The folly of allowing developments in flood-prone land

Persons associated with proposals to develop West Yamba would be well advised to take special note of a decision of the NSW Land and Environment Court.

In an article headed Court agrees climate-change risk rules out housing plan
The Sydney Morning Herald (January 8, 2008) reports:

"Many may be pleased to know the Land and Environment Court can overturn not just a council decision but a ministerial one.

The court recently ruled invalid a concept plan approved by the Minister for Planning, Frank Sartor, for a controversial residential subdivision and retirement complex at Sandon Point, on the coast near Wollongong. The action was brought by a resident, Jill Walker.

The court agreed the department should have considered the flooding risk from climate change as it was an aspect of the public interest that potentially had a bearing on the justice of the decision.

The decision is a win for residents who have been protesting for years against the development of the flood-prone 25-hectare site by Stockland Development and Anglican Retirement Villages.

Deacons Lawyers said councils would have to ensure risks from climate change in flood-constrained coastal areas had been addressed by developers and that they considered such risks in their decisions."

Comment:
The land at West Yamba is flood-prone. Allowing further development in the area will require fill being obtained from elsewhere in order to raise the area above designated ASL requirements. That may solve current problem associated with the West Yamba site but one doesn't have to be Einstein to understand that water which would normally find its way to this naturally occurring flood storage area in times of heavy rainfall will be diverted elsewhere. And just where is elsewhere? Think about it. Land that is currently occupied and considered flood free will not necessarily carry such a tag in the future.

Yes, further development at West Yamba will create a new set of winners (just think 'developers and their associates'), but there'll also be a crew of losers who'll be up the creek without paddles in times of high local rainfall and/or flooding that results from waters flowing downstream from the catchment area.

Clarence Valley Council should have this matter uppermost in its collective mind. So too, should Minister Frank Sartor and all others who will be called upon to give consideration to any hair-brained proposals to develop West Yamba.

Remember, the law attaches great significance to the concept of precedence. Hence, this decision of the Land and Environment Court has implications for West Yamba.

Leopards cannot change their spots

Writing in The Sydney Morning Herald (January 8, 2008), Peter Roebuck has written what most fair dinkum Aussie cricket followers are thinking: "Ricky Ponting must be sacked as captain of the Australian cricket team."

Roebuck wrote:
"If Cricket Australia cares a fig for the tattered reputation of our national team in our national sport, it will not for a moment longer tolerate the sort of arrogant and abrasive conduct seen from the captain and his senior players over the past few days. Beyond comparison it was the ugliest performance put up by an Australian side for 20 years. The only surprising part of it is that the Indians have not packed their bags and gone home. There is no justice for them in this country, nor any manners.

That the senior players in the Australian team are oblivious to the fury they raised among many followers of the game in this country and beyond merely confirms their own narrow and self-obsessed viewpoint. Doubtless they were not exposed to the messages that poured in from distressed enthusiasts aghast to see the scenes of bad sportsmanship and triumphalism presented at the SCG during and after the Test. Pained past players rang to express their disgust (my emphasis). It was a wretched and ill-mannered display and not to be endured from any side, let alone an international outfit representing a proud sporting nation."

Comment:
Events as the SCG during the second test went from the sublime to the ridiculous. Ponting set the ball rolling with his petulant behaviour when dismissed in Australia's first innings. Previously given a "life" by an umpire's mistake, Ponting returned to the sheds after his dismissal (which, admittedly was not a clear-cut decision) and carried on like a spoilt three-year old brat.

Ponting later attempted to claim the high moral ground when he recalled Rahul Dravid because he was not sure if he had held a chance from Dravid at second slip.

However, Ponting's halo slipped again in India's second innings when he claimed a catch in the final session on day 5. Ponting also had the temerity to wave his upright index finger at the umpire on another occasion when the umpire was considering whether a ball had carried to an Australian fielder. The umpire subsequently gave the Indian batsman out - did the umpire jump, or was he pushed?

Ponting's captaincy must be terminated. No ifs. No buts. Leopards don't change their spots - Ponting's behaviour and attitude isn't something that appeared out-of-the-blue overnight.

On a final note, hands up anyone who would like to become a full time cricket umpire. Just as I thought. Although I've been critical of umpires Bucknor and Benson for their performances in the second test in an earlier post, most first-class cricket umpires do an A-1 job. Much of the decision-making by umpires must remain in their hands and on the field. Technology is not, although Channel 9's team thinks otherwise, the only solution. It is helpful in a number of aspects, but it must never replace the immediate and spontaneous actions and decisions that make the game worth going to see live at the ground.


Read Peter Roebuck's "Arrogant Ponting must be fired" at
http://www.smh.com.au/news/cricket/arrogant-ponting-must-be-fired-roebuck/2008/01/07/1199554571883.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1

Million dollar Yamba

"CASHED-UP investors are driving a coastal property boom the likes of which has not been seen before, but traditional hotspots are missing out, as buyers demand value as well as a view.---------

In Yamba, four hours' drive south of Brisbane and eight hours north of Sydney, agent Mike Macqueen said good blocks of land were still available for under $1million, but beachfront land would cost more.

"The big difference now is we're getting a lot of investors from the Gold Coast coming into the area," said Mr Macqueen.

"There's nothing much left in Byron Bay and the area around there, so they're coming that bit further down."

The Australian yesterday:
 http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23015416-5010800,00.html

 

I don't think it would take this article in The Australian to make longtime Yamba residents aware of the fact that out-of-town developers are eating up available land and leaving little for ordinary people wanting a family home.

Yamba is all but surrounded on all four sides by ocean, river and lake. With available vacant land fast disappearing, this white shoe brigade from north of the border are pushing hard to overdevelop 

their speculative lots. 

Clarence Valley shire councillors seem to be doing the bare minimum to protect this small coastal town.

  

Not racism - just a genuine concern for whales which inhabit Australian waters

Yesterday the news was full of reports that an anti-Australian, pro-whaling video sourced out of Japan was on the Internet.

The video by SasukeZ7 erroneously implies that Australia is being racist in its anti-whaling stance.

It had been viewed over 100,000 times when I clicked on.

Pity that all ethical debating rules went out the window when this visual tirade was created.

If the author had taken time to think he/she would realise that Australia opposes any country whaling in the Antarctic, not just the Japanese fleet.

Link to video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8lvep0-Ii0

 

In SasukeZ7's YouTube profile is a bald statement that Australia's Professor Tim Flannery supports Japanese whaling.

Bet that will impress Tim, as he had expressly stated his relief that Japan has abandoned plans to kill endangered Humpback whales.

In addition, his general support for Minke whaling was qualified and he drew attention to problems with how these mammals are being killed.

Not too sure that he was impressed by the fact that the Japanese fleet intends to also hunt 50 endangered Fin whales.

The Daily Telegraph article in December 2007:

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22987914-5001021,00.html

 

As a piece of crude propaganda SasukeZ7's video did nothing to change my views, but it did manage to irritate. I suspect that many others would feel the same.

Australia coming of age

The Northern Territory's deputy leader Marion Scrymgour stepped in as Chief Minister yesterday, and will stay in the role while Paul Henderson is on holiday.
However briefly, this makes the deputy leader the first indigenous person to head an Australian government. You little bewdy, Marion!
Photo from abc.net.au

More NSW North Coast flood pictures

Photographs of NSW North Coast flooding in January 2008 from ABC News and The Age.

Rudd meets with US Congressional Leaders delegation

"PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd has taken a break from his summer holidays to meet two of the United States' most powerful parliamentary leaders today.

Mr Rudd met the 13-member US Congressional Leaders delegation at his Sydney residence, Kirribilli House, this evening.
There was expected to be a host of issues on the agenda during their meeting, including the US-Australian alliance and security issues such as Iraq and Afghanistan."

News.com.au yesterday:

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23014031-29277,00.html

 

This should have made for an interesting exchange of ideas.

Congressman Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the leading Democrat in the delegation, appears to believe the only errors made in going to war in Afghanistan and Iraq were that not enough troops were sent and that combat forces deserve a pay rise.

While Congressman Roy Blunt of Southwest Missouri, the senior Republican in the group, seems to think everything is going just fine in Iraq, supports a continued US presence in Afghanistan and knows that all is peachy keen at Guantanamo Bay .

Now that the Prime Minister has met with some of his new best friends, will we see a further softening of Federal Labor's stance on Australian military involvement in Iraq?