Through the eagle's eye

I believe people need to walk up a mountain to look out over the countryside, to see the world beyond their own lives. A view like this speaks 1000 words; you see the real impacts we have had around us. In Qld for example, we have cleared over 40% of our state’s forests. Looking at that on a map with the ‘bird’s eye view’ is mind-blowing.

As I stand up on the western range looking into Carnarvon Gorge, I feel the warm updrafts blow through the eucalypts and the cry of the currawong in the distance. The gorge consists of rugged sandstones cliffs that beam golden against the morning sun, powerful and ancient. I dangle my legs off the edge of a rock on a sheer cliff face, listening to the wind sift through the grass and tall forest trees. A whiptail wallaby, with the distinct and vibrant patterned stripes across its face, darts across the mountain ridgeline and disappears into the rocky outcrop. I watch an eagle follow the edge of the range, effortlessly gliding… soaring high above the mountain treetops, diving occasionally as if it saw movement below. This connection to the land runs so deep in my veins, it’s almost spiritual.

The memories of a childhood growing up on a cattle station in central Queensland are something I will always hold close to my heart. These days I reside on the beaches of the Gold Coast as an Environmental Advisor/Scientist for the GC Light Rail. I realised that the people here don’t have the same ability to see beyond their own two feet, they literally don’t get up high enough to see out.

How can we care about something we are so separated from as a society, seeing as though the majority of our population resides in urban areas?

We are now facing some major environmental challenges that are having significant and unseen consequences on our social and economic systems. We’re no longer living in a world that can be described as ‘sustainable’.

Human-induced climate change is by far our biggest challenge, on a global scale. Heatwaves are increasing in intensity and frequency. Extreme storms are causing flooding and state-wide blackouts. Bushfires are raging out of control and so intense they scorch everything in their path. Droughts are so severe they leave 1000s of kangaroos and livestock dead from starvation and thirst through outback Australia. These are the first of many consequences to come in a world that is warming at a rate 170 times faster than natural forces (Steffen, Will). Global average temperature has already risen one degree above average since the 1900s (NASA) and is predicted to rise 5–7 degrees by 2100, which is conservative at best, due to scientists discovering new positive feedback loops that are being triggered.

What can we do?

People often ask me, ‘this is a bigger problem than me, what can I do about it?’ Through my work as an environmental scientist, I have come to realise that there are two answers to that question. It’s both a yes and a no.

So firstly, no it isn’t bigger than just you, it starts with you and your individual actions. I used to work in carbon farming, regenerating cattle stations from Cobar in NSW all the way up to Winton in northern central Qld. Every cattle/sheep station owner that agreed to grow trees in exchange for financial incentives (this work was all through the Liberal Government’s Emission Reduction Fund) was a win for the environment and a win for the farmers. It provided them an income in the severe droughts that are occurring more often now, while allowing the farmer to destock to help regenerate the paddocks. This was part of the largest restoration project in Australia’s history; we ended up securing land for carbon sequestration a size equivalent to the area of Kakadu National Park (over 13 million hectares). Every station contributed significantly to solving climate change and making an overall difference, a team effort as such.

The same can be said for the light rail project on the Gold Coast. I worked out that taking an average car off the road for a year and using the tram instead is the equivalent of the carbon that two model forest trees can sequester per annum. Times that by the current average patronage number and the Gold Coast Light Rail has potentially saved a forest of 50,000 trees. We all can be part of the ‘bigger picture’ solution.

The second answer is yes, it is bigger than one person. The government needs to put the policies and incentives in place to provide a platform for the solutions; so that we can replace the coal industry with renewables; so that we can put the infrastructure in place for electric cars; and so that we can have feasible carbon farming and regenerative strategies to regenerate Australia on a longer term scale. To do that, however, there needs to be public pressure to influence the change.

I want everyone, not just my kids, to be able to watch the eagle fly and dive deep into Carnarvon Gorge. More importantly, I want them to gain a greater understanding of the impacts humans are having on our world by standing up on that mountain and looking past their own feet.

We could lose it all, if we don’t act.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/photoncatcher36