FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE WEDNESDAY 28 JANUARY, 2026
The Climate Council warns the extreme heat conditions gripping large parts of Australia is a public health emergency, and climate pollution from burning coal, oil and gas is driving it.
Climate Councillor Dr Kate Charlesworth said: “Heat is a silent killer. It has killed more Australians than all other extreme weather events combined - with more than 1000 lives taken during heatwaves between 2016 and 2019.”
This week, the Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting extreme to severe heatwave conditions across large parts of southeast Australia. Temperature records have already tumbled with Adelaide sweltering through its hottest nighttime temperature, and Victoria set a new statewide maximum temperature record.
CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology’s State of the Climate report concludes our country is heating up around the year - not just over summer - with both daytime and night-time temperatures rising, and more frequent extreme heat driven by climate pollution.
Climate Councillor Dr Kate Charlesworth said: “When nights stay hot, bodies cannot recover, and that is when heat stress becomes most dangerous. Hotter days and hot nights drive heat stress, dehydration and collapse, and the danger ramps up fast for older people, young children, people with pre existing illness, and anyone working outside or stuck in a hot home without adequate cooling.”
Dr Kate Wylie, Executive Director, Doctors for the Environment Australia: “Bushfire smoke carries tiny particles that lodge deep in the lungs and can even enter the bloodstream, hitting hardest for children, older people, pregnant women, and anyone with asthma or heart and lung conditions. Climate pollution from coal, oil and gas is driving longer, hotter, more dangerous heatwaves, we need urgent action to protect our health and move beyond fossil fuels.”
Climate Council CEO Amanda McKenzie said: “Extreme heat is a dangerous, escalating threat, supercharged by the continued burning of coal, oil and gas. We need to rapidly cut climate pollution by scaling up clean energy, electrification and efficiency, and stop the expansion of fossil fuel projects.
“Families are paying the price while fossil fuel corporations push for even more coal and gas. That’s not fair. We know the solutions - replacing coal, oil and gas with renewable power - but the transition needs to accelerate.”
The Climate Council's media guide to fires, heat and climate is available here.
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