SAVE DAINTREE AGAIN

The coastal lowland rainforest is approximately 20,000 Ha, home to 85 rare and threatened flora species and is critical habitat of threatened fauna such as the Cassowary (a huge fruit eating bird). Some of the flora communitites of biological importance are found only on private land and many of the plants have lived there for 120 million years. The tree Idiospermum australiense is considered to be the world's most primitive flowering plant and now grows in only a few very small areas in the Daintree region.

The value of the area is somehow more than its scientific values. The area currently has no mains power and is accessed by boat or by a ferry that carries vehicles and passengers across the crocodile infested Daintree River. Once you cross that River, somehow the atmosphere changes, society's pressures are left behind and you feel free.

In 1983 when the road was first bulldozed through the area there was a fierce campaign and blockade to stop the destruction. The campaign attracted world-wide attention and made Daintree's rainforests famous. After the road went ahead, the area was rapidly turned into a 1000+ blocks of real estate subdivision.

About 25% of these blocks of land have been settled, with the majority taking a sensitive approach and clearing the minimum area for their dwelling. Others have bulldozed as much rainforest as possible (cleaning up the scrub, mate) and introduced horses and cattle. Last year one species of the red cedar family became extinct due to a land owner clearing his plot of land. It is predicted that a maximum of 50% residency is all the area can handle, while some put the figure as low as 30%. Humans impact on the area not only with the land cleared for their dwellings but with introduced weeds, predatory pets and destructive hobbies(Rrrrm, rrrm!). The proposal to connect mains power to the area will encourage further commercial and residential development - turning the area into another suburbia. Installation of mains power could be the last straw for the area and it is time to SAVE DAINTREE AGAIN.

The Federal Government has spent $23 million on a buy-back campaign, about 1/2 went on surveying the area and 1/2 on buying back a few large blocks of land from the developer George Qaid. They now claim to have run out of funds. This leaves some critical areas of rainforest and threatened species habitat privately owned and unprotected.

Qaid was a mate of the former Premier, Sir Jo Bjelke-Peterson and bought a huge amount of North Queensland for as little as $1 per hectare. Part of his land was the Starke land which was bought back and returned to its traditional owners a few years ago. Qaid also bulldozed a road through the rainforest just months before it was World Heritage listed. At the top end of the road he dammed a river to provide potential drinking water for his dream city, the "golden Gateway to Cape York". The ecosystem of the river further west is drying up and the road is a threat to the wildlife corridor it bisects. Fortunately the prospects for opening the road are on hold until another of Qaid's buddies makes it into Parliament.

It is hoped that more smaller blocks will be bought from private owners (other than Qaid) at Daintree to help reduce population growth.

As an alternative to mains power, a Remote Area Power Supply System (RAPS) offered private land owners $15,000 each to setup an alternative power system on their properties. This popular scheme also encourages land-owners to have an awareness of their consumption and impacts on their environment. Some have taken good advantage of this to install solar and micro-hydro systems, while others rely purely on generators for power.

Commercially run premises, such as hotels, backpackers and plantations run up huge fuel bills running their generators and are the driving force behind the push for mains power. They are not eligable for RAPS at present.

A recent "Environmental Impact Assessment Study" asked for public submissions to test the support of several options for the connection of mains power. The options included overhead lines, conventional underground cables, ploughed underground cables, individual RAPS and combinations of all these. The results of the submissions are not yet known.

Whether or not the proposal goes ahead is essentially a State Government decision, and the recently elected Labour Government has vowed that it will not fund the estimated public cost of $30 million. The ideal protection for the land is for the Federal Government to continue to buy-back critical blocks of land, and to further support the RAPS scheme.