Cumulative rainfall anomalies for southeastern Australia starting from January 1997 to December 2011 in mm. Individual monthly anomalies are shown in the columns. An alternative way to consider the impact of the rainfall declines and recent rainfall is to look at the cumulative rainfall anomalies for southeastern Australia. The cumulative rainfall anomalies provide a measure […]
Editing by Robert Birsel18 February 2012 SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia will carry out a comprehensive assessment of development pressure on the Great Barrier Reef to help preserve the world’s largest coral reef system, ministers said Saturday. The assessment will take into account how development along Australia’s northeast coast is affecting the reef, Environment Minister Tony […]
In light of the exceptionally wet two-year period (2010–2011) we have updated maps from the Special Climate Statement 22 which previously reported on the extended dry in southern areas. Arguably, and by many measures such as increases in soil moisture, refilling of dams, and frequent flooding etc., the long dry can now be said to […]
By Sou from Bundangawoolaran7 February 2012 Today the Bureau of Meteorology issued a Special Climate Statement: Australia’s wettest two year period on record; 2010-2011. The statement speaks for itself. There are towns this year, as there were last year, having record floods. Following the ‘Big Dry’ it would seem that Australia is no longer having […]
By Andrew Fraser, The Australian9 February 2012 FLOODED St George in southern Queensland is facing a delayed hit from the surging Balonne River while more than a fifth of the surrounding cotton crop faces ruin. The Balonne yesterday peaked at 13.95m, and is expected to stay near that record mark for days, frustrating the hopes […]
7 February 2012 (CNN) – Australian authorities on Monday pleaded with hundreds of people who had chosen to remain in a town in the path of rising flood waters to vacate their homes. The level of the Balonne River in the town of St. George, in the eastern state of Queensland, swelled to 13.63 meters […]
By Madeleine Coorey 3 February 2012 AFP – Major flooding hit parts of Australia’s east Friday, stranding thousands of residents, prompting a military airlift and leaving some communities only accessible by helicopter. The deluge, which has sparked dozens of rescues and left about 7,275 people isolated in various parts of New South Wales state has […]
30 January 2012 (ABC) – Lake Macquarie Council’s effort to manage the impact of rising sea levels has again raised the ire of developer Jeff McCloy, this time over his plans to develop the former Pasminco smelter site. A council flood study found thousands of lakeside properties would be in danger of flooding by 2100 […]
By Brian Williams, The Courier-Mail12 December 2011 ONE in every six species related to characters in the smash hit kids’ movie Finding Nemo is threatened with extinction. Scientists analysed risks faced by Nemo, the charismatic clownfish, and more than 1500 other species related to characters in the 2003 animation. International Union for Conservation of Nature […]
It’s time for the yearly retrospectives on 2011, and we’re kicking them off with 2011’s most-viewed stories on Desdemona. It won’t surprise anyone to see that the triple meltdown at the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant was the most popular event, with 9 of the top 20 stories. Most surprising is the continued popularity of a 2009 […]
