14 September 2012 - Election Announced

The Conversation

Aaaaaaagh 227 days of electioneering! The Prime Minister, Julia Gillards surprise announcement has put the media's knickers in a twist. Now the date is known, we will get 227 days of Tony Abbot's comments on the loss of freedom in Australia, stopping the boats, the dumping of the carbon tax and cancelling of the mining tax. All positive policy initiatives!
227 days of Julia & co's incessant pronouncements of what she(Labor) has achieved (!) will also try my patience.
"The greatest moral challenge of our times" said one Prime Minister. So where has that led??

Not too mention the absolutely boring announcements from politicians of all persuasions to try and persuade us that any of them can actually influence to any large degree the increasing costs affecting most people.

I don't see any government being able to bring the cost of housing in Melbourne down to a reasonable level. I don't see any of them being able to reduce the high Australian dollar trading against other currencies to a level the small business exporters can compete with.
I also don't see cancelling the Carbon Tax will substantially improve the cost of electricity given most of the increases incurred before the carbon tax. The only way for average home owners to reduce that cost is by energy efficiency measures, Solar Power and double glazing.
I don't see that the current measures will reduce sky rocketing insurance as floods and fires continue to ravage Australia.
I don't see the Federal Government being able to hold back the unemployment problem (yes its there, particularly  among young people) as our society moves towards online purchasing and outsourcing jobs to cheaper countries.
Or to reduce our Public Debt to nothing without taxing the big earners - eg mining - or us, the taxpayers!

Floods, Fires - Australia's Adaptation

While Melbourne managed to get a few drops of rain recently, all media focus switched from the high country fires to the floods in Queensland.
The same towns as 2011 were in danger of flooding - Grantham, Lockyer Valley, Gladstone, parts of Brisbane with dams overflowing and controlled releases of water from the Brisbane River Wivenhoe Dam. Bundaberg, meanwhile reached record flood levels.
The flooding is less severe than 2011 (mostly) but the combination of 6 tornadoes from cyclone Harold and resulting huge dump of rain over a few days is causing similar results to last time. Hopefully, without the loss of life and lesser property damage.
Insurance companies must be wondering how they can afford to insure these areas.
The "brittle buildings" as mentioned recently in the Financial Review that cannot withstand 6-9 meter rise in water.
A suggestion to buy out these properties was made on Jon Faine's 774 ABC Local Radio program this morning. Now in the land of the "droughts and flooding rain" ("My Country" by Dorothea McKellar) which government can afford to do that?
Some of the residents of Grantham agreed to a land swap and have rebuilt on higher ground. They are now benefiting from their wisdom.
A Liberal/National Party Government is likely to cut government services, sack public servants and outsource your services to profit making enterprises, and sell off the public enterprises in order to balance the budget. Not that a Labor Government is any better with record borrowings and toadying to big business.
Neither of them actually listening to what science is saying about the risk and costs of climate change. (Remember the Garnaut Report Chpt 15 reported on my blog 28 Jan 2011)
Damned if you do and damned if you don't.

Camera Fun

I took my camera to work today to have a little fun and look what I "found" in the book chute. All work and no fun...etc.  Enjoy.

Sea Level Rise and Insurance

Apart from trying to stay out of the sun this summer, I have read with interest the following article regarding Sea Level Rise published in Climate Code Red and sourced from the Australian Newspaper.
http://www.climatecodered.org/2013/01/the-australian-admits-it-misinterpreted.html by Graham Readfern

CSIRO: http://www.cmar.csiro.au/sealevel/index.html

The CSIRO, Austraia's premier research organisation has huge amounts of data on sea level rise.
The graph on the right shows the rise (in mm not yet metres). An interesting editorial on the subject can be read here.

Another article, that of the cost of Insurance was published in the Weekend Financial Review (p 5) "Insurers lash 'brittle' buildings" where double digit figure rises in insurance costs were discussed in terms of improving the building code to better prepare for fire, floods, and storms. The words " greater emphasis on community adaptation to extreme weather events" were printed, ironically missing the point about why the extreme events are now causing such damage on our suddenly 'brittle' buildings.
Is adaptation is easier than reducing energy use?
Is increasing building insulation, improving energy efficiency and sourcing energy from renewables too hard to implement?
So how does the Insurance Council of Australia think the various governments and regulatory bodies will manage to change the building stock of Australia in a timely fashion to cope with more extreme weather is beyond me. (See recent Queensland Building Code Changes)

Surely this is what the Stern Report warned us about. Adaptation without changing the carbon economy and reining in the effects of Climate Change is going to be more expensive in the long term.
Wikipedia reports " The Stern Review's main conclusion is that the benefits of strong, early action on climate change far outweigh the costs of not acting. The Review points to the potential impacts of climate change on water resources, food production, health, and the environment. According to the Review, without action, the overall costs of climate change will be equivalent to losing at least 5% of global gross domestic product (GDP) each year, now and forever. Including a wider range of risks and impacts could increase this to 20% of GDP or more."

Watch and wait for more rises in important basic services. As a result of lack of action on the 'real' causes of climate change, not the misrepresentation provided by much of the traditional media.

Fires, Heat, Water : Summer in Melbourne

Another 40 plus degrees C day yesterday. Not surprisingly there are now more fires in Victoria, with many still burning uncontrolled in NSW.
A friend snapped a couple of photos from Sale, Victoria. Note the eerie sky colours and hot pink sun!.

As a result of the heatwave, water usage has shot up. Melbourne Water reports the storage drop is double the summer average (Jan 17 report). This is not surprising as we have only recorded 3mm this month. It makes you wonder why the Water Restrictions were lifted in Spring last year.
However, this is one thing that no State Government can get right. If the restrictions weren't lifted then there would have been complaints given the near full water storages. But as the extreme heat has started earlier and rain has dried up, people are needing to use water to keep their gardens alive. So it will be interesting to see if there needs to be changes in the Water Restrictions by the end of the Summer period.

Fortnight of heat

Since my last post, much of Australia has sweltered through a long series of extremely hot weather. In a country noted for high temperatures and searing winds, the Australian Climate Commission has released a report on the Extreme Weather we have been experiencing. Entitled "Off the Charts" the summary indicates the issues facing our country. And I quote:"

• The length, extent and severity of the current Australian heatwave is unprecedented in the measurement record.
• Although Australia has always had heatwaves, hot days and bushfires, climate change is increasing the risk of more frequent and longer heatwaves and more extreme hot days, as well as exacerbating bushfire conditions.
• Climate change has contributed to making the current extreme heat conditions and bushfires worse.
• Good community understanding of climate change risks is critical to ensure we take appropriate action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to put measures in place to prepare for, and respond to, extreme weather.

http://climatecommission.gov.au/report/off-charts-extreme-january-heat-2013/
Luckily, Melbourne has had a few cooler days, enabling the houses and people a bit of respite. The Emergency Services people have been kept busy but at least it has not been as disastrous as 2009. Sympathies go to the people of the Tasman Peninsula in Tasmania and the many people facing huge fires in NSW. 

The Heat is On!

January in Melbourne is one of the hottest months of the year. Today and tomorrow are lining up to be scorchers with 36 degrees C (96.8 degrees F) today and 41 degrees C (105.8 degrees F) tomorrow.
My vegie garden will only survive with a bit of shade and daily watering.
I picked beans yesterday and the tomatoes are just starting to ripen (planted a little later than usual). The sweet corn is looking good, so hopefully it will survive tomorrow and the hot week to come. The Persimmon tree is dropping some of its small fruit (too many on the small tree) as is the Nashi Pear tree, though there are lots on that one as well. Hopefully they won't get too burnt by the wind and searing sun.

Lets hope the hot weather and predicted strong northerly winds tomorrow don't cause too many fires as there is such a lot of dry grass nearby. Victoria's National Parks and bush have had a lot of growth over the last couple of wet years and are ripe for another big burn.

We don't want to start 2013 with another tragedy like that of Black Saturday, 2009. I have downloaded the CFA Fire App on my iPad, something being recommended by our trusty emergency services. Lets hope their website, CFA and that of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade doesn't crash under the demand as it did the last few years. Also, the Emergency Texting service operates appropriately.
And I'll keep listening to the radio for Emergency advice if I can stand the constant Cricket and Tennis.

Near Marysville, July 2009