Heavy rains have brought flooding to parts of Tasmania, with flooded roads and emergency crews kept busy — but weather forecasters say the worst has passed.
Key points:
A number of severe weather warnings are in place for areas of Tasmania
Roads have been closed and electricity cut due to downed powerlines
The BOM says the worst of the rains have passed
Thousands of people were without electricity on Sunday morning, with Tasmania’s electricity utility TasNetworks reporting outages in Eaglehawk Neck, Highcroft, Koonya, Nubeena, Port Arthur, Premaydena, White Beach and surrounds “believed to be weather related”.
At 10am, the SES’s Leon Smith said there had been 40 call outs for “minor flood damage”.
“Things like water coming in through rooves, gutters overflowing, and water coming into homes.”
He said the calls starting coming from the northern suburbs and Greater Hobart area, but “as the system is moving south, crews are now active in the Huonville and Franklin areas.”
Mr Smith said there was “potential for thunderstorm activity”.
The SES will hold a press conference at 1pm today to update the situation.
A wet scene at Mountain River, south of Hobart.(Supplied: Kinnan Brightman)
The Bureau of Meteorology’s Deb Tabor said “certainly, the worst of it has happened.”
“But it will still be wet for the rest of the day, particularly in the east and south the winds will start to ease off, and they will get a little bit gustier in the afternoon on the east coast.
“Up to 9am this morning, the highest rainfall has been kunanyi/Mt Wellington at 109mm.”
Ms Tabor said there had been 91mm of rainfall at Nugent, 71mm at Mt St John, 68mm at Gray in the north-east, 67mm at Buckland and 56mm in Fern Tree.
Water has cut roads in the flood-prone area of Huonville, 38 kilometers south of Hobart, with Tasmania Police advising the Esplanade is closed due to water from the Huon River over the roadway.
Some residents have reported sandbagging their homes on Flood Road, with assistance from SES volunteers.
Tasmania Police are updating their list of road closures due to the weather.
In Baghdad, 37 kilometers north of Hobart, roads were flooded and residents watched as waterways swelled.
A resident in the town said the “rain was very heavy and the water came up really fast from the time I got up at seven till now”.
“We flood a bit in winter but this is crazy and seems to be getting worse every year.”
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Heavy rains hit Tasmanian orchard at Grove
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A Cygnet resident said she had “not seen this kind of rain for about 17 years.”
“Last time it washed away our little water crossing at the bottom of our street, this morning it’s starting to overlap that crossing.
“It’s incredible how much water is coming down the creeks, our rain tanks were nearly empty yesterday and today they’re overflowing.”
Stay up to date with the latest warnings on the Bureau of Meteorology’s weather warnings for Tasmania website.
Aurora and Violet could see the bright side of the gloomy weather in Huonville.(ABC News: Daniel Miller)
The answer to cheaper and cleaner energy has been blowing in the wind for years — and finally the federal government has realized, green energy advocates say.
Key points:
$160 million will be spent to connect a wind farm precinct to the grid
The infrastructure is already under construction
Chris Bowen says it will put “downward pressure” on power prices
This week’s announcement that the federal government will foot the bill to connect the Southern Renewable Energy Zone to the national electricity market is historic, according to the Queensland Conservation Council.
“We’re finally seeing some clarity from government on the fact that we are transitioning to renewables,” council director Dave Copeman said.
“For too long, it was a political football. And that just meant there was no certainty for investors.”
Mr Copeman said that “lack of certainty” had hurt Queenslanders in the hip pocket.
“Our power bills have gone up… but this decision says the future of power will be cleaner and cheaper,” he said.
“There’s no fuel price for wind or solar, it doesn’t go up and down when you have international crises.
“It just gets cheaper and cheaper the more you build.”
The Macintyre wind farm precinct, which is one of two projects in the Southern Renewable Energy Zone, is expected to be operational on the Southern Downs in 2024.
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Construction of MacIntyre Wind Precinct kicks off in Queensland.(Supplied: ACCIONA Energy)
Nail in the coffin for fossil fuels?
Not too far from the Southern Renewable Energy Zone is the town of Acland, home to the New Acland Coal Mine.
Owners of the mine are hoping to expand its operation.
But Mr Copeman said the government’s decision to pay to connect renewables to the grid sent a message to the fossil fuel industry.
“If I was someone who was looking to invest in fossil fuels in Australia, I’d say this is not a good time to do so, because the government has made clear our intention is to reduce emissions,” Mr Copeman said.
Queensland Resources Council chief executive Ian Macfarlane rejected claims the decision would have any influence on the future of the mine’s operations.
“There’s really no connection and to use the Prime Minister’s words, we should be mining while ever there is a demand for it,” he said.
Mr Macfarlane said while the sector welcomed bringing more reliable renewables online, there was still a future for coal and gas producers.
“We still have a near and present danger that we will not have the reliability of electricity because even the best wind farms and solar farms only produce for about 40 per cent of the time,” Mr Macfarlane said.
Southern Downs Regional Greater Vic Pennisi said he was just happy no one had complained about the wind turbines.
“When we were doing a solar farm there were plenty of complaints in relation to that,” he said.
Vic Pennisi says his community has welcomed the wind farm.(ABC News: Elly Bradfield)
“And at this point in time I’m not aware of any complaints in relation to the [wind farm] project.”
He said the long-term benefits would have been seen throughout the community.
“There’s the construction and the maintenance phase, but it’s not just that, it’s what you use the power for that will generate another level of economic benefit,” he said.
He said the region’s ideal weather conditions were part of the reason it was being touted as the future energy capital of Australia.
“You need wind and you need sunshine and we’ve got both of them and we’ve got the lowest differential between hot and cold [temperatures] and that would be a factor for it as well,” he said.
The federal government has agreed to cover the multi-million-dollar cost of connecting what will be one of the world’s biggest wind farm precincts to Australia’s power grid.
Key points:
The Commonwealth will pay $160 million to connect a wind farm precinct to the grid
The infrastructure is already under construction
Federal Minister Chris Bowen says it will put “downward pressure” on power prices
Its investment arm, the Clean Energy and Finance Corporation (CEFC), has committed $160 million to connect the Southern Renewable Energy Zone (REZ), to the national electricity market.
The REZ currently consists of two projects in the Southern Downs — the 103-megawatt Karara Wind Farm, controlled by state government-owned renewable generator CleanCo, and the 923MW Macintyre Wind Farm, owned and operated by renewable energy firm Acciona.
It requires 65 kilometers of overhead transmission lines and two switching stations to be connected to the energy market.
Powerlink – the company in charge of managing and running Queensland’s power network – began constructing the infrastructure in March.
Queensland Energy Minister Mick de Brenni said CEFC will absorb the cost and that the new investment would unlock up to 500MW of network hosting capacity.
“Connecting the massive project to the national grid not only unlocks $2 billion worth of investment, it also increases reliability of power across the three east Australian states, with clean Queensland-made energy,” he said.
The deal will improve capacity in the energy grid.(ABC News: Chris Gillette)
Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the investment was a “game changer.”
“A better future is powered by cleaner, cheaper and more reliable energy,” he said
“This CEFC investment is a game changer when it comes to hooking these new sources up to the grid … and we want to see more of it,” he said.
This is the first partnership between a Queensland government-owned company and the CEFC.
Federal Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen said it would increase renewable supplies to households and businesses in southern Queensland and the east-coast of Australia.
Connecting the wind farm precinct to the grid is a “game changer”, Mr Chalmer says.(ABC News: Philippa McDonald)
“The best way to put downward pressure on energy prices is to ramp up investment in renewables, transmission and storage and that is exactly what this $160 million commitment will do,” Mr Bowen said.
The Macintyre wind farm precinct is expected to be operational in 2024.
Mr Chalmers did not commit to a time frame on when households and businesses would benefit from the infrastructure.
“Clearly, projects of this size and this significance can’t be turned on overnight and require some kind of run-up.
“But what this investment means [is] it will be delivered faster than otherwise,” he said.
With already high petroleum prices expected to rise even further this year, solar projects that will shift dependency away from diesel are underway in several West Australian regional towns.
Key points:
A solar farm and battery will be built in the WA town of Norseman
It will result in about 24 per cent of the town’s power coming from renewable sources
Similar projects are planned for several towns in the WA Mid West
Energy provider Horizon Power has announced it would build a centralized solar farm and battery in Norseman, about 720km east of Perth.
The 758 kilowatt solar farm would consist of 1,400 panels and would house a 336 kilowatt-hour battery energy storage system.
On completion, the project would see just over 24 per cent of the town’s energy sourced from renewable energy.
Currently, the township relies entirely on a diesel-generated power station for its electricity.
Dundas Shire President Laurene Bonza said a development application had been lodged with the council.
“It looks like solar and renewables are going to be the way of the future and we get a little bit of a jump on that,” she said.
“Hopefully, it will mean our power is reliable and we are doing our bit.”
If approved, construction was expected to get underground early next year.
Laurene Bonza says a development application has been lodged.(ABC News: Rosemary Murphy)
The diesel power plant would then be used to ensure supply.
Demand for energy was expected to increase with a gold mill currently under construction in the area.
“The mine has already extended the old power station and added in a couple more diesel generators to make sure we so don’t end up in the dark,” Ms Bonza said.
“Este [solar farm and battery] should make sure we never end up in the dark.”
There was an extra incentive to switch to renewables when the federal government’s temporary cut to the fuel excise tax was removed at the end of September.
regional roll-out
The Norseman solar project was part of a broader roll out in which Horizon Power planned to install centralized solar and battery storages systems in the mid-west towns of Cue, Sandstone, Meekatharra, Mount Magnet, Wiluna and Yalgoo.
Horizon Power Esperance and Goldfields spokesperson Priscilla Davies said the Norseman solar farm would be completed by mid 2023.
“With the other towns we are looking at beginning some later this year, in September or October,” she said.
“What we are looking at doing is assisting the towns that have a heavy diesel reliance at the moment and giving them the opportunity to have some renewable power generation.”
future developments
Curtin University professor of sustainability Peter Newman said the majority of new standalone power systems that were going into farms, remote stations and small towns still used diesel as a backup, even if a battery was available.
“Diesel is very expensive and it’s quite poisonous, so the sooner we get rid of it the better and we are going through that change process now,” he said.
“There is a new invention in Western Australia which is making hydrogen out of the excess solar that is around most days.
“That hydrogen can then be used instead of diesel, and I think is the way we will go in the future to get rid of the final bits of diesel.”
Peter Newman says developments in hydrogen are exciting.(Supplied: Curtin University)
Mr Newman said WA had the potential to be a leader in the shift away from fossil fuels and to more renewable sources.
“I think we are going to one of the first places in the world that can get off fossil fuels and thrive,” he said.
“It’s a lot better when you’re relying on sunshine rather than importing oil from wherever.”
Ricky Barone installed a solar system on his roof in 2014 to make the most of the North Queensland sun and save money on his electricity bills.
Key points:
Ricky Barone has been told his installation is a fire hazard but the retailer won’t uninstall it
A number of regulatory bodies are receiving complaints about solar retailers, manufacturers and installers
Some of the main issues raised relate to price, quality and high-pressure sales
Since its installation, however, it has cost him thousands of dollars and years of sleepless nights.
It wasn’t until a so-called solar doctor inspected his rooftop panels this year that the Mackay man realized the potential hazard he was living under.
“I have [the solar inspector] basically said it’s badly installed and there’s a big chance it could catch fire,” Mr Barone said.
“I was so ticked off and I haven’t been sleeping well thinking about it.”
Mr Barone said it was a two-year wait to get a solar system installed by a local company, so he instead turned to a company based in Melbourne.
Ricky Barone and his son in Mackay.(ABC Tropical North: Hannah Walsh)
He said the problems started after about six months and then he had difficulty getting parts replaced, such as when the inverters failed after 18 months.
On one occasion a neighbor called Mr Barone to alert him to a fire.
“They blew up the meter box,” he said.
“It should have clicked from day one… we’ve had nothing but trouble with it.
“The system has never worked … we got it to try and save money to do some other renovations, but we haven’t been able to.”
Mr Barone said he wanted the company to uninstall it but the ABC understands the firm has not sold solar in a number of years.
“They just keep saying someone will get in contact, and they never do,” Mr Barone said.
“They’ve got a complaint site and there’s a lot of people in the same boat.”
The company has been contacted by the ABC for comment.
What is a solar doctor?
Jemal Solo started his own solar-inspection business in Mackay because he said no-one was advocating for home owners with solar installations.
Jemal Solo says most people do not consider getting their solar installations serviced.(ABC Tropical North: Hannah Walsh)
“We hold installers and manufacturers accountable for their products and workmanship,” Mr Solo said.
“We took this on because we saw nobody was addressing this … and when it comes to pensioners that’s when you get really upset because people buy this to save money.”
Mr Solo, who has installed solar panels and conducts inspections for the Clean Energy Regulator, said installers had a five-year defects liability period to fix their work.
“It’s your fault really if you find six years later that it hasn’t been installed properly,” he said.
“The problem is there’s no feedback loop … nobody is checking the installers’ work.
“The solar retailers don’t really care as long as they’re getting paid.”
Brian Richardson from the Queensland Electrical Safety Office said there had been instances in which interstate companies had come to Queensland without the appropriate licences.
Who can consumers turn to?
Australia does not have a national authority responsible for electrical safety.
Mr Barone said he had referred his case to the Queensland Office of Fair Trading as well as the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
A solar-inspection business in Mackay says no-one is advocating for home owners with solar installations.(Unsplash: ulleo: Public Domain)
He’s not alone.
The Office of Fair Trading deals with approximately 350 complaints a year involving solar products.
The Energy and Water Ombudsman Queensland (EWOQ) deals with complaints about solar billing and metering.
Jane Pires of the EWOQ said in the 2021–22 financial year, it received 142 complaints about solar billing errors, an increase of 92 per cent from the previous year.
It passed 153 cases related to installation and 17 related to solar warranties to the Office of Fair Trading.
Delia Ricard, deputy chair of the ACCC, said her organization was also receiving a large volume of complaints concerning consumers’ experience with retail solar panels and installation.
“If it is a small local regulator, we are likely to refer it to Queensland Fair Trading,” she said.
“Where it’s a larger national or more systematic problem, we may take enforcement or regulatory action.
“The Clean Energy Council and new tech codes are designed to lift the standards in terms of manufacture and installation of solar systems.
“While they are voluntary codes, in most states where there are rebates, you can only get the rebate if the system was purchased from somebody who comes under the code.”
There are currently no state or territory requirements for electricians to hold extra qualifications for solar.
A scheme introduced 22 years ago by the federal government aimed to address this but it will be phased out by 2030.
The Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme run by the Clean Energy Regulator provides households and businesses with financial incentives to install solar systems approved by the Clean Energy Council.
The scheme’s general manager, Matthew Power, said he had been consulting with states and territories to embed some of the scheme’s aspects into normal state and territorial electrical rules.
It is recommended a solar installation be checked once a year.(ABC Tropical North: Hannah Walsh)
“The Commonwealth scheme is setting an obligation above and beyond the state and territory requirements that are already in place,” Mr Power said.
“The system needs to be installed by a Clean Energy Council-accredited installer who has done additional qualifications and training above their normal electrical licensing.”
‘Shoddy workmanship’ complaints
Ms Ricard said some of the main issues coming across the ACCC’s desk involved misrepresentations about price and quality, as well as unsolicited high-pressure sales.
“There’s a raft of issues people complain to us about, including shoddy workmanship,” she said.
Ms Ricard said a number of regulators were looking into cases where the retailer had gone out of business.
Jemal Solo agreed he had seen too many “come and go” retailers.
“Usually what happens is the manufacturer disappears and the home owner doesn’t know who the installer is,” he said.
“Thirty per cent of the cases we deal with, the manufacturers have already withdrawn from Australia, so here you are years later with a piece of paper with a warranty on it that’s worth nothing.”
A newly developed, water-activated disposable paper battery promises to make a big impact on single-use electronics – those temporary gadgets used in medical and industrial fields where electronic waste can quickly start piling up.
The battery that has been demonstrated by researchers is biodegradable, made from sustainable materials, and cheap to put together. What’s more, it can be produced in a variety of shapes and sizes as needed.
To give an idea of the power, a two-cell battery made using the technology was enough to power an LCD alarm clock. While it won’t be charging up your laptop anytime soon, there’s lots of potential for low-powered sensors and trackers.
“We present a printed paper battery developed to power single-use disposable electronics and to minimize their environmental impact,” write the researchers in their published paper.
“The battery is based on a metal-air electrochemical cell that uses zinc as a biodegradable metal in the anode, graphite in the cathode, paper as a separator between the electrodes, and a water-based electrolyte.”
The battery, made from sodium chloride salt-diffused paper, can measure as little as one square centimeter (0.15 square inches), and is based on printed inks: one ink contains graphite flakes and acts as the cathode (positive end), while another on the other side of the paper contains zinc powder and acts as the anode (negative end).
A third ink, composed of graphite flakes and carbon black, is printed on both sides, on top of the other two inks, connecting the positive and negative ends to two wires. These are attached to one end of the paper, dipped in wax.
All that’s needed, then, is a small amount of water, as little as two drops. This dissolves the salts within the paper, releasing charged ions that then activate the battery as they travel. The circuit is closed by attaching the wires to the electrical device, meaning that electrons can be transferred from the negative to the positive ends.
With a stable voltage of 1.2 volts, the paper battery is close to the level of a standard AA alkaline battery at 1.5 volts. The battery starts producing power around 20 seconds after water is added, as per the experiments carried out by the team.
“This demonstration shows that despite its limited power density when compared to standard technologies, our battery is still relevant for a wide range of low-power electronics and the Internet of Things ecosystem,” write the researchers.
Although the performance decreases over time as the paper dries out, it can be topped up to some extent with more water. With extra water, the battery can still be producing 0.5 volts two hours after first being activated.
This is very much a proof-of-principle study for the time being, but the battery described in the paper isn’t overly complicated to produce. The researchers say they want to improve the efficiency of the battery in the future, and get it working for longer.
“With a rising awareness of the e-waste problem and the emergence of single-use electronics for applications like environmental sensing and food monitoring, there is a growing need for low environmental impact batteries,” write the researchers.
“This shift from traditional performance-oriented figures of merit creates new opportunities for unconventional materials and designs that can provide a balance between performance and environmental impact.”
The research has been published in Scientific Reports.
