Today's koala sighting

Before I talk about today's koala - quite a lot of people have asked me what a koala call sounds like.  Here's where you can find a typical koala call.  There's nothing that sounds like it, unless you happen to know a pig that rides a motorbike.

Just this morning (31 January 2015) the koala below was seen at Adare, less than 900m from the motocross track.  It was snoozing high in a Moreton Bay Ash, and was woken by the voices of the photographer and her friends, even though they were about 70 metres away.

Imagine the blast of sound it would have got from 40 motocross bikes charging around the track.  According to the Noise Impact Assessment contained in the application for the motocross facility, if this koala had been feeding at night on the ground at the base of the tree, it would have been subjected to 65dB of noise (louder than a suburban expressway at 90 metres).  Of course if it was feeding high in the tree where we found it, the noise would have been much greater because it would be in direct line of sight to the track, with nothing to attenuate the sound.

Today is the day of the State election in Queensland, when we are able to have a say in the kind of future we want. What say does this koala have about its future?  None.  Its future, and that of may other koalas in this part of the Lockyer, depends on whether you join us in speaking up on its behalf.

What about the koalas actually on the bush on the property where the motocross is proposed to operate? They will be exposed to much higher levels of noise.  How do we know they are there?  Well, the habitat is the same.  Have a look at the map below.

Today's koala was seen on private land, in the edge of Essential Habitat, beside a large area of Bushland Koala Habitat, (both mapped by the Queensland Government) and, as you can see from the above map, these habitats extend into and occupy most of the motocross property.

In fact, pretty much all of our koala sightings from across the Vinegar Hill / Adare area are in these two habitat zones.  Given that our sightings are only "incidental" sightings by people who were doing other things and not focussed on finding koalas, the density of koalas in these habitats can be expected to be many times greater than our observations suggest.

Koala populations in and around Brisbane are subjected to a range of pressures and threats from highly urbanised environments that make it unlikely that they will survive long term.  We have a koala population here that has a National Park as a "refuge" and, outside the National Park, shares bushland areas with relatively low densities of human population and very few busy roads.

If the motocross operation goes ahead, this koala population, on and outside the motocross property, is going to be subjected to stressfully high levels of noise which are likely to reduce their "fitness" for survival.  The nearest part of the Essential Habitat to the motocross track will be exposed to levels of noise between being exposed to an "in sink" garbage disposal one metre away and being in a very noisy restaurant.

Koalas have evolved on a specific diet of Eucalyptus leaves which have an extremely low energy content and are difficult to process and digest.  As a result, they have adapted their physiology and behaviour to minimise energy expenditure, e.g. sleeping up to 20 hours per day.

Since energy is required for basic living and koalas have limited resources of it, any unnecessary use of energy is likely to be of importance to their welfare.  The stress response is a very costly biological response in terms of energy metabolism.  It is possible that the triggering of stress responses may have a greater impact on koalas than other native species due to their reliance on a low energy diet.

In addition, there is circumstantial evidence that the level of chlamydiosis infections in koalas might increase as a result of noise stress impacts on their immune systems.

Please, let the Lockyer Valley Councillor and the general public know that this is an unacceptable impact on a koala population that does not have any way to speak for itself.

Not only is the presence of a large number of koalas an ongoing source of interest and pleasure to local people, it is a quality of the Lockyer Valley environment that we should be proud of and make widely known - not something to be destroyed for the sake of a motocross track.

Most recent Koala sighting

Time we started sharing our koala sightings with the community.  Residents in the Vinegar Hill / Adare area regularly see koalas on their properties and along the roadside.  Until now they have generally not recorded these incidental sightings, and in fact since most of us don't tend to look into the treetops when working outside, most koala presence would have gone unnoticed.

This is the most recent sighting I am aware of, seen mid-afternoon yesterday (29 January 2015) - 1.5km from the site of the motocross track.

It's a big male who brought attention to himself by calling from his perch high in an Ironbark.  Male koalas call any time, but mostly during the breeding season which lasts from September to January.  The call can be heard (by humans) for up to a kilometre.  I haven't found any information on how far away a female koala can hear a call.  The male's call advertises his presence (and location) to females in the area, and also contains information about his size.  If the female likes what she hears she will go looking for him.

Like all wildlife which uses calls as part of its relationship with others of its species, the koalas in Adare / Vinegar Hill will find their life cycles disrupted by motocross sounds.  This will be particularly the case if the track operates as planned from 4.00pm to 9.00pm Tuesday to Friday and "occasionally" to 9.00pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
 
Koalas are mainly nocturnal and tend to be most active around dawn and dusk. They spend around 18 to 20 hours of each day resting in order to conserve energy, due to the low-energy content of their main diet of Eucalyptus leaves. 

He won't be getting much of his daytime sleep on weekends if the motocross track is approved, and this will seriously affect his "energy budget", leading to health impacts.  These impacts will add to the stress impacts resulting from exposure to high noise levels six days per week.  It has been suggested that the stress experienced by koalas exposed to noise and disturbance leads to lowered immune system function, which in turn will exacerbate the impacts of chlamydia.  Many or most koalas in Southeast Queensland are already infected with chlamydia.

The nature and peace of the Vinegar Hill / Adare area are known around the world

It's easy to overlook the fact that a lot of tourists, particularly backpackers, spend quite a bit of time in the Lockyer Valley.  Not all of them are totally focussed on earning money from farm work.  Many combine income-earning activities with enjoyment of the wonders of our natural environment.

Here's a comment from the petition asking LVRC Councillors not to support the motocross proposal at Adare:

Alex Fletcher JöNKöPING, SWEDEN

Having previously spent some time just a stone's throw away from the proposed planning site, it's impossible to imagine a cacophony of engines disturbing the formerly uninterrupted peace and tranquillity of the Lockyer valley. The local lifestyle is a rural one, designed to be spent as one with the natural surroundings with absolutely minimal disturbance. The influx of motorcycles and the noise they will bring is an obvious issue, but equally pressing are the crowds this facility will entice.

The road infrastructure within the Lockyer is certainly not designed to withstand the expected level of traffic without significant work, to the detriment of the natural environment. 

The proposals are a poignant reminder that the world is getting smaller, and that the value of land is diminishing in the wake of personal interest and gains. As a student of natural and environmental science this petition is close to my heart, and I fully support the local area, and the eradication of any proposals for a motocross complex within it.

Do we really want our area to have a reputation based mainly on motor sports like motocross, speedway, street sprints, etc.?

Why would anyone put this motocross track in a closely settled rural area?

Comment from a couple living in Adare - only 2.6km from the site of the proposed motocross track:

I can’t believe a council would put a motocross track in a rural residential area.  Rate payers have built their homes and settled into the local area never thinking Council would do this. Was Black Duck not enough!!!!!!! It seems to me they just want to move the problems and I guess that’s fine but without considering the local wildlife (we have many resident marsupials on our quiet 12 acres) and the residents who had faith in our local council that they would not approve things like this in these sorts of areas?

Is there nowhere else Motocross riders can enjoy their hobby?  How long have the applicants been paying rates?

It amounts to deception when you allow the sale of land to residents for the rates and then approve something like this.  Where will they rehouse the Koalas?

Is this a negative you want at next election?

Council has seen through these things in the past and supported the residents – I think this is another time for you to stand up and be counted.

Koala records - Vinegar Hill and Adare

One of the things people realised when they started looking through the application for the motocross track at the end of Adare Road was how the "official" information on Koalas differed from their experience of Koalas on their land.

We've just received and plotted the first batches of historical records of Koalas from landowners in the area.

This is only the start, and in fact there are more records there than you can immediately see because at this scale some pins are hidden behind others.

These records are going to be entered in the official WildNET database, and will also be stored in a Google Earth database that lets us see how koala distribution coincides with landscape features such as watercourses or vegetation types.  This will allow us to make a more informed assessment of the likely Koala population on the motocross property than the applicant seems to have done.

It's not just the historical records we are looking for.  The Koala survey will be ongoing, so that as a community we can build up a good understanding of our Koala population.

Do you have any notes or photos of Koalas on your land?  We need dates and locations - if you have a photo of a koala, no matter how fuzzy or far away, the date will be in the metadata for the photo (we can help you to extract it if necessary).

If you are within about four kilometres of the motocross property we are interested in receiving your Koala records.  If you haven't already been contacted by one of the Koala team, you can get in touch with Hanneke at no.adare.mx@skymesh.com.au or leave a comment with your contact details on this blog post (all comments are moderated before showing up on the blog, so I'll make sure your contact details don't get posted publicly).

A foretaste of motocross traffic on Adare Road

The application before the Lockyer Valley Regional Council for the Adare motocross track gives the opening times as: 4.00pm to 9.00pm Tuesday to Friday; and 9.00am to 4.00pm on Saturdays and Sundays for Stage 1.

Stage two will add "occasional" event weekends when opening times will be from 9.00am to 9.00pm on Saturday and Sunday.

Traffic volumes on Adare Road for Stage 1 are estimated by the applicant to be a maximum of 150 vehicles per hour, first around opening times, and then again around closing times.

Adare Road is in general narrow, with some sealed sections so narrow that vehicles will have to move onto the unsealed shoulders in order to pass.  The last 1.5km is unsealed and narrow.

Here's an idea of what that will look like if you are driving in the opposite direction.  This video was shot on the unsealed section of Adare Road.

 

Keep your eye on the crest in the foreground for vehicles coming out of the dust.  Concentrate.  This could be dangerous.  The dust in this video was caused by seven vehicles.  If the track is ever open for business, the traffic will be many times that.

Here are some exercises for your imagination:

• Imagine you are driving in the opposite direction.  

• Imagine you are one of the drivers in the vehicles, going home after 9.00pm at night, with the headlights reflecting back from the dust, while you try to guess whether there are any deer, cows, kangaroos or pigs on the road ahead.

• Imagine you are a koala trying to cross the road at night, perhaps already confused by five hours of blasting motocross noise.

• Imagine you are a mountain bike rider on the road.

• Imagine you are a group of birdwatchers, scanning the sides of the road for that elusive species early in the morning (Adare Road is one of 14 "Bird Places of the Lockyer Valley" listed in a brochure that was partly funded by the Lockyer Valley Regional Council).

"stay on the road verge" - not if this Adare motocross proposal is approved, unless you're trying to establish birding as an extreme sport [http://qldse.birds.wildiaries.com/locations/-27.5327/152.2849]

This idiot proposal has to be stopped!

Living near a motocross track

I doubt that many people know what it is really like to live near a motocross track.  From time to time I'll post verbatim descriptions from people who have, unfortunately, experienced this for themselves.

This is Nina's description of her family's experience - over a number of years:

I've experienced first hand the impact that persistent motocross noise and activities can have on a community. We had a family of motocross enthusiasts purchase the 40acre block next to ours and set up a motocross track, without Council permission. Every weekend saw up to 15 bikes continually buzzing around the track. The noise was insistent and unsettling for all neighbours, particularly as many had young families or had moved to the area for its' lifestyle value - quiet and peaceful. 

The end result was a lengthy (years) legal battle between Council, the Motocross enthusiasts and the surrounding landholders. Three families sold their properties and left the homes where they had intended to settle, including my own, because of the noise and disrespect of the motocross users and lack of action from Council. It is not a small issue that makes a family give up the home they have built and the place their children have grown up in. 

I would strongly advise Council to reconsider the application for the Motocross track at Adare and to listen to the concern of the local residents.

Earthworks on the motocross property

Overlay of track plan from the Application to Council onto Google Earth

There have been persistent reports of major earthworks having been done on the Adare Road property where the motocross training facility is proposed.

Even during the public notification period there were rumours that huge amounts of earth had been excavated from part of the property and trucked to the proposed motocross track location and laid out in mounds along the proposed course of the track.

Lockyer Valley Regional Council officers attempted to inspect the property some time just before the end of the notification period (i.e. before 18 December), but the gate was locked and when they attempted to contact the owner to gain access they were told he was overseas.

Then, just before Christmas there was a report that the track had been completed.

Council officers visited the property again on 7 January and, as a result of their investigations, on 8 January "compliance action was initiated against the owner of the property in relation to operational works being undertaken without development approval."

It will be interesting to see where this leads.

A petition to the Lockyer Valley Region Councillors

An online petition has been launched asking the Locker Valley Region Councillors not to support the development of a motocross facility at Adare, and not to entertain any further proposal until a responsible and adequately detailed proposal for a more suitable location is forthcoming.

You can access the petition on-line here.  Let the Councillors know that you don't support this type of development in close proximity to residents.

If you can't get online, there will soon be paper-based petitions at various places around the Region.

If you don't want this motocross proposal to go ahead, please sign one of the petitions.

Don't forget, even if you don't think you will be affected by this development, if accepted it will constitute a precedent for locating this kind of activity in Rural Agriculture and Rural Uplands zones and within closely settled rural areas.  Stopping the trend now is the best way to ensure a safe future.

Bad noise isn't just loudness

I think most of us are aware that loud noises can harm our hearing and make it hard to concentrate on our work, even maybe that they can make us cranky.

Did you ever stop to think that there are noises that really upset you that aren't all that loud?

Think about "doof doof" music playing at a party three streets away.  (Apologies if you like that form of music).  It isn't actually the loudness that is disturbing.  It's that it goes on and on and on.  It's that we have no control over it.  We can't sleep while it is there.  Feels like someone is doing this to us and doesn't care a damn how it affects us.  You can't get away from it - it sort of seeps through the walls, under the doors, vibrates through the windows.  It happens every weekend.  It's not a sound that "belongs" in our environment - different to other sounds we are used to. We're convinced that the people who are playing this music aren't likely to be people we'd want as friends.  And it's really low frequency - which is why it is so hard to block out and why it travels so well; high and mid-frequencies get attenuated by distance, structures, etc. - low frequencies are much less attenuated.

But it's not just the low fequencies that get to us - it's all those other factors I put into the story above that stimulate and stress our systems and put it into the category of "offensive noise".

What's really dangerous about this kind of sound is that it is responsible for 75-90% of our reactions to noise (the other 10-25% is reaction to loudness).  And our reactions are things like annoyance, anger, disappointment, dissatisfaction, withdrawal, powerlessness, depression, anxiety, distraction, agitation and exhaustion.  You've probably recognised already that these are feelings and attitudes that we generally try to avoid, either because of the impacts that they have on our physical and psychologicial systems or because of how they affect our relationships with other people.

In total, what these effects of this kind of noise amounts to is impaired quality of life.  You can see an overview report I've prepared on research on these non-noise impacts here.

Guess what. The noise assessment in the application for the motocross track at Adare doesn't mention these things.  Not any of them.  Neither does it mention the impact of sound on our sleep patterns or on our children (including on their long-term study and academic futures).  Are you a shift-worker?  It doen't mention what motocross sounds will do to your sleep between 4pm and 9pm four to six nights per week, or to your ability to drive safely to and from your shift work.

But, even if you aren't under 14 years old or a shift-worker, how do you feel about knowing that the long-term disruption to sleep patterns from a motocross track could lead to obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or depression? There's a range of research data to back up all of these possibilities.

To come back to my original point - the problems with noise are not just about loudness.  What do the environmental protection laws set as standards for noise?  Yep, loudness.

So, if you are somewhere within say four kilometres of the Adare property where it is proposed to put the motocross track (tracks!! it's planned there will eventually be five of them) then don't assume because someone tells you that the noise won't be "loud" where you live that you won't be able to hear it, or that it won't have significant impacts on your quality of life.  Don't forget that even if it isn't loud, it will be six days per week, four to six nights per week until 9.00pm, and up to 52 weeks per year.

If you want a more detailed account of the potential health impacts of motocross noise you can download it here.  Please use it to let the Lockyer Valley Region Councillors know that noise has significant health impacts that aren't necessarily related to loudness, and these need to be taken into account in making a decision about the application.  Tell them too that the potential noise impacts of the proposed motocross facility at Adare are unacceptable.