The threat of being forced out of their homes due to extreme weather is weighing heavy on many Australians.
A Climate Council survey found one in three Australians were concerned about needing to permanently relocate away from their homes and local communities because of extreme weather.
Climate Council Fellow Dr Grant Blashki said this summer communities across the country faced dangerous downpours and record-breaking temperatures.
“It’s understandable that Australians are anxious about what lies ahead for their homes and their families,” Dr Blaski said.
The survey found one in 10 Australians had already been forced to move temporarily or permanently from their homes due to an extreme weather event and one in three knew someone who had been forced to relocate from their homes due to an extreme weather event.
Four in five Australians were worried about the impact of extreme weather events on children and young people and almost 85 percent were worried about the prospect of their insurance becoming unaffordable due to worsening extreme weather events.
“The fear people have of being forced to relocate is not unfounded. This polling tells us that one in 10 of us have already uprooted our lives due to extreme weather. This experience goes beyond moving house, it means losing the wonderful support and connections that communities provide,” Dr Blaski said.
“Climate-fuelled fires and floods present an almost impossible choice for families who are already under severe mental stress after experiencing an extreme weather event: Do they stay in a home with ongoing risks of another fire or flood, or do they relocate?
“Relocating is an extremely difficult call for families to make, and one that reverberates throughout entire communities.”
A summary of the survey can be found on the Climate Council website.
