December 2023 and January 2024 have given us a stark reminder of the extremes of weather across Queensland. Whilst many people have been impacted by Tropical Cyclone Jasper or Kirrily, there are still many areas that have missed out on rain. Our thoughts are with everyone who has been impacted by adverse conditions.
Tropical Cyclone Jasper and subsequent flooding in Cairns and Daintree region have had a devastating effect on many remote and rural communities as well as the urban parts of Cairns. Communities have lost power, connectivity, their homes and sadly there has been a loss of life.
Tropical Cyclone Kirrily is now bringing flooding across much of western Queensland, after it thankfully brought less rainfall and flood impact to Townsville and surrounds than anticipated. Destructive winds, loss of electricity supplies and logistics disruptions were still present, however.
I wish to acknowledge that many TNQ Drought Hub staff, board members, partners and Node staff are based in the FNQ and NQ regions which have been impacted by flooding. They have been contributing tirelessly to recovery efforts through both their work roles and through volunteer or disaster management groups and providing support to the agriculture industry. Thank you all for your efforts.
Many primary producers have experienced significant losses across both grazing and horticulture industries. Roads and infrastructure have been damaged, which will heavily impact recovery efforts as well as supply chains.
The Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries have a Disaster Impact Survey for the purpose of understanding the extent of recent disaster in your area. This information is used to help determine the full extent of the impact to guide recovery packages and to inform future planning.
Extreme weather highlights the importance of having conversations about preparedness and building resilience to future climate events, especially such major swings between floods and drought. In such rapid succession, the erosion caused by floods can be amplified due to large areas of bare ground across catchments. Equally, drought locking in straight after a flood can severely hamper recovery of agricultural production, the ecosystem, and biodiversity. The 2019 Monsoon trough across north-west Queensland was one example of both situations.
Eligible primary producers who have suffered direct damage from these cyclones and flooding can apply for grants up to $75,000 through QRIDA. You can find more support through the Australian Government’s Disaster Assist.
While the recovery efforts are underway across the state we are also looking forward to another big year supporting our communities. You can check out the following resources, activities and upcoming events.
Until next time, keep safe and well,
David Phelps
Director
Upcoming Events
Are you ESG ready? | What is ESG?
ESG is a framework that helps businesses analyse its practices on sustainability and ethical issues. It provides a way to measure business risks and opportunities.Watch the videos below to find out more.
We also want to know what you know about ESG. Have you heard of the term before? Do you already incorporate the framework into your business practices?
Please complete this 2 minute survey to help us understand what you know, so we can continue developing face-to-face and online educational materials with the aim of building sustainability in your agricultural business.
Assessing Mitchell grass with the Drones and Artificial Intelligence
High resolution photos captured from drones can provide a wealth of information about the health and condition of a paddock, such as the amount and distribution of pasture and weeds, as well as the location of roads, cattle pads, fences and watering points.
Southern Gulf NRM, James Cook University and MaxusAI, supported by the TNQ Drought Hub, have been trialing the potential of this new technology on the identification and classification of Mitchell grass tussocks in the Southern Gulf rangelands areas.
TNQ Drought Hub Nodes
