Who would you expect to be more concerned about the impacts of climate change – people living in a capital city, or in regional Australia?
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Climate Institute data indicates many Australians are worried, regardless of where they live.
Of the 2000 Australians polled on the topic, 69 per cent of those living in rural and regional areas were concerned, as were 74 per cent of those in capital cities.
Furthermore, 90 per cent of rural and regional Australians were of the opinion the effects of climate change were already being felt.
Bendigo resident Nekkita Jackson “absolutely” agreed the impacts had become evident.
She moved from Tasmania about 10 years ago and said there had been an obvious change in the weather since then.
Ms Jackson said seasons in Bendigo were more extreme nowadays, with scorching hot summer days and freezing cold winters.
“If that doesn’t say enough, what does?” she said.
City of Greater Bendigo energy projects officer and Bendigo Sustainability Group committee member Keith Reynard concurred, and found it unsurprising people in rural and regional communities had noticed.
“Farming communities are the ones who have to deal with climate change on a day-to-day basis as part of their farming operations, so there is no surprise from that respect that they’re aware,” Mr Reynard said.
Many such communities were keen for there to be action on climate change to restore some stability to fluctuating environmental conditions, he said.
However, Mr Reynard said greater financial and scientific literacy in communities would be key to creating positive change.
“A lot of people can be misled if they don’t have an awareness or some level of understanding or knowledge of how the climate is being impacted,” he said.
“I don’t think there is enough emphasis on science in our education system.”
Bendigo residents were generally keen for council to be seen as a leader in areas of sustainability, he said, and the city had been particularly successful in its uptake of solar power systems.
Speaking to the Bendigo Advertiser earlier in the month about the upcoming vintage, Heathcote vigneron Ron Laughton of Jasper Hill said climate change was evident in the shift in picking times.
“The climate is warming and so most people are finding they’re picking earlier,” he said.
About 35 years ago, grapes were being harvested in early April.
Last year the fruits were coming off the vines in February, the earliest Mr Laughton said they had been in the past 35 years.
However, cooler conditions have meant this year’s vintage is likely to occur in March.