A PLEA TO THE UK GOVERNMENT , HELP AUSTRALIA TO FIGHT THE CATASTROPHIC BUSH FIRES, RESCUE WILDLIFE AND HELP TO RESTORE ECOSYSTEMS

This petition is a plea to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the UK Government to help Australia fight the disastrous bush fires currently affecting the country, and to assist in taking measures to conserve wildlife and help to combat global warming.

The UK population have watched in horror as the catastrophic fires continue to blaze in Australia. UK Celebrities and our generous population have donated to Australian volunteer firefighters, humanitarian aid organisations, and other donations have been made to animal sanctuaries, zoological organisations, non-governmental organisations and charities, who are all doing what they can to rescue and care for injured wildlife.

However, since the news of the fires was first reported at the turn of the new year 2020, there appear to have been no announcements of the UK Government offering assistance to our fellow Commonwealth country.

According to a report by USA Today dated 7.1.20: "The bush fires, which have been burning since September, have killed at least 26 people, destroyed 2,000 homes, and killed an estimated 500 million animals. In all, about 15 million acres have burned across the country.'' The World Wildlife Fund in Australia estimates half a billion animals have been killed in New South Wales alone. An estimated 8,400 koalas have been killed, accounting for 30% of the population on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales , causing concern for the species' survival as the koala is endemic to Australia.

The calculations estimated in animal loss do not take into account other species such as invertebrates and bats. It is now thought the numbers are increasing to 1.25 billion animals killed so far. As the bush fires continue to burn across parts of Australia, experts warn of immense loss of biodiversity and species extinctions.

Without a viable ecosystem, surviving animals will have a shortage of food, shelter and protection from predators. As surviving wildlife compete for food and water in the scorching heat and drought, some are already being perceived as a threat to humans, as they enter towns in search of water. Culls such as the approval of the slaughter of up to 10,000 feral camels have been reported by BBC News (8.1.20).

All wildlife and their habitats have an intrinsic value . It is our ethical responsibility as humans to protect and conserve not only our native wildlife, but also the indigenous flora and fauna populations worldwide for future generations. It is a global and joint custodian responsibility. Without protection and conservation of our planet's ecosystems, we risk an ecological collapse resulting in mass extinctions.

A report by USA Today (6.1.20) quoted two climate scientists. "Australia has warmed by about 1ºC (1.8ºF) since records began in 1910," tweeted Columbia University climate scientist Kate Marvel. "This makes heatwaves and fires more likely. It's not the sun. It's not volcanoes. It's not 'natural cycles'." The Australian Bureau of Meteorology states: "Climate change is increasing bush fire risk in Australia by lengthening the fire season, decreasing precipitation and increasing temperature."

The evidence for climate change with global temperature rise is now indisputable. With this in mind, we ask that immediate practical action is taken to rescue wildlife, restore ecosystems and help to combat climate change.

This petition calls on Boris Johnson and the UK Government to take action in four ways:

1. The UK Government must provide immediate assistance to Australia to fight the bush fires and deploy forces to assist in firefighting.

2. The UK Government must assist in the rescue and movement of wildlife to safe
locations.

3. The UK Government must develop a long term strategy to work with the Australian Government to restore destroyed ecosystems.

4. The UK Government must take serious measures to address the      current and future threats to our planet from global warming          due to climate change.

It is too late for the millions of animals and the people who have sadly died because of the Australian bush fires. Yet we must take action immediately to help others who have been affected, to limit the continuing impact of the disaster on wildlife and habitats, restore ecosystems and prevent this from happening again.

Please sign this petition to help to effect change.