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11/04/2007
Coastal residents could soon suffer the effect of climate change if homes become uninsurable against severe weather caused by global warming, a new report warns...
The warning followed yesterday's release of a UN report painting a grim picture of Australia's future.
Drought, tropical disease, pests, crop failures, cyclones and bushfires would all affect the nation.
The Australia and New Zealand chapter of the report also found Aboriginal groups would suffer health and lifestyle challenges, and species of animals could be wiped out.
Tourism, coastal communities and water supplies would also be harmed.
Analyst Karl Mallon of the Climate Risk group, which advises government and businesses, told a Sydney forum yesterday coastal residents would feel the effect of climate change before sea levels rise.
Home values could plummet by 80%
The cash value of a home would be cut by up to 80 per cent if it were deemed uninsurable for a severe weather event caused by global warming.
Dr Mallon said developers and councils risked negligence lawsuits if they failed to factor climate change into planning.
"Probably we will see this year as a turning point in the debate over climate change and the need for it to be acknowledged in economic decision-making," he said.
An Australian author of the report, Prof Nick Harvey, said people wanting to live by the sea might have to pay a levy to fund coastal protection measures.
A huge digital map of Australia's coastline is being created by scientists to help pinpoint coastal communities that face being washed away by rising sea levels.
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