Article from ABC: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-09-18/higher-aussie-bids-for-cubbie-knocked-back/4268400 This follows on / relates to discussions here: http://forums.silverstackers.com/topic-30438-gina-and-julia-page-4.html Part of me is annoyed by this revelation. The other part of me thinks that maybe the offers only came through after they realised they might be able to flip the property to the Chinese at a higher price and take a cut. Who knows.
Well I guess if the Aussies running it managed to run it into the ground to the tune of $300 million then maybe it is time for someone else to have ago. I guess this way they are bringing new money into the country. Land grabs are nothing new but they usually play out in undeveloped countries... http://www.theecologist.org/News/ne...ultural_landgrab_revealed_on_new_website.html
I wish the australian government had purchased it and shut it down, its a massive drain on the murray darling basin.
Is it?? I take it you haven't been out to Menindee lately.. Storage information View Storage data These data values are taken from the recording nearest to 9am. Tuesday Monday Sunday Saturday Friday Thursday Wednesday 18-Sep-2012 17-Sep-2012 16-Sep-2012 15-Sep-2012 14-Sep-2012 13-Sep-2012 12-Sep-2012 DARLING RIVER AT LAKES WETHERELL+ TANDURE TOTAL STORAGE (425020) Percent Full (%) 127.7 127.5 127.2 126.7 125.7 125.2 125.5 Volume (ML) 244,545 244,190 243,598 242,655 240,776 239,842 240,426 DARLING RIVER AT LAKE PAMAMAROO - STORAGE GAUGE (425021) Percent Full (%) 126.8 - - 125.8 125.8 124.6 124.4 Volume (ML) 348,680 - - 345,770 345,770 342,852 342,123 DARLING RIVER AT LAKE MENINDEE - STORAGE GAUGE (425022) Percent Full (%) 115.2 - - 116.1 116.4 116.4 116.7 Volume (ML) 716,046 - - 721,040 722,690 722,690 724,343 LAKE CAWNDILLA - STORAGE - GAUGE (425023) Percent Full (%) 111.8 - - 112.5 112.7 112.7 113.0 Volume (ML) 695,546 - - 699,250 700,484 700,484 701,720 MENINDEE TOTAL STORAGE (425049) Percent Full (%) 115.9 - - 116.0 115.9 115.9 116.0 Volume (ML) 2,006,911 - - 2,009,267 2,007,399 2,007,325 2,009,405 Still 4,428 ML/day going down the Anabranch, and the river at Wilcannia is flowing 4,395 ML/day (latest readings) Source >> http://waterinfo.nsw.gov.au/drr/darling.shtml#storage Aaand, Cubbie has long since taken all it can, so it's effect on the system right now is zip, nada, zilch..... 3 years ago, Cubbie had no water and they couldn't give it away.. I was told at the time that they were actually growing (dryland) wheat in the bottom of their storage dams, to try & get what they could out of what little subsoil moisture remained.. Then, guess what?? it rained!! (and rained some more)................ At the height of the floods, it was estimated that Cubbie drew something like 6% of the water that was running past it, and this would have been only for the time it took to fill their storages, a couple of days at most, and there was one heck of a lot of water entering the Darling River (via the Warrego & Barwon Rivers) that had gone nowhere near Cubbie Station, so this "massive drain on the murray darling basin" is, to put it bluntly, a pile of horsesh$t! (nothing personal here, ya understand ) It should be noted also, that Cubbie Station is by no means the only cotton irrigator in the Darling River catchment (just the biggest, which makes it the favoured "whipping boy") Simple fact is (as far as this catchment is concerned), it is rainfall over & above all else that determines river flows.. As for the sale to foreign interests, well, I reckon the next drought will sort that out (just a question of "when" not "if"), then, just like everyone else on the river, they'll (once again) have no water.................... edited to correct spelling
Thanks Dan Nice to see some actual reality for a change, funny how all we ever hear about the Murray/Darling system is drought, never when it actually floods and replenishes. The snowfall at the headwaters should also see a continued flow this season as well but you wont read about that in the MSM headlines either.
But you can't eat one of our national symbols (the kangaroo)!!!! That's like asking the Americans to eat their the bald eagle. How unpatriotic!!!! :lol: edit: I hope the more "worldly" on this forum recognise a facetious comment when they see one.
Tell that to the meat aisle at the local Woolies. Easy to overcook though which turns a few people off when they're trying to chew anything cooked more than medium rare.
@dan unda, thanks for the data there Dan and its ok thanks I wont take it personally, but when its huge water storage dams stretch for more than 28 km along the Culgoa River, part of the Murray-Darling system and in an average year the Station uses 200,000 megaliters of water, in a good year as much as 500,000 megalitres. then you have to ask could it be put to better use growing food or providing Lake Alexandria the much needed water the local wildlife depends on. Dont get me wrong mate I am nooooo greenie, I am in agreeance with BigAD, why grow a crop like cotton in australia when as in tasmania its been shown hemp is a much less thirsty and supperior fabric to its thirsty cousin cotton.
100% agree with GP - kangaroo should be our staple meat. They breed like... well kangaroos. Always pregnant with 3 joeys on the go. Less environmental impact than the hard-hooved non-natives. Low fat so an excellent food source. But as GP said, only requires a quick cook. We only eat kangaroo and the occasional lamb in our house. The discussion over why cotton in Australia is valid. I also thought this would extend to rice as well but had a conversation with a farmer on a plane recently who told me that the flooded paddies are only used for weed control. You can grow rice without the need for flooding. I assuem it woud involve greater use of herbicides though which would make monsanto happy.
It was interesting to see that the water storages are in excess of 100% full. Must be a heaps of water flowing over the guages then. I'm not aware of the tender process for Cubby Station. I assume it was for sale for a while and thus open to Australian offers before going to the international community.
