Archive for July, 2009

Weekly happenings

Sue Brooks July 26th, 2009

It’s not often that in one week I have the opportunity of meeting both the Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and the Queensland Minister for Climate Change and Sustainability Kate Jones. Without much prior notice the Prime Minister visited Hervey Bay mid week and spoke with genuine sincerity about the impact that the economic downturn has had on all of us. Although many people seemed to think he was here to announce $$$$$’s for our region he didn’t, but he went away with a much clearer picture of the challenges facing our coastal community brought about by our rapid growth. I was personally concerned that the Federal emphasis for recovery was all about growth and building stuff and while I believe we most urgently need to build stuff I also want to see some long term future planning that addresses population impacts and dwindling natural resources.

On Friday I drove to Brisbane to attend the FIDO Fraser Island Conference. A very interesting day with some very informative presentations. The one I enjoyed the most was the presentation by Adam O’Neill who wrote the book called Living With the Dingo. Adam has spent a large part of his life shooting and trapping feral animals on land that is fenced to protect native wildlife. Adam believes that dingoes play a vital role in reducing feral animals and without them many of our native animals would become extinct. As a top predator the dingo has a complex family social structure and the culling of dingoes destroys this structure. If dingoes are left alone Adam believes that they pose no threat to us and it is only when we interfere with them that pack hierarchy disintegrates and problems occur. Adam’s views reflect scientific research recently carried out in NSW and shown on the ABC Catalyst programme recently. I think we should be listening closely to this evidence and reassessing the way dingoes are managed on Fraser Island.

Last night we attended the 30th anniversary of our Hervey Bay airport and today I am off to visit the Transition Town information day at Rainbow Gully via Grevillea St. While the weather is cold and grey the informative displays and friendly people will make the day most enjoyable I am sure.

Meeting Kate Jones, Minister Climate Change and Sustainability

Meeting Kate Jones, Minister Climate Change and Sustainability

Where there is smoke there is fire.

Sue Brooks July 21st, 2009

Massive controlled burns on Fraser Island at this time of the year are the norm it seems (FCC 14-7-09). Clouds of smoke billowing into our beautiful blue skies and hectares and hectares of pristine natural habitat destroyed. While it can be claimed that controlled burn offs are a useful tool if carefully done, to provide safety to areas of human habitation, why on earth are we burning Fraser Island? Naturally fire would only occur in this part of the world via lightning activity. Most of our stormy weather coincides with our wet season so fires, I believe, would not have been prevalent on Fraser Island prior to human settlement.

Fraser Island supports a wide and varied unique ecosystem based on pure sand which has developed over eons. The plants that grow there obtain essential nutrients from the leaf litter that falls and slowly decomposes to enrich the sand, together with the waste products of the fauna that live within the branches and feed on the plants. Rainfall provides the other essential ingredient and has helped create the wonderful and varied natural habitat we find on the island today. Burning off this leaf litter surely leaves the plants and the sands vulnerable. Gordon Barsby in a letter to the Chronicle last week is right when he claims that our land management practices need examining. Are we, with the very best of intentions, actually doing more harm than good?

Weekend news

Sue Brooks July 19th, 2009

I noticed that the Hervey Bay entrance sign due to be installed on the Hervey Bay Maryborough Rd was shown in the weekend edition of  The Independent. While I like the general look of the sign I worry that the detail will get lost in the background once installed. I must be old fashioned as I prefer a simple stone wall and the words ‘welcome’ and ‘farewell’ on city entrance/exit signs. The sign has been workshopped through Council after being developed by Cr Nioa and the Marketing and Tourism Portfolio team. It will be a relief to finally have a sign for Hervey Bay so fingers crossed that ‘it works’.

On Saturday evening Graham and I visited the Hervey Bay Boat Club to hear Wendy Matthews. I thought that the performance was at The Brolga but Graham had booked and I failed to ask where it was! We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to The Boatclub to hear Wendy. She has a unique and beautiful voice and the evening was enjoyed by all. Some more than others I noted. It seems strange to me that people spend good money to watch and listen to performers and then proceed to chatter the whole way through the performance. I find the distraction annoying but have come to realise that if I let it annoy me the night is ruined so I choose to ‘put up with it’. Maybe I’m just getting too old and crabby!

I was also contemplating the move to restrict alcohol advertising at sporting events as reported over the weekend. I reckon this is stupid. The advertising is not the reason some people use alcohol to their own detriment and that of others.  I think the big issue is our ability as a society to deal with the bad behavior that is often the outcome of over indulgence in alcohol and other drugs. While we use monetry fines and the soft threat of a prison term the violence escalates. Isn’t it time to think of a better way. No tolerance is my choice but to implement this we have to have a punishmant regime that is swift, effective and able to be easily implemented.

Lastly on a good note, our remaining Guinea Fowl are settling in well. The fox has not returned though I constantly worry that it will. Council has provided a fox trap that is set in the forest behind our place but so far all we have captured is a Bandicoot. I will be one happy lady if we manage to trap the fox.

This week in Council

Sue Brooks July 17th, 2009

Summary of the Council Meeting as per our media release.

17 July 2009

 Briefs – Fraser Coast Regional Council meeting Wednesday 15 July 2009Free overnight parking for motor homes in Maryborough rejected

 

 A request by Councillor Gerard O’Connell to trial free overnight parking for motor homes and caravans in Maryborough’s McDowell car park was rejected by the Council. Cr O’Connell mooted the idea with the aim of generating business for Maryborough’s CBD. Other Councillors said the move could be detrimental to Maryborough’s caravan parks where owners had millions of dollars invested in infrastructure and paid huge amounts of rates to the Council. They said the Council provided effluent dump ports at Maryborough airport and Maryborough Park and two free overnight parking spots were available within the region at Tiaro. The CEO will investigate how Fraser Coast towns can acquire the status of “RV Friendly Town” – a CMCA initiative.

 Urangan Street access improvements planned

 The Council will remove the traffic barriers in Hervey Bay’s Urangan Street at the western end of Emerald Park to allow traffic through to Elizabeth Street and construct the 75-metres of missing road length.

 Council to investigate crash barrier

 The Council will investigate installing a barrier on Hervey Bay’s Main Street at the end of Christensen Street. The move is in response to a request from residents in the area following a crash last week in which a car travelling down Christensen Street failed to stop at the intersection, crashing into the house on the other side of Main Street.

 Attract green product manufacturers says Cr Brooks

 Cr Sue Brooks suggested the Council investigate attracting Queensland inventors of green and renewable energy products to the Fraser Coast to set up manufacturing businesses.

 New animal welfare group holding meeting

 Cr Sue Brooks said a new group interested in fostering and rehoming dogs and cats was holding a meeting for people interested in joining, at the Maryborough Sailing Club in Hervey Bay on Saturday 18 July at 1pm.

 Help for Honiara

Mayor Mick Kruger said a Council employee would travel to Honiara to train local people on machinery and to review their work procedures, as part of an ongoing arrangement started by the former Maryborough City Council. He said the staff member’s expenses, other than his wages, would be covered by the Australian Government.

ENDS

Weekend woes.

Sue Brooks July 12th, 2009

About 3 weeks ago we bought 6 beautiful Guinea Fowl. Our acreage estate here where we live at Dundowran Beach, had been the home for a flock of Guinea’s since before I moved here 10 years ago. The flock usually numbered between 6-8 birds as mortality rate was close to 100% for young ones. Recently the local flock had fallen to just two elderly birds so we decided to augment.

We bought an aviary from Maryborough, dismantled it carted it home and re assembled it. We purchased wood and wire from Bunnings.  Graham unleashed his masterful carpentry skills to build a suitable run and voila we had our new chook pen. The Guinea’s have stayed locked up for 3 weeks to ’settle in’ and yesterday was release day. With some trepidation I unlocked their door early yesterday and we sat and watched as the flock got to know the yard and the two ‘oldies’.

After a while I decided all was well so came into the house. Next think we heard was the sounds of terrified Guinea’s calling. They yell very loudly when frightened. I glanced out the bathroom window to see a bloody fox chasing the birds right across the lawn. Graham and I both ran outside chasing the fox. The fox dropped the Guinea it had chosen for brekky and went in one direction while the poor Guinea went straight out into the forest. Even though we searched several times during the day we could not find her. So the remaining 5 new plus 2 older birds survived and I was ever so relieved when they went back into the chook house last night to roost. The 2 older birds roost in local trees and didn’t join the new birds last night.

This morning I once again ventured into the forest on my way home from the beach and found a sad pile of feathers. Alas it seems the wiley fox did get his dinner. So how do I trap a fox says I?

This morning I am leaving the birds locked in till later in the morning and after my tramping around out the back, I hope the fox is long gone but I live in fear of a return visit. I didn’t think for a second that a fox would be active in the daylight and so brazen. The other sad thing is that we selected 2 paler coloured ‘light grey’ Guinea’s and 4 ordinary speckled ones and it is one of the pale ones that ended up being fox food. So life in down town Dundowran Beach is stressful! I am still very sad to have lost a poor innocent Guinea and very worried now about the remaining Guinea’s safety.

On a happier note on Saturday I visited the Tiaro Landcare Field Day which was excellent. Well worth the trip and I thoroughly enjoyed the stalls, animals, food, beautiful fresh air and wonderful people.

On returning to the Bay I then attended a meeting to gather support to start up a responsible ‘pet adoption’ group. I believe the group is well positioned to make a major impact on our abondened and stray dogs (and maybe cats) problem. The group is committed to responsible money management and will use fostering as the means of caring for animals that need a new home. Another meeting to formalise the name, ready for Incorporation, is scheduled for lunch time next Saturday. If you are keen to help stay tuned. I will post details later in the week.

Council is in trouble again it seems for making life difficult for a builder. Council does have rules and these are designed to protect the community not make life difficult. While bureacratic red tape can be time consuming, expensive and very frustrating, there are usually very good reasons for the rules that we have in relation to building houses. For example if we allow houses to be built on land that can flood then who will get the blame if the house eventually is floooded? I am sure it won’t be the builder it will be Council! If you do run into difficulties with rules that seem unreasonable or unfair contact Councillors so we can be aware of your problems.

Lastly I am thinking about all the negative press Council is receiving about our perceived lack of assistance or leadership in relation to economic development. While I do think that our role is primarily as a facilitator for business development I was thinking yesterday that maybe there is some potential for our region to start targetting ‘green’ industries. Maybe we can find some room in an Industrial area and launch a ‘green zone’ and attract start up sustainable focussed industries here? There was an article in the weekend press about new inventors designing residential wind power generators etc. Now wouldn’t it be good to attract these inventive people to start up there businesses here? I will talk to my fellow Councillors and see what we can do. Transition Towns might be able to help as could our local Chambers of Commerce.

Cheers for now, Sue

Our Guinea Fowl.

Our Guinea Fowl.

Development. Strewth it’s a hot topic.

Sue Brooks July 11th, 2009

An interesting debate is happening on the Strewth blog so thought I’d copy it here. I don’t usually respond via another blog preferring to use my own to communicate to you but when I am personally targetted…. well I feel it right to respond.

Anyhow for what it is worth I copy the latest interaction here. Feel free to read the entire discussion via the Strewth website.

As posted on Bring back Strewth http://bringbackstrewth.wordpress.com/

Sue, Whist you continue to hold back development you are ensuring that our cities greatest export will always be our children. We cannot all afford to buy them jobs.

People come to Hervey Bay so they can live near the beach, not is some convenient paddock half way to Maryborough.

Why not give us ratepayers and tourists what we want
- or get out of the way so someone else can.

Reply

  • On July 11, 2009  Cr Sue Brooks Said: Your comment is awaiting moderation.So am I correct in understanding that by ‘holding back development’ you are only referring to multi unit development along the Esplanade or subdivisions near to the coast line? I am in favour of all sorts of development especially non construction based development as I believe we need to diversify, but many, many people tell me that they don’t want the Fraser Coast coastline filled up with concrete towers. They also want to protect public access to the beach and protect our natural beautiful environment.
    I believe the current Bay Planning Scheme goes a long way into protecting some Esplanade areas from ‘over development’ while permitting higher and taller buildings within our nodes. But these buildings should still comply with the Planning Scheme and if they do I support them. Please do provide examples of when I ‘hold back development’? I part own a retail business for goodness sake and we depend on toursits and residents for the survival of our business! I want to help build a region that is self sufficient and is still a wonderful, beautiful place to work and play!

Natural Sequence Farming

Sue Brooks July 5th, 2009

Tonight on the ABC we can watch an inspirational man.  Peter Andrews, author of ‘Back From the Brink’ and now ‘Beyond the Brink’, will again be featured on the ABC TV’s Australian Story.

I believe this man holds the key to managing our farming lands in a sustainable manner. He also theorises that clearing of vegetation and the role that water vapour plays in our atmosphere is possibly a more important factor in climate change than is CO2. I highly recommend that you visit his web site and watch him tonight and next week on the ABC.

I am keen to start a local chapter of NSF here on the Fraser Coast so please let me know if you are interested in helping.

Hello Cr Sue,

We at Natural Sequence Farming are pleased to be able to send you this Newsletter advice.

As we are sending it to many thousands of interested recipients, to conserve the Internet and your own bandwidth allocation, we have decided to position the newsletter on our website where you can either view it there or download to your own computer.

There are Word Acrobat PDF and plain text versions at..

http://www.nsfarming.com/newsletters/

We thank you for your continuing support.

Peter Andrews and Natural Sequence Farming Team

http://www.nsfarming.com

http://www.naturalsequencefarming.com

http://www.naturalsequenceassociation.org.au/