A quick update from Adelaide about the algal bloom
Opinion article from Australia Institute reproduced here in the Public Inteerst
Posted Tuesday,02 September,2025
“I wanted to update you on the unprecedented algal bloom emergency that’s taking place down here. This natural disaster, triggered in part by a marine heatwave, has spread across more than 500km of coastline, causing mass deaths of sea life, major disruptions to fisheries and aquaculture, and sparking public health alerts.”
It’s been a really tough time here in SA and our team has been pushing for real policy change to ensure communities are not left on their own in responding to disasters like this in the future.
The algal bloom has struck at a time when severe drought was already ravaging agricultural districts for over a year. The fact that our coastal communities are facing yet another climate-fuelled disaster is devastating.
And this comes just weeks after revelations that the federal and WA governments will give Chevron $500 million in public money to clean up a contamination disaster caused by its oil and gas project on Barrow Island, off the coast of WA.
The effects of climate change are everywhere. Our marine environment is in severe distress, fishing and tourism businesses are under extreme financial pressure, and it is clearer than ever that piecemeal responses won’t be enough.
That’s why the Australia Institute has been working flat out for years, and especially over recent weeks, to push for a National Climate Disaster Fund (you can sign the petition here). We want the coal and gas companies who are making massive profits from the climate crisis that they’re causing to pay for this fund. It’s a simple idea: polluters should help cover the costs when their emissions are driving natural disasters to new extremes.
Last week we plastered our call for change across South Australia’s main newspaper, with a full-page ad backed by thousands of supporters like you:
We also published an opinion piece in South Australian media outlet InDaily (you can read it here), talking about why Australia’s current approach isn’t working, and how a ‘polluter pays’ fund could change things for the better.
The Prime Minister finally visited South Australia to see the impact of the algal bloom last week, but the support he’s offered so far has fallen well short of what is needed.
Australia Institute research shows that if the Government doesn’t act, multinational fossil fuel corporations will keep pocketing massive profits, leaving Australian families and small businesses to shoulder the devastating costs of climate disaster time and again.
Thank you so much for backing this work over so many years. It takes a long time to make meaningful change and we will keep you updated as this important issue progresses.
Yours in hope,
Noah Schultz-Byard
The Australia Institute, South Australia
