Sunshine Coast ECO NEWS

How green was their valley… ‘and remember you Queenslanders in the South-East, this brave decision of mine is all for you!…’

Beattie Government’s own modeling of the Mary River shows dramatic water flow reductions below the dam site, reductions which will have massive impacts downstream.

The unpublicised modelling illustrates an overall reduction in the mean annual flow (MAF) of the Mary River to less than 85 per cent - a figure which is defined as “major environmental impact”.

The modelling of the flows varies from between 20 per cent and 79 per cent of MAF from the dam wall to where the Mary meets Munna Creek, then still only 79 to 84 per cent of MAF from that point to the mouth of the river below Maryborough.

While a panicked Beattie Government has made it clear that two thousand or more residents at Traveston have to be the sacrificed for the ‘greater good’ it seems they’re also prepared to devastate a much wider area.

Chair of the Mary River Catchments Committee Henry Jamieson said: “There will be terrific ramifications for the whole of The Great Sandy Strait … fish stocks in the world heritage area would be depleted and tourism will suffer.”

SCEC Campaigner Scott Alderson said: “The dam will undermine the basis of the economy and threaten the future of the region.”

“Fraser Island and the Great Sandy World Heritage Area are recognized as a premier southeast Queensland tourist destinations and one of the best recreational fishing destinations on the Australian east coast.”

The Government agrees.

Daming it has been described as “an Ecological castration of a process that has evolved over millions of years and sustains biological diversity in the newly declared Great Sandy Marine Park”.In a document promoting the Great Sandy Marine Park Deputy Premier Anna Bligh reiterates the importance of tourism in the Great Sandy Region.

“The tourism industry in the area employs about 15 000 Queenslanders and more than a million people from around the world are attracted to the region every year.

“That accounts for about 10 percent of Queensland’s annual total numbers of domestic and international tourists who contribute about $500 million to the regional economy.”

The Minister for Environment, Local Government, Planning and Women, Desley Boyle has added her two cents worth.

In a 2004 statement entitled ‘Protecting water quality in the Mary River Basin and Great Sandy region’ Minister Boyle describes the regions as “priceless water environments.”

The Minister said: “Letting these waters continue to deteriorate would have major economic and social implications for the region’s economy”.

The Minister’s words are prophetic, and endorsed by the Independent Trawler Association (ITA), which expects the down stream effects to be catastrophic.

“Letting these waters continue to deteriorate would have major economic and social implications for the region’s economy” ITA deputy President Joe McLeod says: “The true downstream impacts of any new dam in the Mary River Catchment will be spread right throughout the Mary River flood plains then on to the Hervey Bay, Great Sandy Straits, Fraser Island and the ocean ecosystems continuing into the Eastern Australian current.

“You could say an Ecological castration of a process that has evolved over millions of years and sustains biological diversity in the newly declared Great Sandy Marine Park,” McLeod said.

The newly formed Save The Mary River Coordinating Group provides a quick list of both positive and negative impacts of the proposed dam on the www.travestonswamp.info website.

Industry concerns that the Queensland Government has not fully thought through the immediate and downstream ramifications of the dam have been heightened by other failures.

There is no doubt they have sacrificed the hollow concept of community consultation…no consultation has occurred.

There is no doubt they have sacrificed any semblance of scientific assessment of the immediate and regional impacts.

There is no doubt, they have ignored their own modeling, which shows dramatic impacts on water flows.

There is no doubt they have sacrificed the “smart” approach to water supply and taken the dumbest and most damaging option.