Monthly Archives: January 2020

Australia is in deep trouble: Droughts, floods and fires

By Spencer D Gear PhD

This title page points to three following articles that need to be read successively to see the message unfold.

1. Pointing Towards a Solution

clip_image002

(photo courtesy WordPress at The University of Melbourne)

What should we add to the excellent ABC News: Rural (2018) headline?

The big dry: ‘See us, hear us, help us’

That’s a cry for city cousins to dig deep to help people during the big drought. I’m 100% behind that cry for help and have given to the drought appeal. But there’s an essential component absent from that plea.

2. The path Australia treads to ruin

We can’t make it rain. But we can ensure that farming families and their communities get all the support they need to get through the drought, recover and get back on their feet” the government said in a statement’.[1]

3. Get to the heart of the BIG drought, fires and floods

ABC Rural reported again:

Farmers across New South Wales and Queensland are calling it the worst drought in living memory. Many are facing ruin and say it is time for their city cousins to acknowledge the disaster (ABC News Rural: regional reporters 2018).

clip_image004This story pointed to the situation as seen by the farmers:

I’d really like people in the city to remember us, see us, hear us, know that we’re still here.

Thin cattle search for food near Coonabarabran in north-western New South Wales (ABC News: Rural, 2018: Luke Wong)


clip_image006

(image courtesy Flickr)

Notes:

[1] Stephanie Bedo 2018. Australia’s crippling drought crisis: Overcoming past mistakes to save ourselves for the future. news.com.au (online), 6 August. Available at: https://www.news.com.au/technology/environment/climate-change/australias-crippling-drought-crisis-overcoming-past-mistakes-to-save-ourselves-for-the-future/news-story/136436de96fee5f33809de8d607f413c (Accessed 7 January 2019).


Copyright © 2020 Spencer D. Gear. This document last updated at Date: 11 January 2020.

clip_image008clip_image009clip_image009[1]clip_image009[1]