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PDCA Letter to TMR re Range Road permits

Attached is the text of an email from the PDCA to the Director General of Qld Transport and Main Roads regarding the lack of clarity on the proposed permit system and the plan for full opening of the range road.

From: Jamie Oliver <j.k.oliver@outlook.com>

Sent: Monday, May 19, 2025 7:17 AM

To: director-general@tmr.qld.gov.au <director-general@tmr.qld.gov.au>

Cc: ann-maree.greaney@townsville.qld.gov.au <ann-maree.greaney@townsville.qld.gov.au>; paul.jacob@townsville.qld.gov.au <paul.jacob@townsville.qld.gov.au>; engagement.northern@tmr.qld.gov.au <engagement.northern@tmr.qld.gov.au>; Bob.Katter.MP@aph.gov.au <Bob.Katter.MP@aph.gov.au>; Nick Dametto <hinchinbrook@parliament.qld.gov.au>

Subject: Permit System for Mt Spec Range Road

Dear Ms Stannard

The Paluma and District Community Association supports and represents the residents of Paluma Village and surrounding districts including Black Friars and Hidden Valley.  

The community acknowledges TMR’s efforts to keep residents of the District informed about progress to reopen the Mt Spec Range Road since the closure in early-February.

After more than three months we were disappointed to be informed that a full road opening is not presently contemplated (nor apparently scheduled). The current alternate routes have provided infrequent access to some members of the community but are not acceptable means of access in the medium- or long-term because they are rendered impassable by adverse weather, are not suitable for all vehicle types and are unusable by persons with health issues that make them sensitive to the rough surfaces.

The advice that there will be a limited opening of the road under a permit arrangement did assist the community to continue the significant patience that it has exhibited to date. However, TMR’s approach to the implementation of the permit system – as outlined in TMR’s update 22 of 16 May 2025 – has caused great concern. 

The failure by TMR to detail the criteria that will be applied when determining whether a permit is to be issued is unacceptable.  That failure leads the community to the view that TMR is either unsure what criteria will be applied or is unprepared to provide the detail necessary to openly discuss the merit of any decision.   Given TMR’s corporate experience, it would be very surprising if TMR does not already know what criteria it will apply.  In that regard we note references in prior TMR updates to the decision being made in compliance with established policies and processes. We observe that our review of TMR’s website does not disclose a relevant policy.  To assuage community concern, we also ask that TMR detail the logic that underpins its adopted criteria.

Further, TMR’s advice to date about the permit system leads to views that:

  • permits will not be equally provided to “full-time” and “occasional” residents.
  • permits will not be issued to non-residents, even if those people are high-frequency visitors to the district.

The advice states that travel will only be permitted between 6 am and 6 pm.   A Friday night closure of the road prior to 7pm, effectively prevents weekenders from utilising their properties until Saturday, reducing their weekend visits to one-night only.  That this  impact is unacceptable was made very clear to TMR during TMR’s road works campaign some years ago and TMR has adequately accommodated the community’s concern until now.  It is disappointing that lesson has been ignored (we assume in the interest of managing budgets and 12-hour shifts).

We ask that TMR provide the following information to the community in its next Update scheduled for Tuesday May 20 – the urgency arising from our desire to not further delay the opening of the road:

  1. Will TMR share with the community the engineering reports and risk assessments that are being relied upon to deny public access?
  2. What are the specific criteria and the underlying logic for each criterion which will be applied when determining who will get a permit?
  3. Is it TMR’s intent to provide permits to high-frequency users of Paluma – including weekenders who are not property owners?
  4.  Is it TMR’s intent to regulate the number or identity of passengers in vehicles driven by permit-holders?
  5. How long will it take to issue permits?
  6. Will TMR undertake to implement the system by a specific date and to process all permit applications within a specific time?
  7. When does TMR anticipate allowing unrestricted use of the Mt Spec Road, and what are the criteria that will be applied to that decision?

Yours sincerely

Jamie Oliver
President Paluma and District Community Association

Cc:  The Honourable Bob Katter MP, The Honourable Nick Dametto MP, Acting-Mayor Cr. Anne-Maree Greaney, Cr. Paul Jacobs.

Vale Dawn Frith

I was very sad to learn of the passing of Dawn Frith, who, with her husband Cliff, lived in Paluma for several years.

Dawn Whyatt Frith PhD OAM; Source: https://www.theexpressnewspaper.com.au/dawn-frith-a-woman-of-substance-2025-04-18

Dawn was a world-renowned biologist, bird watcher and naturalist. I never really got to know Dawn and Cliff (they had left Paluma by the time we bought our house), but as a young aspiring biologist, I was in awe of their achievements and their series of natural history books and booklets that brought rainforest ecology to life for me. We have had many famous scientists come to Paluma to do research, but the Friths, as residents, arguably put more time into studying our local fauna than anyone else.

Peter Valentine has written a wonderful and informative obituary that describes Dawn and her achievements far better than I can. I recommend you read it here.

In Paluma “…Dawn not only contributed to the study of birds of paradise and bowerbirds with Cliff, but also developed her own project that contributed to an understanding of their ecology, using detailed field studies of insects and leaf-litter invertebrates. … it was her passionate love for our tropical rainforests that motivated her to spend thousands of hours in the forests at Paluma, observing and recording the lives of many species and building a wonderful knowledge base about our forest birds and their lives.

Peter Valentine

Together with Cliff, Dawn was the recipient of an Order of Australia Medal, Dominic Serventy Medal from the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union and a Cassowary Award from the Wet Tropics Management Authority.

Jamie Oliver

The White-cheeked Honeyeater is breeding again

Last year a pair of white cheeked honeyeaters (Phylidonyris niger) nested in the deep cover provided by the straplike leaves of the Lomandra clumps in our backyard at #56.

They’re back again this year in the same place.

We’ve avoided the nest site but from our back deck they can be seen coming and going busily now in early May.

White-cheeked Honeyeaters pair monogamously for the breeding season, with males defending breeding territories that can be held for several years. Males aggressively attack other birds of their own and other species during the breeding season, but not familiar birds such as their own mates, relatives and resident neighbours.

The female builds a cup-shaped nest from twigs, bark, and other plant materials, lined with pieces of flowers (e.g. Banksias, Isopogons).

And as the beak of the nest-building in our photo indicates the nest is kept together with spider web.

The nest is well-concealed in dense foliage or in grass (like Lomandra) below shrubs and ferns or placed low in forked branches of trees or shrubs, often close to the ground. Both parents feed young.

The White-cheeked Honeyeater is endemic to eastern and south-western Australia, ranging from east of the Great Divide in Queensland through coastal New South Wales, becoming scattered south to Jervis Bay. Also in south-western Western Australia and from Perth northwards to Murchison River.

The populations in the east and west are quite unconnected.

The white-cheeked honeyeater looks very similar to the New Holland Honeyeater which can be distinguished by its white eye.

Photos by Peter Cooke and text mostly from Birds in Backyards site.

Planning for the next Rain Event – mobile and internet services

In various discussions within the community and with external bodies, a common message arising from the recent severe rain event involving prolonged power outages and road closures has been the need to maintain or restore communications via the internet and mobile phones when the power was out.  This post provides an update on progress to improve the resilience of our Comms connections during and after any future event.

Mobile Phone Service

  • For the last few years, mobile phone service has cut out shortly after any power outage in the village. Service has been reported to cut out anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours after Ergon power is lost.
  • There is a battery bank and a diesel generator at the tower. The generator never comes on during an outage. There is no procedure for refuelling the generator even if it is working.
  • Following the rain event:
    • The PDCA initiated a formal complaint about the lack of operational power backup at the tower. 
    • The council was asked to discuss this issue with Telstra and is exploring the possibility of authorising staff from Townsville Water to refuel the generator.
    • The office of our state member for Hinchinbrook (Nick Dametto) also wrote to Telstra requesting information on its power backup policies.
    •  Wilfred Karnoll used his contact within Telstra to lobby for action on this matter.
  • The combination of these various contacts with Telstra has finally yielded some positive results
    • Telstra confirmed in writing that a combination of batteries and the diesel generator is intended to provide power for mobile service for “several days” after a power outage
    • Telstra has committed to installing a new generator at the Paluma tower, and Wilfred has been informed that the generator is currently in Townsville waiting for some additional gear before it is ready to be installed.
    • Telstra has indicated that the Council will need to formally negotiate directly with Telstra to arrange authorisation

Free internet at the Community Hall

  • After some persistent emailing, Townsville City Council has acknowledged that the current MiTownsville wifi hotspot is throttled back to a level where it is only barely usable by a single person and virtually unusable when multiple people log in.  They have agreed to increase the bandwidth permanently to 5Mbs which should greatly improve usability under moderately heavy use, and allow for effective mobile wifi calling when the Telstra tower is down, or to those subscribers using other carriers.
  • Wilfred has successfully negotiated with Telstra for a $500 grant to purchase a Starlink terminal/dish that the PDCA can set up during prolonged outages. This would provide much higher bandwidth compared to the free MiTownsville hotspot, and serve as an independent line of communication via internet mobile calling as well as normal internet service. The PDCA would cover subscription costs. It would set this up only when needed and would use a monthly Starlink usage subscription so that costs would only be incurred during months when the system is used.
  • During a power outage, backup power will be required at the hall for both MiTownsville and (when set up) the PDCA Starlink terminal.  The PDCA, together with SES and RFS currently have backup power facilities in place to provide power to electronic devices during an outage.

Paluma and District Social Media Comms

Copyright free image sourced from unblast.com

At the recent community review meeting regarding the extreme weather event earlier this year, it was noted that access to information on what was happening during the event and the need to share information amongst residents could be improved. This article outlines the various ways in which information can currently be shared electronically across the community.
If anyone feels there are ways we can further improve sharing of information during future emergency events please feel free to share in the comments section below or contact any PDCA executive members directly.

What’s App

The WhatsApp group  – Paluma Community Alert shares urgent & ‘need to know’ information in a timely manner for Paluma and district communities. 

Typically, members post the following types of information for sharing:

  • road hazards or closures that they come across;
  • wide loads / large vehicles travelling through the area; 
  • sighting of suspicious activities in the area; 
  • stranded tourists / non-residents needing help; and  
  • planned hazard reduction burns in the area. 

Note well, the group is not about replicating information available on other official websites such as the TMR road conditions site or Qld Fire Department – Current warnings and incidents site. It is all about the important on-ground, info sharing. 

During emergency events into the future, the WhatsApp group may be used by the community to assist with any response needs.

If you are interested in joining this group, please contact Sonya Bryce on 0474 324 153 (administrator).

Facebook

Paluma/Hidden Valley News is a Facebook group “which has been created as it is a good way of finding out news and information in our area.” The administrators encourage members “to use these pages to inform, learn, locate, catch up with… Special events. Tradespeople can post; things people have for sale; lost and found (animals and other such things). Please not anything derogatory, defamatory or in any way abusive or other will be removed.”

This Facebook group has been most effective in providing information on road conditions on the Mt Fox road and the Ewan/Laroona road during and post the recent weather event.

Paluma Buy, Swap, Sell And Giveaway is a Facebook group whose primary objectives are expressed in the title. The ‘about’ description states it is “a site that may be useful to people who live in Paluma ‘village in the clouds’, away from shops and facilities.” It was also used by some for information sharing during the recent extreme weather event.

Paluma.org provides posts primarily from the PDCA on various topics directly relating to our community and allows for comments on any of these posts to be made. The usual rules for polite conduct applies to these comments. Any Paluma and District resident can also submit a post for the consideration of the editors. The current editors are Jamie Oliver, Juanita Poletto and Anneshka Brown.

Notice of PDCA Annual General Meeting, May 24, 2025

Members (and prospective members) are advised that the Annual General Meeting of the Paluma & District Community Association Inc. will be held on:

Saturday, May 24, 2025, at 12pm for a BBQ lunch followed by the AGM at 1:15pm in the Community Hall

Nominations are open for all Executive Committee positions. Nominations should be forwarded to any member of the Executive Committee or by email to PalumaPDCA@gmail.com. Please use the nomination forms, which can be downloaded here.

Positions are:

  • President, 
  • 1 or 2 Vice-Presidents
  • Secretary
  • Treasurer
  • General Committee members (numbers flexible)  

Members are reminded that Annual Subscriptions are now due and should be paid prior to the commencement of the AGM.   Membership is $45.00 Please use the subscription form here to submit your dues. New members are more than welcome and should use the same form.

Please note that you must be a PDCA member to nominate someone to the Committee or vote for any Committee member.

The AGM will be followed immediately by a normal General Meeting with the new Committee.

AGM AGENDA

  1. Opening – circulation of attendance sheet
  2. Apologies
  3. Minutes of previous AGM April 24th, 2021
  4. President’s Report
  5. Treasurer’s report
  6. Election of Officers for 2025-2026
  7. Election of Auditor for 2025-2026
  8. Close of Annual General Meeting

Normal General Meeting Agenda

Normal General Meeting Agenda

  1. Open General Meeting
  2. Proposed Events/Fund-raising for the coming year
  3. Any other business
  4. Close of General Meeting