CANBERRA - Australia must urgently establish a national institute to coordinate the national response to climate change, the country's top scientists have said.

The National Committee for Earth System Science (NCESS), part of the Australian Academy of Science, an NGO, on Monday recommended that the federal government establish an Australian Institute for Earth System Science.

Under the model proposed by the NCESS, the institute would be responsible for the long-term national oversight, strategy and implementation of Australia's climate science research.

The NCESS warned that Australia will struggle to achieve net-zero emissions, mitigate the risks from natural disasters and ensure water security and ongoing agricultural success unless the nation's approach to climate science research is updated.

"A unifying agency is needed to address the critical gaps in our understanding of Australia's climate and the impacts of change, and to support and engage the excellent individual researchers we have," Andy Pitman, chair of the NCESS and Director of the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes, said in a statement.

Establishing the new institute was the first of 14 recommendations in a 10-year plan for Australian Earth system science released by the committee on Monday.

Pitman said that Australia must have ambition, organization and leadership to answer questions such as how best to support the net-zero transition, where in the country is most at risk from abrupt changes in weather and climate and how the exposure of cities to climate extremes can be managed.

"By implementing the recommendations in this plan, Australia can build the foundations for far more robust and actionable climate intelligence," he said.

The 10-year plan called for Australia to work with regional neighbors in the Pacific and beyond to confront weaknesses in existing climate projections and boost the understanding and