User:Peter Campbell/2011 Australian floods links

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These are recent links on the 2011 Australian floods (from Delicious) that I have bookmarked:

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Damage is deep, wide and expensive: THE numbers are big, the damage bills massive and recovery could take years. Agricultural crop losses alone are estimated to be about $200 million, money that would have been mostly spent in country communities recovering from drought. But when the floodwater hit it washed away valuable crops as well as infrastructure such as roads and bridges - even a caravan park - and destroyed houses, machinery and cars. On top of the enormous damage bills, the water cruelly robbed many people of an income for weeks or months by temporarily closing businesses and destroying stock and equipment. [?]
Seven weeks on, Charlton is still feeling flood pain: GAIL Smyth can see straight through her walls, and if she felt so inclined, she could walk through them too. The internal walls in her Charlton home have been ripped out, after ''nine foot tall'' mould was discovered growing in them. It makes it easier to get around the house, to see who is at the door - she has a constant stream of visitors - and to see where her husband, Stewart, is. But there the advantages stop abruptly [?]
Dunk and disorderly: a tropical paradise lost: It could cost as much as $100 million to rebuild Dunk, as every structure on the island is damaged and much of the vegetation is dead. Hideaway Resorts will not speculate publicly about the final repair bill, as insurance assessors are still taking stock of the damage. ''It's significant,'' chief executive Mark Campbell said. Dunk Island would not welcome tourists again until spring at the earliest, missing out on peak season. [?]
State disasters extract $17 toll on all | The Australian: QUEENSLAND'S natural disasters have already cost other Australians up to $17 each in lost GST receipts, even before the latest floods. New Commonwealth Grants Commission data shows that on top of federal disaster funding agreements, almost all other states had a share of their GST redirected to Queensland in 2010-11 to help fund its repair bills. Queenslanders earned $15 each from the redistribution, while South Australians and ACT residents sacrificed the most, forgoing $17 per capita in GST dollars that would have otherwise flowed to their state or territory governments. Queensland does not insure its assets against disasters such as the summer floods. [?]
Flood victims seek action from desal plant firms: ANGRY residents affected by the floods are demanding action from companies linked to Victoria's desalination plant, amid claims project construction work exacerbated flooding on several properties east of Melbourne. The claims centre on the 84-kilometre pipe that will carry desalinated water to Melbourne, with farmers near Koo Wee Rup saying work on the pipe left local flood levy banks in a state of disrepair. But while pressure built on the private firms linked to the pipe, it eased on Victoria's over-stretched State Emergency Service as floods across much of the state receded. [?]
Lib row on budget cuts: DEPUTY Opposition Leader Julie Bishop has fought off a proposal by Tony Abbott for a $373 million cut in foreign aid to Africa, as internal Liberal division flares over the flood levy strategy. Ms Bishop has also warned that Mr Abbott's plan to spell out specific cuts that he says should be made instead of imposing the $1.8 billion levy was ''a trap'' for the opposition. [?]
Floods expose national loss of loyalty and respect for leaders: It's a pity Julia Gillard announced her flood levy after Australia Day rather than before it. Instead of spending the day telling ourselves what wonderful people Aussies are, we could have reflected on our darker side - why we're developing a Jekyll and Hyde personality. As many acts of minor and major heroism during the Queensland floods have reminded us, Aussies are good people to be around in times of crisis. We rise to the occasion; we pull together. If we're on the spot and see someone in difficulties we'll do all we can to help them, then look around for anyone else who needs helping. [?]
Flood Levy | Budget Cuts | Gillard | Abbott | Greens: They say a week is a long time in politics. Two weeks ago, the widespread floods were a political no-go zone, now it seems the gloves are off. Everyone from Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott to Warren Truss and Anthony AlbaneseÂ is warming up for the first mud-slinging session of the year, when parliament resumes next week. The response from both sides of politics to this disaster has been interesting. The government is rightly pledging to help Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales with their multibillion-dollar clean-ups. It has introduced a levy and cuts to services to fund this. [?]
Gillard dismisses calls for permanent disaster fund - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation): Prime Minister Julia Gillard has brushed aside calls from independent MPs for her to set up a permanent natural disaster fund. The Government is seeking their support for a one-off levy to raise $1.8 billion for rebuilding in flood-affected areas. Speaking at a charity sausage sizzle at the Gabba in Brisbane, Ms Gillard says the Government is well equipped to respond to natural disasters but the scale of the recent flooding means it needs special treatment. [?]
All bark but no bite: Liberal attack dog Tony Abbott was so predictable in savaging Labor's flood levy. It was an opportunity lost. TONY Abbott spent Australia Day doing what he does very well - mixing easily with people at a flood-relief sausage sizzle, taking part in a 2.5-kilometre swim in Sydney Harbour, and producing a pithy line bagging Julia Gillard and her flood levy before it was even announced. ''It seems the Prime Minister is going to call this a 'mateship tax', but mates help each other. They don't tax each other,'' he told reporters. It was such a good line he reprised it the next day, telling George Negus: ''Mates choose to do things for each other. They aren't made to do things for each other.'' [?]