Thread: The Channel Country, from drought to a one in forty year flood.

Off stream dam is fine if you need a cute little water storage for a property
For the hair braided scheme you’d need thousands of gigs litres of storage to make it worthwhile
Whatever worthwhile is defined as

S

Originally Posted by roverrescue

This topic interests me
Before we dig a ditch or slap a few pipes together
We need a water source

Monsoon rain is by its definition fickle

First job is to build a dam


Oh that’s right we aren’t allowed to build dams anymore ...

The trouble is not economics or will or electoral cycle it is the very inverse of why in places like the three rivers dam happens but will never happen here... the environmental palaver required to flood a valley is insummountable.

Hell if building a dam was easy a small dam (by the scale required for the above hairbrained scheme) would have been built on the Laura Riverbin the same location that was dammed I. The 70s and the Laura valley would have ten times the agriculture currently.

Even in the tropics just having water isn’t enough - you need water security before investing $ in crops....

Won’t ever happen

The federal government has given approval for the " Hells Gate " dam on the Burdekin river. Stage one of the project. Sir Leo and Sir Frank recommend that the dam wall be raised, to at least 122 metres to allow gravity fed water to flow to the fertile black soil country west of Charters Towers to Richmond Downs. Stage 2 of the project envisages surplus water from the Thompson River being fed to the Warrego River, which is part of the Murray Darling system. Yes, so called " activists " will do their best to derail the project, the same old naysayers will roll their eyes and say it can't be done. Australia needs Men & Women of vision, not short sighted tree huggers, or politicians lacking courage.

Bob the Feds can approve anything
Project will get hung up in courts of all flavours making lawyers rich,
A name for environmental groups and achieving nothing.

I see what you are saying but the environmental approval process is now so mature as to limit this or any likewise project...

Not wanting to get too far off track

Is “your” (generic not specific to any one member) purpose to send water west to increase and standardise flows in rivers that evolved to be cyclical because it seems a good idea?
Or is not to increase food production west of the divide?

Secure water is one “problem” getting a sustainable workforce to want to live in the boonies then becomes your problem. On a nationwide scale the current agriculture in the Laura Valley/ Lakeland is pretty small BUT it is totally Reliant on the South Pacific Workers Scheme and young backpackers needing a work stint to keep a visa....

How do we encourage workers to take on manual labour - in the sun - living in the middle of nowhere?

S

Originally Posted by roverrescue

Secure water is one “problem” getting a sustainable workforce to want to live in the boonies then becomes your problem. On a nationwide scale the current agriculture in the Laura Valley/ Lakeland is pretty small BUT it is totally Reliant on the South Pacific Workers Scheme and young backpackers needing a work stint to keep a visa....

How do we encourage workers to take on manual labour - in the sun - living in the middle of nowhere?

S

You pay them a decent award wage with award conditions like annual, sick, long service leave, overtime, penalty rates, superannuation contributions. Much harvest work is piece work and only provides a pittance. Subsistence farmers and fishers from the Pacific islands may well regard the few dollars they send home as a good thing compared with their prospects at home. Likewise backpackers only want a few dollars to spend on booze. dope, and good times after the harvest.

Local unemployed are reluctant to do hot, heavy, dirty work on piece rates for local farmers they know well and are regarded by many locals as slave driving skinflints. I would opine that the population in Laura Valley/Lakeland is insufficient to provide a workforce anyhow and workers have to be shipped in and accommodated. And there is another bone of contention. Accommodations provided by farmers or labour hire firms are often very sub-standard, almost third world.

About 1950 A proposal to build two dams in NQ Tinaroo or Nullinga .Tinaroo was decided on as it would be beneficial to a greater area .Nullinga has been on and off ever since. Unfortunately the Tinaroo wall should have been a little higher and there is a study at the moment to increase capacity by 10 percent.Not gunna happen I bet Some minority group will derail it


AM

Trying to manage a country after only around 240 years knowledge of climate, for what is basically European genre primary produce? Good luck!

Originally Posted by roverrescue

How do we encourage workers to take on manual labour - in the sun - living in the middle of nowhere?

S

Employ North Queenslanders. Simple. On reflection the one thing that concerns me is the fact that the two Knights of the realm are distinguished members of a particular side of politics doing it a bit tough at the moment, and probably will promise anything to get votes. As they all do. I'm really hoping it is a fair dinkum proposal, and not just a cynical political exercise. No word from the other side of politics on the proposal, that I have seen.
As for the Bradfield proposal, Bradfield was born in a workers cottage at Deagon, not far from where we live, and become recognised as an outstanding engineer, working on the Sydney Harbour bridge, and the Story bridge, Brisbane, amongst other projects. I was raised in Central Qld, and know how important this project is. I believe it is doable, with the right political will, and backing from the right people. I bet if Gina could make money out of it, it would be a goer.

If it’s a one in 40 year flood, surely the previous 40 years cannot be termed a drought? It would have been expected.

Land Rovers drive in all conditions