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==Introduction== According to non-governmental organisations such as Greenpeace and global scientific organisations such as the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the frequency and intensity of disasters brought about by greenhouse gas emissions and climate change will grow rapidly in the world. The risks are particularly severe in some regions of Australia, such as the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, the Macquarie Marshes in New South Wales. The Department of Climate Change said in its Climate Change Impacts and Costs fact sheet: "...ecologically rich sites, such as the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland Wet Tropics, Kakadu Wetlands, Australian Alpine areas, south-western Australia and sub- Antarctic islands are all at risk, with significant loss of biodiversity projected to occur by 2020".〔 (Climate Change – Potential impacts and costs ) Retrieved on 2008-08-01〕 It also said: "Very conservatively, 90 Australian animal species have so far been identified at risk from climate change, including mammals, insects, birds, reptiles, fish and amphibians from all parts of Australia." Australia is already the driest populated continent in the world. Climate change is recognised as one of the largest global crises. The issue has gained traction around the world as the world becomes increasingly urbanised. This is because urbanisation brings irreversible changes in our patterns of resource/waste production and consumption. Therefore, how to plan, manage and live in cities in the light of global warming largely determines and depends on the progress of the climate change phenomenon.〔 (Global Warming Threatens Australia's Tropical Biodiversity ) Retrieved on 2008-07-29〕 According to projections by the Department of Climate Change in Australia, it is expected that national average temperatures would increase by 0.4 to 2.0 °C (). Rainfall patterns and the degree of droughts and storms brought about by extreme weather conditions are likely to be affected. Research has suggested that nearly three quarters of global energy consumption occur in cities, while emissions of greenhouse gases that cause global warming come from urban areas.〔(Global Warming is a reality already with us ) Retrieved on 2008-07-29〕 Nearly a third of these emissions are caused by the burning of fossil fuels used in urban transportation. Another third is formed from the energy used to regulate building temperature and to run personal appliances. The final third is contributed by the industrial sector. The main emitters of greenhouse gases are the construction, real estate, agriculture and metallurgical industries, the transportation sector, the industrial uses of fossil fuels and the burning of biomass.〔(Top Greenhouse Gas Emitters Not Disclosing, Acting of Financial Risks of Climate Change ) Retrieved on 2008-06-22〕 Some examples of daily activities that contribute to the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere include the use of carbon-based electricity in street lighting, driving motor vehicles, cooking, and the lighting, heating and cooling of housing. If the policies of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries remain unchanged, specifically Australia and the United States, and also China and India, carbon dioxide emissions, which represents 72% of all greenhouse gas emissions, will increase by a third in the year 2020 instead of the 5% reduction as was approved in the Kyoto Protocol.〔(Ratification of the Convention on the OECD ) Retrieved on 2008-07-29〕 With the current path of climate change, the world population is entering an era of growing urban vulnerability. The accelerated pace of urbanisation and the fact that a growing segment of the world's population now live in cities has significantly increased the vulnerability of urban areas as anthropogenic hazards and agents for climate change. It will become increasingly difficult to distinguish between what is caused by humans and what is natural because both risks are overlapping. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Adaptation to global warming in Australia」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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