Climate change could make Murray Bridge look like Woomera by 2100, projection suggests
Want to move to the outback? No need – unless action is taken to prevent climate change, the outback could move into the Murraylands by the end of this century.
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The Murraylands will look a lot more like the outback by the end of this century unless politicians and business leaders act on climate change.
That’s the latest projection from the state Department for Environment and Water.
If world leaders fail to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Murray Bridge is projected to get up to 3.7 degrees hotter and 29 per cent drier by 2100.
That would put our climate roughly on par with Woomera or Leigh Creek.
A few degrees might not sound like much, but it would mean:
More than twice as many days with temperatures above 35C
Twice as many nights above 20C, too
Almost 100mm less annual rainfall for farmers, including 42% less in spring
The department’s projections split most of South Australia into squares of 10 by 10 kilometres, with detailed information on temperatures and rainfall for each square.
The figures quoted above were the projections for a high emissions, or worst case, scenario: a world where nobody bothers doing much of anything to reduce emissions.
In a medium emissions scenario, a world where some action is taken but not enough to meet international goals, Murray Bridge would only get two degrees hotter and 12% drier by 2100.
That would make our climate more like Whyalla’s.
The latest projections are slightly worse than those produced for the SA Climate Ready Project four years ago.
DEW climate change science advisor Graham Green hoped the projections would help governments and businesses plan to adapt to climate change.
“Reductions in rainfall will lead to less availability of water in some regions, while higher temperatures and less rain will mean increased demand for irrigation water to grow crops,” he said.
“A drier landscape and more days above 40C will increase the risk of bushfires.
“Analysing this data will help us understand and manage those climate risks so we can protect our water security, safeguard our agricultural production and prepare for bushfire threats.”
At a local level, the Murray Bridge council has already committed to fight climate change, while the Coorong council issued a more conservative acknowledgement of “climate variability” in 2020.
Deputy Premier Susan Close said the state government hoped to make 100% of South Australia’s energy renewable by 2030, and to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
“If governments, industries and communities work together, these targets are within our reach and hitting them will create a healthier environment for everyone,” she said.
However, a debate is still playing out in the Murraylands about which technology will get us to net zero: solar, nuclear or a combination.
The state government released the projections to coincide with COP 28, a gathering of world leaders in Dubai to discuss their response to the increasing effects of climate change around the globe.
More information: Access the South Australian climate projections viewer at environment.sa.gov.au/climate-viewer.
Read more: Murray Bridge won’t have many more mild summers, climate change projections suggest