FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Friday June 12 2026
The US weather agency NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association) warns an El Niño has formed in the Pacific ocean, after Japan’s Meteorological Association (JMA) also declared an El Niño is officially underway this week.
The natural El Niño climate driver is often associated with hot and dry weather in Australia and an increased risk of severe droughts, heatwaves, and bushfires, particularly in the eastern regions. Climate Council experts are warning record levels of pollution from coal, oil and gas will compound these events.
NOTE: Each country’s weather service has their own method to determine if climate drivers are present, and Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology has NOT yet declared an El Niño is underway, but has indicated that it may be close.
The Climate Council has the following experts available for interview:
Climate Councillor and Adjunct Professor Andrew Watkins
Andrew Watkins is a Climate Councillor with the Climate Council and Adjunct Professor (Practice) at Monash University’s School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment. He is formerly the Bureau of Meteorology’s Head of Climate Prediction and a Lead Author of Australia’s first National Climate Risk Assessment.
Adj Professor Watkins can explain: what El Niño is, what it means for Australia and how climate pollution interacts to make any El Niño impacts more extreme
Location: Melbourne
Climate Councillor Dr Kate Charlesworth
Dr Kate Charlesworth is a public health physician based in Sydney and a researcher in sustainable health care with 15 peer-reviewed papers. She has worked as a Research Fellow at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and at the Sustainable Development Unit in Cambridge.
Dr Charlesworth can talk about: the impacts of heat and heatwaves on Australians which are more likely thanks to climate change and an El Niño event.
Location: Sydney
For interviews please contact the Climate Council media team on [email protected] or call 0485 863 063.
Note: The Climate Media Centre also has spokespeople available who can talk about the likely impacts of El Niño in a warming world, including farmers, reef scientists and doctors. Contact: [email protected]
About us:
The Climate Council is an independent, community-funded organisation. We provide evidence-based information on climate change impacts and solutions to journalists, policymakers, and the wider Australian community.
For further information, go to: climatecouncil.org.au
