Matt Thistlethwaite (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Tonight I wish to speak on an issue that is posing a threat to our country's surf lifesaving clubs—in particular, the 128 surf lifesaving clubs that are located within my home state of New South Wales. The issue relates to rising sea levels and the threat that they pose to the life and the wellbeing of our surf clubs. Many members of this nation's surf clubs enjoy worthwhile lifestyles, and I am pleased to say that I have been a member of a surf lifesaving club in Sydney for 26 years. As a long-time member and former president of Maroubra Surf Life Saving Club, I have many wonderful memories of my time on the beach, watching over fellow beachgoers in often wild and at times unforgiving surf conditions.

From an early age I was taught to treat the ocean with the utmost respect. Indeed, its power and propensity to turn from beautiful to ugly at a moment's notice means it deserves nothing less. This was a lesson drilled into me as a youngster: even when your back is turned, you always keep one eye on the ocean. Mother Nature can be a supremely unpredictable force. This is a lesson that has served me and many surf lifesavers well throughout the world.

Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Never turn your back on the ocean.

Matt Thistlethwaite (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That is true. I feel that it is my duty today to pass on that lesson about always keeping your eye on the beach, because some coastal regions of New South Wales are finding out the ability of the ocean to sneak up on them. Surf clubs of this nation make up the first line of defence against the vastness of the ocean and they are, at present, facing a serious threat in the form of extreme weather events associated with sea level rise. The surf clubs are often the first to experience the effects of rising sea levels in this country and as such do not have the luxury to 'um and ah' over this threat. They need to take action in order to save themselves and to save the Australian way of life.

In recognising the challenges that climate change, changing weather events and sea level rise are posing for our nation, Surf Life Saving Australia has commissioned a study to develop a climate change adaptation road map that will assist in the management of projected climate change impacts. The objective of this study was to understand the risks posed by climate change, to review available strategies to address those risks and to develop a program to implement the identified strategies. The outcome is a climate change adaptation road map for surf lifesaving which outlines strategies that will increase the resilience of surf lifesaving to the projected impacts of climate change. These outcomes represent an important first step for surf lifesaving in preparing for the impacts of climate change.

Climate change is indeed a pressing issue and one that is already having an impact on a number of surf clubs. Without action, it will continue to threaten and impact on one of this nation's most iconic movements. The study is entitled Impact of extreme weather events and climate change on surf life saving services. It assessed the range of risks climate change might pose to the surf lifesaving movement and identified a range of strategies to deal with them. Increased sea levels, altered wave climates, modified rainfall patterns and changes to the frequency and intensity of storms are just some of the effects of climate change the study found the movement will need to face in the coming years. It is true that these effects are expected with or without climate change, but the damage caused by climate change will be far greater if no action is taken to mitigate the impact.

Of the 128 surf clubs in New South Wales, 47 per cent are located in coastal zones classified as zones of potential instability. Cudgen Headland is a surf lifesaving club on Kingscliff Beach in the north of New South Wales and perhaps one of the most vulnerable. This surf club has been hit hard recently by storm events which have caused shoreline recession in front of the club and along the adjoining beach, resulting in decreased amenity for beach users and impact on the surf club and interclub surf carnivals. The New South Wales Surf Life Saving Championships were held at the beach in March of this year and just prior to that event the local council, the surfing community and the surf club were required to dump sand from the adjoining river onto the beach just so there was enough sand to run the events. The club has been working with the Tweed Shire council to establish temporary protection measures, including sea wall construction and sand nourishment. These actions combined with the natural sediment renourishment from Cudgen Creek have improved the condition of the beach adjacent to the club. Cases such as at Cudgen Headland highlight the impact of natural climate variability on coastal conditions. Projections for climate change, including a rise in mean sea level, are likely to continue to exacerbate existing management issues and generate new management challenges for surf clubs everywhere.

Sea level rise as a result of climate change will have a number of different physical and ecological effects on coastal systems, including direct inundation, flood and storm damage, loss of wetlands, erosion, saltwater intrusion of coastal aquifers and associated rising water tables. These are all risks which were identified in the surf lifesaving study. Other effects of climate change, such as higher sea water temperatures, changes in precipitation patterns and changes in storm tracks, frequency and intensity will also affect coastal systems, both directly and through interactions with sea level rise. The report found:

Almost all Surf Lifesaving Clubs (SLSCs) in Australia are located at the forefront of the coastal zone, often within metres of the shoreline. Understandably, the vast majority of SLSCs are located on sandy beaches, which provide high amenity and support recreational use. Sandy coastal zones are vulnerable to coastal erosion and thus sensitive to the impacts of climate change. Over 63 per cent of SLSCs nationally are situated on coastal areas classified as zones of potential instability. Projected impacts of climate change include coastal erosion leading to asset exposure and changes in coastal beach safety through altered beach form.

These biogeophysical effects will, in turn, have direct and indirect socioeconomic impacts on tourism, human settlements, agriculture, freshwater supply and quality, fisheries, financial services and human health in the coastal zone.

For the great surf lifesaving movement of this nation, the impact of climate change and rising sea levels is already being felt and will continue to be an issue that the movement will need to grapple with for many years to come. It is heartening to see the foresight of those involved in the administration of surf lifesaving through the development of this road map for dealing with climate change. I would like to place on record my congratulations to the administrators of surf lifesaving in this country for their commitment to dealing with the issue of climate change, for their commitment to working with the government to address what is a serious economic and social issue for our nation and for their commitment to ensuring the continued viability of a great pastime, a great Australian tradition and a great volunteer movement and organisation in our country. I remain committed to working with the movement to deal with one of the most pressing economic and social issues of our generation.