Larry’s Story: What Climate Means for Northern Development

Abstract

Many southern dreams about northern development simply do not rest well with the dramatic wet-dry seasonality of northern Australia; that predictable annual build up and release of an incredible and indeed mesmerising climatic energy. Climate change in northern Australia could see both a deepening of this seasonality, but more importantly, an increased frequency of more intense cyclonic events. In this chapter, I use my experiences in Cylones Larry and Yasi in north Queensland to tease out some significant lessons about the north-south relationship and climate. My message in this chapter is that northern Australia can grow and prosper in the face of cyclonic risk, but doing so will require some very different approaches to planning, building, disaster preparedness, insurance management and disaster relief arrangements.