10 minute read
Climate Action - Vets for Climate Action (VfCA)
Veterinarians tackling climate change to protect animal health and welfare
Vets for Climate Action is building bridges for climate action with education and mitigation to protect the health and welfare of animals.
-Words Caroline Zambrano
THERE’S NO denying that we are being clobbered by extreme temperatures, drought, flash floods, bushfires, severe storms, and other serious weather events.
Scientists have determined that the change in climate is caused by greenhouse gas emissions from human activities (e.g. electricity generation, livestock farming), which are trapping the sun’s heat and critically impacting on people and the natural world. When veterinarian Dr Angela Frimberger, Deputy Chief of Veterinarians for Climate Action (VfCA), attended a webinar about the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), she was dreading to hear about the current state of the world’s climate, its implications and potential future risks to people and animals.
The veterinary oncologist and long-time climate action advocate was right to be worried about IPCC’s most recent climate assessment.
(Available to read www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2/)
Dr Angela Frimberger, Deputy Chief, Veterinarians for Climate Action
“The webinar was pretty sobering,” she said. “All the projections are more severe and with higher confidence, posing a real threat to animal health and welfare, as well as to public health, and causing animal suffering.”
Frighteningly, the IPCC report also revealed current adaptation plans are inadequate for the degree of change that is already locked in, “and this concerns me hugely for animals, because most adaptation measures do not help wild animals and ecosystems at all,” Dr Frimberger added. The reality is that climate change touches on everything we care about. “As veterinarians, we worry about loss of biodiversity, climate change as a health threat, and particularly about the impact on animals,” she continued.
In 2014, Dr Frimberger trained as a Climate Reality Leader by the Climate Reality Project, a charity founded by former United States Vice President Al Gore, aimed at bringing the world together to solve the climate crisis and make a sustainable future a reality. Her 16-year-old daughter also became a Climate Reality Leader.
Today, she puts all her energy into tackling climate change through VfCA, which represents concerned veterinarians, veterinary nurses, practices, and industry partners across Australia who want climate action.
Climate change is an animal welfare problem
There is no animal – domestic or wild – anywhere in the world that is not impacted by climate change in some way, claims Dr Frimberger.
“There is an obvious risk of suffering to wild animal species whose habitat is changing faster or farther than the species can adjust with it, or that is exposed to flood or fire. Pets and production animals are also at risk of suffering in heatwaves, floods, and fires,” she said.
An estimated three billion wild vertebrates were killed or displaced¹, plus a considerable number of sheep and cattle were killed in Australia’sbushfires in the 2019-2020 summer².
“Just recently a heartbreaking video was all over the internet, taken by a farmer watching half of his 300 cattle being swept away in floodwaters [in the severe rain event along the east coast],” said Dr Frimberger.
Threats of climate change on animal health and welfare overlap with dangers to public health, and for the most part centre on infectious disease and food production.
Dr Jeremy Watson's Brimbank Vet Clinic is certified carbon neutral
She said: “The World Health Organisation predicts changes in infectious disease transmission patterns as a likely major consequence of climate change. The current outbreak of Japanese encephalitis is an example of this, with changing weather patterns triggering increased disease transmission. It has already been shown that the productivity and nutritional quality of key food crops, including corn and wheat, is reduced by heat stress. Food plants are also vulnerable to an increase in pests and diseases.”
Finally, climate change related events such as severe storms, floods, and bushfires result in substantial economic losses to individuals and communities.
Dr Frimberger said: “A healthy and well-maintained domestic animal population depends on an economically stable society, so in the face of economic stress the domestic animal population is at risk. And, when financial stress drives families to cut costs associated with caring for theirpets, the economic viability of veterinary medicine for pet animals as aprestigious profession is also at risk.”
Pets are at great risk due to increasing temperatures
In cities and other built-up areas with extensive roads or paved surfaces and few trees, temperatures are predicted to warm more than 4 o C by the end of the century unless greenhouse gas emissions are reduced strongly and quickly⁴.
Taking dogs for a walk on overheated pavements risks burning the pads of their feet. Heatstroke, leading to organ failure and death, may occur when there is no shade provided, when animals are left alone in houses or vehicles or during excessive exercise, said Dr Frimberger.
“Pets with thick heavy coats may be at greater risk of heatstroke. Brachycephalic pets (flat faces and short noses) are also at greater risk, as they have difficulty breathing whatever the temperature,” she said.
Bushfires can lead to persistent smoke and related air pollution, which can cause serious health problems for animals, just as it can in people. Diseases like heartworm and tick-borne diseases may also spread further south due to increasing average temperatures and more prolonged heat waves, especially those carried by vectors such as mosquitos, midges, and ticks.
“So, to me it’s a no-brainer that veterinarians have a duty to act on climate change,” said Dr Frimberger.
And that’s what members of Veterinarians for Climate Action are doing, committed to bringing a halt to climate change to protect the health and welfare of all animals, livestock, unique Australian wildlife, and much-loved pets.
“We know that many vets and vet nurses are concerned about climate change, and want to do something to help, but feel they don’t have the capacity or knowledge to take meaningful steps. Vets for Climate Actions is here to support them, give them a community and make it easy for them to take action on their concerns,” she said.
Vets for Climate Action initiatives
Powered by volunteers, Vets for Climate Action runs a number of initiatives, such as educational programs in partnership with the AustralianVeterinary Association (AVA) as well as universities to bring more climate-related information to students and vets.
Vf CA’s working groups focus on areas such as rural and regional issues; working with zoos, aquariums, and other animal organisations; not to mention also running a series of educational webinars (many still available via their YouTube channel).
One of Vf CA’s flagship projects is the Climate Smart Program (www.vfca.org.au/climatesmart), which helps the animal care industry reduce its own environmental impact, make their day-to-day operations sustainable and carbon neutral.
Climate Smart Program empowers vet nurses, vets, and business owners to transform their clinics into environmental leaders, said Dr Frimberger. One of the leaders in the Climate Smart project is VfCA member veterinarian Dr Jeremy Watson whose clinic Brimbank Vet Clinic became the first certified carbon neutral vet clinic in Australia, now officially on the Australian Government Climate Active Register, the most rigorous carbon neutral certification standard in the world.
Dr Jeremy Watson
A vet for 35 years, Dr Watson has for most of his profession been frustrated with the “lack of coherent energy and climate policy in Australia,” he said.
“Not only is this costing us economically, but it is also contributing to further irreversible climate change with the obvious effects on human and animal health. We all need to do more and encourage others to help.”
In 2011, Dr Watson rebuilt his practice with a focus on sustainable design, involving the strategic use of natural light and ventilation and energy efficiency, which made for a much nicer place to work and visit, and saved the clinic money.
To become carbon neutral and join the Climate Active Registry, which is independently audited and subject to international standards, DrWatson engaged a specialist consultant to help gather the data (energy use, consumables, employee transport etc) from his veterinary business and calculate their carbon footprint. This took several months.
To reduce their carbon footprint to zero, Dr Watson purchased accredited carbon offsets in a biodiversity protection project in Borneo. The data from Brimbank Vet Clinic was then independently audited and the clinic achieved its registration in February 2022.
The Brimbank Vet Clinic has met the most rigorous carbon neutral certification standard in the world
“By undertaking an audit of our carbon footprint, we discovered a number of areas that could be very easily changed to reduce our carbon footprint and also save money,” said Dr Watson.
For instance, increasing their rooftop solar system and changing all gas appliances to electric has saved them money, as well as reduced their carbon footprint.
“Our team is energised by our sustainability focus, and we have had excellent feedback from our clients. New staff are attracted by our carbon neutral status. We encourage our clients and other vet practices to follow our lead,” he said.
“Vets as scientists and with widespread connection to the Australian public have an opportunity to communicate the science and the impacts on animal health and encourage those involved with animals to do more.”
For more information about that Brimbank Vet Clinic has achieved, head to www.climateactive.org.au.
What can you do
Vf CA welcomes everyone who loves animals – not just veterinary professionals – to join and help make a difference.
“We have a wide variety of volunteer teams working on different areas of climate action, and many opportunities to put their skills and passions to use with us: from developing social media posts, helping to plan events such as webinars, writing articles and fact sheets, reaching out to Universities, or liaising with other animal organisations such as zoos – and much more,” said Dr Frimberger.
Veterinarians for Climate Action invites people to sign their AnimalWelfare Petition www.vfca.org.au/petition_animalwelfare and the FederalElection Petition www.vfca.org.au/federal_election_petition to bring strong climate change policies to the 2022 federal election.
“Vets for Climate Action is not a political organisation,” said DrFrimberger. “We don’t align for or against any political party or any individual politician or candidate. What we are about is the issue and about policies that may worsen or mitigate climate change. We are 100per cent open to working with any policy maker who wants to take strong action to mitigate climate change.”
The Brimbank Vet Clinic is now on the Australian Government Climate Active Register
Without political commitment and action, the latest IPCC report confirms there is worse to come and faster than scientists had thought, she added, urging all governments in Australia to take vigorous action this decade to bring climate change under control.
“Australia must aim to achieve net zero emissions by 2035, contributing to the global effort to manage this crisis. There must be a rapid shift away from fossil fuels to a fully renewable-powered economy,” she said.
Thinking about the future, Dr Frimberger looks proudly at her daughter who is part of the climate movement. But there’s sadness, too.
“Climate change is a lot to process emotionally. I think it’s asking a lot for young people to carry the burden of climate change. They will face the worst impact of climate change. My generation should be carrying thelion’s share of the work of climate education and mitigation. I’m trying to do my personal mission,” she said.
To volunteer or donate, head over to vfca.org.au and follow the links. For corporate sponsorship enquiries, please email Veterinarians for Climate Action CEO Alix Foster Vander Elst at alix@vfca.org.au.
