Australian forests on a climate change knife-edge: whilst our precious forests and their inhabitants are under increasing threat of climate change, new research reveals that protecting our forests could actually be part of the climate change solution.

Forests in the age of climate change: thirsty and hungry ...

Although many tree species have, in the past, adapted to changes in climate, the rapidly increasing rate of climate change has seen the adaptive capacity of individual species pushed to the limit, with some tree species unable to survive. The impact of climate change on Australian forests is also expected to lead to a decrease in water and nutrient availability, limiting future growth. The problem of increased salinity will also have an impact--affecting both native forests and commercial enterprises.

With Victoria's standing as the most cleared state in the country, the loss of forests and woodlands has had very clear outcomes, with almost a third of our native animals and close to half of our native plants already extinct or threatened with extinction.

The impact of climate change will only make things worse.

... and going up in smoke

The Climate Action Network of Australia (CANA) claims that hotter temperatures and drier conditions projected for southern Australia will see an increase in the intensity of forest fires. CANA also believes that global warming may already be creating weather conditions that increase the intensity of bushfires.

In 2001, much of eastern Australia was drier than normal, which, combined with extremely hot days, created tinderbox conditions in forested areas of NSW in early 2002. This resulted in a record-breaking fire season, which burned 44 national parks including 60 per cent of the Royal National Park and nearly half of the Blue Mountains National Park.

The intensity of the fires threatened many plant species. For example, the number of banksia plants in the Royal National Park declined by 90 per cent as a result of the last intense fire in the Park in 1994.

While many Australian forests need some level of fire to trigger regeneration, intense fires or fires that occur too frequently cause irreversible damage. This trend continued in Victoria in 2003 where, despite modern fire danger awareness and mitigation capacities, intense forest wildfires spread across much of the east of the state, with frequent destructive crowning fires.

Forest-dwellers in peril

Work by CSIRO scientist Dr Roger Jones shows increased temperatures under climate change could expose yet more Victorian animal species to the risk of extinction. Unless there is a dramatic change in the way the problem of climate change is managed, Dr Jones estimates that this threat of extinction could be a reality by as early as 2030--certainly by 2050.

Under climate change, Dr Jones' research also shows that average annual temperatures across Victoria could rise by as much as 1.2[degrees]C from 1990 levels by 2030 and 2.3[degrees]C by 2050--and the effects will be devastating.

A temperature increase of just 0.9[degrees]C, according to Dr Jones, would be enough for the mountain pygmy possum to completely lose its unique 'bioclimatic envelope' (climate-suitable habitat range). With an increase of 1.4[degrees]C, the nationally endangered helmeted honeyeater will lose its Victorian bioclimatic envelope and with a temperature increase of 1.7[degrees]C, the giant Gippsland earthworm will lose its too.

With the world's forests playing such an important part in balancing human-induced climate change, ACF forest campaigner, Lindsay Hesketh, says that we can all do something to ensure the survival of so many plants and animals.

"Write to MPs, Premiers and the Prime Minister," says Hesketh, who believes that, with strong political lobbying and the raising of public awareness, it is not too late for changes to be made.

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Forests countering climate change

According to ACF's forest campaigner, Lindsay Hesketh, research released recently by the Australian National University indicates the important role that management of Australia's native forests plays in dealing with our C[O.sup.2] emissions.

"The effect of continued deforestation and forest disturbance is quite clear," says Hesketh. "This new research shows that Australia's mature tall wet eucalypt forests contain up to five times more carbon 'on-site' than previously thought, and that the disturbance caused by forestry operations releases significant amounts of this storage into the atmosphere. The time required for forest regeneration to recover such an emission is calculated to be in excess of 250 years."