Scientists demand Scott Morrison acts on climate change after Australian bushfire crisis
Hundreds of scientists have written an open letter to Scott Morrison begging him to take action against . The letter, which has been signed by 274 climate experts, demands the government reconsider its position on global warming as the nation struggles through the worst bushfire season on record. So far, 33 people have died in the horror infernos and millions of hectares of land has been destroyed. 'Scientists have been warning policy makers for decades that climate change would worsen Australia's fire risk, and yet those warnings have been ignored,' the letter read. The letter predicts extreme weather conditions will worsen should Australian leaders ignore the issue at hand. 'Science tells us these extreme events will only grow worse in the future without genuine concerted action to reduce global emissions of greenhouse gases.' Experts used the open letter to call on the Australian government to reduce emissions. Australian National University climate scientist Professor Nerilie Abram said the letter is the product of despair as scientists witnessed the deadly fire season unfold. They believe there is 'no strong, resilient Australia without deep cuts to greenhouse emissions' and hope the letter might silence climate deniers. 'Australia has near-to the highest greenhouse gas emissions per person of any country. We need to pull our weight in reducing our emissions, and influence the rest of the world to take urgent and co-ordinated action. Any other policy is window dressing.' Other predictions include Melbourne and Sydney experiencing 50C days by 2040. 2019 was the hottest and driest year on record in Australia at 1.5C above the climate average for the century. Scientists fear for the environment when that average climbs to 3C above the average, which is predicted to happen within 80 years. Seperately, Oxfam says the government must demonstrate it has fully grasped the lessons of this 'horrific' bushfire season. 'In spite of the scientific evidence and the extreme weather we're living through - bushfires, hail storms and drought - the government still hasn't joined the dots and taken action to tackle the root causes of the crisis,' Oxfam Chief Executive Lyn Morgain said in a statement. She said Australia's policies must dramatically strengthen emissions reduction targets and move beyond fossil fuels. 'The government's narrow-minded focus on adaptation and resilience simply, does not go far enough,' she said.. While Mr Morrison hasn't commented on the letter yet, he last week vowed to support hazard reduction burns. Mr Morrison has also revealed the government was considering a way to name and shame states which don't complete required hazard reduction burns. 'Hazard reduction is as important as emissions reduction,' the prime minister told Sky News. 'Many would argue even more so, because it has a direct practical impact on the safety of a person going into a bushfire season.' Mr Morrison flagged clear national standards for meeting hazard reduction targets, along with a review of land-clearing laws, native vegetation rules and allowing grazing in national parks. 'We report all the time on what our emissions reductions are, but across the country there is not a national system of reporting to track how hazard reduction is progressing,' he said. 'There's been plenty of chat around emissions reduction and that's fine, hazard reduction though is the thing that is going to take a more practical effect on how safe people are in future fire seasons.' He said a proposed royal commission should look at how states were performing on reducing fire risks in the face of hotter, longer and drier summers.