Overview of Mary
The Mary region consists of a diverse range of land uses, leading to a complex interaction of drought impacts.
The Mary region covered by this Regional Drought Resilience Plan encompasses all of the Mary River Catchment and also coastal areas to the east. Land areas range from the tip of K’Gari (Fraser Island) and Hervey Bay in the north; to Imbil in the south and extending as far west as Goomeri. At its heart is the Mary River, known as Moocooboola by the Indigenous Gabi Gabi people. This was originally named the Wide Bay River by early European explorers, before being officially re-named the Mary River in 1847, in honour of the Governor’s wife. The Mary RDRP region primarily includes areas of the Fraser Coast, along with the Gympie, and Noosa Local Government Areas (LGAs).
The Mary region consists of a diverse mixture of land use with:
- two biospheres – Noosa Reserve and Great Sandy Reserve
- large population areas – Harvey Bay, Noosa, Sunshine Coast cities,
- smaller population areas dotted throughout
- large forestry reserves
- national parks
- extensive areas of farming land.
All these land uses are impacted by drought events – some of which are consistent across the land uses, with other impacts specific to particular land uses. This isn’t unique to this region but shapes the profile of drought impacts for the Mary region.
Past impacts of drought in this region
Past impacts | People, culture & community
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Examining results from the Mary region’s Wellbeing Survey shows a noticeable decline in the overall ‘wellbeing’ score for the Mary region during drought periods.
In particular, the factors most keenly affected during drought were:
- community economic wellbeing
- community wellbeing
- access to and availability of support services
- the state of Natural Capital.
Drought is also known to exacerbate chronic stresses and underlying issues such as:
- legal and financial problems
- medical and health problems
- alcohol and substance abuse
- isolation and social withdrawal
- breakdown of relationships
- in the worse cases, self harm and suicide.
These individual stresses, in turn also influence (and are influenced by) the collective wellbeing effects on communities and landscapes – in effect, drought can create a ‘vicious cycle’ of stress and decline in mental health.
Past impacts | Economy
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Recent drought has driven financial and land management practice change in many farming enterprises.
Many farms and properties have been forced to decrease their reliance on a single source of agricultural income through the diversification of income streams. This is being achieved through seeking off-farm income as well as introducing a wider range of agricultural activities on farm. Engagement in the Mary region also captured several relevant comments regarding the importance of off-farm income, and in particular, the economic gains brought to the region from the power stations and mines. In addition, data highlights the lack of farming profitability in the region – from 2005-2020, farms have been recorded as profitable for only two years. This is in part due to the size of the farms, with many farms too small to allow for long term viability.
“As dam levels go down, farmers have lost water allocations… [there's] not the same level of growth without water – [which leads to a] loss of productivity – they might get 10 tonne instead of 20. Such a substantial loss of cane land productivity and cane supply in the southern district so it doesn’t take much for the mills to fall over. Maryborough mill closing really saved Isis as the cane all has to go there now – I guess it’s some kind of consolidation.”
Past impacts | Landscape and natural environment
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
The landscape and natural environment in the Mary region have been uniquely affected by drought periods.
“Weeds – giant rats tails and parthenium and doda vine….we have had such outbreaks and it is really getting people down in a good season…it’s expensive to control and labour intensive. It comes from poor management of grazing land – overstocking over dry times has resulted in lack of grass coverage resulting in these weed outbreaks.”
Participants in the engagement noted that Mary was susceptible to ‘green droughts’ during which the lands “have lots of grass but the creeks are dry.”
Research and land managers’ observations also highlight the mobilisation of sediment (top soil) from paddocks to water ways. This negatively impacts both the land and wetland conditions. In fact, most of the wetlands in the region have either a high or very high hazard sediment score. The flow on effects of deteriorating water quality may also be significant.
“[We're] really worried – expansion of the feedlots upstream might have a devastating impact on water use – who monitors if there will be enough for all of us when it is dry – many farmers rely on this water downstream and the township does too.”
Past impacts | Infrastructure and built environment
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
The effects of drought on the infrastructure of the Mary region have been immense.
“[The community] didn’t have infrastructure…didn’t have bores…. They’re reliant on surface water – dams and creeks – and when they dried up they had big issues. They didn’t have the financial backing to be able to drill for bores… the ones that got through it were the ones who were able to self-fund the infrastructure. Lots of the producers just aren’t big enough to be financially viable in that area.”
The Mary region also has an extensive road network which has been negatively affected by drought events. Effective road access to farms, properties, feedlots and saleyards is cited by primary producers as being critical to building their ability to manage and reduce the impacts of drought, and to build on opportunities to build enterprise resilience through accessing new markets.
Finally, digital inclusion in the Mary region is a significant factor in drought resilience, however the region scores lower than the Queensland average on measures of digital inclusion. Access to digital services is of significant import for building and maintaining drought resilience and for dealing with disaster and interruptions.
Likely future impacts of drought in this region
Future impacts | People, culture & community
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Likely effects of future drought on communities in the Mary region may include:
- local out migration
- exacerbated local issues
- mental health issues and suicide
- loss of expertise and experience with regard to agricultural and landscape knowledge and practice
- loss of volunteers and participants in community events.
Future impacts | Economy
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Likely effects of future drought on the economy in the Mary region may include:
- reduced availability/diversity of local employment
- decreased investment in the region
- diminished borrowing capacity
- loss of sequestered carbon stock
- increased insurance premiums.
Future impacts | Landscape and natural environment
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Likely effects of future drought on the landscape and natural environment in the Mary region may include:
- Heavy rand ending drought leading to overland flooding and damage or loss of crops.
- Flash or prolonged drought leading to crop failure.
- Increased evapotranspiration leading to permanent wilting point exceedance.
Future impacts | Infrastructure and built environment
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Likely effects of future drought on the infrastructure and built environment in the Mary region may include:
- Increased load on ICT and data services.
- Increased demand on water infrastructure.
Regional strategy
Regional strategy | People, culture & community
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Planning and monitoring
Projected outcome: Plan for drought responses, implement drought monitoring and early warning systems.
Respond to drought events
Projected outcome: Manage responses during drought by dealing with impacts, vulnerability and risk.
Build future resilience
Projected outcome: Implement resilience measures to limit future impacts of drought and better respond to drought.
Regional strategy | Economy
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Planning and monitoring
Projected outcome: Plan for drought responses, implement drought monitoring and early warning systems.
Respond to drought events
Projected outcome: Manage responses during drought by dealing with impacts, vulnerability, and risk.
Build future resilience
Implement resilience measures to limit future impacts of drought and better respond to drought.
Regional strategy | Landscape and natural environment
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Planning and monitoring
Projected outcome: Plan for drought responses, implement drought monitoring and early warning systems.
Respond to drought events
Projected outcome: Manage responses during drought by dealing with impacts, vulnerability and risk.
Build future resilience
Projected outcome: Implement resilience measures to limit future impacts of drought and better respond to drought.
Regional strategy | Infrastructure and built environment
EXTRACTS FROM THE FULL RDRP PLAN
Planning and monitoring
Projected outcome: Plan for drought responses, implement drought monitoring and early warning systems
Respond to drought events
Projected outcome: Manage responses during drought by dealing with impacts, vulnerability and risk.
Build future resilience
Projected outcome: Implement resilience measures to limit future impacts of drought and better respond to drought.