Global warming is warming the oceans. As well as melting icecaps and glaciers going into the oceans, water expands as it warms. So, the seas are rising: around 200mm last century, and accelerating.

OzCoasts mapping indicates lots of the grounds used for cricket and other sports around Australia are threatened by sea level rise from climate change. This includes Manly, in Tony Abbott’s own electorate.

One of the scenarios modelled by OzCoasts for this century, 1.1 metres of sea level rise, shows grounds in Manly and the Northern Beaches suffering inundation (factoring in high tides, but without even accounting for storm surges) including:

• Kierle Park, Manly (2 grounds, plus tennis courts)
• The Manly Golf Club

• Nolan Reserve, North Manly  (6 grounds)
• Passmore Reserve, North Manly (2 grounds)
• Some of the course for the Warringah Golf Club

Ignore Margaret Thatcher’s legacy of taking climate change seriously; put action against climate change into reverse;  put a climate denier in charge of reviewing the Renewable Energy Target; abolish the Climate Change Authority; let a few polluting companies  put CO2 into the atmosphere for free – what have we got to lose, right Tony ?

The kids who might want to play sport at Kierle, or Nolan, or Passmore in future have plenty to lose.

Further up the Northern Beaches, local member Bronwyn Bishop doesn’t even pretend to accept climate science (or maybe any science). It’s all just a theory. What won’t be so theoretical, is the difficulty people in the area have in trying to play land based sports, on grounds covered in water.

• OzCoasts maps for 110cm sea level rise impacts show the pitch at Bayview inundated, together with the golf course.

• The ground at Jacksons Road, Warriewood, shows as inundated.

• Lakeside Park at North Narrabeen is closer to current sea level and shows as inundated

• Cromer Golf Club would experience significant inundation with the impacts from 1.1 metres sea level rise.

•  The Sydney Pacific Athletic Club would experience partial inundation of its track and one of the nearby sports fields would be more substantially inundated with 1.1 metres sea level rise.

Climate change: the time for games is over

 Authorised by David Mason, 47 Charles St Marrickville NSW