Mr Kevin Hennessy, Principal Researcher, explains why farmers and the Government have reacted with alarm to a joint report from CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology, which indicates that hot periods and low rainfall years which have occurred every 20 years may become much more frequent. (5:36)
'An assessment of the impact of climate change on the nature and frequency of exceptional climatic events' was prepared by CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology for the Australian Government's National Review of Drought Policy.
The analysis shows that the real extent and frequency of exceptionally hot years have been increasing rapidly over recent decades, and that trend is expected to continue.
The researchers also found that only some parts of the country will be affected by more frequent dry, hot periods, and that climate change through human induced greenhouse gas emissions is not always the culprit.
Read more about An assessment of the impact of climate change on the nature and frequency of exceptional climatic events and its accompanying Supplementary Information [external link]
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