STORM WARNING: Larry Just a Taste

Science is sounding a storm warning for the Queensland/NSW border coastline – tipping devastating Cyclone Larry to be just a taste of what’s to come.

As the first round of Larry appeal funds are distributed to victims this week, leading researchers are forecasting that Cyclone Larry is “just the beginning” and local authorities need to be prepared for the worst.

“Natural climatic variability has seen the past 30 years as a period of low storm activity,” according to Coastal Co-operative Research Centre team leader, Professor Rodger Tomlinson.

“Our research suggests this period is due to reverse.  Storms like Larry have occurred in the past on the coast of South East Queensland and Northern NSW and are increasingly likely to occur again.

“The problem is, a lot of coastal development has happened over the past 30 years and many local authorities haven’t taken into account the devastating power of cyclones such as Larry,” he said.

Professor Tomlinson, who has been charting natural cycles of storm activity impacting the coasts of Queensland and NSW and modelling the relationship with sea levels, is a research leader with the Coastal Cooperative Research Centre (Coastal CRC), funded via the Federal Government’s CRC Programme.

The Brisbane-based group studies the social, economic and environmental dimensions of coastal management and will detail research results in Brisbane next month (17-19 May), as part of a national annual conference that highlights some of the most cutting-edge and critical research underway in Australia.

“In the longer-term, rising sea levels are adding to the threat of coastal natural disasters,” said Professor Tomlinson.

“Even though the sea level on the Australian East coast has risen relatively little in comparison to other parts of the world, research shows that sea-level rise accelerates during stormy decades.

“Local communities may have become complacent and be ill-prepared for these natural events, so local authorities must plan now for the likely return to stormy periods in the near-future,” he said.

Planning guidelines need to reflect the vulnerability of each area to big events such as Cyclone Larry and must also take into account the longer-term effects of climate change, according to Professor Tomlinson.

“If a Category 5 cyclone hit the coastal areas around Brisbane, the damage bill would be in the tens of billions of dollars, not to mention the human misery,” he said.

WORLD-CLASS AUSTRALIAN RESEARCH CONFERENCE

The Coastal CRC will join some of the country’s leading researchers at the annual conference for the Cooperative Research Centres Association from 17-19 May 2006 in Brisbane.

Titled “CRCs - Making an Impact”, the conference will showcase a diverse range of world-first research projects currently underway through Australia's Cooperative Research Centres.

Other projects to be featured include breakthroughs in water management, lifesaving landslide warning technology, greenhouse gas emission reduction, genetic markers for dairy herds and smart internet gaming technology.

The conference will also feature a hypothetical-style event on the future of Australia’s water supply that is open to the public.

*** INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE WITH COASTAL CRC TEAM LEADER, PROFESSOR RODGER TOMLINSON ***

Released Through: Melody File, Marketplace Communications  P: 07 3358 4777   M: 0408 928 229