Every summer, Queenslanders confront increasingly severe extreme weather events, including floods, storms, cyclones, and heatwaves, all exacerbated by climate change. These events not only threaten the safety and well-being of our communities but also strain our economy. To adequately prepare for these hazards, proactive measures from local governments are essential to enhance resilience to extreme weather events.
The Issue at Hand:
The Darling Downs Environment Council is particularly concerned about the impact of heatwaves in the Toowoomba region. As temperatures rise, urban areas become heat islands, exacerbating the effects of heatwaves on residents' health and well-being. To address this pressing issue, DDEC has started the Keep Toowoomba Cool Campaign to urge Toowoomba Regional Council (TRC) to take decisive action to enhance the city's resilience to heatwaves. We are working with the community to advocate protections for mature trees and localised and time based canopy coverage targets to create corridors of cooling with the right trees in the right place.
Toowoomba Regional Council plays a vital role in enhancing the city's resilience to heatwaves and other climate-related hazards. By implementing the proposed actions outlined above, TRC can take proactive steps to mitigate the impacts of heatwaves, safeguarding the well-being of residents and the sustainability of our communities. It is imperative that TRC prioritizes climate adaptation and resilience-building measures to ensure a safer and more resilient future for Toowoomba.
Dear Toowoomba Regional Council,
Our summers are getting hotter and the great inequity in shady trees across our region means we are missing the opportunity to create corridors of cooling through having the right trees in the right places. We call on you to set ambitious time-based and localised targets for tree canopy cover to help Keep Toowoomba Cool.
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