CYCLONE HOT SPOT ADDED TO STORM TIDE WARNING SYSTEM

The Mornington Island community soon will have early warning of storm tides associated with cyclones, Environment Minister Lindy Nelson-Carr said today.

The announcement that the Queensland Government, through the Environmental Protection Agency, would install a storm tide gauge in the southern Gulf of Carpentaria community comes in the lead-up to the cyclone summit which Premier Peter Beattie will host at James Cook University, Cairns, tomorrow and Friday.

“Mornington Island is the ideal site for this storm tide gauge because it is a hot spot for tropical cyclones during the summer months,” Ms Nelson-Carr said.

“Although people living on the Gulf have learned to live with these devastating storms, low-lying areas are always at risk from the storm tides that may accompany them.

“We have learned from Cyclone Larry and other big storms in the past that early-warning systems are vital to prepare for such disasters.

“Early advice will help with the decision to evacuate threatened communities because these decisions need to be made well in advance of a cyclone crossing the coast – while it is still safe to move people.”

The $80,000 storm tide gauge would be placed at Mornington Island’s barge ramp at Gununa by the beginning of next year, Ms Nelson-Carr said.

The gauge’s underwater pressure sensors measure sea levels.

This information will be sent to a data logger and transmitted via a mobile telephone network to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) storm tide advisors.

They will use this information to help predict the likely magnitude and timing of a storm tide at Mornington Island and along much of the southern Gulf coastline.

The storm tide gauge will be part of the Queensland Storm Tide Warning Response System which includes the EPA’s existing storm tide gauge network of 22 other sites along the Queensland coastline.

Ms Nelson-Carr said predictive weather data was valuable, with forecasts of rising sea levels and more extreme weather conditions.

The EPA’s network of storm tide gauges which were set up along the east coast in the 1980s provides useful long-term data about tidal conditions.

For more information, visit the EPA website at www.epa.qld.gov.au and search for the State of the Environment Report.

Media contact:Karla Steen on 3336 8004 or Andie Gatti on 3336 8002