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ABC News
05-06-2025
- Climate
- ABC News
Farmers face 'new world' of extreme weather as scientists urge action on climate change
Scientists and politicians are warning big policy shifts are needed to mitigate extreme weather impacts, following what farmers describe as unprecedented flooding in the New South Wales Hunter and Mid North Coast regions last month. Climate scientist and University of Melbourne Emeritus Professor David Karoly said a near-stationary high pressure system in the Tasman Sea had contributed to the high rainfall event, stalling a moist, easterly flow of air over the NSW coast. Dr Karoly, who is a member of the Climate Council, said governments needed to take action on climate change to limit these types of extreme events. He said a range of approaches were needed, including changes to farming practices. "Farmers have to think about how they can reduce erosion associated with some of these increased rainfall extremes, but also need to think about how they can manage their farm dams because we're also seeing increases in the frequency of drought," he said. Craig Emerton, whose family has been farming at Croki since 1856, described the May floods as "totally unprecedented", with water levels three times higher than he had experienced before. However, the dairy farmer said he was not convinced climate change was the issue. He pointed to geography for evidence of what happened before Australia was colonised and flood height records were started. "When we look at the landform on this coastal flood plain, we can see that there's been big floods over the years where sediment has built up," he said. "My dad spoke of six floods in six weeks … so we just happen to be in a very wet period." At Dungong, fellow dairy farmer Sue McGinn shared his view. "I believe the Australian climate has always been a land of droughts and floods," she said. In March, ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred crossed Ms McGinn's property, then what she described as a "rain bomb" dumped another 200 millimetres in just a few hours in the middle of the night on May 3. She said it was the farm's most difficult season in 31 years, and she and her husband were exhausted by the repeated setbacks. While both farmers are right that Australia has always had extreme weather events like this, what is changing is the frequency and intensity of those events. The Climate Council said the recent flooding disasters are linked to human-led climate change caused by emissions from fossil fuels. Chief executive Amanda McKenzie said a number of events combined to make the May floods more severe. They included an increase in the amount of water vapour in the atmosphere, which reached a record high in 2024 at about 5 per cent above the 1991–2020 average, according to Climate Council data. The Bureau of Meteorology said in its Special Climate Statement 77 in September 2023 that every 1 degree Celsius of warming could increase moisture in the atmosphere by 7 per cent, which could provide more energy for some processes that generated extreme rainfall events. Ms McKenzie said Australia was experiencing 7 to 28 per cent more rain for shorter duration rainfall events and 2 to 15 per cent more rain for longer duration events. Scientists can analyse whether single extreme events are linked to climate change. Extreme weather research organisation ClimaMeter, funded by the European Union and the French National Centre for Scientific Research, has published a paper looking at the link between climate change and the May NSW floods. It studied changes in weather patterns since 1950 and concluded that the extreme precipitation that caused the flooding was intensified by human-induced climate change, with natural variability playing a secondary role. NSW Greens MP Sue Higginson is also a farmer in the Northern Rivers region. Her property on the Richmond River near Lismore was impacted by the 2022 flood, and she puts the blame for such events squarely on climate change. Ms Higginson said some farming practices were no longer viable and communities would need to adjust. "In the north, we're looking at some of our very low-lying cane fields, we know they're no longer viable in the coming years," she said. In some cases, Ms Higginson said farmers would have to move. "When we get to the hard edges where we can't adapt to a changing climate, then yes, we have to retreat and relocate," she said. She said governments must stop approving new fossil fuel projects. "When I see the premier and the ministers out there on the frontline of the disaster zones … but then in the same breath on the same day we see the NSW government approving brand new coal expansions in the Hunter Valley … that sort of hypocrisy or not joining the dots I think is doing no-one any favours," Ms Higginson said. Dr Karoly said while the link between climate change and extreme weather was well-known, Australia did not have a national climate adaptation plan. "There was one due out before the last election, but it's been delayed," he said. He said he wanted the government to stop approving fossil fuel developments and to increase taxes on the mining industry to fund projects that helped communities address repeat disasters. Dr Karoly said Taree may need to consider levee banks, relocating houses, and drainage systems that could remove floodwater quickly. "What we need are local plans for doing that effectively and rapidly," he said.
ABC News
29-05-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Flood-hit NSW residents say insurance unaffordable as premiums skyrocket
Glen Schmidt and Cindy West did everything they could to prepare when they heard flooding was expected to hit their town on the NSW Mid North Coast. But despite their efforts, floodwater surged through their Wingham home, rising to 1.6 metres. "I [did] everything possible — made over 150 sandbags, put bilge pumps in, the water was just so high," Mr Schmidt said. With the water now gone, the couple face the daunting task of cleaning up the damage without the support of insurance. They bought the property two years ago, with flood insurance which they claimed at the time cost just over $2,000. "But the insurance prices now just skyrocketed to $28,000, we just couldn't afford it for the following years," Mr Schmidt said. Ms West said most homeowners in the region wanted insurance but few could afford it. "How can you find $28,000 to insure your property," she said. Craig and Debbie Emerton, who run a dairy farm in the small village of Croki, said last week's floods had left their property in "total devastation". Mr Emerton said it was the worst flood they had experienced. "I've been through the 1978 flood, which only had 100 millimetres of water in the house, then (in) the 2021 flood we had 200 millimetres in the house, and this was around 900 millimetres in the house," he said. The couple have been struggling to regroup. "(We) haven't been able to produce any quality milk for a week now, weren't able to milk the cows for four days," Mr Emerton said. The couple lost about 50 cattle, predominantly calves, when the flood swept through the town last week. Five cattle were found in neighbours' paddocks, but 27 were still unaccounted for. "It breaks your heart, they are just not cattle to us — they are something closer to children," Mr Emerton said. Mr Emerton, a fifth-generation farmer, has been working the land with his wife for 35 years. But after the damage to their property and farm, they are considering moving to higher ground. "We don't want to but it looks like we are going to probably be forced to," Mr Emerton said. "We can't deal with this again." Like many of their neighbours around the Manning River, the couple were not insured. "As residents in a flood plain, the premiums are so high so the majority of people can't afford them," Mr Emerton said. Insurance Council of Australia CEO Andrew Hall said the rise in premiums was due to a range of issues. "We've had record events, record claim numbers and, on top of that, building inflation has been around 40 per cent in three years alone," he said. He said about 6,000 insurance claims have already been lodged, and it was growing by a thousand each day. "What we do need to do is have a conversation with the federal and state governments about a flood-defence fund," he said. The Insurance Council of Australia put forward a proposal to the Albanese government before the last federal election for a $30 billion flood-defence fund over 10 years. "There are around 220,000 homes in high-risk flood areas that need to be better protected," he said. Mr Hall said the Insurance Council of Australia was calling on the government to "put the money on the table". "Give these communities options that they can work through, whether it's a flood levee, house raising, waterproofing or, in worst case scenarios, buybacks," he said. Mr Schmidt said a flood-defence fund would be greatly welcomed and "they would 100 per cent accept a buyback scheme". However, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese recently said buybacks were unavailable. "He hasn't even been down our street — our street was one of the hardest hit streets here in Wingham," Mr Schmidt said. The federal government announced a one-off, $1,000 payment for residents of nine areas who had significant property damage or had lost a loved one. "A thousand dollars is better than nothing, but when you have nothing, it doesn't go very far," Ms West said.
ABC News
28-05-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Flood-hit dairy farmers are struggling, and it may mean higher milk prices
Exhausted and sore, slowly dragging their muddy hooves through the paddock to be milked after several days stranded. This is how some cattle emerged from the NSW floods, while hundreds more were washed away. "The calves were the ones that really took a hit," Croki dairy farmer Craig Emerton said. "We lost roughly 55 under 12-months-old." NSW is known for its fresh milk production, and typically cows are milked two or three times a day — every day of the year. The industry estimates more than 137 dairy farms across the state's Mid-North Coast and Hunter region were impacted by last week's record flooding. Some farms were isolated, equipment damaged and feed depleted. If cows were not lost, many are now unwell, suffering from lameness, mastitis and discomfort after missed milkings. "If they don't start milking again at a certain time, they stop milking," Josh Hack, a farmer and agronomist in Taree, said. "For these dairy farmers to get up and get going again … They've got no feed, they can't access feed, and now there's no cash flow." Dairy farmers have been increasingly forced to leave the industry in recent years, partly due to extreme weather, such as droughts, floods, and bushfires. Already NSW farms declined from 1,725 in 2000 to 452 in 2024, according to NSW government figures. Now farmers such as Mr Emerton — a fifth-generation farmer who lost dozens of cattle — may be the next to bow out. "I'm nearly 63. To build this back to what we had last week is going to take five years," Mr Emerton said. "Do I have it in me physically to do that now? Before this, I had been thinking about retirement." The impact of the floods could ultimately drive up the cost of milk for consumers with production expected to dwindle. Eliza Redfern, analysis and insights manager at Dairy Australia, said the challenging weather conditions across the region were having an impact on milk production at varying levels. EastAUSMilk forecast the flood could cut NSW production by 5 per cent. The price of milk will be what determines if some farmers survive long-term. On June 1, the farmgate prices will be set, which is the price paid by suppliers to farmers for milk. "We're totally reliant on this milk price being released," Port Macquarie dairy farmer Emily Neilson, said. "If it's not good enough, we're going to lose farmers in droves." Ms Neilson, whose farm supplies milk to Paul's Dairy, has a confronting few months ahead. From the outside her paddock looks lush and green, but underneath it's waterlogged. With winter approaching, it was too late to re-sow. "We don't know what we're going to feed the cows for the next six months," she said. Ms Neilson may have to buy extra truckloads of hay bales for her cows and 110 heifers. "Our feed bill per month, if we have to put everything on hay, will be a minimum of $70,000 a month," Ms Neilson said. "On the current milk price, our income is around about $65,000 a month. So if the feed bill is $70,000, I can't even pay my staff." She said currently they were not even receiving 55 per cent of the retail price for milk. The Dairy Australia outlook released this week was expecting higher farmgate milk prices for the upcoming season. Whether that gets passed onto consumers depends on retailers. "The retailers set the price paid for milk and dairy at the supermarket check-out," Ms Redfern from Dairy Australia said. If consumers don't carry the cost increase, they are often borne elsewhere in the supply chain, she added. In the short-term, Taree farmer Josh Hack said getting feed to farmers was crucial. Charity organisations such as Need for Feed were doing a great job, but it would be hard to help the volume of affected farms, he said. "For some people, this is a 12-month to two-year feed gap." Before last week's weather event, there were the 2021 floods, followed by years of more unpredictable conditions. Malcolm Holmes, chair of the NSW Farming steering committee, said dairy farming was an "intense business". Each farm employs at least three or four staff with dozens more in the community, he said. But the sustainability of the industry was being questioned in the face of ongoing challenges. "There's a lot less dairy farmers than there used to be," Mr Holmes said. "Some areas will bounce back, but I think a number of farmers will really question, 'is this really worth it'?"
