For Immediate Release September 18 2025
38 FORMER FIRE AND EMERGENCY CHIEFS have warned that the bottom end of Albanese Government’s 2035 climate target (62 - 70% cut on 2005 level emissions) falls dangerously short of what’s needed to protect both communities and emergency responders.
Already, communities and emergency services are struggling to respond to more intense, and frequent disasters including longer, and hotter heatwaves, bigger, more destructive bushfires and repeated record- breaking floods. A lower target means more danger, and worsening disasters. The Government’s own climate risk assessment makes it clear that global heating of more than 2 degrees of warming (assuming other nations make similar commitments) will result in:
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double the number of severe and extreme heatwave days across Australia;
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almost triple the number of heat-related deaths in Sydney, Darwin Townsville; and
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1.5 million Australians exposed to coastal flooding and inundation.
At this critical point every effort counts, and the former emergency chiefs call on the government to leave no stone unturned, and push past the upper end of its target.
Greg Mullins AO, AFSM, former Commissioner of Fire & Rescue NSW said: “Communities and the emergency crews working to protect them have been smashed repeatedly with record floods and fires in the past six years. From our point of view - this is already a crisis situation for many communities and for emergency services.
“Emergency Leaders for Climate Action called for a strong, science based target that was as close to net zero by 2035 as possible. Overall, the target range announced today falls dangerously short of what the science tells us is needed: it’s like deciding to send too few fire trucks to a massive bushfire event. We need to do more to protect Australians from the worsening of the climate crisis.
Earlier this week, in the National Climate Risk Assessment, we saw that the costs of weak climate action add up to in billions of dollars in disaster recovery and damage to our homes.
“If that’s the level of risk we’re accepting, then what’s the plan for dealing with it? Emergency leaders want to see a concrete, well-funded plan for how the Albanese government is going to support communities and first responders to adapt to the compounding, cascading and concurrent disasters its own risk assessment outlines if we’re choosing not to cut climate pollution any further or faster.”
Major General Peter Dunn AO (retired), Former Commissioner, ACT Emergency Services Authority: “Only two days ago the Federal Government released its National Climate Risk Assessment which revealed the risks of going too slowly or doing too little on climate change. At more than two degrees of warming, we can expect an extra five severe heatwave days per year, up to 69% more time spent in drought per decade, and an additional 77 marine heatwave days.”
“This comes on top of what communities are already experiencing - back-to-back flood, storm and fire events, damaged homes and businesses and sky-rocketing insurance premiums.
“Without stronger action that rapidly cuts back on pollution from coal, oil and gas we are doubling down on the climate threats we are already facing. Parts of the country scarred by the Black Summer bushfires will see even more dangerous fire weather and longer fire seasons.”
ENDS
About us:
About Emergency Leaders for Climate Action: We are 38 former senior Australian fire and emergency service leaders who have observed how climate change is driving increasingly catastrophic extreme weather events that are putting lives, properties and livelihoods at greater risk and overwhelming our emergency services.
Contact details:
For interviews please contact Jacqui Street on 0498 188 528 / [email protected]