Bushfire emergency reveals Scott Morrison's leadership failure not just climate policy vacuum

In February this year, though it feels a lifetime of disasters ago now, Townsville and nearby areas of central Queensland were hit by catastrophic floods.

It took until Thursday for Scott Morrison to class
 the catastrophic fires as a "national disaster".

Five deaths were linked to the floods which damaged around 3,300 homes.

In the bush, which was in the grips of drought, the damage was devastating, including to the national cattle herd. Half a million cattle were estimated to have died in the floodwaters and their aftermath.

Governments were quick to act, and to be seen to be acting.

At an event on March 1 to discuss the aftermath of the floods in a shop that had been inundated, Scott Morrison recounted his previous visit to Townsville and talked of the various measures the government was taking to help with reconstruction.

"That's what we love doing as a government is to be there when parts of the country absolutely need us", he said. "But always looking to see how we can make all parts of the country stronger."

Read the ABC News story by Laura Tingle - “Bushfire emergency reveals Scott Morrison's leadership failure not just climate policy vacuum.”

Adani’s Carmichael mine is unlikely to go ahead, and most people know it

There’s general agreement that Adani’s proposed Carmichael mine in the Galilee Basin will be a big issue in the current election campaign. If that were to be true anywhere, it would be in the seat of Herbert, based on Townsville, which hosts Adani’s regional headquarters.

 ‘Almost the only ones taking Adani’s claims at face value
 are members of the environmental movement. Protests
 against Adani are continuing and gaining strength’ 

Yet a recent Newspoll conducted in Herbert estimates the two-party preferred vote unchanged from the knife-edge result of 50-50 in 2016, which saw Labor’s Cathy O’Toole returned with a margin of 37 votes. What is happening here?

The answer is that, whatever happens on 18 May, the Carmichael mine is unlikely to go ahead, and most people know this.

Read the story from The Guardian by John Quiggin - “Adani’s Carmichael mine is unlikely to go ahead, and most people know it.”

Floods, fire and drought: Australia, a country in the grip of extreme weather bingo

The people of Townsville know about heavy rain, but this was new. Over the past fortnight, the northern Queensland city’s 180,000 residents have been hit by a monsoon strengthened by a low-pressure front that dragged moist air south from the equator to Australia’s top end.

Residents wade through floodwaters in the suburb
of Hermit Park in Townsville this week.

It dumped an unprecedented 1.4 metres of rain in less than two weeks – roughly double what falls on London in a year.

The ensuing chaos has wrecked homes and caused hundreds of millions of dollars of damage to property. Two men have drowned and videos posted to social media have shown crocodiles climbing trees and taking to elevated highways in search of shelter.

But amid the deluge, not everyone heeded the evacuation advice.

Read the story from The Guardian by Adam Morton and Ben Smee - “Floods, fire and drought: Australia, a country in the grip of extreme weather bingo.”

How Queensland is being soaked by an 'unprecedented monsoonal burst

The north Queensland coast is in the midst of an extreme rainfall event that has forced the Ross River Dam near Townsville to open its gates, adding to the flooding already underway.

Floods are threatening hundreds of homes in the Townsville area.

Here's how it has happened – and why.

It's not over yet but, as of 9am local time on Monday, Townsville Airport had recorded more than one metre of rain in the past week.

All up, that tally reached 1052 millimetres, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

The total beat the previous weekly high from January 1998 of 886 millimetres although that event included the "night of Noah' when a record daily tally of 548.8 millimetres fell.

Read the story from The Sydney Morning Herald by Peter Hannam and Nigel Gladstone - “How Queensland is being soaked by an 'unprecedented monsoonal burst’.”

Dozens evacuated in Queensland floods as Townsville declared a disaster zone.

The Queensland coastal city of Townsville is in emergency shutdown after storms and a monsoon trough dumped extraordinary amounts of rain in the region, causing major rivers to reach peak flood levels.

Floodwaters at a home in Bluewater pushed a shipping container on its side. 

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk gave police evacuation powers and declared the area a disaster zone, announcing the closure of all schools and child care centres on Friday.

“We’ve had cyclones, bushfires, and now these one-in-100-year extreme flood events,’’ a government spokesman said.

“It went from a normal north Queensland wet season into something extraordinary.”

Record rainfall in recent days is set to continue as police warn isolated areas around Townsville “could get falls of up to 400 millimetres a day”.

Read The New Daily story  -  “Dozens evacuated in Queensland floods as Townsville declared a disaster zone.”

Collinsville showcases Queensland solar transition

COLLINSVILLE, three hours drive south of Townsville in northern Queensland, is a town in transition.

With a population of just 1500 people, coal-rich Collinsville was built on mining. The township is proud of its heritage, celebrating scenes from the past with murals and a bronze pit pony welcoming those passing through.

Coal is still being mined around the small country town, but in a sign of the times, a new industry is emerging – solar.

Read the ARENAwire story - “Collinsville showcases Queensland solar transition.”

Clean up begins in Giru as record flood recedes, homes spared from inundation

The clean-up is under way as record flooding from the Haughton River clears from roads and properties in Giru, south-east of Townsville.

Giru resident Rodney Jackson cleaning up as
floodwaters recede in the north Queensland town.

Roads to the town were cut as the Haughton reached a record peak of 3.1 metres late on Thursday.

Local State Emergency Service (SES) controllers said no homes were flooded, although floodwaters did reach up to a metre in some parts of the town, with many backyards and car ports flooded.

The local SES and fire station had half a metre of floodwater through their offices.

Read the ABC News story - “Clean up begins in Giru as record flood recedes, homes spared from inundation.”

Live near the beach? Coral reef expert Charlie Veron has some advice for you

Charlie Veron, the world's foremost expert on coral reefs, lives on a shady bend of Sachs Creek, half an hour's drive out of Townsville, in a concrete block house with three dogs, eight geese, two pet rats, seven cockatoos, a baby red fruit bat, scores of tropical fish, a green tree frog (in the bathroom), bush turkeys, the occasional echidna and what appears to be several million wallabies just about everywhere you look. Other animals include one son, two daughters and an adult female named Mary Stafford-Smith.

Charlie Veron, the “Godfather of Coral”, says Australia’s
 politicians are “idiots” for doing nothing about climate change. 

"The house is a bit of a menagerie," says Stafford-Smith, who also happens to be Veron's wife. "There are dingoes in the valley, too. Once we found a pup under a bush in the garden and looked after it.”

Read Tim Elliott’s story in today’s Melbourne Age - “Live near the beach? Coral reef expert Charlie Veron has some advice for you.”

Stan Grant takes The Link to Townsville too talk coal and coral

“The Link” presenter on the ABC, Stan Grant, was in Townsville this week talking to locals about the Adani Galilee Basin coal mine and the Great Barrier Reef.

Watch the June 30 episode here - The Link.

Coal mining town Collinsville vies to become Australia's solar capital

 

Edify Energy's $122 million phase one plant
 will cover 500 acres of its 10,000 acre site.

While many of Australia's mining regions have been hit hard by the resources sector downturn, solar is providing rays of hope for the small town of Collinsville in north Queensland.

Three hours south of Townsville, Collinsville has a proud, long history of coal mining, boasting it had the last working pit ponies in Australia — up until 1990.

But this coal-fired town is poised for a rebrand.

Solar companies are vying to take advantage of the region's 300 days a year of perfect sunshine.

In August, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency announced it would provide $9.5 million to both Edify Energy's 70MW Whitsunday Solar Farm and RATCH Australia Corporation's 43MW Collinsville Solar Project.

Edify Energy director John Cole said, given the potential size and scale of projects in the region, Collinsville could be the solar capital of Australia.

Read the ABC story - “Coal mining town Collinsville vies to become Australia's solar capital.”

Coalition gives $54m from CEFC to large-scale solar and renews pumped hydro push

Treasurer Scott Morrison (left) brought a piece of
coal toquestion time on 9 February, and Greens
 MP Adam Bandt brought a solar panel on 13
February. Energy security has become a key
political battleground since parliament
 returned last week.

The Turnbull government has given a $54m loan from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to a large-scale solar development which it says has the potential for pumped hydro storage.

Malcolm Turnbull and the energy minister, Josh Frydenberg, have announced the government had directed the CEFC and Australian Renewable Energy Agency (Arena) to fund large-scale storage and other flexible capacity projects including pumped hydro.

The solar development will take place at Genex Power’s Kidston renewable energy hub, 270km north-west of Townsville.

Arena has provided $4m to study the next phase, a 250 MW pumped hydro-storage project. If a large-scale pumped hydro project is eventually built, it will be the first time such a form of storage has been co-located with a large-scale solar farm.

Read The Guardian story - “Coalition gives $54m from CEFC to large-scale solar and renews pumped hydro push.”

Adani's Carmichael coal rail line may not be eligible for government funding

Protesters rally in Melbourne on Monday after the
 federal government granted Indian company
Adani conditional approval of a $1bn loan
for a rail line between the Carmichael coalmine
and a port in north Queensland. 

Doubts have emerged over the eligibility of Adani’s rail link for public funding as the company pushes ahead with plans for the controversial Carmichael coal project with a promise of 600 jobs at a new operational headquarters in Townsville.

The Queensland premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, said “you can’t get the smile off my face” when commenting on the news of the potential in a television interview.

The Indian conglomerate’s announcement on Tuesday of new operational headquarters in Townsville comes days after it gained conditional approval of a $1bn federal loan for a coal rail line. It heralds new momentum for a project that has been fiercely resisted by environmental groups and traditional owners.

Read The Guardian story - “Adani's Carmichael coal rail line may not be eligible for government funding.”

Law changes 'loosens restraints' on police clouding the idea of protesting

In 2000, Patrick Coleman, a law and politics student at James Cook University, was protesting by distributing leaflets in Townsville, accusing the police of corruption.

Among other things, the pamphlets invited the police to “kiss my arse you slimy lying bastards”. He also publicly insulted Constable Brendan Power, who had asked for one of the fliers.

Coleman was convicted of using insulting words under the Vagrants, Gaming and Other Offences Act and, ultimately, when his appeal got to the High Court, one of the main issues was whether the act burdened the implied freedom of communication about government or political matters and whether it also served a legitimate end compatible with representative government.

Read The Guardian story - “Changes to laws governing protests loosen restraints on police powers.”

(Protest, in its many forms, may well be the only way to impede the behaviour that causes climate change and each of us needs to be wary about changes to governance that limit how and when we might legitimately protest – Robert McLean.)

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