Issues that made headlines
The topics defining our year
THESE five issues have gone a long way to define the year that was in Toowoomba – and expect them to be at the forefront of the conversation heading into a new decade.
Drought
RECORDS have fallen as we ended 2019 – and not the kind you want.
Parts of the Darling Downs will have received their lowest rainfall on record.
And although it’s not particularly green across the region, it is our farmers who are feeling the pain of our worst drought in memory.
Allan Johnstone is one of many struggling through this enormous battle, who has dropped his 500-head herd to 33 and is concerned good seasons will never return on his Oakey property.
Furthermore, the forecast heading into the remainder of summer is bleak.
USQ climate scientist Roger Stone told The Chronicle in November the drought pattern might end in late autumn or winter this year.
Fires
WE ALL looked on with sheer disbelief as bushfires ripped through the Darling Downs, leaving a trail of destruction in their path.
As people fled their homes in the Southern Downs in September, it was clear early on this was not going to be a normal fire season.
And it hasn’t been – not just for us but for the whole country.
Massive fires burned through thousands of hectares of land at Pechey and Ravensbourne, while property owners near Millmerran battled blazes that turned devastating seemingly in the blink of an eye.
Tributes must be paid to the brave emergency service workers who took on the flames, sometimes in situations that seemed unstoppable.
The even more worrying part is summer is far from over.
Water security
THE issue of water security ties closely to our battle with the big dry, and will remain a top issue heading into 2020.
For Toowoomba, 2019 marked the year the pipeline to Wivenhoe Dam was switched on for the first time since it was built at the start of the decade.
But it’s not the only measure Toowoomba will need to secure water – which is said to have supply until 2049.
Mayor Paul Antonio, who plans to run for another term in the 2020 local government elections, has the issue at the forefront of his mind.
Cr Antonio met with Prime Minister Scott Morrison earlier this year.
And it isn’t just the Toowoomba region deeply concerned about the state of its water resources.
It’s hard to ignore the signs about incoming water carting trucks as you enter Stanthorpe.
Water supplies are dwindling in the Southern Downs, which is on emergency water restrictions.
Smaller communities across Toowoomba like Clifton are also having water carted in daily.
While those carting trucks are a temporary solution, our communities desperately need a good drink to replenish our dams.
Other long-term solutions are in play – recycled water has already re-entered the conversation.
Cr Antonio has also discussed pumping water into the Toowoomba region from the Clarence River – an idea that could also potentially service parts of the Southern Downs.
The council also appeared to be blindsided in November by the State Government’s plan to extend the Wivenhoe pipeline to Warwick.
Expect the conversation to continue deep into the next decade as long-term solutions are debated.
CBD parking
PARKING has always been a big problem in the middle of Toowoomba’s CBD, and the debate flared up multiple times in 2019.
The council made a big play earlier this year to limit some parks in the middle of town to one hour, which according to survey results didn’t exactly win over the community.
But the council is standing by its decision, and the time limits will remain.
There have also been plans submitted to build new car parks in the CBD to alleviate woes, including Barry Bernoth’s ambitious multistorey car park next to the Bell Street Mall.
Here’s hoping there’s some long-term solutions in 2020.
Climate strikes
THE debate surrounding climate strikes raged not just across the Garden City this year, but the whole of Australia.
Multiple student strikes certainly got a few people riled up, and showed the whole country the younger generation will not remain silent on one of the most important issues of our time.
Expect those strikes to continue well into 2020.