Misplaced Pages

#915084

92-542: The Galilee Basin spans elements of the upper Lake Eyre drainage catchment, Bulloo river basin and Murray–Darling Basin and the adjacent eastern highlands. The basin also extends into the upper coastward Burdekin river basin and Fitzroy river basin to the north-east and east and the Gulf of Carpentaria to the north-west. This geographic complexity ensures that the Galilee Basin spans a number of physiographic regions with

184-823: A UNESCO world heritage site . A proposal for a coal-fired power station in the area has been placed on hold. Water supply for mines in the basin was once provided as a reason supporting the development of the Bradfield Scheme . In the south-east of the basin lies the Rewan Formation . Small assemblages of the tetrapod species, Lydekkerina from the Lootsbergian age, have been found. 22°00′S 146°00′E  /  22.000°S 146.000°E  / -22.000; 146.000 Murray%E2%80%93Darling Basin The Murray–Darling Basin

276-608: A public good (being non rivalrous and non excludable), but most are services which may (according to prevailing social norms ) be under-provided by the market . In most cases public services are services , i.e. they do not involve manufacturing of goods . They may be provided by local or national monopolies, especially in sectors that are natural monopolies . They may involve outputs that are hard to attribute to specific individual effort or hard to measure in terms of key characteristics such as quality. They often require high levels of training and education. They may attract people with

368-545: A public sector agency, via public financing available to private businesses or voluntary organisations, or provided by private businesses subject to a high level of government regulation. Some public services are provided on behalf of a government's residents or in the interest of its citizens. The term is associated with a social consensus (usually expressed through democratic elections ) that certain services should be available to all, regardless of income , physical ability or mental acuity . Examples of such services include

460-493: A combined area of 94 square kilometres. Large deposits of Permian thermal coal (Betts Creek Beds & Colinlea Sandstone) outcrop on the eastern margin of the Galilee Basin. The coals are classified as high-volatile sub-bituminous to bituminous. Currently there are no coal mines in production. Coal mining leases and coal mining lease applications within the Galilee Basin are included in Table 3. The proposed coal mining leases have

552-399: A combined footprint of approximately 1.38% of the entire Galilee Basin, dominantly encompassing underground mining opportunities. Coal mining leases within the Galilee Basin have near term open-cut and long-term underground resources. The Galilee Basin also has some limited potential for future development of coal seam gas resources. Coal mining leases and coal mining lease applications within

644-453: A fairly confident estimate has been made of these animals and the current status of their population. The study found that there were: Historical records show that the previous abundances of fish provided a reliable food source. The bountiful fish became concentrated when the early stages of a flood left shallow water across the floodplain. Today, roughly 24 native freshwater fish and another 15-25 marine and estuarine species are existent in

736-469: A further 15.5% of the area. Most of the Galilee Basin is within the Desert Channels natural resource management (NRM) region. In the 2011 census there were less than 20,000 residents in the Galilee Basin region (<12 people per 1 km). The estimated residential population of the Galilee Basin region has decreased by −0.7% from 2001 to 2015. Rural towns and their respective populations within

828-533: A global initiative which aims to influence the provision of public services and infrastructure for marginalized demographics. Governing bodies have long provided core public services. The tradition of keeping citizens secure through organized military defense dates to at least four thousand years ago. Maintaining order through local delegated authority originated at least as early as the Warring States period (5th to 3rd centuries BCE) in ancient China with

920-524: A grassy understorey, and (iii) cleared, non-native vegetation. Other vegetation subgroups occur with lower frequency and form a complex mosaic that gradually changes from north-east to south-west across the Galilee Basin. The woody components of these vegetation types have been subject to clearance over 16% of the Galilee Basin, mainly to the east, with the aim of improving pasture productivity. The annual rate of clearance has declined since 2005. Pasture components are reported to have stable condition, except for

1012-436: A premium-quality low sulphur and low ash thermal washed product. Further highlights of the coal quality include high ash fusion temperature, coupled with the low chlorine which reduces the slagging potential of the ash, whilst the excellent fuel ratios allows for efficient combustion and low carbon in ash. Galilee Basin coals are substantially lower in trace elements when compared to domestic and international averages. Analysis of

SECTION 10

#1732765734916

1104-446: A private corporation runs a natural monopoly , then the corporation is typically heavily regulated, to prevent abuse of monopoly power. Lastly, the government can buy the service on the free market. In many countries, medication is provided in this manner: the government reimburses part of the price of the medication. Also, bus traffic, electricity, healthcare and waste management are privatized in this way. One recent innovation, used in

1196-516: A problem because they feed by sucking gravel from the riverbed and taking all the edible material off it, before returning the rest to the water. This stirs up all the sediment, reducing the quality of the water. A project for developing daughterless carp shows promise for eliminating carp from the river system. Cane toads have entered the upper reaches of the Darling Basin and there are several reports of individuals being found further down

1288-472: A public service ethos who wish to give something to the wider public or community through their work. The process of assessing the needs of the people of an area, and then designing and securing an appropriate public service to meet those needs, is often referred to in the UK as commissioning . The commissioned services may be delivered by organisations in the public sector, private sector or third sector : when

1380-481: A quarter of the Basin lays in the state, the commission was an advisory body with no authority for enforcement of provisions. For a long time the commission was only concerned with water quantity until salinity became a problem. This led to minor reforms in 1982 in which water quality became part of the commission's responsibilities. However, it was soon recognised that a new organisational structure which considered

1472-448: A recent decline in the north-east corner. As rivers and streams are all intermittent, the durations of flow and non-flow periods, and the depth of water, together determine the number of species locally per unit area and degree of species sharing amongst rivers and residual waterholes. The ecology of rockholes (shallow depressions that collect local rainwater) and outcrop springs (springs of water that has percolated through rock layers in

1564-409: A relatively complex pattern in the eastern highlands and headwaters. Lake Buchanan and Lake Galilee within the Galilee Basin are classified as inland wetlands , with Lake Buchanan described as both a seasonal/intermittent saline lake and a seasonal saline marsh and Lake Galilee also as a seasonal/intermittent saline lake and as a seasonal/intermittent freshwater pond and marsh . The climate of

1656-400: A total area of 19.30 square kilometres (7.45 sq mi). All current mining leases within the basin are associated with small-scale mining operations for barite, bentonite, calcite, gypsum; limestone, opals; phosphate and potassium. The Galilee Basin has an active petroleum production lease ‘PL65’ held by Australian Gasfields Ltd. The Galilee Basin has 183 active quarry operations that have

1748-644: A white paper published by the Cameron–Clegg coalition in the United Kingdom in July 2011, aimed to create a comprehensive policy framework for "good public services ". It set out the coalition's programme for reform of public services, described as a programme of "wide ambitions" expected to be implemented over a period of time, not all at once. Five principles were to underlie open public services: The journalist David Boyle conducted an independent review for

1840-515: Is 3,375 kilometres (2,097 mi) in length, with the Murray River being 2,508 km (1,558 mi) long. Most of the 1,061,469 km (409,835 sq mi) basin is flat, low-lying and far inland, and receives little direct rainfall. The many rivers it contains tend to be long and slow-flowing, and carry a volume of water that is large only by Australian standards. The Snowy Mountains Scheme provides some security of water flows to

1932-588: Is 5600Kcal and 11% ash. Note: ar – as received; ad – air dried; gar – gross as received Initiation of coal mining within the Galilee Basin requires substantial capital expenditure on rail and port expansion. The Queensland Government declared the Galilee Basin State Development Area (SDA) in June 2014, supporting the development of the Galilee Basin in providing a robust statutory framework for development of linear infrastructure to

SECTION 20

#1732765734916

2024-459: Is January and the driest month is May. The Galilee Basin covers 14 local government areas; Barcaldine ; Barcoo ; Blackall-Tambo ; Central Highlands ; Charters Towers ; Diamantina ; Flinders ; Longreach ; Maranoa ; McKinlay ; Murweh ; Quilpie ; Richmond & Winton , with none entirely included within the Galilee Basin. The basin spans parts of nine planning regions and five natural resource management regions. The Galilee Basin overlies

2116-642: Is a large geographical area in the interior of southeastern Australia, encompassing the drainage basin of the tributaries of the Murray River , Australia's longest river , and the Darling River , a right tributary of the Murray and Australia's third-longest river. The Basin, which includes six of Australia's seven longest rivers and covers around one-seventh of the Australian landmass, is one of

2208-480: Is highest in the mornings and during February, while the lowest is in the mid to late spring mornings and afternoons. The annual rainfall within the Galilee Basin ranges between 150 mm and 1,477 mm, with an average rainfall of between 492 mm and 610 mm depending on location. Rainfall in December through March accounts for approximately 65 per cent of annual mean rainfall. The wettest month on average

2300-603: Is in the agriculture , forestry and fishing category. With limited forestry restricted to the south-eastern corner and no coastal connection for fishery, this category is dominated by sheep and beef production. The second highest occupation is government services , which includes local government and health and social service care (19.8%). This is followed by five categories including retail trade; construction; education and training (schools mostly); transport , postal and warehousing; and accommodation and food services , which all provide significant employment (5 to 8%) in

2392-546: Is intended to export 30 million tonnes of thermal coal annually from 2015. One thousand employees will be needed once the mine is operational. Hancock is also hoping to develop the Kevin's Corner coal mine adjacent to the Alpha project. Mineralogy , controlled by Clive Palmer, owns thermal coal deposits in the Galilee Basin, which he claims amounts to around 100 billion tonnes of coal. However, this amount of coal resource

2484-545: Is not substantiated by official figures. Palmer's proposed China First mine which is owned by Waratah Coal, would result in the destruction of Bimblebox Nature Refuge, which is part of Australia's National Reserve System and is listed as a conservation area of State Significance in Queensland. The reserve is co-owned local landowner Paola Cassoni who is adamant the endangered black-throated finch must be protected.In 2022 Queensland land court President Fleur Kingham ruled that

2576-530: Is one of the physiographic provinces of the larger East Australian Basins division, and encompasses the smaller Naracoorte Platform and Encounter Shelf physiographic sections. Total water flow in the Murray–Darling Basin 1885 to the present has averaged around 24,000 gigalitres (24,000  hm ; 19,000,000  acre⋅ft ) per year. This is the lowest rate of the world's major river systems. About 6.0 percent of Australia's total rainwater falls into

2668-800: Is understood to depend on relatively stable water regimes, compared with the highly intermittent character of other aquatic habitats in the region. As a result of water drawdown for agriculture , discharge springs have been subject to significant degradation over the last century . Only 36% of the 300 springs complexes (local clusters of springs) identified in the Great Artesian Basin in 1900 are still active. There are no data on impacts of agricultural drawdown on stygobiota. Discharge springs have also been subject to invasion by exotic plants and disturbance by sheep , pigs , horses and donkeys . Riverbanks and waterholes are generally assessed to be in better condition. The Galilee Basin straddles

2760-784: The Great Dividing Range and encompasses the headwaters of seven major river basins. The Thompson river and Barcoo river of the Cooper Creek system, the Diamantina River , the Flinders River in the north-west, the Bulloo River in the south, and the Warrego River in the south-east. The subregion also extends across the Great Dividing Range to the east and north-east into the headwaters of

2852-664: The Guide to the Proposed Murray–Darling Basin Plan , was released in October 2010 as the first part of a three-stage process to address the problems of the Murray–Darling Basin. The Plan was in response to the 2000s Australian drought , and designed to secure the long-term ecological health of the Murray–Darling Basin. This entailed cutting existing water allocations and tree growth environmental flows . The Basin Plan

Galilee Basin - Misplaced Pages Continue

2944-609: The Ramsar Convention of Wetlands of International Importance. The rivers listed below comprise the Murray–Darling Basin and its direct significant tributaries, with elevations of their confluence with the downstream river. The tributary with the highest elevation is Swampy Plain River that rises in the Snowy Mountains, below Mount Kosciuszko at an elevation of 2,120 metres (6,960 ft), and ends merging with

3036-527: The World wars of the first half of the twentieth century. In parts of Europe , central planning was implemented in the belief that it would make production more efficient. Many public services, especially electricity, fossil fuels and public transport are products of this era. Following the Second World War, many countries also began to implement universal health care and expanded education under

3128-447: The fire services , police , air force , paramedics and public service broadcasting . Even where public services are neither publicly provided nor publicly financed , they are usually subject to regulation going beyond that applying to most economic sectors for social and political reasons. Public policy , when made in the public's interest and with its motivations, is a type of public service. In modern developed countries ,

3220-537: The 1890s. Currently, 4 major reservoirs, 14 lock and weir structures, and five coastal barrages interject the water flowing down the Murray–Darling. Of the approximately 13,000 gigalitres (13,000 hm ; 10,500,000 acre⋅ft) of flow in the Basin, which studies have shown to be divertible, 11,500 gigalitres (11,500 hm ; 9,320,000 acre⋅ft) are removed for irrigation, industrial use, and domestic supply. Agricultural irrigation accounts for about 95 percent of

3312-479: The Basin, a very low biodiversity. Over Christmas 2018 and January 2019 there were two mass deaths of fish in the waters of the Basin, the first numbering 10,000, the second in the hundreds of thousands. Species affected were Murray cod , golden perch , silver perch and bony herring. Some blamed the draining of water from the Menindee Lakes by WaterNSW , with only 2.5% of the original water volume in

3404-474: The Basin, the Murray and Darling, bring water from the high ranges of the east and carry it west then south through long flat and dry inland areas, often resulting in alluvial channel wetlands, such as The (Great) Cumbung Swamp , at the terminus of the Lachlan and Murrumbidgee Rivers. Nevertheless, these waters are subject to major diversions for municipal drinking supplies and irrigated agriculture that began in

3496-463: The Basin. In most years only half of this quantity reaches the sea and in dry years much less. Estimated total annual flows for the Basin have ranged from 5,000 gigalitres (5,000 hm ; 4,100,000 acre⋅ft) in 1902 to 57,000 gigalitres (57,000 hm ; 46,000,000 acre⋅ft) in 1956. Despite the magnitude of the Basin, the hydrology of the streams within it is quite varied. These waters are divided into four types: The two principal rivers of

3588-583: The CO 2 emissions indicates a competitive product when compared against international benchmarks, producing 1.1 tonnes of CO 2 per Megawatt hour of electricity generated. This is on a par with some other high- rank Australian and South African coals. Coal produced from the Carmichael coal mine is high quality thermal coal, with a weighted average value of 4,301–4,600 kcal/kg. It is more efficient than typical Indian or Indonesian coal. Its product specification

3680-587: The Commonwealth and State governments and numerous submissions from interested stakeholders and the community, the Basin Plan became law in November 2012 and can now be implemented. Government services A public service or service of general (economic) interest is any service intended to address specific needs pertaining to the aggregate members of a community, whether provided directly by

3772-668: The Fitzroy river basin and Burdekin river basin. It also includes two nationally important wetlands, Lake Buchanan and Lake Galilee. The Galilee Basin includes aquifers that are a part of the Great Artesian Basin . These large aquifers are utilised as a water supply across much the Galilee subregion and importantly form a significant part of the recharge zone. Some groundwater may also discharge to surface as springs or where hydrogeological conditions are favourable, discharge to major rivers. Water extraction and water budgets are detailed in

Galilee Basin - Misplaced Pages Continue

3864-597: The Galilee Basin The most advanced proposal is Bravus Mining and Resource's Carmichael coal mine . In July 2014, Greg Hunt , the Australian Minister for Environment approved Adani 's proposal for the Carmichael coal mine and its associated rail link to the coast. The A$ 16.5 billion project was expected initially to create the largest coal mine in Australia and one of the largest in

3956-600: The Galilee Basin from the Cooper Basin to the south west. The Galilee Basin contains up to 3000m of siliciclastics, coal , diamictite and tuffaceous units. The basin has three main depocentres: Lovelle Depression (>730 m of Early Permian – Middle Triassic ) in NW; Koburra Trough (>2800 m of Late Carboniferous – Middle Triassic strata ) in NE; and Powell Depression (>1700 m of Early Permian – Middle Triassic strata) in

4048-581: The Galilee Basin is generally hot and dry throughout, becoming more extreme towards the west. Monthly mean temperatures show daytime summer temperatures are mostly in the mid-30s °C with winter overnight temperatures most commonly between 5 and 12 °C. The temperature records from the past 36 years shows values ranging from −2 °C to 44 °C. ‘Hot days’, with temperatures exceeding 35 °C, can be expected up to 74 to 101 days per year. ‘Frost days’ with screen temperatures below 2 °C can be expected up to 1.4 to 10.4 days per year. Relative humidity

4140-574: The Galilee Basin is provided Table 1. The indigenous heritage of the Galilee Basin is complex, with at least 12 Indigenous tribal or language groups in four separate language regions—Eyre, Gulf, Northeast and Riverine. There are native title claims covering large portions of the basin and a number of Indigenous Land Use Agreements in place. The major economic activities in the Galilee Basin are primary production (mostly rangeland grazing), government services , retail , education and tourist -related activities. The dominant occupation (32.5%)

4232-524: The Galilee Basin. Bravus Mining & Resources is expected to start production of thermal coal in late 2021. Exploration of coal seam gas , conventional oil and tight oil and shale gas resources is also being conducted. In 1981, the Queensland Department of Mines estimated that demonstrated resources reached 800 million tonnes near Alpha alone. In 2008, Waratah Coal announced the discovery of 4,400 million tonnes of coal in

4324-485: The Galilee Basin. Currently mining is a low-level occupation category within the subregion at 1.3% but this may increase during the constructional and/or operational phases of projected coal mining and coal seam gas extraction developments, with possible impacts on other employment categories. The Galilee Basin has a diversity of ecological communities and species as a consequence of the interactions between its large area, several biologically significant climatic gradients,

4416-588: The Gillard Government and following a period of sustained criticism of the Authority and the implementation of the proposed draft Basin plan. He was replaced by former New South Wales Planning Minister, Craig Knowles . In late May 2012, the revised plan was forwarded to state water ministers. It did not alter the recommendation to cut 2,750 gigalitres (2.75 km ; 2,230,000 acre⋅ft) of water entitlements. Following much negotiation between

4508-645: The Great Artesian Water Resource Plan (2006), covering most of the Galilee subregion. This plan is unique in that it only applies to artesian water and connected sub-artesian water of the Great Artesian Basin, and does not include management plans for surface water. There are numerous suggestions of the origin of the Galilee Basin. Vine (1976) proposed downwarping, however Evans (1980) have suggested pull-apart basin related to shearing. Jackson et al. (1981) has suggested

4600-643: The Late Cretaceous in the Galilee Basin was punctuated by two major exhumation events in the Triassic and Cretaceous. Sedimentation was initially restricted to fluvial sandstone , but later expanded to other depocentres during deposition of fluvial and lacustrine sediments . Tuff and volcanolithic sandstone were deposited during the Early Permian (Jochmus Fm), and was followed by east–west contraction (Cattle Creek Event) that produced

4692-604: The Mid-Permian unconformity across the basin. Thermal subsidence (Aldebaran and Bellata events) in the Late Permian – Early Triassic generated widespread continental siliciclastics with coal and some marine sandstone across the basin. Subsequent uplift (Clematis Event) produced a wide spread Lower Triassic unconformity and was followed by fluvial quartz -rich sandstone , then lacustrine and fluvial mudstone , siltstone , and sandstone comprising

SECTION 50

#1732765734916

4784-552: The Murray River, descending 1,860 metres (6,100 ft). The ordering of the Basin, from downstream to upstream, is: The Basin affects five states and territory governments, which according to the Constitution , are responsible for managing water resources. The River Murray Commission was established in 1917. Under the River Murray Waters Agreement , which did not include Queensland though about

4876-431: The Murray–Darling Basin, providing approximately 2,100 gigalitres (7.4×10 cu ft) of water a year to the Basin for use in Australia's irrigated agriculture industry, which is worth about A$ 3 billion per annum, representing more than 40% of the gross value of the nation's agricultural production. The Basin was once home to a large number of Aboriginal people whose traditional lifestyle and cultures were gradually altered by

4968-498: The Murray–Darling. These structures and irrigation implements were ideal when there was a steady flow of water. However, during "the Big Dry", as the early 2000s drought came to be known, Australian farmers experienced a scarcity unlike ever before. The drought was so severe that numerous rivers and streams such as the Murray–Darling stopped flowing. The Basin contains more than 30,000 wetlands . Eleven of these are protected under

5060-578: The North Queensland Export Terminal, the most northerly deep-water coal port of Australia, situated approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) north-west of the township of Bowen ( Queensland ). North Queensland Export Terminal has been operating for 35 years, safely, responsibly and efficiently exporting coal, however the port's location has been considered controversial as it is so close to the Great Barrier Reef ,

5152-510: The Port of Abbot Point. The Galilee Basin SDA will enable a coordinated approach to developing a multi-user common rail corridor whilst minimising impacts on landholders and the environment. The SDA supports development both to the central and southern Galilee Basin. Port facilities at Abbot Point are expected to be the export point for coal sourced from the Galilee Basin. The Abbot Point Port includes

5244-551: The UK found that private sector hiring managers do not credit government experience as much as private sector experience. Public workers tend to make less in wages when adjusting for education, although that difference is reduced when benefits and hours are included. Public servants have other intangible benefits such as increased job security and high wages. A study concluded that public services are associated with higher human need satisfaction and lower energy requirements while contemporary forms of economic growth are linked with

5336-619: The UK's Treasury and the Cabinet Office on public demand for choice in public services which reported in 2013. The principle of choice where possible was embodied in the Choice Charter, published on 16 May 2013, where four choice principles were outlined: Between December 2012 and May 2013, "Choice Frameworks" were scheduled for publication covering NHS care, social housing , school education, early years education and adult social care . Nationalization took off following

5428-565: The US) by Public Utility Commissions . Examples noted in a history of public services in Oxford include street-repair, cleansing, and lighting , drainage and sewage disposal, water, gas and electricity supply, police and fire services, the Post Office, transport, hospital services, and the provision of baths , parks and cemeteries . A public service may sometimes have the characteristics of

5520-610: The Victorian Farmers Federation and Wine Group Growers' Australia. Conversely, support for the Murray–Darling Basin plan has been received by various groups, including Australian Conservation Foundation , and Environment Victoria . New legal advice from Commonwealth government lawyers is changing the plan. The Government's interpretation is that the plan must give equal weight to the environmental, social, and economic impacts of proposed cuts to irrigation. Environmentalists and South Australian irrigators, at

5612-591: The arrival of Europeans, while others were outright killed by the settlers. Although some tribes organised resistance, such as the Maraura , whose territory lay around the Rufus River above Renmark and the Tanganekald near The Coorong , they were eventually either killed, exiled, or succumbed to disease. The Murray–Darling Basin is home to many native animal species. The true numbers may not be known, but

SECTION 60

#1732765734916

5704-631: The basal sequence of the Great Artesian Basin . Sedimentation ended during the Mid Triassic Hunter-Bowen Orogeny (Showgrounds and Goondiwindi events). Compression during the Late Cretaceous – Oligocene formed antiforms over faults in the basin. The Nebine Ridge and Springsure Shelf are structural highs that separate the Galilee Basin from the Bowen Basin to the south east. The Canaway Ridge separates

5796-550: The basin formed as a response to platform tilting caused by mantle corner flow. A review from Stewart (2011) identified an additional theory that the Galilee Basin began when crustal extension (Jericho and Denison events) during the Late Carboniferous – Early Permian reactivated older faults from underlying basins. According to I'Anson et al. (2017), total subsidence of ~2 km from the Carboniferous to

5888-482: The basin was created from the reactivation of basement faults and downwarping. De Caritat & Braun (1982) proposed Late Carboniferous compressional upthrust of the Anakie Inlier, creating a flexural topographic depression, followed in the Late Permian – Mid-Triassic by subduction of the oceanic plate to the east, which initiated the later development of the basin. Waschbusch et al. (2009) suggested

5980-399: The basin. Geoscience Australia reports 15 mineral deposits within the Galilee Basin which include; Kevins Corner, Pentland, Alpha (Hancock), Alpha North, South Alpha, Galilee (Liberty), South Galilee, Carmichael, Pentland (United), Hughenden, White Mountain (Clyde Park), Yellow Jacket, South Pentland, Milray, Hyde Park Coal Project. Exploration for coal seam gas is in early stages, and targets

6072-725: The biogeographic effects of eight river basins, and the importance of landscape form driving water and soil redistribution in semi-arid environments of inland Australia. This diversity is expressed through the presence of 31 subregions of the Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia and 46 major vegetation subgroups of the National Vegetation Information System. The most common terrestrial vegetation NVIS subgroups are (i) Mitchell grass (Astrebla) tussock grasslands , (ii) Eucalyptus open woodlands with

6164-628: The cause to (naturally occurring) hypoxic blackwater . Initial investigations by the New South Wales Environment Protection Authority (EPA) included single water samples at six sites and were criticised as inadequate. Subsequently it was announced that the New South Wales government will treat the deaths as a "pollution incident", thus giving the EPA greater investigative powers; earlier testing

6256-575: The country's most significant agricultural areas providing one-third of Australia's food supply. Located west of the Great Dividing Range , it drains southwest into the Great Australian Bight and spans most of the states of New South Wales and Victoria , the Australian Capital Territory , and parts of the states of Queensland (the lower third) and South Australia (the southeastern corner). The Basin

6348-739: The end of the river in South Australia, say that the authority should stick to its original figure. In October 2010, a parliamentary inquiry into the economic impacts of the plan was announced. In late October 2010 the Water Minister, Tony Burke, played down the prospect of a High Court challenge to the Murray–Darling Basin plan, as confusion continued over new legal advice released by the Government. In response to community concerns that MDBA had put environmental issues first over social and economic needs, Burke released new advice on

6440-404: The funding and guidance of the state. There are several ways to privatize public services. A free-market corporation may be established and sold to private investors, relinquishing government control altogether. Thus it becomes a private (not public) service. Another option, used in the Nordic countries , is to establish a corporation, but keep ownership or voting power essentially in the hands of

6532-464: The government. For example, the Finnish state owned 49% of Kemira until 2007, the rest being owned by private investors. A 49% share did not make it a "government enterprise", but it meant that all other investors together would have to oppose the state's opinion in order to overturn the state's decisions in the shareholder's meeting. A regulated corporation can also acquire permits on the agreement that they fulfill certain public service duties. When

6624-465: The immediately surrounding area) is poorly studied, as is the ecology of the species that occur within aquifers below ground level (stygobiota). However, discharge springs (springs of water that had percolated through rock layers over long distances and from which water emanates under pressure) are better studied, and numerous locally endemic species of plant , mollusc and fish have been identified. The ecology of both discharge springs and stygobiota

6716-505: The institution of xiàn (prefectures) under the control of a centrally appointed prefect. Historical evidence of state provision of dispute resolution through a legal/justice system goes back at least as far as ancient Egypt. A primary public service in ancient history involved ensuring the general favor of the gods through a theologically and ceremonially correct state religion . The widespread provision of public utilities as public services in developed countries usually began in

6808-596: The lakes being left; after the first fish kill, both the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) and WaterNSW blamed the ongoing drought affecting Australia, while the DPI blamed the second kill on a disruption of an algal bloom caused by a sudden fall in temperature. In March 2023, millions of fish were reported dead along the Darling River at Menindee, following a heatwave. As the cleanup began, police attributed

6900-554: The late nineteenth century, often with the municipal development of gas and water services. Later, governments began to provide other services such as electricity and health care . In most developed countries, local or national governments continue to provide such services, the biggest exceptions being the U.S. and the UK , where private provision is arguably proportionally more significant. Nonetheless, such privately provided public services are often strongly regulated, for example (in

6992-479: The mining districts of Charters Towers ; Dalby ; Emerald ; Mount Isa ; Quilpie & Winton . The Galilee Basin overlies all three Queensland Mining Regions "northern, central and southern". Pastoral grazing is by far the most frequent land use (greater than 95%) and conservation reserves occupy around 3%. Wetlands of national significance occupy 0.3% of the area of the Galilee subregion, and riverine floodplains that are also potentially water dependent occupy

7084-754: The national perspective was needed for effective management. The Murray–Darling Basin Agreement was first adopted in 1985 but it wasn't until 1993 that its full legal status was enacted. The Agreement led to the creation of a number of new organisations under what is known as the Murray–Darling Basin Initiative. These included the Murray–Darling Basin Ministerial Council and the Murray–Darling Basin Commission . The Murray–Darling Basin Authority (MDBA)

7176-479: The opposite. Authors find that the contemporary economic system is structurally misaligned with goals of sustainable development and that to date no nation can provide decent living standards at sustainable levels of energy and resource use. They provide analysis about factors in social provisioning and assess that improving beneficial provisioning-factors and infrastructure would allow for sustainable forms of sufficient need satisfaction. Open Public Services ,

7268-583: The plan's environmental outcomes. With the release of the Guide to the Proposed Murray–Darling Basin Plan there have been a number of protests and voiced concerns about the plan in rural towns that the MDBA visited to present the plan to consultation meetings. More than 5,000 people attended a MDBA meeting in Griffith where Griffith Mayor, Mike Neville, said the plan would "obliterate" Murrumbidgee valley communities. Other groups also echo this feeling, such as

7360-731: The private or third sector is involved the process of commissioning will usually be linked with a process of procurement , to determine who will provide the services, at what cost and on what terms. Commissioning is often seen as a cyclical process. Public services can be constructed, coordinated and operated in many ways or forms. They include government agencies, independent state -funded institutes, government-coordinated organizations, civil society, military agencies and volunteers. Government agencies are not profit-oriented and their employees are often motivated differently. Studies of their work have found contrasting results including both higher levels of effort and fewer hours of work. A survey in

7452-557: The project should not go ahead because of its impact on climate change, its broader environmental effects, and its erosion of human rights. This was in response to a case brought by a First Nations-led group called Youth Verdict. The mine is expected to export 40 million tonnes of coal a year and according to Palmer will proceed even though one of the original supporters, Vitol , has left the project. China First Coal includes an open-cut, underground longwall mine , standard gauge railway and port facility. Galilee Basin coal quality indicates

7544-405: The public meeting that more work is being done to look at how the proposed cuts would affect regional communities. He stated: "Importantly, we want to make sure the social and economic impacts—which under any sort of scenario is very significant—were fully teased out". Taylor resigned as he allegedly believed that the overriding principle should be the environmental outcome which was in conflict with

7636-584: The requirements of the Water Act . Burke stated that the Act does allow for the authority to "optimise" the needs of all three areas, but constitutional lawyer, George Williams, had cast doubts over the interpretation of the laws, stating it could be subject to a legal challenge. The MDBA announced in November 2010 that it might be forced to push back the release of its final plan for the river system until early 2012. The then MDBA chairman, Mike Taylor , reassured

7728-631: The south. The geological units within the Galilee Basin are outlined below. A stratigraphic section of the northern, eastern and southern regions of the Galilee Basin is provided within "the Hydrostratigraphic sequence of the Cenozoic, the Eromanga Basin and Galilee Basin". The Galilee Basin contains deposits of thermal coal and has been described as Australia's newest mining province. There are currently no operating coal mines in

7820-454: The system. Cane toads compete with native amphibians and are toxic to native carnivores. Phyla canescens has invaded wetlands and floodplains with heavy clay soils in the Murray–Darling Basin, to the detriment of the native vegetation; the plant does best in habitats that are inundated occasionally, although it cannot compete with the grass Paspalum distichum and the sedge Eleocharis plana in more heavily inundated sites. This area

7912-459: The term "public services" (or "services of general interest") often includes: In developing countries , public services tend to be much less well developed. For example, water services might only be available to the wealthy middle class . For political reasons, the service is often subsidized , which reduces the finance potentially available for expansion to poorer communities. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5 is, however,

8004-668: The thick coal seams of the Permian Betts Creek Beds, with a secondary target being the Aramac Coal Measures. Coal seam gas was generated by thermogenic processes when maximum burial depths of ~2 km were achieved in the Late Cretaceous as well as secondary biogenic gas generation following uplift. The challenges to a viable gas project in the Galilee Basin include low gas saturations, distance to market and large volumes of produced water. The Galilee Basin has 48 currently granted mining leases, comprising

8096-423: The water removed, including for the growing of rice and cotton . This extraction is highly controversial among scientists in Australia, regarding the agriculture industry's high water use in a region extremely short of water (as much due to exceptionally low run-off coefficients as to low rainfall). These extensive irrigation systems require a reliable supply of water, not the unpredictable flows that characterise

8188-471: The world, however was scaled back significantly to just 10mtpa. Financial analysts doubted the project was viable but the company self-financed the $ 2bn project in 2018. It struck first coal in June 2021 and is expected to start production at the end of the year. In May 2012, the Government of Queensland granted approval to Hancock Coal and GVK to construct the Alpha Coal Project . The mine

8280-495: Was described as being primarily intended to ensure public safety. Four varieties of carp were used to stock up fish dams. Since then they have made their way into the river systems, where they spread quite quickly. Human introduction, possibly by anglers using small carp illegally as live bait, has also increased their distribution. These fish are very mobile, breed rapidly and can survive in very shallow water and through long periods of very low dissolved oxygen content. Carp are

8372-444: Was designed to set environmentally sustainable limits on the quantities of water that may be taken from Basin water resources , to set Basin-wide environmental, water quality and salinity objectives, to develop efficient water trading regimes across the Basin, to set requirements for state water resource plans and to improve water security for all Basin users. It also intends to minimise social and economic impacts whilst achieving

8464-626: Was formed in 2008 to manage the Murray–Darling Basin in an integrated and sustainable manner. The MDBA is responsible for preparing and overseeing a legally-enforceable management plan. In October 2010, MDBA released a draft Murray–Darling Basin Plan (MDBP) for consultation. On 22nd November 2012, Tony Burke signed the Murray–Darling Basin Plan, which passed the Australian Parliament's disallowance period on 19 March 2013. The MDBA's draft Murray–Darling Basin Plan, titled

#915084