Climate change impacts on biodiversity in Australia

Outcomes of a workshop sponsored by the Biological Diversity Advisory Committee, 1–2 October  2002, Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra.  The workshop brought together for the first time researchers and policymakers from all over Australia to assess the issue of climate change in relation to biodiversity in Australia: a growing policy concern. The participants had expertise in the key ecosystems of concern: coral reefs, rainforests, alpine regions, rangelands, grasslands, arid zone, temperate forests, coastal marine systems, rivers, mammals and birds. Presentations were made about these key ecosystems, outlining existing trends in climate, as well as future climate change scenarios (Chapter 2), current understanding of the impacts of climate changes, and likely sensitivities to future impacts (Chapters 1 and 3). The workshop identified potential signs of climate change (Chapter 4), modelling approaches that could improve both predictions of impacts and assessments of possible adaptation strategies (Chapter 5), and possible policy responses (Chapter 6).