Six-month mark creates lessons in disaster recovery

MORE than six months have passed since the La Nina summer culminated in floods and cyclones across the State.
It is sufficient time for us to analyse the progress of the recovery and assess the efficacy of our response to these natural disasters.
It has been widely documented that the initial response in terms of the rural sector was too slow and failed to learn from some lessons of the past, including similar disasters as recently as Cyclone Larry in 2006.
Even when it became clear that both the floods and Cyclone Yasi were unprecedented natural disasters, farmers in some areas had to wait weeks or months to learn what assistance measures would be available to them.
On a broader community scale, the recent interim report from the Flood Commission of Inquiry also identified a number of failings in the disaster response and improvements to be made, with a particular focus on Brisbane and the surrounding region.
In regards to the farm sector, QFF will be working with the Government to ensure that industry and government are better prepared in the future.
Our aim is for farmers and the community to learn from these disasters and to build more resilient farms, businesses, and communities.
The Queensland climate will always present us with challenges, but the countless examples of farmers “getting on with the job” and restoring their businesses shows how resilient we are as a bunch.
As the initial clean-up work concludes, we are entering the next phase of the recovery. This will involve ongoing work with farmers to reinforce the lessons they have learned and help them prepare, where possible, against future disasters.
Ultimately, Category 5 cyclones and record floods will always cause havoc, but it will be important for recovering farmers and communities to know that there are steps they can take to prepare ahead of the event and that they can instigate procedures that help prepare post-event in the future.
There have been success stories as well.
The latest QRAA data on Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangement (NDRRA) for earlier this month shows that in Far North Queensland 2865 farmers and small businesses have received disasters payments averaging $7395 and totalling greater than $21 million.
Across the whole State, 11,765 farmers and small businesses have received disaster grant payments totalling about $102 million at an average of $8662.
This average payment amount has been climbing steadily, showing that there was an initial focus on $5000 grants and the second $20,000 component has followed subsequently.
It is clear from the data that a lot of work has been done but also, as Major-General Mick Slater has said, “recovery is a marathon, not sprint”.
In Far North Queensland, we are also hearing many positive stories through the Industry Recovery Officer program, which is a joint initiative between industry and government helping farmers to access the various forms of assistance on offer.
Louis Lardi is one of the IROs in the region, employed by the Australian Banana Growers Council, through QFF.
Louis tells me that the banana industry is showing good signs of recovery, with bunches back to a nice size.
It looks like carton numbers will return to normal production by the end of November, building up from September.
Louis has been helping farmers such as Grahame Celledoni at Mourilyan get access to the grants I mentioned earlier, which has put his farm back on track faster.
The result of that, as QFF has continued to reiterate, is not just a benefit for the individual farmer such as Grahame. It also benefits local employment and the economy, and even across the country as shoppers everywhere look for more sustainable retail banana prices.
At the time of the cyclone, Grahame Celledoni said that the he was concerned that the various grants and loans on offer would be too difficult to access. It was through the help of Louis that Grahame has received grant and loan assistance, and he is reporting that he can do everything that needs to be done and to get his farm back to where it should be.