Letter to Editor contributed by Tony Fontes.

RECENT articles in our local media have noted the escalating costs of adapting to the impacts of climate change.

Our council is most concerned about the high risk of cyclones, storm surge, rising sea level and severe flood events and that these impacts will only increase with climate change.

The council also noted that the escalating impacts of climate change are causing an increase in insurance premiums, further adding to the costs of climate change.

Whitsunday Mayor Andrew Willcox said it was important for the council to start planning for future impacts so residents would not be hit with even higher costs.

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While it is all well and good that the council is considering the need and cost to adapt to climate change, we must also consider the much more important need to mitigate the cause of climate change.

Without mitigation, any adaptation will be in vain.

Science makes it very clear that we need to immediately reduce our carbon emissions and go carbon neutral by 2050.

This will require a transition to 100 per cent renewable energy by 2050 and that transition must start now.

Opening a new thermal coal mine in 2020 is almost as regressive as supporting a new coal-fired power plant.

Any council or politician that would support such a scheme is extremely shortsighted and certainly not considering the wellbeing of our region.

The cost of mitigating climate change now is far, far cheaper than paying for it in the future.

Tony Fontes, Airlie Beach

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