Greetings from Nannup!

For the very few people who do not know where Nannup is, I suppose I'd better explain...

Nannup is a beautiful old logging town located amongst the tall forests of Australia's most southwestern 'toe'; although the logging and mill have largely wound down. Now the town, while retaining its beautiful character, is catering more to grey nomads meandering about the continent with caravans in tow. Nannup also is a great place for mountain bikers and trail hikers seeking a breather near the middle of the Munda Biddi (biking) and Bibbulmun (walking) tracks, each running roughly a thousand kilometres each between Perth and Albany.

I like to come down here to enjoy some time to think, write and puff up and down the odd firebreak on my bike as well; away from the obligations and distractions of the city. The photo above is what I look out at from my shed just outside of town. The blossoms of the trees here supply my few bee colonies with nectar from which they create world-class Marri and Jarrah honey.

It is a privilege to be able to spend time here. However as the idyllic as I might describe being in Nannup, being here doesn't take me away from the concerns and issues that face us all.

Let's just begin with the climate shall we?

I took the photo above in winter and if you look carefully you can see a little smoke haze from the wood fire I use to keep the shed warm. We had yet another flood of the Blackwood River only a few days before. Torrential winter rain. The interesting thing is of course that when I go down to the river's edge and look at the flooded gum "Flood Tree" near the old railway bridge in town, in 100 years of recording floods, the vast majority of occurred in the last 20 years and are getting more frequent.

And then there's the other extreme where last summer my wife and I had to evacuate the shed due to an out-of-control bushfire a few kilometres down the road.

Flood and fire, probably the two most important emergencies I need to think about when down here. And as the climate changes it is quite clear that the frequency and severity of major floods and fires is getting worse and will continue to get worse.

In this blog I want to unpack some of the issues around climate that we need to deal with in the face of these threats. In particular, try and cut through the clouds of bulldust that obscure the truth about where the climate is heading. I will also discuss a range of other equally important threats that are going to make for a very interesting decade or two (and more). These other issues can be conveniently summarised under the heading "Peak Everything". A fair bit to cover in that thread.

Whether or not you ever get the chance to come and join me here for a marshmallow by the fire, I hope some of the topics I have researched, synthesised and tried to summarise here are of some benefit to you as well as me in negotiating the years ahead.

Suggested further reading (about Nannup)

http://www.everythingnannup.com.au/ is probably the best place to start.