation of the trade-offs and synergies in seeking to effectively manage these discrete but related types of values and the implications for conservation practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projects a global temperature rise of 4.3 ± 0.7 °C by 2100 and an extinction of 8.5% in one out of every six species. Australia's aquatic ecosystem is no exception; habitat loss, fragmentation, and loss of biodiversity are being experienced. As the center for Nymphaea species distribution, it presents the culturally, ecologically, and scientifically important genus as the best candidate for habitat suitability assessment in climate change, whose habitat suitability is presumed to decline. The models were run according to the maximum entropy (MaxEnt) method, using one general circulation model (GCM). Projections were made for the current, past, and future in medium (4.5) and high (8.5) representative concentration pathways. Significantly, bio2 and bio15 were highly preferred among the species. Less distribution was noted in West Australia compared to the north, east, and south of the continent, while north of the continent in Western Australia, Northern Territory, and Queensland indicate more habitat contractions compared to the east and southeast of Queensland and New South Wales, although it receives high precipitation. Generally, the species respond variably to both temperature and precipitation variables which is a key species response factor for planners and decision makers in species habitat and biodiversity conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study quantifies some of the potential impacts of climate change and nutrient pollution to identify the most important factors on water quality changes and algal blooms in the study region. Three variables, air temperature and streamflow, representing climate change, and nutrient runoff, were varied in eight hypothetical scenarios to determine their impact on water quality and algal blooms by the calibrated and validated water quality model QUAL2K. Water quality was assessed by the concentrations of dissolved oxygen, total nitrogen, and phosphorus. Algal blooms were identified by phytoplankton concentration. An increase in air temperature of up to 2 °C resulted in an average increase of 3% in water temperature and 4.79% in phytoplankton concentration, and an average decrease of 0.48% in dissolved-oxygen concentration. Projected decreases in streamflow not only made the above phenomenon more significant but also significantly increased the concentration of total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and phytoplankton with the same pollution inputs. Under climate change, the biggest cause of concern for estuarine water quality is reduced streamflow due to decreases in rainfall. Water quality improvement is possible by regulating the concentration of non-point-source pollution discharge. By reducing nutrient runoff, the total nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations were also reduced, resulting in a significant increase in the dissolved oxygen concentration. This study highlights the most significant factors for managing water quality in estuaries subject to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Systematic changes, since the beginning of the 20th century, in average and extreme Australian rainfall and temperatures indicate that Southern Australian climate has undergone regime transitions into a drier and warmer state. South-west Western Australia (SWWA) experienced the most dramatic drying trend with average streamflow into Perth dams, in the last decade, just 20% of that before the 1960s and extreme, decile 10, rainfall reduced to near zero. In south-eastern Australia (SEA) systematic decreases in average and extreme cool season rainfall became evident in the late 1990s with a halving of the area experiencing average decile 10 rainfall in the early 21st century compared with that for the 20th century. The shift in annual surface temperatures over SWWA and SEA, and indeed for Australia as a whole, has occurred primarily over the last 20 years with the percentage area experiencing extreme maximum temperatures in decile 10 increasing to an average of more than 45% since the start of the 21st century compared with less than 3% for the 20th century mean. Average maximum temperatures have also increased by circa 1 °C for SWWA and SEA over the last 20 years. The climate changes in rainfall an d temperatures are associated with atmospheric circulation shifts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The summer season of 2019-2020 has been named Australia's Black Summer because of the large forest fires that burnt for months in southeast Australia, affecting millions of Australia's citizens and hundreds of millions of animals and capturing global media attention. This extensive fire season has been attributed to the global climate crisis, a long drought season and extreme fire weather conditions. Our aim in this study was to examine the factors that have led some of the wildfires to burn over larger areas for a longer duration and to cause more damage to vegetation. To this end, we studied all large forest and non-forest fires (>100 km²) that burnt in Australia between September 2019 and mid-February 2020 (Australia's Black Summer fires), focusing on the forest fires in southeast Australia. We used a segmentation algorithm to define individual polygons of large fires based on the burn date from NASA's Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) active fires product and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) burnt area product (MCD64A1). For each of the wildfires, we calculated the following 10 response variables, which served as proxies for the fires' extent in space and time, spread and intensity: fire area, fire duration (days), the average spread of fire (area/days), fire radiative power (FRP; as detected by NASA's MODIS Collection 6 active fires product (MCD14ML)), two burn severity products, and changes in vegetation as a result of the fire (as calculated using the vegetation health index (VHI) derived from AVHRR and VIIRS as well as live fuel moisture content (LFMC), photosynthetic vegetation (PV) and combined photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic vegetation (PV+NPV) derived from MODIS). We also computed more than 30 climatic, vegetation and anthropogenic variables based on remotely sensed derived variables, climatic time series and land cover datasets, which served as the explanatory variables. Altogether, 391 large fires were identified for Australia's Black Summer. These included 205 forest fires with an average area of 584 km² and 186 non-forest fires with an average area of 445 km²; 63 of the forest fires took place in southeast (SE) Australia (the area between Fraser Island, Queensland, and Kangaroo Island, South Australia), with an average area of 1097 km². Australia's Black Summer forest fires burnt for more days compared with non-forest fires. Overall, the stepwise regression models were most successful at explaining the response variables for the forest fires in SE Australia (n = 63; median-adjusted R² of 64.3%), followed by all forest fires (n = 205; median-adjusted R² of 55.8%) and all non-forest fires (n = 186; median-adjusted R² of 48.2%). The two response variables that were best explained by the explanatory variables used as proxies for fires' extent, spread and intensity across all models for the Black Summer forest and non-forest fires were the change in PV due to fire (median-adjusted R² of 69.1%) and the change in VHI due to fire (median-adjusted R² of 66.3%). Amongst the variables we examined, vegetation and fuel-related variables (such as previous frequency of fires and the conditions of the vegetation before the fire) were found to be more prevalent in the multivariate models for explaining the response variables in comparison with climatic and anthropogenic variables. This result suggests that better management of wildland-urban interfaces and natural vegetation using cultural and prescribed burning as well as planning landscapes with less flammable and more fire-tolerant ground cover plants may reduce fire risk to communities living near forests, but this is challenging given the sheer size and diversity of ecosystems in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many countries and regions have struggled to put in place adequate water information systems to assist with sustainable water management. This article describes and assesses the key components of Australia's water information and data systems, with particular reference to rural and regional Australia, focusing on progress with strengthening these systems at a national level since 2007. Through the early part of the period, much of Australia was experiencing a crisis in water availability. The article concludes with ongoing challenges for Australia and lessons from the Australian experience for other countries embarking on upgrading their water information and data systems. Upgrading a nation's water information systems is a long-term task, but an important one in a world of climate change and increased climate variability. Substantial progress is likely to take five to 10 years to materialize. From the outset, upgrading information systems needs to be focused on data series that will facilitate answering key policy questions, assist water users in making significant decisions more effectively, and allow businesses and government to better address risks from water-related events. As always, political support matters. To sustain investments in information, its coverage must facilitate illuminating key questions and issues. Custodians of information systems must ensure that the value proposition is clear to all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Insights on tree species and competition effects on seasonal stem growth are critical to understanding the impacts of changing climates on tree productivity, particularly for eucalypts species that occur in narrow climatic niches and have unreliable tree rings. To improve our understanding of climate effects on forest productivity, we examined the relative importance of species, competition and climate to the seasonal stem growth of co-occurring temperate eucalypts. We measured monthly stem growth of three eucalypts (Eucalyptus obliqua, E. radiata, and E. rubida) over four years in a natural mixed-species forest in south-eastern Australia, examining the relative influences of species, competition index (CI) and climate variables on the seasonal basal area increment (BAI). Seasonal BAI varied with species and CI, and was greatest in spring and/or autumn, and lowest in summer. Our study highlights the interactive effects of species and competition on the seasonal stem growth of temperate eucalypts, clearly indicating that competitive effects are strongest when conditions are favourable to growth (spring and autumn), and least pronounced in summer, when reduced BAI was associated with less rainfall. Thus, our study indicates that management to reduce inter-tree competition would have minimal influence on stem growth during less favourable (i.e., drier) periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A general prediction of ecological theory is that climate change will favor invasive nonindigenous plant species (NIPS) over native species. However, the relative fitness advantage enjoyed by NIPS is often affected by resource limitation and potentially by extreme climatic events such as drought. Genetic constraints may also limit the ability of NIPS to adapt to changing climatic conditions. In this study, we investigated evidence for potential NIPS advantage under climate change in two sympatric perennial stipoid grasses from southeast Australia, the NIPS Nassella neesiana and the native Austrostipa bigeniculata. We compared the growth and reproduction of both species under current and year 2050 drought, temperature and CO2 regimes in a multifactor outdoor climate simulation experiment, hypothesizing that NIPS advantage would be higher under more favorable growing conditions. We also compared the quantitative variation and heritability of growth traits in populations of both species collected along a 200 km climatic transect. In contrast to our hypothesis we found that the NIPS N. neesiana was less responsive than A. bigeniculata to winter warming but maintained higher reproductive output during spring drought. However, overall tussock expansion was far more rapid in N. neesiana, and so it maintained an overall fitness advantage over A. bigeniculata in all climate regimes. N. neesiana also exhibited similar or lower quantitative variation and growth trait heritability than A. bigeniculata within populations but greater variability among populations, probably reflecting a complex past introduction history. We found some evidence that additional spring warmth increases the impact of drought on reproduction but not that elevated atmospheric CO2 ameliorates drought severity. Overall, we conclude that NIPS advantage under climate change may be limited by a lack of responsiveness to key climatic drivers, reduced genetic variability in range-edge populations, and complex drought-CO2 interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assisted colonization—the deliberate translocation of species from unsuitable to suitable regions—is a controversial management tool that aims to prevent the extinction of populations that are unable to migrate in response to climate change or to survive in situ. The identification of suitable translocation sites is therefore a pressing issue. Correlative species distribution models, which are based on occurrence data, are of limited use for site selection for species with historically restricted distributions. In contrast, mechanistic species distribution models hold considerable promise in selecting translocation sites. Here we integrate ecoenergetic and hydrological models to assess the longer-term suitability of the current habitat of one of the world's rarest chelonians, the Critically Endangered Western Swamp Tortoise (Psuedemydura umbrina). Our coupled model allows us to understand the interaction between thermal and hydric constraints on the foraging window of tortoises, based on hydrological projections of its current habitat. The process can then be repeated across a range of future climates to identify regions that would fall within the tortoise's thermodynamic niche. The predictions indicate that climate change will result in reduced hydroperiods for the tortoises. However, under some climate change scenarios, habitat suitability may remain stable or even improve due to increases in the heat budget. We discuss how our predictions can be integrated with energy budget models that can capture the consequences of these biophysical constraints on growth, reproduction and body condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The risks associated with extreme weather events induced by climate change are increasingly being recognized, and must be addressed through each country's construction regulations, building codes, and standards. Ensuring that buildings and cities are resilient against disasters is becoming more important. Few studies have analyzed the impact of global polices and frameworks in reducing disaster risks and increasing resilience in built environments. This research reviews disasters associated with climate change in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, analyzing how Australia's National Construction Code is aligned with the framework and the potential implications for reducing disaster risk. Decision-makers in construction companies in Sydney, Australia, were surveyed. The results show there is a statistically significant link among the National Construction Code, the Sendai Framework, and building resilience. The Sendai Framework is an effective mediator in this three-pronged relationship that can further enhance building resilience in Australia. Stakeholders in the construction industry will need to incorporate disaster risk reduction practices, especially authorities, such as local governments, building commissioners, and building certifiers that are responsible for the approval, quality, and defects mitigation of development applications and best practices. Overall, implementation of the Sendai Framework will help develop more regulations and standards for resilient buildings, set targets, and make improvements over time in the Australian construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green energy by PV systems reduces the dependence on fossil fuel-based power plants. Maximizing green energy to meet the demand reduces the burden on conventional power plants, hence lesser burning and greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions. For this purpose, this study draws a relationship between tracking schemes of the PV systems to GHG mitigation potential. The best fit location for detailed analyses is selected among the 15 most populous cities of Australia. The solar radiation potential is increased to 7.78 kWh/m2/d through dual axes tracking compared to 7.54, 6.82, 5.94, 5.73 kWh/m2/d through the one axis, azimuth based, fixed-tilted, and fixed-horizontal surface schemes, respectively. Through the dual axes tracking scheme, a 1 MW PV system per annum energy output avoids the burning of 796,065.3 L of gasoline, 4308.7 barrels of crude oil which is equal to the mitigation of 1852.7 tCO2 equivalent GHGs. Concisely, the PV system, through its green energy output, can avoid the release of greenhouse gases from fossil-fuel plants to tackle climate change more effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The beef industry in Northern Australia is characterized by an extensive grazing system in dry tropical rangelands defined by climate change indices of very low rainfall, a prolonged dry season and feeds of low nutritive value. In response, beef cattle need to be more efficient in converting the available drought-tolerant feeds to muscle, in an attempt to minimize greenhouse gas emissions. This study addressed the problem of reducing methane emissions from tropical beef cattle with the goal of decreasing the impact of climate change and greenhouse gas emissions in Northern Australia. The primary objective was to compare the effect of supplementing tropical beef cattle with both good quality lucerne and poor quality hay with increasing levels of different Desmanthus cultivars on in vivo methane emission. The results showed that in tropical beef cattle on high-quality diets, irrespective of cultivar and emission evaluation method, Desmanthus does not reduce methane emissions. The main objective of this study was to compare the effect of supplementing beef cattle with Desmanthus virgatus cv. JCU2, D. bicornutus cv. JCU4, D. leptophyllus cv. JCU7 and lucerne on in vivo methane (CH4) emissions measured by open-circuit respiration chambers (OC) or the GreenFeed emission monitoring (GEM) system. Experiment 1 employed OC and utilized sixteen yearling Brangus steers fed a basal diet of Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana) hay in four treatments—the three Desmanthus cultivars and lucerne (Medicago sativa) at 30% dry matter intake (DMI). Polyethylene glycol (PEG) was added to the diets to neutralize tannin binding and explore the effect on CH4 emissions. Experiment 2 employed GEM and utilized forty-eight animals allocated to four treatments including a basal diet of Rhodes grass hay plus the three Desmanthus cultivars in equal proportions at 0%, 15%, 30% and 45% DMI. Lucerne was added to equilibrate crude protein content in all treatments. Experiment 1 showed no difference in CH4 emissions between the Desmanthus cultivars, between Desmanthus and lucerne or between Desmanthus and the basal diet. Experiment 2 showed an increase in CH4 emissions in the three levels containing Desmanthus. It is concluded that on high-quality diets, Desmanthus does not reduce CH4 emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conservation genetics has informed threatened species management for several decades. With the advent of advanced DNA sequencing technologies in recent years, it is now possible to monitor and manage threatened populations with even greater precision. Climate change presents a number of threats and challenges, but new genomics data and analytical approaches provide opportunities to identify critical evolutionary processes of relevance to genetic management under climate change. Here, we discuss the applications of such approaches for threatened species management in Australia in the context of climate change, identifying methods of facilitating viability and resilience in the face of extreme environmental stress. Using genomic approaches, conservation management practices such as translocation, targeted gene flow, and gene-editing can now be performed with the express intention of facilitating adaptation to current and projected climate change scenarios in vulnerable species, thus reducing extinction risk and ensuring the protection of our unique biodiversity for future generations. We discuss the current barriers to implementing conservation genomic projects and the efforts being made to overcome them, including communication between researchers and managers to improve the relevance and applicability of genomic studies. We present novel approaches for facilitating adaptive capacity and accelerating natural selection in species to encourage resilience in the face of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing evidence suggests that coral reefs exposed to elevated turbidity may be more resilient to climate change impacts and serve as an important conservation hotspot. However, logistical difficulties in studying turbid environments have led to poor representation of these reef types within the scientific literature, with studies using different methods and definitions to characterize turbid reefs. Here we review the geological origins and growth histories of turbid reefs from the Holocene (past), their current ecological and environmental states (present), and their potential responses and resilience to increasing local and global pressures (future). We classify turbid reefs using new descriptors based on their turbidity regime (persistent, fluctuating, transitional) and sources of sediment input (natural versus anthropogenic). Further, by comparing the composition, function and resilience of two of the most studied turbid reefs, Paluma Shoals Reef Complex, Australia (natural turbidity) and Singapore reefs (anthropogenic turbidity), we found them to be two distinct types of turbid reefs with different conservation status. As the geographic range of turbid reefs is expected to increase due to local and global stressors, improving our understanding of their responses to environmental change will be central to global coral reef conservation efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genetic engineering (GM) of crops, modified with DNA transfer between species, has been highly regulated for over two decades. Now, genome editing (GE) enables a range of DNA alterations, from single base pair changes to precise gene insertion with site-directed nucleases (SDNs). Past regulations, established according to the precautionary principle of avoiding potential risks to human health and the environment, are predicated on fears fanned by well-funded and emotional anti-GM campaigns. These fears ignore the safety record of GM crops over the last 25 years and the benefits of GM to crop productivity, disease and pest resistance, and the environment. GE is now superseding GM, and public education is needed about its benefits and its potential to meet the challenges of climate change for crops. World population will exceed 9 billion by 2050, and world CO2 levels are now over 400 ppm in contrast with a pre-industrial 280 ppm, leading to a projected 1.5 °C global warming by 2050, with more stressful crop environments. The required abiotic and biotic stress tolerances can be introgressed from crop wild relatives (CWR) into domestic crops via GE. Restrictive regulations need to be lifted to facilitate GE technologies for sustainable agriculture in Australia and the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research highlights—Feedbacks between fire severity, vegetation structure and ecosystem flammability are understudied in highly fire-tolerant forests that are dominated by epicormic resprouters. We examined the relationships between the severity of two overlapping fires in a resprouting eucalypt forest and the subsequent effect of fire severity on fuel structure. We found that the likelihood of a canopy fire was the highest in areas that had previously been exposed to a high level of canopy scorch or consumption. Fuel structure was sensitive to the time since the previous canopy fire, but not the number of canopy fires. Background and Objectives—Feedbacks between fire and vegetation may constrain or amplify the effect of climate change on future wildfire behaviour. Such feedbacks have been poorly studied in forests dominated by highly fire-tolerant epicormic resprouters. Here, we conducted a case study based on two overlapping fires within a eucalypt forest that was dominated by epicormic resprouters to examine (1) whether past wildfire severity affects future wildfire severity, and (2) how combinations of understorey fire and canopy fire within reburnt areas affect fuel properties. Materials and Methods—The study focused on ≈77,000 ha of forest in south-eastern Australia that was burnt by a wildfire in 2007 and reburnt in 2013. The study system was dominated by eucalyptus trees that can resprout epicormically following fires that substantially scorch or consume foliage in the canopy layer. We used satellite-derived mapping to assess whether the severity of the 2013 fire was affected by the severity of the 2007 fire. Five levels of fire severity were considered (lowest to highest): unburnt, low canopy scorch, moderate canopy scorch, high canopy scorch and canopy consumption. Field surveys were then used to assess whether combinations of understorey fire (<80% canopy scorch) and canopy fire (>90% canopy consumption) recorded over the 2007 and 2013 fires caused differences in fuel structure. Results—Reburn severity was influenced by antecedent fire severity under severe fire weather, with the likelihood of canopy-consuming fire increasing with increasing antecedent fire severity up to those classes causing a high degree of canopy disturbance (i.e., high canopy scorch or canopy consumption). The increased occurrence of canopy-consuming fire largely came at the expense of the moderate and high canopy scorch classes, suggesting that there was a shift from crown scorch to crown consumption. Antecedent fire severity had little effect on the severity patterns of the 2013 fire under nonsevere fire weather. Areas affected by canopy fire in 2007 and/or 2013 had greater vertical connectivity of fuels than sites that were reburnt by understorey fires, though we found no evidence that repeated canopy fires were having compounding effects on fuel structure. Conclusions—Our case study suggests that exposure to canopy-defoliating fires has the potential to increase the severity of subsequent fires in resprouting eucalypt forests in the short term. We propose that the increased vertical connectivity of fuels caused by resprouting and seedling recruitment were responsible for the elevated fire severity. The effect of antecedent fire severity on reburn severity will likely be constrained by a range of factors, such as fire weather. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smoke taint has become a prominent issue for the global wine industry as climate change continues to impact the length and extremity of fire seasons around the world. Although the issue has prompted a surge in research on the subject in recent years, no singular solution has yet been identified that is capable of maintaining the quality of wine made from smoke-affected grapes. In this review, we summarize the main research on smoke taint, the key discoveries, as well as the prevailing uncertainties. We also examine methods for mitigating smoke taint in the vineyard, in the winery, and post production. We assess the effectiveness of remediation methods (proposed and actual) based on available research. Our findings are in agreement with previous studies, suggesting that the most viable remedies for smoke taint are still the commercially available activated carbon fining and reverse osmosis treatments, but that the quality of the final treated wines is fundamentally dependent on the initial severity of the taint. In this review, suggestions for future studies are introduced for improving our understanding of methods that have thus far only been preliminarily investigated. We select regions that have already been subjected to severe wildfires, and therefore subjected to smoke taint (particularly Australia and California) as a case study to inform other wine-producing countries that will likely be impacted in the future and suggest specific data collection and policy implementation actions that should be taken, even in countries that have not yet been impacted by smoke taint. Ultimately, we streamline the available information on the topic of smoke taint, apply it to a global perspective that considers the various stakeholders involved, and provide a launching point for further research on the topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anonychomyrma is a dolichoderine ant genus of cool-temperate Gondwanan origin with a current distribution that extends from the north of southern Australia into the Australasian tropics. Despite its abundance and ecological dominance, little is known of its species diversity and distribution throughout its range. Here, we describe the diversity and distribution of Anonychomyrma in the Australian Wet Tropics bioregion, where only two of the many putative species are described. We hypothesise that the genus in tropical Australia retains a preference for cool wet rainforests reminiscent of the Gondwanan forests that once dominated Australia, but now only exist in upland habitats of the Wet Tropics. Our study was based on extensive recent surveys across five subregions and along elevation and vertical (arboreal) gradients. We integrated genetic (CO1) data with morphology to recognise 22 species among our samples, 20 of which appeared to be undescribed. As predicted, diversity and endemism were concentrated in uplands above 900 m a.s.l. Distribution modelling of the nine commonest species identified maximum temperature of the warmest month, rainfall seasonality, and rainfall of the wettest month as correlates of distributional patterns across subregions. Our study supported the notion that Anonychomyrma radiated from a southern temperate origin into the tropical zone, with a preference for areas of montane rainforest that were stably cool and wet over the late quaternary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cities in Australia are experiencing unprecedented levels of urban overheating, which has caused a significant impact on the country's socioeconomic environment. This article provides a comprehensive review on urban overheating, its impact on health, energy, economy, and the heat mitigation potential of a series of strategies in Australia. Existing studies show that the average urban heat island (UHI) intensity ranges from 1.0 °C to 13.0 °C. The magnitude of urban overheating phenomenon in Australia is determined by a combination of UHI effects and dualistic atmospheric circulation systems (cool sea breeze and hot desert winds). The strong relation between multiple characteristics contribute to dramatic fluctuations and high spatiotemporal variabilities in urban overheating. In addition, urban overheating contributes to serious impacts on human health, energy costs, thermal comfort, labour productivity, and social behaviour. Evidence suggest that cool materials, green roofs, vertical gardens, urban greenery, and water-based technologies can significantly alleviate the UHI effect, cool the ambient air, and create thermally balanced cities. Urban greenery, especially trees, has a high potential for mitigation. Trees and hedges can reduce the average maximum UHI by 1.0 °C. The average maximum mitigation performance values of green roofs and green walls are 0.2 °C and 0.1 °C, respectively. Reflective roofs and pavements can reduce the average maximum UHI by 0.3 °C. In dry areas, water has a high cooling potential. The average maximum cooling potential using only one technology is 0.4 °C. When two or more technologies are used at the same time, the average maximum UHI drop is 1.5 °C. The mitigation strategies identified in this article can help the governments and other stakeholders manage urban heating in the natural and built environment, and save health, energy, and economic costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable food production in protected cropping is increasing rapidly in response to global climate change and population growth. However, there are significant knowledge gaps regarding energy consumption while achieving optimum environmental conditions for greenhouse crop production. A capsicum crop cultivated in a high-tech greenhouse facility in Australia was analysed in terms of relationships between key environmental variables and the comparative analysis of energy consumption during different seasons. We showed that daily energy consumption varied due to the seasonal nature of the external environment and maintenance of optimal growing temperatures. Total power consumption reported throughout the entire crop cycle for heating (gas hot water system) and cooling (pad and fan) was 12,503 and 5183 kWh, respectively; hence, heating consumed ca. 70% of the total energy requirement over the 8-month growing period (early spring to late autumn) in the greenhouse facility. Regressions of daily energy consumption within each season, designated either predominantly for heating or cooling, indicated that energy consumption was 14.62 kWh per 1 °C heating and 2.23 kWh per 1 °C cooling. Therefore, changing the planting date to late spring is likely to significantly reduce heating energy costs for greenhouse capsicum growers in Australia. The findings will provide useful guidelines to maximise the greenhouse production of capsicum with better economic return by taking into consideration the potential optimal energy saving strategy during different external environment conditions and seasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]