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Australia weather: BOM declares negative Indian Ocean Dipole, marking 60-year first

Australia weather: BOM declares negative Indian Ocean Dipole, marking 60-year first

Australia’s wet patch will continue for months, a new finding reported by the Bureau of Meteorology suggests.

A negative Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) has just been declared, meaning some serious wet weather is likely for large areas of the country throughout the rest of the year.

It is the second consecutive year we’ve had a negative IOD – the first time that has happened since the 1960s.

The IOD has three phases: neutral, positive and negative. Events usually start around May or June, peak between August and October and then rapidly decay when the monsoon arrives in the southern hemisphere around the end of spring.

The BOM reported the weather shift caused by a negative IOD could also have significant impacts on agriculture.

A negative IOD often results in cooler than average maximum temperatures over southeastern mainland Australia, while maximum and minimum temperatures in the far north of Australia are typically warmer than average.

Over half of the country on the east coast has roughly an 85 per cent chance of exceeding last year’s rainfall through spring.

‘Exceptionally dangerous’ conditions

A fierce double whammy weather system will lurch across Australia this week which in some areas will bring “exceptionally dangerous” conditions.

Huge waves, hundreds of millimeters of rain, flash flooding and gale force winds are all on the cards. And it won’t be a flash in the pan either with the slow moving system potentially lasting all week.

As many as six states could be hit with Western Australia and parts of Tasmania, Victoria and New South Wales particularly in the firing line.

“A prolonged period of wet and windy conditions will impact southern Australia this week as a series of powerful cold fronts sweep across the country,” said the Bureau of Meteorology’s Johnathan How.

“There is a very large mass of cold and unstable air over the Southern Ocean. And it’s this entire complex that will shift northwards and bring those wet and windy conditions to the rest of southern Australia.”

Sky News Weather senior meteorologist Tom Saunders said there were two key features with this system.

“Firstly, it’s slow moving so it will take the entire week to move from the south of Western Australia towards the southeast.

“So because of the slow movement of the system, it’s not just a few hours of severe weather for Western Australia – it’s three days.

“Secondly, it’s a strong system with strong to gale force winds”.

One front will move earlier in the week followed by another a couple of days later potentially bringing even more rain.

Adelaide was expected to see up to 10mm of rain on Tuesday with potentially damaging winds and thunderstorms for late morning onwards.

Rain will continue across much of the country on Wednesday, and then the front will come through on Thursday and Friday bringing up to around 25mm of rain over those two days.

A severe weather warning is in place for all of South Australia aside from the state’s north and extreme east around Remark. Damaging wind likes of up to 90 km/h are a possibility.

Mostly clear in Melbourne on Tuesday before the wind cranks up in the evening.

Showers can be expected for the rest of the week but the rain totals will be below 10mm each day.

In Sydney, showers are expected on Thursday followed by mostly sunny skies and 22C highs.

– with Benedict Brook

Read related topics:Weather

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The first sneak peek at the new Allianz Stadium

The first sneak peek at the new Allianz Stadium

“I’ve been around the world – at my expense, I might add – looking at the best stadiums all over the world. This is right up there,” Shepherd said.

“Wembley and Tottenham Hotspur Stadiums are the ones to benchmark against. They are bigger stadiums but designed with the consumer in mind. It’s about making the customer experience as good as you can in terms of food and beverage, access, seat comfort, view lines, all of those sorts of things.”

Allianz Stadium is just about ready to host live entertainment.

Allianz Stadium is just about ready to host live entertainment.

The old Sydney Football Stadium provided rain cover to only 30 per cent of patrons, with that figure now at 100 per cent. There’s an exclusive area inside that allows patrons to watch the teams warm up – coaches can choose to frost the glass if they want privacy – before they run out.

Renowned Indigenous artist Tony Albert designed the illustrated artwork across the outside seats, which are set on the same gradient as those at CommBank.

“The concept is ‘Two worlds colliding’,” Albert said. “Whether through friendly or very fierce competition, it’s about this engagement of two separate groups. Culturally I’ve decided to do that through the land and the sea; one end of the design is the ocean through the bubbles and the other is landmarking through this cross-hatched design.

“It was an opportunity to tell the story and for the people to engage with the artwork literally, they are literally sitting on it.”

“I’ve been… looking at the best stadiums all over the world. This is right up there.”

SCG Trust chairman Tony Shepherd.

The stadium was delivered on time, despite the obstacles presented by the torrential rain that battered the worksite.

“We were three days away from laying the turf before the flood hit, which was one of the biggest issues we had,” said Evergreen Turf project supervisor Chris Chapman.

“We finally laid it last Monday week.”

The Roosters-Rabbitohs match is the first of three big sporting events in five days; the Wallabies will host reigning Rugby World Cup champions South Africa on September 3, before the Matildas take on reigning Olympic champions Canada on September 6 in an international friendly.

Frosted glass panels will allow VIP members to view players warming up in the change rooms.

Frosted glass panels will allow VIP members to view players warming up in the change rooms.Credit:Adrian Prozenko

Robinson believes the new stadium will provide the best possible experience for fans.

“We want them to come,” Robinson said.

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“They love rugby league or whatever sport they enjoy in that stadium, but they get to experience it in a modern way.

“That was the reason the stadium was redone; it wasn’t as much about the teams that are going to inhabit the ground, it’s about the people who are going to come and watch.”

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Government flags possible reform of $7b Workforce Australia jobseeker program a month after launching it

Tony Burke wears a black suit and blue tie with red pin as he speak to media at Parliament House.

The federal government has flagged it is open to reforming Australia’s brand-new controversial $7 billion unemployment scheme and has announced the creation of a parliamentary committee to scrutinize it.

It comes following months of concern and confusion from jobseekers prior to the launch, as well as a deluge of criticism from them since.

Employment Minister Tony Burke said on Tuesday the federal government would create a lower house committee to examine the implementation of Workforce Australia, the program that replaced the maligned jobactive program last month.

Workforce Australia was passed under the Morrison government and voted for by Labor prior to the May election. Contracts with job service providers worth $7 billion were also signed.

Under the shift, those engaged in mutual obligations earn points for activities in return for the sub-poverty line JobSeeker payment.

But Mr Burke said on Tuesday while Labor supported the principles behind Workforce Australia, including mutual obligations, some aspects required “fresh parliamentary scrutiny and oversight”.

“While the [Coalition] spent nearly two years designing and building the software for the new system, they did not properly explain it to the Australian people,” he said.

“We are concerned we have ended up with a system that is driven more by the details of contracts with providers than the legislation the previous government brought to parliament.”

Mr Burke said the committee would take evidence on “where best practice is occurring and where it is not”.

“It will recommend where we can make long-term reforms, as well as where we can make more immediate improvements,” he said.

The committee is scheduled to report back to parliament in September 2023.

System needs to be ‘fit for purpose’

The transition to Workforce Australia has been shaky.

In the lead-up to launch, jobseekers said the changes had been poorly communicated, with some still unclear about what the changes meant for them and their JobSeeker payments just days before the program kicked in.

Social services advocates also voiced concern many of the “punitive” aspects from jobactive remained a part of Workforce Australia, and a new points-based system would force people into more mutual obligations sooner.

Since the scheme launched, jobseekers have reported a raft of issues, including being unable to access the app and online portal, being recommended jobs based on states they do not live in, and further confusing communication.

Mr Burke noted that on Tuesday, saying it appeared “user experience of the system varies wildly from person to person and provider to provider”.

A sign displaying the centrelink and medicare logos.
Workforce Australia was passed under the Morrison government and voted for by Labor when it was in opposition.(ABC News: Danielle Bonica)

Labor made a series of last-minute tweaks to the original design of Workforce Australia last month.

It also extended a suspension on payment penalties, though advocates want to see it stretched further until at least October.

The Australian Council of Social Service has welcomed the creation of the parliamentary committee.

“For too long, people who’ve been looking for paid work have been blamed for being unemployed rather than actively and positively supported to find jobs,” acting CEO Edwina MacDonald said.

“The announcement of this review is a good move to ensure the voices of people who use these services inform the reform process, and that feedback from the experiences of the early days of this new model can be used to ensure Workforce Australia is fit for purpose .’

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WA FIFO worker Jonathan David Small sentenced to 10 years in jail for repeatedly raping colleague

An earth mover shifts dirt into a truck in the Pilbara

Just weeks after a damning WA parliamentary report into sexual harassment and assaults in the mining industry, a FIFO worker has been sentenced to 10 years in jail for repeatedly raping a colleague.

Jonathan David Small, 44, was found guilty by a District Court jury of six charges of sexually penetrating the 22-year-old woman without her consent, after they went out to dinner while they were on rostered days off in Perth.

Both worked for BHP at the time, but Small was sacked after the woman reported what happened to her superiors when she returned to her worksite, in the Pilbara, two days later.

Small was charged with eight offenses. He denied them all, maintaining the sex was consensual, but he was found guilty of six of the charges and acquired of the other two.

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ACT budget 2022: Winners and losers

ACT budget 2022: Winners and losers

ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr has released the details of his 11th budget as Treasurer — his third since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Here are some of the ways the budget may affect you and Canberra.

Winner: Home owners

An illustration of a house with a Hill's Hoist washing line beside it.

Hang on: don’t rising interest rates make home owners with mortgages losers?

Maybe, but the ACT government doesn’t have much to say about interest rates.

It does set household rates bills, though. And, while these will still increase, this year’s rate rises for Canberrans who own homes will be much gentler than in recent years.

The average bill is set to increase by 2.5 per cent — or $111 per year — in 2022-23.

That’s well below inflation and comes after a decade in which rates typically rose by 6 to 7 per cent a year.

Loser: Unit owners

An illustration of skyscrapers in the city.

Canberrans who own units and townhouses face much steeper rate rises than owners of houses.

The average bill for these properties will increase by 9.9 per cent — or $67 per year — in 2022-23.

These owners had been spared some of the very large hikes that house owners had borne in previous years.

But as the value of units and townhouses rises, their owners’ taxes will increase, too.

Winner:Economy

Illustration of pile of coins increasing in height

If you looked at Canberra’s economic indicators and nothing else, you might well conclude: “The pandemic must be over.”

The ACT economy is hurtling along, fueled by a relatively fast-growing population. The federal government has played a big part, employing more staff and consultants.

State final demand (the size of the economy) grew by 3.2 per cent last year after accounting for inflation. Residents and businesses are spending significantly more than they were.

And while rising electricity prices are weighing down other jurisdictions, the ACT has been largely spared due to its long-term renewable energy contracts.

All this has left the ACT budget hundreds of millions of dollars better off than was expected a year ago.

But, can it last?

Winner: Workers

An illustration of a man with a builders hat in front of a brick wall.

Make hay, Canberra workers: now, more than any other time in living memory, is the moment to ask for a pay rise or find a new job.

Treasury officials note there are consistently more job vacancies in the ACT than there are workers. They also expect new employment opportunities to continue to outpace population growth.

This hasn’t yet contributed to real pay rises; inflation is hitting everyone.

But salaries are already rising in Canberra, mostly in the private sector. The Albanese government has also ditched the 2 per cent a year ceiling on public servants’ pay rises.

Wage growth is forecast to reach about 3.5 per cent within a year, while inflation is expected to drop well below that.

Neutral: Employers

Illustration of person at desk writing

Job vacancies in Canberra are at record highs and under-employment is at a record low, and that’s not great news for employers.

The budget papers cite the lack of skilled workers as a significant risk to the economy. The COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have also led to shortages of a range of materials.

Nonetheless, consumer confidence in Canberra is high. Household spending and business investment are buoyant, too.

The current shortages are a challenge to businesses, but the ACT has more than its share of market opportunities to make up for that.

Neutral: Homebuyers

Illustration of piggy bank and money notes on ground.

The ACT is continuing to phase out stamp duty in favor of land taxes, which will make housing cheaper than it would otherwise be.

Stamp duty will fall this coming year for properties priced below $1.5 million.

The budget also details plans for 30,000 extra dwellings in Canberra over the next five years.

Nonetheless, that’s what’s needed to house the ACT’s growing population.

There’s no quick fix — at least, not in this budget — for the ongoing crisis in housing affordability and rental availability.

Winner: Schools

An illustration of a school hat on top of a pile of books.

Canberra is growing quickly, and the city needs either new or expanded schools to cope with the influx, particularly in northside suburbs.

This budget confirms funding for a new early childhood and primary school in Whitlam, as well as a new high school in Taylor.

Majura Primary, in Watson, and Margaret Hendry School, also in Taylor, will be expanded to take on more students.

The government has also set aside money to install shades, improve ventilation and hire more cleaners for schools across Canberra.

Loser: Gambling

It’s about getting a little harder to make a profit from gambling.

The ACT’s betting operations tax — paid by casinos and businesses that run pokies, lotteries or betting games — is rising from 15 to 20 per cent.

The government says the increase will improve both the economy and Canberrans’ wellbeing.

Winner: Recycling

Illustration of 3 arrows going around in a circle

It’ll cost 1.75 per cent more to dump household, business or industrial waste at the tip.

That’s on top of the usual increase that’s part of the government’s indexation for fees and charges.

Tip fees had been frozen during the pandemic, but the government says it wants people to try to recycle more and reduce their waste.

Loser: Fossil fuels

Illustration of pollution in the form of smoke

The ACT already buys enough renewable electricity to cover 100 per cent of what it uses.

The government is now focused on cutting fossil fuels used for heating and transport.

Government offices that use gas will switch to electricity, and poorer Canberrans will be funded to replace gas appliances and install insulation.

Canberra’s gas and diesel buses will be replaced, gradually, with electric ones.

This budget also begins to fund incentives for electric vehicles, such as free registration and exemption from stamp duty.

Last year, 5 per cent of new motor vehicles in the ACT were electric. The government wants that to be as high as 90 per cent by 2030.

Neutral: Healthcare

An illustration of a hospital bed.

Healthcare is the giant of every ACT budget, accounting for about 30 cents of every dollar spent.

This budget significantly increases health spending — mostly for the expansion of the Canberra Hospital and to buy new clinical equipment.

However, many of the ACT’s ongoing healthcare problems stem not from a lack of facilities but from the perennial challenge of recruiting skilled staff.

That problem will continue to hang over the health system, and will likely worsen as a result of the ACT’s tight labor market.

Winner: Visitors

Line drawing of people waiting for airplane.

The borders have reopened, which means the battle for tourists is on.

The ACT government is bolstering two annual drawcards — Floriade and Enlighten — to attract interstate visitors.

Money has also been set aside to help secure blockbuster art exhibitions.

The budget continues to fund the redevelopment and expansion of the Canberra Theater Centre, though that will take years to complete.

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Series of cold fronts set to see wild weather in Western Australia continue until Wednesday

Series of cold fronts set to see wild weather in Western Australia continue until Wednesday

A series of three cold fronts is continuing to impact Western Australia after damaging properties, tearing down power lines and uprooting trees in the state’s south overnight.

The wild weather is set to continue on Tuesday night and into Wednesday, with damaging winds in excess of 90kph likely in the southern half of WA, leaving many home owners worried about the damage it may cause to their properties.

That concern became Tryster McCarthy’s reality when she heard a loud noise coming from her bedroom in Mt Helena, east of Perth, as she was tending to her baby at 4:30am on Tuesday.

“I heard a big noise and I thought it was more rain and more wind, and then [I heard] a big crash and then there was a branch in my bedroom ceiling above where my partner sleeps,” she said.

Tryster McCarthy looking at branch
Ms McCarthy assesses the damage caused by the tree. (ABC News: Nic Perpitch)

The branch had fallen from a tree in the neighbour’s yard and punctured the roof in four different places.

Ms McCarthy has not been able to afford home insurance for the past six months due to the rising cost of living.

Tree branch poking through the roof Mt Helena
The tree branch punctured the roof in four places.(ABC News: Nic Perpitch)

As State Emergency Service (SES) workers attended the property, the rain continued, causing further damage to the interior of the house.

Ms McCarthy’s home was one of 276 across the state requiring help from the SES in the past 24 hours, according to the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES).

SES fixing Mt Helena house roof
An SES officer fixes the damage on the roof of Ms McCarthy’s home. (ABC News: Nic Perpitch)

perth bears brunt of storm

DFES said Perth had been hit the worst by the once-in-a-year storm, with almost 80 per cent of affected properties in the metropolitan area.

Along with damaging infrastructure, the wild weather left many homes without electricity.

An aerial appears knocked over by a patio that has flipped onto a roof
The storm has damaged the roof of a home in Mullaloo. (ABC News: Nicolas Perpitch)

At the peak of the storm in the morning, Western Power said 35,000 customers were without power. It has since been restored to more than 20,000 properties.

More than 500 incidents, including downed and damaged wires and poles which have been impacted by wind gusts of up to 130kph, were active across the network at midday.

A collapsed carport
Maddi Mann from Yokine sits in this picture of a collapsed garage carport.(Supplied)

A statement issued by Western Power stated the utility had all available crews out fixing issues across the network but there was a possibility some customers would not have their power restored today due to the number of hazards.

“Our priority is to respond to reported hazards to ensure the safety of the community,” the statement said.

“This may mean our crews attend to make an area safe and leave for another emergency job without restoring power.”

A hand holds a giant ball of hail
David Zander from Parmelia said it hailed at his house early this morning. (Supplied)

Wind likes to continue into Wednesday

Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) duty forecaster Jessica Lingard said the strong winds would continue.

“Tonight will be very similar to what we experienced last night,” she said.

“We are expecting the peak of the wind activity to be late tomorrow morning and then we’ll start to see conditions slowly improving through tomorrow afternoon, but it won’t be until overnight tomorrow that we start to see conditions easing.

“The main risks with the winds peaking during the day is that people are outside moving around so driving can be particularly hazardous, especially if we’ve got branches falling down from trees.”

Bickley and Mandurah reported wind gusts of up to 117kph ​​just after 2am, which were the strongest winds recorded in those areas in more than 50 years, according to Ms Lingard.

She said Cape Leeuwin recorded wind gusts just after midnight which were equal to a category two cyclone, at 137kph.

Powerful swells cause waves to swallow most of the sand at North Beach
The severe weather has created dangerous swells along WA’s coastline, including at North Beach.(ABC News: Nicolas Perpitch)

Ms Lingard said the weather had caused dangerous swells along the west coast. She warned beach goers to stay out of the water.

The BOM has forecasted 15 to 20 millimetres of rain and westerly winds from 50 to 70kph on Wednesday in the Perth metro region.

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Probe into police enters fourth week

Probe into police enters fourth week

Six complaints about police officers allegedly linked to domestic violence were made in a two-week period in June to Queensland’s corruption watchdog.

But an executive from the Crime and Corruption Commission concurred at a probe into police responses to violence that under established procedures, the CCC investigated less than 1 per cent of cases of complaints about police.

In the fourth week of the Independent Commission of Inquiry into Queensland Police Service Responses to Domestic and Family Violence, the hearing was told one of the cases of alleged corrupt conduct included rape and strangulation, and another officer was accused of accessing child exploitation material.

“Both matters have been referred back to the QPS to deal with but subject to a public interest review, so they’re being monitored by the CCC,” said Elizabeth Foulger, the commission’s executive director of integrity services.

In Foulger’s statement, the CCC submitted that between July 2020 and May 2022 it had received more than 370 complaints about police responses to domestic violence cases, containing more than 900 separate allegations.

In that period, another 98 complaints were made about violence in which officers themselves were allegedly involved.

Foulger said complaints made about police officers often would be a “misunderstanding”.

“Often we’ll get a complaint that an officer has failed to investigate, to take a complaint of domestic violence, and then we’ll have a look on the computer system, and we can see that a complaint of domestic violence has, in fact, been made,” she said.

When asked by Women’s Legal Service lawyer Kylie Hillard how the CCC assessed complaints, including ones where victims were regularly turned away at police stations or repeated calls for help were ignored, Foulger said a range of factors were taken into consideration.

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Reward for information offered in search for Michelle Lewis

queensland Police have offered a $500,000 reward for information into the suspected murder of a 21-year-old woman in Rockhampton 33 years ago.

Michelle Coral Lewis was last seen riding her white and maroon bike leaving a friend’s house on Stenlake Avenue, North Rockhampton, headed to her home on Alexandra Street about 10.45pm on January 14, 1989.

The trip should have taken just a few minutes. Neither Lewis’s body nor bike have ever been found.

Michelle Lewis is suspected to have been murdered after disappearing in Rockhampton in 1989. (Queensland Police)

Former lead investigator and retired detective Ann Gumley said the initial investigation involved dozens of interviews and several persons of interest but ultimately, the leads “dried up.”

In 1994, a coroner concluded that there had been a foul play but there could be no finding about whether Lewis was alive or dead.

Police desperately want to identify a male person who called Rockhampton Police Station on February 18, 1989 – about a month after Lewis was last seen.

The caller said he had information concerning Lewis’ disappearance but the call was terminated before it could be put through to investigators.

“There are not too many cases that have stayed with me over the years, but after 33 years, but I still think about Michelle Lewis and what happened to her,” Gumley said.

“She had such a sad life and then to just disappear just seems so unfair.”

Retired Detective Ann Gumley. (9News)

Lewis was abandoned by her mother as a baby and cared for by her grandmother and other relatives until her grandmother died and she was taken in by a local woman Dell Salhus.

Friend Kerry Bartley said Lewis “loved living there” and never stayed out too late so as not to worry her foster mum.

“Michelle had a tough upbringing but she had a heart of gold and a lot of friends,” Bartley said.

A singlet like the one Michelle Lewis was wearing when she disappeared. (Queensland Police)

Bartley said her friend was a “creature of habit” and would often spend most of the weekend at her house.

The night she disappeared the pair drank tea, watched a movie and made plans for the following night before Lewis left to ride home.

She was wearing a pink tie-dyed shirt and boardshorts.

“In my heart I know that Michelle would not just run away without contacting me or anyone else,” Bartley said.

“Every year that passes becomes harder, not easier, because there are no answers.

“If she met with foul play it would be nice to have the answers as to who and why so we can have closure and Michelle can be laid to rest.”

Michelle Lewis’ friend and one of the last people to see her alive, Kerry Bartley. (9News)

“We believe there are people out there with information and with this significant reward announced, now is the time for those people to reconsider 33 years’ of silence and come forward to police,” Senior Detective Sergeant Tara Kentwell said.

“It is never too late to come forward.”

There has been long speculation now-deceased serial killer Leonard Fraser was involved in Lewis’ disappearance.

Michelle Lewis was last seen in Rockhampton in 1989. (Queensland Police)

Fraser died of a heart attack in hospital in 2007 having complained of chest pains in his cell at the Wolston Correctional Centre.

He had been serving multiple indefinite life terms for the murders of Beverley Leggo and Sylvia Benedetti, and the manslaughter of Julie Turner in the Rockhampton area in the late 1990s.

He had also previously been jailed for the abduction and murder of nine-year-old Rockhampton girl Keyra Steinhardt.

Gumley said despite retirement she remained committed to justice for Lewis, saying “miracles can happen.”

“If they find Michelle’s bike they’ll find Michelle. She never went anywhere without that bike,” Gumley said.

Michelle Lewis was rarely seen without her white and maroon bike. (Queensland Police)

The Queensland government’s reward of $500,000 is for information that leads to the conviction of the person, or persons, found to be responsible for Lewis’ suspected murder.

This week is National Missing Persons Week.

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Australia is set for wet spring after negative Indian Ocean Dipole declared

Wet weather is set to continue into spring across parts of Australia.

The Bureau of Meteorology today reported a negative Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) is underway, which means Australia looks set for a wetter-than-average season for much of southern and eastern Australia.

The IOD is also expected to bring warmer days than usual in northern Australia.

Wet weather is set to continue into spring across parts of Australia.
Wet weather is set to continue into spring across parts of Australia. (Kate Geraghty)

Head of long-range forecasting Dr Andrew Watkins said the Bureau’s three-month climate outlook is for above average rainfall for much of Australia, particularly for the central and eastern states.

“With wet soils, high rivers and full dams, and the outlook for above average rainfall, elevated flood risk remains for eastern Australia,” he said.

All climate model outlooks surveyed indicate that negative IOD conditions are likely to continue into late spring, the BoM said in its latest climate driver update.

Wet weather is set to continue into spring across parts of Australia.
The Bureau of Meteorology’s rainfall outlook for the three-month period from August to October 2022. (Bureau of Meteorology)

According to Weatherzone’s Ben Domensino, it is the first time there have been negative IODs in consecutive years since records began in the 1960s.

The BoM said there’s still a 50 per cent chance of a La Nina weather system forming later in the year.

a travel warning has been issued as thick fog covers Brisbane this morning.

‘River City’ wakes to white-out as fog swallows city

The storm is expected to last through Wednesday, lashing Perth and the state’s south-west as far north as Geraldton.

A severe weather warning for damaging winds remains in place.

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Tasmanian rural council’s $8.2m plan for agricultural town’s main street met with tractor protest

Farmers in tractors in a country town main street.

Historic charm and farming roots have coexisted in the northern Tasmanian town of Longford for decades, but a plan for the main street to be redeveloped and beautified has angered some within the community — culminating in tractors being driven into town in protest.

The works on a 600 meter stretch of Wellington Street, would see new garden beds and street furniture installed, and safety improvements for motorists and pedestrians.

Local veterinarian Michael Morris was one of a number of concerned community members who took to the street to protest against the project, which is expected to cost $8.2 million, paid for by the local council with around $2 million coming from the federal government.

He said the development is threatening Longford’s agricultural identity.

“I find it strange that a town like this, whose heart blood is the agricultural community, that you are going to put through an application like this that is essentially going to alienate the rural heartland,” he said.

“This is a strong rural community. This road is used by a heap of farm users, a lot of machinery, a lot of trucks. This development is going to make it extraordinarily difficult for that machinery and those trucks to navigate.”

Michael Morris looks at the camera.
Michael Morris is concerned the Longford main street plan will “alienate the rural heartland.”(ABC News: Damian McIntyre)

Rob Bayles said he’d like the Northern Midlands Council to reconsider the design, and joined other farmers in a tractor conveyed down the main street.

Rob Bayles looks at the camera.
Rob Bayles drove his tractor into town as part of the protest.(ABC News: Damian McIntyre)

“There is probably no other town in Tasmania that has more agricultural produce traveling down the main street from one end to the other, and here we are wanting to make the street narrower,” he said.

“Longford is an agricultural town and it needs to be open for traffic to get through it.”

Cyclists not happy either

The council received a number of representations from the public against the project, identifying 21 issues of concern.

According to the Council’s Heritage Advisor David Denman, the proposed design would not change the character of the town.

“The proposed roadworks and streetscape works are sympathetic with the existing historic streetscape elements and will therefore make a positive contribution to the overall street and townscape aesthetic,” he said.

Concept images of the re-design of Wellington Street shows planterboxes and trees beside the road.
Local Mayor Mary Knowles said the street width would not be affected and would not impact on heavy vehicles and cyclists.(Supplied: Northern Midlands Council/Lange Design)

Mr Morris, who is also a keen cyclist, said he had concerns about what the works meant for those riding through town.

“We have got a strong cycling community here in Longford and the reality is this development is going to narrow the effective roadway for us,” he said.

“At the moment, we’ve got room to cycle along between the park cars and the main thoroughfare, but if this goes through we will be out in the main thoroughfare.”

Main street of the Tasmanian town of Longford
The council says “new protuberances” would come out no further than parked vehicles, but farmer Rob Bayles said the plan would “make it narrower in every spot”.(ABC News: Damian McIntyre)

Ebony Brooks, who works at JJ’s Bakery that’s on Wellington Street, said the street needed a revamp but wasn’t sold on the existing proposal.

“I have heard a lot of mixed reviews, both positive and negative,” she said.

“We are a rural town, every second or third vehicle is a tractor or truck, so it will affect them driving through.”

In a statement, Northern Midlands Mayor Mary Knowles said Wellington Street’s width would not be affected and the works would not impact on heavy vehicles and cyclists.

“The new protuberances at the intersections come out no further than the parked vehicles in the street,” she said.

“The protuberances will improve safety for all users. Particularly drivers of vehicles leaving side streets will have improved visibility when entering the main street; and safety will be increased for pedestrians traversing the roads.”

Mr Bayles disagreed.

“The system is not broken now, why does it need to be changed? There is room to pull off, there is room for trucks to get around corners, and they are just going to make it narrower in every spot.”

Mary Knowles smiles at the camera.
Northern Midlands Major Mary Knowles, Tasmania.(ABC News: Lachlan Bennett)

Council officers recommended the works be approved, but councilors voted to defer the decision until after it was considered by the Northern Midlands Bicycle Advisory Committee.

The works have been approved by the Department of State Growth.

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