Jennifer Marohasy

a forum for the discussion of issues concerning the natural environment

Archives for August 2006

Something About Russell

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I would like to think that debates at this weblog were won and lost on the quality of the information provided and the logic of the arguments presented, but so often information is judged on the perceived standing of the commentator based on the prejudices of the reader.

Some months ago I started a ‘people category’ and suggested regular commentators and readers send me some information about themselves.

Russell posted the following information at an earlier thread in response to some misguided comment from others. He has agreed for me to post it as a new thread:

“I have lived in Nigeria for the last three years where I am a freelance consultant on projects in Nigeria, Ghana, and lately Indonesia.

I am currently engaged on projects in urban planning, coastal and land-use management, reconstruction (Aceh), rural development (primary health care, water and sanitation at village level).

Prior to that I spent a year in Germany where I was the technical advisor to Iraq in their defence of claims against them at the UNCC for damages caused to the coastlines of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iran by the largest oil spill in history.

For two years before that I lived in Townsville where I was the head of an environmental sciences group for one of Australia’s largest consulting engineering companies and ran projects in Australia (QLD, WA, NT, SA, TAS) and New Zealand.

Before that I lived and worked for two years in Indonesia running a mangrove reforestation project.

Prior to that I lived for 3 years in Brisbane and ran my own consulting company, working in Queensland, the Northern Territory, Indonesia and Vanuatu.

I was also the unfortunate owner of a restuarant in Brisbane during that time.

Prior to that I lived and worked for 15 years in the Northern Territory for the NT government as a marine and coastal ecologist and spent a lot of time engaged in coastal management and planning. I also completed my PhD parttime and was resident on a bushland block at Humpty Doo.

Prior to that I was at Uni for 4 years where I studied zoology and botany, statistics, chemistry.

Before that I wandered and worked around Australia, mostly the south west of Western Australia and have worked as a truck driver, storeman and packer, share cropper (wheat and sheep), on the mutton chain in an abbatoir, fruit picking, builders and brickies laboring, casual farm laboring, factory hand, ships chandler (Victoria), and numerous others.“

Thanks Russell to telling us something about yourself.

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This post will be filed under the category titled “people”. As a reader and/or commentator at this blog you may like to tell us something about yourself. Contributions encouraged and you may use a pen name …please email to jennifermarohasy@jennifermarohasy.com.

What is Special About This Drought?

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On Monday I posted a graph of rainfall history and suggested that it indicated south east Queensland was not experiencing the worst drought in 100 years – that the current dry spell is not unusual in the scheme of things.

I was surprised how many comments in the thread following the post, and also in the many emails I received, were supportive of the notion that this is a worst drought ever.

Some argued that I didn’t understand definitions of drought and that a drought could simply be a result of too many people squashed into a region without the infrastructure to supply adequate water. Comment was also made that it would be interesting to see the rainfall history for the catchment averaged over 10 years.

Warwick Hughes has sent me the following graph, showing the rainfall history averaged over 10 years:

Bris10yrav blog 2.GIF

Mr Beattie has been reported in the Courier Mail stating that:

“Rainfall in the region has been well below average for the past six years and in fact it is the worst 10-year period in history,” he said. “It has been dry after dry, year after year, which has led to major storage deficits in our dams.”

Looking at the above graph Beattie may be technically correct, we may have had the worst 10-year period in recorded history, and those who want to define drought based on ‘supply’ rather than ‘rainfall’ may also be correct because we have never had so many people living in south east Queensland and probably never as many trees growing in the catchment.

But the above graph, and the graph posted on Monday, does indicate that south east Queensland has experienced comparative periods of low rainfall during the 1920s and 1940s. The current dry period is not unusual in the scheme of things.

My point is that: If we can not reconcile ourselves with our history, how can we hope to prepare for the future? It is important we understand what is special about this drought.

If we could perhaps start to acnowledge that rainfall has not been exceptionally low, we might, for example, be able to more clearly focus on other variables, including population.

There is also the issue of tree cover. A heavily timbered catchment generally produces less runoff. Page 7 of yesterday’s The Land reports Malcolm Turnbull, federal parliamentary secretary for water, explaining that the West Australian Water Corporation is thinning catchment forestry to increase run off by 6,000 megalitres a year. Mr Turnbull said the method could deliver “new water” at about 20c/kilolitre – far cheaper than piping or desalination.

I am not necessarily advocating tree clearing in the Wivenhoe catchment, but rather my issue is that here in Queensland, we tend to invoke ‘exceptional circumstances’ whenever there is a flood or a drought rather than taking a more evidence-based, and dare I suggest, more responsible approach.

Peak Oil & Agriculture: Comments & Links

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Jennifer,

Following are two disturbing reports on “peak oil” you may not have seen.

They could have a big impact on intensive agriculture regarding costs. May be some opportunities for communities to grow and supply a lot more of their own produce, using permaculture or more sustainable/regenerative farming practices.

Certainly glad that I don’t rely on big tractors and high inputs. Also highlights the futility on the current debate over ethanol/biofuels etc. We need a better answer than that.

http://www.aph.gov.au/hansard/senate/commttee/S9515.pdf
http://www.spinninglobe.net/iraq&oil.htm”>http://www.spinninglobe.net/iraq&oil.htm”>http://www.spinninglobe.net/iraq&oil.htm

Cheers, Graham F.

And another reader, also called Graham, sent me this note:
Some important concepts in here, without endorsing all of it:
http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?itemid=21263 .

And John Quiggin had something on peak oil yesterday:
http://johnquiggin.com/index.php/archives/2006/08/23/is-peak-oil-here-already/#more-3146.

Note On Herbicide Resistance: Chris Preston

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Thirty-three different species of weeds are now reported to have developed resistance to herbicides commonly used in Australian farming systems, says Dr Chris Preston, programme leader for the Weeds CRC.

The worst offenders are annual ryegrass, wild radish and wild oats.

And of the thirteen ‘families’ of chemicals used to control weeds, resistance to ten has now been found in various agricultural weeds, Dr Preston says.

“Those ten groups of herbicides, as you’d expect, are the ones that are most commonly used in our cropping systems,” he adds.

In a few areas of Australia the herbicide resistance problem has become so acute that there are no longer any herbicides available to control particular weeds – such as annual ryegrass – in some crops.

You can read more here.

Much Money & More Models Won’t Necessarily Save The Macquarie Marshes

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Malcolm Turnbull, the Federal Parliamentary Secretary for water, recently announced a $13.4 million grant to revive the Macquarie Marshes and other important wetlands.

But it is unclear how the money will be spent. Reference has been made to ‘plans’, ‘models’, ‘competing interests’, ‘drought’, ‘market mechanisms to recover water’, and ‘noxious weeds’.

But more money, more plans, more water won’t necessarily save the marshes.

There has been much discussion at his blog about the relative impact of drought, levies, grazing and cotton since I first visited the marshes in October last year.*

I have come to the conclusion that the marsh environment would benefit most from the following actions which were detailed in a blog post entitled ‘Three Pressing Issues for the Macquarie Marshes’:

1. Bulldoze the levy banks which are channeling water away from the two nature reserves and onto private land,

2. Protect key bird nesting sites from trampling by cattle.

3. Reduce the risk of overgrazing perhaps through some agreement about stocking rates and grazing regimes.

These actions would not be popular locally or easily understood in Sydney, but they would make a difference on the ground and they wouldn’t cost a lot of money.

Chris Hogendyk, an irrigator and chairman of Macquarie River Food and Fibre (MRFF), sent me a note following the $14.3 million announcement. He recommends that more land be purchased and converted to nature reserve:

“Both the Macquarie Marshes and Gwydir Wetlands are iconic wetlands valued internationally and by the local community.

… It is overly simplistic during a drought of record proportions to simply call for more water to solve the problems that face these important wetlands.

… 90% of the Marshes are in private hands which means 90% of any purchased water will be used for little more than grazing.

As a taxpayer I do not think that funding the purchase of water under these conditions will achieve a good environmental outcome.

In fact, more water delivered simply means more cattle and that in turn leads to further degradation of the environment.

MRFF has no problem in principle with the Government purchasing water from willing sellers to be used for the benefit of the environment, but we do object the Government purchasing water from one stakeholder group and delivering it to another stakeholder group free of charge.

MRFF proposes that a much better solution would be to purchase key land area within the marshes to protect this environment from grazing and hence get much better environmental value from the water there today.”

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* Blog posts on Macquarie Marsh issues:

1. Cattle killing the Macquarie Marshes, 21October 2005
https://jennifermarohasy.com.dev.internet-thinking.com.au/blog/archives/000949.html

2. Marsh Graziers Don’t Pay for Water, 25 October 2005
https://jennifermarohasy.com.dev.internet-thinking.com.au/blog/archives/000958.html

3. More Water Won’t Save the Macquarie Marshes, 28 March 2006
https://jennifermarohasy.com.dev.internet-thinking.com.au/blog/archives/001282.html

4. But Reed Beds Need Water!, 12 April 2006
https://jennifermarohasy.com.dev.internet-thinking.com.au/blog/archives/001309.html

5. Three Pressing Issues for the Macquarie Marshes, 13 July 2006
https://jennifermarohasy.com.dev.internet-thinking.com.au/blog/archives/001481.html

6. Banking in the Macquarie Marshes: More Photographs & A Map, 17 July 2006
https://jennifermarohasy.com.dev.internet-thinking.com.au/blog/archives/001486.html

7. Fewer Trees Means More Water for Macquarie Marshes: Ian Mott, 23 July 2006
https://jennifermarohasy.com.dev.internet-thinking.com.au/blog/archives/001497.html