1 00:00:05,044 --> 00:00:07,044 I'm on a journey around Australia. 2 00:00:10,645 --> 00:00:12,645 A country the size of a continent. 3 00:00:18,685 --> 00:00:21,846 This is a vast land with extraordinary wildlife. 4 00:00:29,047 --> 00:00:31,527 A rich, booming country, on the edge of Asia. 5 00:00:36,487 --> 00:00:38,968 It's not just cricket and kangaroos. 6 00:00:42,568 --> 00:00:44,568 Thanks, ladies. That's all right. You're welcome. 7 00:00:45,648 --> 00:00:48,529 If you think you know Australia, think again! 8 00:00:51,529 --> 00:00:54,629 On this leg of my journey, I'm travelling from the Gold Coast 9 00:00:54,729 --> 00:00:58,150 in the east, down to Sydney, and finally to Melbourne, 10 00:00:58,250 --> 00:01:01,690 just in time for Australia's national birthday party. 11 00:01:04,250 --> 00:01:08,071 Behind the sun and the surf of its beautiful coastal cities, 12 00:01:08,171 --> 00:01:12,671 I'll find a side to Australia that visitors rarely get to see. 13 00:01:12,771 --> 00:01:16,832 Is it respect or fear? If people fear us, they've got to fear us for a reason. 14 00:01:16,932 --> 00:01:20,672 In Sydney, I meet a billionaire property king. 15 00:01:20,772 --> 00:01:21,912 That is a view! 16 00:01:22,012 --> 00:01:26,133 I get up close to Australia's iconic wildlife... 17 00:01:27,933 --> 00:01:30,493 .. and to devastating bushfires. 18 00:01:31,533 --> 00:01:35,214 Look at this! A line of flames here! 19 00:01:59,856 --> 00:02:03,157 I'm beginning another leg of my journey around Australia, 20 00:02:03,257 --> 00:02:07,637 this time travelling down the east coast towards the cities of Sydney and Melbourne. 21 00:02:07,737 --> 00:02:11,578 I'm starting here, at a place called Surfers Paradise. 22 00:02:15,738 --> 00:02:18,158 This area is the Gold Coast. 23 00:02:18,258 --> 00:02:20,639 It's like an Australian Las Vegas 24 00:02:20,739 --> 00:02:23,639 and attracts more than 10 million tourists a year 25 00:02:23,739 --> 00:02:27,019 with stunning beaches, brash nightclubs and casinos. 26 00:02:32,260 --> 00:02:36,620 The weather conditions here are perfect for one of Australia's national obsessions. 27 00:02:42,261 --> 00:02:45,161 Surfing arrived here from California. 28 00:02:45,261 --> 00:02:48,162 For years, Aussie surfers were rebels and dropouts, 29 00:02:48,262 --> 00:02:50,642 but now the sport's gone mainstream. 30 00:02:50,742 --> 00:02:53,762 Across the country, surf bums have been joined on the waves 31 00:02:53,862 --> 00:02:56,543 by everyone from accountants to vicars. 32 00:02:59,023 --> 00:03:02,163 Two million Australians are now regular surfers 33 00:03:02,263 --> 00:03:05,444 and it's become a huge, multi-billion pound industry, 34 00:03:05,544 --> 00:03:08,224 thanks to surf tourism and surf shops. 35 00:03:09,264 --> 00:03:12,444 Anyone spotted that there's a "Danger - No Swimming" sign here? 36 00:03:12,544 --> 00:03:16,625 Yeah, you're going right here. Here we go. 37 00:03:23,265 --> 00:03:27,106 Even with a bit of help, it's not as easy as it looks. 38 00:03:36,987 --> 00:03:39,227 Ah, the indignity of it. 39 00:03:40,267 --> 00:03:42,348 I just fell really hard on my bum. 40 00:03:43,388 --> 00:03:47,168 I've just had my surfing lesson, just come back to the car, 41 00:03:47,268 --> 00:03:51,409 and our ticket had expired, parking ticket, 42 00:03:51,509 --> 00:03:55,169 and we were thinking, "Oh, dear, we might be in a spot of bother", 43 00:03:55,269 --> 00:03:58,169 and, genuinely, I know this sounds completely unbelievable, 44 00:03:58,269 --> 00:04:02,230 but look who turns up here to help you if your ticket runs out. 45 00:04:04,790 --> 00:04:07,010 Thanks, ladies. That's all right. You're welcome. 46 00:04:07,110 --> 00:04:10,171 We top up expired meters just to help out as best as we can 47 00:04:10,271 --> 00:04:14,171 and we've been around for 48 years, so welcome to Surfers Paradise. 48 00:04:14,271 --> 00:04:16,171 That's quite a spiel, 49 00:04:16,271 --> 00:04:21,172 and you buy people whose tickets have expired a new parking ticket. 50 00:04:21,272 --> 00:04:23,652 Yeah! That's very kind. 51 00:04:23,752 --> 00:04:27,172 And it says, "You've just been saved from a parking fine 52 00:04:27,272 --> 00:04:30,053 "by the famous Surfers Paradise Meter Maids." 53 00:04:30,153 --> 00:04:33,413 Thank you very much indeed. Stay safe out there! We will. 54 00:04:33,513 --> 00:04:36,713 All right, cheers, ladies. See ya. Thank you! 55 00:04:46,355 --> 00:04:49,575 As night falls on the Gold Coast, the action moves from the beach 56 00:04:49,675 --> 00:04:52,915 to the city's hundreds of bars, clubs and casinos. 57 00:04:57,996 --> 00:05:02,776 Tacky to some, paradise for others, the area is party central 58 00:05:02,876 --> 00:05:06,757 for tens of thousands of visitors who arrive here every weekend. 59 00:05:11,797 --> 00:05:15,538 But, in recent years, the Gold Coast has developed a reputation 60 00:05:15,638 --> 00:05:17,658 for having a sleazier, darker side. 61 00:05:17,758 --> 00:05:21,378 At one of the city's central police stations I was allowed out on patrol 62 00:05:21,478 --> 00:05:25,499 with a local beat sergeant and police union official, Simon Tutt. 63 00:05:25,599 --> 00:05:28,659 This is your patch tonight, is it? Tonight it is, yeah. 64 00:05:28,759 --> 00:05:32,700 It's just called the CBD, Central Business District, Broad Beach. 65 00:05:32,800 --> 00:05:34,660 There's about five nightclubs. 66 00:05:34,760 --> 00:05:37,180 You've got a nightclub here by the look of it 67 00:05:37,280 --> 00:05:39,900 with the usual queue outside. Called Love, yeah. 68 00:05:40,000 --> 00:05:42,181 What are the main issues you're dealing with, 69 00:05:42,281 --> 00:05:45,181 you and your officers are dealing with out here of a night? 70 00:05:45,281 --> 00:05:47,181 It's drunkenness and, you know, 71 00:05:47,281 --> 00:05:49,661 people obviously affected by drugs as well. 72 00:05:49,761 --> 00:05:52,182 They have drugs before they come out... 73 00:05:52,282 --> 00:05:55,542 and then, of course, they want to fight each other. 74 00:05:55,642 --> 00:05:57,902 We can see a few hanging around outside. 75 00:05:58,002 --> 00:06:01,183 The problem with the drug and alcohol-fuelled violence 76 00:06:01,283 --> 00:06:04,823 is that it's unrelenting and it's every single weekend. 77 00:06:04,923 --> 00:06:06,663 It's like a zoo. 78 00:06:06,763 --> 00:06:09,664 Although Australians have a reputation as big boozers, 79 00:06:09,764 --> 00:06:12,224 they actually drink much less than Europeans. 80 00:06:12,324 --> 00:06:16,904 But Australians are among the largest users of illegal drugs in the world, 81 00:06:17,004 --> 00:06:21,185 fuelling the narcotics trade and creating a huge problem with organised crime. 82 00:06:21,285 --> 00:06:25,785 How serious a problem is crime here in the Gold Coast? 83 00:06:25,885 --> 00:06:29,666 It certainly is the crime capital of Australia. 84 00:06:29,766 --> 00:06:32,426 It has a high density of organised crime. 85 00:06:32,526 --> 00:06:38,187 It has a lot of targets who are engaged in organised crime 86 00:06:38,287 --> 00:06:40,187 and why wouldn't they? 87 00:06:40,287 --> 00:06:45,347 If you wanted to set up an organised crime operation, there's a ready-made population 88 00:06:45,447 --> 00:06:48,188 who you may want to have access to in terms of a market 89 00:06:48,288 --> 00:06:50,908 and that's why it becomes the crime capital. 90 00:06:51,008 --> 00:06:54,188 It's a fantastic place to come, as long as you're aware 91 00:06:54,288 --> 00:06:58,649 it has that... seedy underbelly component to it as well. 92 00:07:00,769 --> 00:07:04,190 The police believe organised crime here is dominated 93 00:07:04,290 --> 00:07:08,170 by so-called outlaw motorcycle clubs or biker gangs. 94 00:07:11,770 --> 00:07:14,111 The most famous are the Hells Angels 95 00:07:14,211 --> 00:07:18,251 and, here in the Gold Coast, their notorious rivals, the Bandidos. 96 00:07:19,291 --> 00:07:23,192 The Gold Coast just has a very high density of outlaw motorcycle gangs. 97 00:07:23,292 --> 00:07:27,192 The outlaw motorcycle gangs are certainly the most obvious face 98 00:07:27,292 --> 00:07:29,412 of illegal activity. 99 00:07:30,452 --> 00:07:32,673 So what's down here? 100 00:07:32,773 --> 00:07:35,753 This is the Bandidos' clubhouse, up here on the right. 101 00:07:35,853 --> 00:07:37,673 The Bandidos? 102 00:07:37,773 --> 00:07:41,194 They're quite a fearsome motorcycle gang, aren't they? 103 00:07:41,294 --> 00:07:43,194 That looks like a fortress! 104 00:07:43,294 --> 00:07:46,614 Yeah. You can't just walk in there off the street. 105 00:07:47,654 --> 00:07:51,155 In recent years, violence between rival biker gangs 106 00:07:51,255 --> 00:07:53,255 has erupted in public. 107 00:07:54,135 --> 00:07:57,635 What's the reason for us being here? What happened here? 108 00:07:57,735 --> 00:08:01,916 There was a shooting in broad daylight in the shopping mall 109 00:08:02,016 --> 00:08:06,156 in front of thousands of people and an innocent person was shot. 110 00:08:06,256 --> 00:08:09,677 Crime is no longer just between underworld figures, 111 00:08:09,777 --> 00:08:12,437 it's actually spilled out into the broader community 112 00:08:12,537 --> 00:08:15,677 and I think criminals, certainly on the Gold Coast, 113 00:08:15,777 --> 00:08:17,998 have become far, far more brazen. 114 00:08:18,098 --> 00:08:22,198 I think people for a time after that felt, "Who could be next?" 115 00:08:22,298 --> 00:08:26,819 Were they safe going about their daily business, or could they be caught in the crossfire? 116 00:08:28,299 --> 00:08:31,199 'Police say that tit-for-tat violence 117 00:08:31,299 --> 00:08:34,199 and decades-old vendettas between biker gangs 118 00:08:34,299 --> 00:08:38,200 has led to hundreds of shootings and scores of killings across the country. 119 00:08:38,300 --> 00:08:41,600 Outlaw motorcycle clubs are now also accused of involvement 120 00:08:41,700 --> 00:08:46,461 In prostitution, drug production, money laundering and gun running. 121 00:08:47,501 --> 00:08:51,201 One estimate suggests that serious organised crime in Australia 122 00:08:51,301 --> 00:08:55,262 costs the country around 10 billion pounds per year. 123 00:09:08,103 --> 00:09:10,243 Something rather strange has happened. 124 00:09:10,343 --> 00:09:12,684 One of the biker gangs in this area, 125 00:09:12,784 --> 00:09:16,324 one of the biggest biker gangs, who never talk to outsiders, 126 00:09:16,424 --> 00:09:19,564 has agreed to meet us 127 00:09:19,664 --> 00:09:24,205 and we're now on our way to their clubhouse 128 00:09:24,305 --> 00:09:27,625 which, I suppose, is like their headquarters really. 129 00:09:30,305 --> 00:09:33,206 The Australian authorities have launched a massive crackdown 130 00:09:33,306 --> 00:09:37,266 on biker gangs, who they blame for much of the organised crime. 131 00:09:40,307 --> 00:09:45,747 The bikers' clubhouse was tucked away on an industrial estate on the edge of town. 132 00:09:46,787 --> 00:09:48,787 He's a big bloke! 133 00:09:49,788 --> 00:09:52,928 The Finks are one of the largest and among the most feared 134 00:09:53,028 --> 00:09:55,848 of all outlaw motorcycle clubs in Australia. 135 00:09:55,948 --> 00:09:59,209 Is that, sort of, security blocking the entrance, then? Yeah. 136 00:09:59,309 --> 00:10:01,209 He said he'd be out in a minute. 137 00:10:01,309 --> 00:10:03,689 Who's coming out, Greg or...? Yeah. 138 00:10:03,789 --> 00:10:07,469 Can we walk over or do you want us to stay here? Oh, we'll just wait. 139 00:10:08,510 --> 00:10:12,970 Greg Keating is the club's sergeant-at-arms, or enforcer. 140 00:10:13,070 --> 00:10:16,210 Is one of you gentlemen Greg? That would be me. Hi, Greg. 141 00:10:16,310 --> 00:10:19,931 How you doing? Simon Reeve. Nice to meet you, mate. Nice to meet you. 142 00:10:20,031 --> 00:10:22,691 Thanks for agreeing to see us. Yeah, no worries. 143 00:10:22,791 --> 00:10:26,412 I gather it's not something you do very often. No. 144 00:10:26,512 --> 00:10:28,132 Harry. Harry! Pleased to meet you. 145 00:10:28,232 --> 00:10:30,692 Hello, mate. Simon Reeve. Nice to meet you too. 146 00:10:30,792 --> 00:10:32,692 How are you? Very well, thank you. 147 00:10:32,792 --> 00:10:35,353 Hello, sir. Simon. Ferret. How's it going, mate? 148 00:10:36,793 --> 00:10:39,693 The Finks had called together some of their local members 149 00:10:39,793 --> 00:10:42,193 to put on a show of strength for us. 150 00:10:47,474 --> 00:10:50,274 (ENGINES ROAR) 151 00:10:58,795 --> 00:11:03,996 The noise, you will not be surprised to know, is unbelievable. 152 00:11:05,596 --> 00:11:09,216 Members of outlaw motorcycle clubs say they're enthusiasts 153 00:11:09,316 --> 00:11:11,696 brought together by a love of motorbikes 154 00:11:11,796 --> 00:11:14,697 and it's unwise to mess with their machines. 155 00:11:14,797 --> 00:11:19,217 This sticker on here, is that the best theft deterrent? 156 00:11:19,317 --> 00:11:22,218 That just means someone in our club owns that bike. 157 00:11:22,318 --> 00:11:25,778 It means "don't touch it", doesn't it? It means "don't touch it", yeah. 158 00:11:25,878 --> 00:11:30,218 If you owned a nice car, you wouldn't want people coming down the street, scratching it. 159 00:11:30,318 --> 00:11:33,619 It's easier just to say you're part of our club, leave it alone. 160 00:11:33,719 --> 00:11:36,699 Yeah, but if I put on my car that it belongs to me, 161 00:11:36,799 --> 00:11:39,219 nobody's going to give a monkey's, are they? 162 00:11:39,319 --> 00:11:42,900 They're not going to stop themselves taking it because of that, but this is... 163 00:11:43,000 --> 00:11:44,220 It's about respect. 164 00:11:44,320 --> 00:11:49,221 We've earned respect and people understand that's ours, leave it alone and you won't have a problem. 165 00:11:49,321 --> 00:11:52,521 Is it respect or fear? I don't think it's fear. 166 00:11:53,561 --> 00:11:58,222 Bit of both? Maybe a little bit of fear, but people instil fear in themselves. 167 00:11:58,322 --> 00:12:01,222 Like, you have no problem with us, you have no need to fear us, 168 00:12:01,322 --> 00:12:04,462 neither does your camera crew because you've done nothing wrong to us 169 00:12:04,562 --> 00:12:07,703 and we have no need to fear you because we've done nothing wrong to you. 170 00:12:07,803 --> 00:12:11,083 So if people fear us, they've got to fear us for a reason. 171 00:12:12,123 --> 00:12:16,704 There are thought to be 39 outlaw motorcycle groups in Australia, 172 00:12:16,804 --> 00:12:20,464 with around 4,000 patched, or official members. 173 00:12:20,564 --> 00:12:23,224 So, gentlemen, tell us about this place. 174 00:12:23,324 --> 00:12:27,185 This is our gym where we train. Every gym's got to have a stripper pole. 175 00:12:27,285 --> 00:12:30,465 It's not a gym without a stripper pole. That's right. 176 00:12:30,565 --> 00:12:34,405 Which one of you gets the honour? On the stripper pole? Not me! 177 00:12:35,446 --> 00:12:39,706 As part of the government crackdown, the Finks were the first biker club in the country 178 00:12:39,806 --> 00:12:42,706 to be declared a criminal organisation 179 00:12:42,806 --> 00:12:46,267 under the kind of laws rarely used in modern democracies. 180 00:12:46,367 --> 00:12:49,227 You've got some pretty heavy-duty security. 181 00:12:49,327 --> 00:12:53,708 You don't leave your front door open at home and sit out in the backyard. 182 00:12:53,808 --> 00:12:55,708 Yeah, but I don't put a vehicle 183 00:12:55,808 --> 00:12:58,288 across the entrance to my street though, do I? 184 00:12:59,328 --> 00:13:01,848 It's 2013, mate. 185 00:13:02,889 --> 00:13:05,709 Control orders have been used against members of the Finks 186 00:13:05,809 --> 00:13:10,709 to restrict who they can associate with and their freedom of movement, including against Harry. 187 00:13:10,809 --> 00:13:13,230 Bikers say they're being made scapegoats 188 00:13:13,330 --> 00:13:16,230 and the laws are an infringement of their human rights. 189 00:13:16,330 --> 00:13:18,470 I'm virtually under house arrest. 190 00:13:18,570 --> 00:13:21,231 You don't look like you're under house arrest, Harry. 191 00:13:21,331 --> 00:13:25,231 Well, I'm controlled, aren't I, Simon? I can't talk to my next-door neighbour. 192 00:13:25,331 --> 00:13:28,231 I'm not allowed to talk to my next-door neighbour. Why? 193 00:13:28,331 --> 00:13:30,952 Because he's not a member of my immediate family. 194 00:13:31,052 --> 00:13:33,232 I can't talk to my next-door neighbour. 195 00:13:33,332 --> 00:13:35,992 I can't go to a pub, a club or a restaurant. 196 00:13:36,092 --> 00:13:40,713 It's something you would think that only in China or maybe Burma. 197 00:13:40,813 --> 00:13:43,713 And you see these things and you think, you know, 198 00:13:43,813 --> 00:13:47,233 for years, and you've seen all those issues overseas 199 00:13:47,333 --> 00:13:50,214 and you'd never think that'd happen in Australia. 200 00:13:51,254 --> 00:13:55,714 Several bikers have already been arrested for breaking their control orders. 201 00:13:55,814 --> 00:13:59,935 Even talking to a TV crew like us could get someone like Harry arrested. 202 00:14:00,975 --> 00:14:03,055 Come down to the spa. 203 00:14:04,095 --> 00:14:08,476 You've got a Jacuzzi spa in the back here. Yeah. 204 00:14:08,576 --> 00:14:10,556 Every gym should. 205 00:14:10,656 --> 00:14:14,236 I saw one report that said 45, I think, 206 00:14:14,336 --> 00:14:17,717 45 of your members at least have got criminal convictions. 207 00:14:17,817 --> 00:14:20,117 Is that true? 208 00:14:20,217 --> 00:14:22,717 You need to look at what the criminal conviction is, OK? 209 00:14:22,817 --> 00:14:25,598 Most of them will be small things as speeding offences. 210 00:14:25,698 --> 00:14:28,238 They said we had 1,500 convictions. 211 00:14:28,338 --> 00:14:30,718 That's why we're a criminal organisation. 212 00:14:30,818 --> 00:14:34,239 But what sort of convictions were they and how were they dealt with? 213 00:14:34,339 --> 00:14:37,239 And they were only dealt with by way of fines. 214 00:14:37,339 --> 00:14:41,719 And the interesting part was, when we had a good look at it and the lawyers had a look at it, 215 00:14:41,819 --> 00:14:46,240 we found most of the offending was done by members before they joined the club 216 00:14:46,340 --> 00:14:50,040 and the offending dropped once they joined the club. 217 00:14:50,140 --> 00:14:54,561 Are you trying to say that the club actually reduces crime? 218 00:14:54,661 --> 00:14:58,041 Absolutely it did. With these particular people it reduced crime. 219 00:14:58,141 --> 00:14:59,961 It reduced their offending. 220 00:15:00,061 --> 00:15:04,162 And it reduced their offending because you have a sense of family here and a brotherhood. 221 00:15:04,262 --> 00:15:08,242 The police say your members have been involved in murder, beatings, robberies 222 00:15:08,342 --> 00:15:13,783 and that you're a criminal organisation involved in, quote, "serious criminal activity." 223 00:15:15,343 --> 00:15:17,243 Look, if that's the case, 224 00:15:17,343 --> 00:15:21,484 we are sure there are adequate laws in place right now 225 00:15:21,584 --> 00:15:23,724 that can deal with those people. 226 00:15:23,824 --> 00:15:27,724 There is no need for any legislation to be introduced that takes away 227 00:15:27,824 --> 00:15:30,645 the rights of everybody in this country. 228 00:15:30,745 --> 00:15:33,885 I think these ladies have just got into the tank behind us 229 00:15:33,985 --> 00:15:37,245 as some sort of distraction or diversion, I suspect. 230 00:15:37,345 --> 00:15:40,726 No, no, this is how we roll. I'm going to stay focussed on our... 231 00:15:40,826 --> 00:15:43,246 It won't divert us because we're used to it. 232 00:15:43,346 --> 00:15:47,086 But, look, I hear what you're saying about it's a club of members. 233 00:15:47,186 --> 00:15:50,847 Can you not see how... intimidating 234 00:15:50,947 --> 00:15:53,727 and terrifying you guys look from the outside 235 00:15:53,827 --> 00:15:55,727 to your average Australian citizen 236 00:15:55,827 --> 00:15:58,248 who's going about paying their taxes? 237 00:15:58,348 --> 00:16:02,968 I mean, Ferret, look at yourself, mate, you're covered in ink. You look a scary bloke. 238 00:16:03,068 --> 00:16:05,929 People have been getting tattooed for 5,000 years. 239 00:16:06,029 --> 00:16:09,729 The Australian public I know don't have that perception. They don't have that fear. 240 00:16:09,829 --> 00:16:13,249 You said, you know, they're scared of you and they're intimidated. 241 00:16:13,349 --> 00:16:15,470 Are they intimidated, because I don't know any that are? 242 00:16:16,350 --> 00:16:19,730 Bikers are now challenging the draconian new laws in the courts 243 00:16:19,830 --> 00:16:23,250 and they've even got some human rights groups on their side. 244 00:16:23,350 --> 00:16:26,251 But the police claim they're criminal gangs 245 00:16:26,351 --> 00:16:30,031 and the government here shows little sign of backing down. 246 00:16:31,071 --> 00:16:36,252 Well, that was one of the more... extraordinary encounters I have had, 247 00:16:36,352 --> 00:16:38,352 I have to say. 248 00:16:54,834 --> 00:16:58,254 The bikers see themselves as rebel outsiders 249 00:16:58,354 --> 00:17:01,795 but most Australians have a very different dream. 250 00:17:04,835 --> 00:17:08,735 The aspiration for many is a house with a pool, perhaps in one of 251 00:17:08,835 --> 00:17:12,316 the huge suburbs that ring the eastern coastal cities. 252 00:17:16,356 --> 00:17:19,256 This is a hugely attractive area to live in 253 00:17:19,356 --> 00:17:23,257 and as people are moving to the coast and building new houses 254 00:17:23,357 --> 00:17:26,497 there are, of course, consequences for the wildlife, 255 00:17:26,597 --> 00:17:30,498 including for one Australian icon. 256 00:17:30,598 --> 00:17:33,258 Morning. Jon? Hi, Simon. 257 00:17:33,358 --> 00:17:35,578 Hello. Simon. Very nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. 258 00:17:35,678 --> 00:17:38,339 The guy we're going to catch today, Mekani, 259 00:17:38,439 --> 00:17:41,859 he's just down in the bush down here, off this property, 260 00:17:41,959 --> 00:17:43,859 and we're not sure where he is 261 00:17:43,959 --> 00:17:47,340 so what we might do is just go and track him down, see how we go. 262 00:17:47,440 --> 00:17:50,860 You're going to catch a koala? Yeah. Yeah. That's the plan. 263 00:17:50,960 --> 00:17:52,860 Is that a tricky endeavour? 264 00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:55,460 Ah, look, we've got about 50-50 chance. 265 00:17:55,560 --> 00:17:59,101 A couple of helpers, so we've got a tree climber and the other field guys 266 00:17:59,201 --> 00:18:01,901 who are going to help us with the capture of Mekani. 267 00:18:02,001 --> 00:18:06,662 Vet Jon Hanger rescues and treats injured koalas. 268 00:18:06,762 --> 00:18:09,342 In suburbs like these and across the country, 269 00:18:09,442 --> 00:18:14,182 an estimated 4,000 koalas are killed each year by dogs and cars alone. 270 00:18:14,282 --> 00:18:15,863 Thousands more are injured. 271 00:18:15,963 --> 00:18:18,863 This direction. You already found him? 272 00:18:18,963 --> 00:18:22,343 Well, this antenna gives us a vague direction, 273 00:18:22,443 --> 00:18:25,104 so, sort of, a ball park direction. 274 00:18:25,204 --> 00:18:28,344 Jon has fitted a koala that was bitten by a pet dog 275 00:18:28,444 --> 00:18:31,544 with a radio collar and it's time for him to give it a check-up. 276 00:18:31,644 --> 00:18:33,865 I've just spotted him. Have you? 277 00:18:33,965 --> 00:18:37,045 Yeah, so if you come with me, I'll... Yeah, yeah, yeah. 278 00:18:38,645 --> 00:18:41,865 So he's in this grey gum. Right. 279 00:18:41,965 --> 00:18:47,026 If you follow the right-hand fork and then follow the right-hand fork again... There he is, look. 280 00:18:47,126 --> 00:18:49,126 Yeah, that's him. 281 00:18:49,766 --> 00:18:51,867 How exciting! It's a koala. 282 00:18:51,967 --> 00:18:54,867 Koalas are a symbol of this country loved by millions, 283 00:18:54,967 --> 00:18:57,107 but the cuddly creatures are in crisis. 284 00:18:57,207 --> 00:19:00,868 Jon, it strikes me that we've got this koala in a tree 285 00:19:00,968 --> 00:19:03,588 on the edge of somebody's garden 286 00:19:03,688 --> 00:19:06,348 on the very edge of suburbia. 287 00:19:06,448 --> 00:19:09,348 The problem for koalas is that humans are advancing 288 00:19:09,448 --> 00:19:12,109 into what was their land, I think, isn't it? 289 00:19:12,209 --> 00:19:13,669 That's exactly right. 290 00:19:13,769 --> 00:19:18,669 And we know that koalas don't cope well with being so close to human habitation. 291 00:19:18,769 --> 00:19:24,030 Unfortunately, a lot of good koala habitat, the habitat they prefer, is also the habitat that we prefer. 292 00:19:24,130 --> 00:19:27,870 Experts think there were up to 10 million koalas in Australia 293 00:19:27,970 --> 00:19:30,351 when Europeans first arrived here. 294 00:19:30,451 --> 00:19:33,351 Now just a tiny fraction of that number remain. 295 00:19:33,451 --> 00:19:37,872 The koala to Australia is a bit like the panda to China. 296 00:19:37,972 --> 00:19:40,872 It's an icon of the country. 297 00:19:40,972 --> 00:19:44,352 And yet even this isn't deemed, it seems, 298 00:19:44,452 --> 00:19:48,513 worthy enough of providing exclusive areas. 299 00:19:48,613 --> 00:19:52,873 I think a lot of the population really don't grasp the trouble that the koala's in. 300 00:19:52,973 --> 00:19:55,593 They don't think the koala will ever go extinct. 301 00:19:55,693 --> 00:19:58,834 Could it? Yeah, I think it can. 302 00:19:58,934 --> 00:20:02,114 We see localised extinction happening all over the place now. 303 00:20:02,214 --> 00:20:05,355 Let's say we've still got 100,000 koalas, 200,000 left. 304 00:20:05,455 --> 00:20:09,355 The rate of decline is such that we're foolish if we don't think 305 00:20:09,455 --> 00:20:13,115 that we're facing extinction at some time in the next decade or two. 306 00:20:13,215 --> 00:20:16,176 Decade or two? As quickly as that? Yeah, yeah. 307 00:20:18,136 --> 00:20:20,876 For Mekani to be given his health check, 308 00:20:20,976 --> 00:20:23,857 he first had to be persuaded to come down from his tree. 309 00:20:27,337 --> 00:20:32,878 The fact that we can't even arrest the decline of such an iconic animal 310 00:20:32,978 --> 00:20:35,358 just, I think, is a shame for us. 311 00:20:35,458 --> 00:20:38,118 It's a disgrace that we can't do that. 312 00:20:38,218 --> 00:20:43,119 We still think that people being able to live wherever they want to live is more important. 313 00:20:43,219 --> 00:20:45,219 Stop. 314 00:20:52,980 --> 00:20:55,420 (KOALA SCREECHES) 315 00:20:59,700 --> 00:21:01,081 Good boy. 316 00:21:01,181 --> 00:21:02,881 What a... 317 00:21:02,981 --> 00:21:04,881 Well done! 318 00:21:04,981 --> 00:21:09,422 It's a bit undignified for him but it's over fairly quickly. 319 00:21:10,862 --> 00:21:13,362 Mekani looked in good shape. 320 00:21:13,462 --> 00:21:16,362 Jon decided it was time to remove his radio collar, 321 00:21:16,462 --> 00:21:19,323 which required a small dose of anaesthetic. 322 00:21:19,423 --> 00:21:22,623 Just relax. Just relax, little fella. 323 00:21:26,343 --> 00:21:28,664 (KOALA SCREECHES) 324 00:21:35,464 --> 00:21:36,885 Yep. 325 00:21:36,985 --> 00:21:38,605 Aw! 326 00:21:38,705 --> 00:21:42,885 This is a big moment in the life of this koala, isn't it? 327 00:21:42,985 --> 00:21:45,725 You're about to cut the tracking collar 328 00:21:45,825 --> 00:21:48,606 and that means you won't be able to locate him anymore. 329 00:21:48,706 --> 00:21:51,886 He'll be free without big brother or dad watching him. 330 00:21:51,986 --> 00:21:55,367 That's right, he will be. He'll be on his own, so to speak. 331 00:21:55,467 --> 00:21:58,887 But, you know, the community around here is fairly aware of koalas 332 00:21:58,987 --> 00:22:03,767 so we can feel reasonably comfortable that if someone saw that he was sick 333 00:22:03,867 --> 00:22:07,848 or injured, that they'd call us and let us know. 334 00:22:07,948 --> 00:22:09,888 Look at that! 335 00:22:09,988 --> 00:22:13,889 Perfectly suited for shinning up trees 336 00:22:13,989 --> 00:22:17,869 if, of course, it's got trees to climb. 337 00:22:19,469 --> 00:22:21,469 There you go, mate. 338 00:22:23,470 --> 00:22:25,950 You ready? Good luck. 339 00:22:34,991 --> 00:22:36,991 What a cutie. 340 00:22:37,831 --> 00:22:40,631 I think we're going to leave this lad here and creep away. 341 00:22:41,672 --> 00:22:43,892 Like other industrialised nations, 342 00:22:43,992 --> 00:22:47,892 Australia doesn't have a great record for protecting its wildlife. 343 00:22:47,992 --> 00:22:52,433 but surely they need to move heaven and earth to save a national icon. 344 00:22:57,673 --> 00:23:00,434 This looks like smoke just here. 345 00:23:01,474 --> 00:23:03,894 Anywhere else I'd say it was a mist, 346 00:23:03,994 --> 00:23:08,134 but I think this is definitely smoke and we're here in bushfire season. 347 00:23:08,234 --> 00:23:11,135 This is the hottest, driest continent 348 00:23:11,235 --> 00:23:14,895 and fires are a massive problem here. 349 00:23:14,995 --> 00:23:21,836 Yesterday, as well, was the hottest average day in Australia ever. 350 00:23:27,477 --> 00:23:30,377 I was heading south towards Sydney. 351 00:23:30,477 --> 00:23:32,897 My route took me towards the Liverpool Plains 352 00:23:32,997 --> 00:23:35,437 In the heart of New South Wales. 353 00:23:39,918 --> 00:23:43,138 We've left the coast and we're heading inland 354 00:23:43,238 --> 00:23:45,719 into farming country. 355 00:23:50,999 --> 00:23:52,999 Goodness, look. 356 00:23:55,000 --> 00:23:57,960 Five or six fire vehicles there. 357 00:23:59,000 --> 00:24:03,200 There are huge bushfires in this area at the moment as well. 358 00:24:04,241 --> 00:24:07,621 Almost everywhere we've been on this part of the journey, 359 00:24:07,721 --> 00:24:09,801 there's been bushfires. 360 00:24:11,481 --> 00:24:15,902 Australia's famous, of course, for having plenty of parched outback, 361 00:24:16,002 --> 00:24:19,142 but this is a huge and diverse country with rainforests 362 00:24:19,242 --> 00:24:21,622 and snow-capped mountains. 363 00:24:21,722 --> 00:24:24,463 and it has enormous cattle ranches and farms 364 00:24:24,563 --> 00:24:27,623 that have long been crucial to the economy of the country. 365 00:24:27,723 --> 00:24:31,904 The Liverpool Plains region is renowned as Australia's food bowl. 366 00:24:32,004 --> 00:24:35,064 I can see somebody waving over there. Tommy? 367 00:24:35,164 --> 00:24:37,404 OK. Thank you! 368 00:24:38,444 --> 00:24:41,385 Tommy and George Clift are in their 80s. 369 00:24:41,485 --> 00:24:45,605 Their families have been farming here for seven generations. 370 00:24:46,645 --> 00:24:48,265 Hey there, George. 371 00:24:48,365 --> 00:24:51,306 Simon. Lovely to meet you, sir. You too. 372 00:24:51,406 --> 00:24:55,626 What a beautiful patch of planet Earth you've got. It's unbelievable, isn't it? 373 00:24:55,726 --> 00:24:59,147 And you've got a house in here? Yeah, the house in the jungle. 374 00:24:59,247 --> 00:25:02,587 Look at your place! It's beautiful! 375 00:25:02,687 --> 00:25:06,427 How much land have you got here? We've got about 12,000 acres. 376 00:25:06,527 --> 00:25:12,968 12,000 acres? Acres, yeah. That is... sort of, a small country! 377 00:25:14,008 --> 00:25:17,389 How good is this land in terms of farming? 378 00:25:17,489 --> 00:25:21,389 Is it quality land or do you have to work it hard? 379 00:25:21,489 --> 00:25:25,149 I beg your pardon. No. Likened second to the Nile Valley. 380 00:25:25,249 --> 00:25:27,670 It's only likened second to the Nile Valley. 381 00:25:27,770 --> 00:25:30,390 Because you can grow two crops a year here. 382 00:25:30,490 --> 00:25:34,670 You're saying it's some of the best farmland in the world? I'm not saying it, it's proven. 383 00:25:34,770 --> 00:25:37,971 I'll take you there and show you, if you like, the crops there. 384 00:25:39,011 --> 00:25:42,911 The Liverpool Plains comprise an area of 5,000 square miles 385 00:25:43,011 --> 00:25:48,392 with land that's so productive, farms here churn out more than 500,000 tonnes of cereal crops. 386 00:25:48,492 --> 00:25:52,912 See how it holds the water here? My goodness, it's sort of damp, isn't it? 387 00:25:53,012 --> 00:25:56,393 So, just beneath the surface, it's... Just beneath the surface. 388 00:25:56,493 --> 00:25:58,893 ..it's got spongy qualities to it? 389 00:26:03,013 --> 00:26:04,914 Goodness. 390 00:26:05,014 --> 00:26:09,874 That's not easy to get out, is it? There's no soil in the world like it 391 00:26:09,974 --> 00:26:12,395 It's as good as that? It's as good as that. 392 00:26:12,495 --> 00:26:14,855 And I'll fight anyone that says it's not. 393 00:26:15,895 --> 00:26:20,915 These small roots go down probably a metre and a half, two metres 394 00:26:21,015 --> 00:26:24,916 under the ground, and that's where it gets the moisture coming up 395 00:26:25,016 --> 00:26:29,556 and brings it up into the... you can feel the moisture in the roots if you feel them. 396 00:26:29,656 --> 00:26:34,397 So it's not just the soil that's fantastic here for farming, 397 00:26:34,497 --> 00:26:37,637 it's the fact that you've actually got water under the ground, 398 00:26:37,737 --> 00:26:40,918 you've got a huge aquifer underneath you? A huge aquifer. 399 00:26:41,018 --> 00:26:45,238 There's just about as much water as there is in Sydney Harbour - fresh water. 400 00:26:45,338 --> 00:26:47,278 That's a lot of water. 401 00:26:47,378 --> 00:26:49,719 How important is this area? 402 00:26:49,819 --> 00:26:51,919 It's more than important. 403 00:26:52,019 --> 00:26:53,919 It's critical. 404 00:26:54,019 --> 00:26:57,679 Here, we're producing huge amounts of food 405 00:26:57,779 --> 00:26:59,920 for the rest of the world. 406 00:27:00,020 --> 00:27:02,200 For Australia and the rest of the world. 407 00:27:02,300 --> 00:27:07,460 There just aren't words that can describe the value of this country. 408 00:27:08,501 --> 00:27:11,921 The land here might be valuable, but the big money in Australia 409 00:27:12,021 --> 00:27:16,161 is being made by ripping it up to get at the mineral wealth that's underneath. 410 00:27:16,261 --> 00:27:19,922 A massive coal seam has been discovered beneath the Liverpool Plains 411 00:27:20,022 --> 00:27:25,983 and the land next to the Clifts' farm is now being test drilled by a Chinese mining company. 412 00:27:27,023 --> 00:27:29,923 This is the edge of your land here, is it? 413 00:27:30,023 --> 00:27:32,843 There's one foot in China and one foot in Australia. 414 00:27:32,943 --> 00:27:35,924 That's their test holes. Just here? There, yeah. 415 00:27:36,024 --> 00:27:38,564 Test holes for what? What are they drilling for? 416 00:27:38,664 --> 00:27:41,224 Coal and gas - whatever they can come up with. 417 00:27:42,664 --> 00:27:46,165 In Australia, it's the state, not landowners, who own the rights 418 00:27:46,265 --> 00:27:48,525 to explore for minerals under the ground. 419 00:27:48,625 --> 00:27:53,926 This highly unusual legislation has helped to fuel Australia's extraordinary resources boom, 420 00:27:54,026 --> 00:27:58,926 which has seen vast tracts of land torn up for coal, gold and iron ore. 421 00:27:59,026 --> 00:28:02,326 Many farmers on the Liverpool Plains fear their land 422 00:28:02,426 --> 00:28:04,927 could go the way of the nearby Hunter Valley, 423 00:28:05,027 --> 00:28:07,927 which is now being mined by giant corporations. 424 00:28:08,027 --> 00:28:12,108 Many farmers here have sold-up and thousands of acres are now being strip-mined. 425 00:28:15,588 --> 00:28:19,628 I'm starting to get a sense of the scale of the mining that's going on here. 426 00:28:20,668 --> 00:28:24,449 Enormous mine underneath us. More mining over here. 427 00:28:24,549 --> 00:28:29,089 We've got the power stations up ahead that are helping to power the machinery involved in this. 428 00:28:29,189 --> 00:28:33,350 There's another mine over there. We've got a mine behind us as well. 429 00:28:35,270 --> 00:28:37,950 The place is riddled with mines! 430 00:28:38,990 --> 00:28:42,231 It starts to look a little bit like Swiss cheese! 431 00:28:44,031 --> 00:28:47,651 Australia's now one of the biggest exporters of coal in the world, 432 00:28:47,751 --> 00:28:49,452 mostly to Asia. 433 00:28:49,552 --> 00:28:53,652 Coal exports bring in more than 30 billion pounds a year to the country. 434 00:28:53,752 --> 00:28:58,113 The huge sums involved make this a get rich quick boom that's hard to resist. 435 00:28:59,513 --> 00:29:03,813 but when a mining company tried to start test drilling back on the Liverpool Plains, 436 00:29:03,913 --> 00:29:08,994 they didn't reckon on the reception they got from George and Tommy and some of their neighbours. 437 00:29:12,434 --> 00:29:16,415 That's probably Tim there. Is that Tim? Yeah. 438 00:29:16,515 --> 00:29:19,775 Tim Duddy's a central figure in the ongoing campaign 439 00:29:19,875 --> 00:29:22,475 to stop corporations from mining this land. 440 00:29:24,955 --> 00:29:28,176 Hello. Hello. Tim Duddy. Simon Reeve. Lovely to meet you. 441 00:29:28,276 --> 00:29:30,936 Welcome to Rossmar. Thank you very much indeed. 442 00:29:31,036 --> 00:29:34,937 So, this, I'm putting the twos and twos together to understand, 443 00:29:35,037 --> 00:29:37,417 this was the site of the blockade? 444 00:29:37,517 --> 00:29:40,097 Yeah, and BHP... Mining giant. 445 00:29:40,197 --> 00:29:43,417 .. yeah, were trying to get access to a pass of land 446 00:29:43,517 --> 00:29:45,618 just up above where we are. 447 00:29:45,718 --> 00:29:48,938 We got to the stage that they were coming on at some stage. 448 00:29:49,038 --> 00:29:52,178 We were speaking to their lawyers, they were speaking to us, 449 00:29:52,278 --> 00:29:53,939 but it was pretty nasty. 450 00:29:54,039 --> 00:29:56,939 And I was in Sydney one day and my younger brother rang up 451 00:29:57,039 --> 00:30:00,419 and said, "Oh, they're driving down the road with a load of fences on." 452 00:30:00,519 --> 00:30:05,180 And I said, "Well, you'd better go and park the road in." It's like an invasion. An invasion! 453 00:30:05,280 --> 00:30:08,940 And he said, "Well, I'm not doing that. I'm not going to jail. I'm not doing this." 454 00:30:09,040 --> 00:30:14,381 Anyway, I rang Tommy and George and about half an hour later they were parked here, 455 00:30:14,481 --> 00:30:18,421 and they'd gone and got our grader and parked across one end of the road 456 00:30:18,521 --> 00:30:23,422 and they'd got George's grader and parked across the bottom end of the road and the rest is history. 457 00:30:23,522 --> 00:30:26,942 683 days later, we took down the blockade, 458 00:30:27,042 --> 00:30:29,622 having beaten BHP in the Supreme Court. 459 00:30:29,722 --> 00:30:32,663 These are extreme measures, aren't they? They are. 460 00:30:32,763 --> 00:30:35,943 But we're talking about massive sums of money, aren't we? 461 00:30:36,043 --> 00:30:39,064 There's huge wealth under the ground here. 462 00:30:39,164 --> 00:30:42,944 Well, there's a minable resource of about 550 million tonnes of coal. 463 00:30:43,044 --> 00:30:49,005 So you're talking about... you're talking about $130 billion. 464 00:30:50,045 --> 00:30:54,185 That's nearly 100 billion pounds, just trying to get my head around it, 465 00:30:54,285 --> 00:30:56,065 of coal under the ground around us. 466 00:30:56,165 --> 00:30:57,426 That's exactly right. 467 00:30:57,526 --> 00:30:59,946 Why won't you just let them in? 468 00:31:00,046 --> 00:31:02,946 Why won't you let them search for the coal 469 00:31:03,046 --> 00:31:05,946 that the Australian state seems to need? 470 00:31:06,046 --> 00:31:08,947 As a country you're making such a huge amount of money 471 00:31:09,047 --> 00:31:12,427 off your resources boom, why shouldn't it happen here? 472 00:31:12,527 --> 00:31:15,187 Mining is good in the right place. 473 00:31:15,287 --> 00:31:18,428 The Liverpool Plains is not the right place. Why? 474 00:31:18,528 --> 00:31:21,948 This is the jewel in the crown of Australian agriculture 475 00:31:22,048 --> 00:31:26,889 and if you dig a hole in here for a mine, it will be destroyed forever. There is no turning back. 476 00:31:30,289 --> 00:31:35,790 Mining companies have promised they won't have a long-term impact on the most productive farmland. 477 00:31:35,890 --> 00:31:38,790 They say they won't destroy Australia's food bowl. 478 00:31:38,890 --> 00:31:43,291 but the campaign to keep them away from the Plains continues. 479 00:31:44,611 --> 00:31:50,191 Has your campaign, has it generally made you more in touch or brought you more into contact... 480 00:31:50,291 --> 00:31:53,232 Heavens, yes. .. with your neighbours and community? 481 00:31:53,332 --> 00:31:56,672 Well, there's nothing like wartime to unite people, 482 00:31:56,772 --> 00:31:58,272 and that's the truth. 483 00:31:58,372 --> 00:32:01,112 That's how you think of it? Absolutely. Battle? Absolutely! 484 00:32:01,212 --> 00:32:04,193 Australia's had a very interesting relationship 485 00:32:04,293 --> 00:32:07,953 with mining in recent years, I think. 486 00:32:08,053 --> 00:32:10,673 I don't know how you would characterise it, 487 00:32:10,773 --> 00:32:13,434 but it's been almost a love affair really. 488 00:32:13,534 --> 00:32:16,014 It's more like an addiction. 489 00:32:17,174 --> 00:32:21,435 And eventually they have an overdose. Mmm. 490 00:32:21,535 --> 00:32:23,955 And that's where we're at. 491 00:32:24,055 --> 00:32:27,955 At the end of this, you know, you can mine our resources out, 492 00:32:28,055 --> 00:32:30,196 but what is Australia going to be left with? 493 00:32:30,296 --> 00:32:32,436 Australia's going to be left with nothing. 494 00:32:32,536 --> 00:32:36,436 We'll not have a manufacturing industry - we hardly have a manufacturing industry now. 495 00:32:36,536 --> 00:32:38,757 We will not have an agricultural industry. 496 00:32:38,857 --> 00:32:42,197 The politicians, and I'm not talking about any particular party, 497 00:32:42,297 --> 00:32:47,858 the whole damn lot of them ought to sit down one day and wake up because it's going to be too late. 498 00:32:49,058 --> 00:32:51,958 On my journey, I've seen how natural resources 499 00:32:52,058 --> 00:32:55,798 have made Australia wealthy, and it's avoided the recessions 500 00:32:55,898 --> 00:32:58,919 that affected other industrial nations in recent years. 501 00:32:59,019 --> 00:33:02,959 but in the long-term, many believe this country's become over-dependent 502 00:33:03,059 --> 00:33:07,020 on a resources boom that one day will surely come to an end. 503 00:33:16,701 --> 00:33:19,841 The next morning, I drove for five hours. 504 00:33:19,941 --> 00:33:22,641 We're back near the coast and I'm heading south 505 00:33:22,741 --> 00:33:28,422 and my next destination is a place I'm really excited to visit. 506 00:33:29,462 --> 00:33:32,262 And there it is! Look at that sight! 507 00:33:35,063 --> 00:33:39,503 I arrived in Sydney, one of the great world cities. 508 00:33:42,063 --> 00:33:45,604 Oh, I can see the tip of the Opera House just over there. 509 00:33:45,704 --> 00:33:49,364 The city itself is much more imposing than I expected, 510 00:33:49,464 --> 00:33:53,965 but the bridge is really quite awe-inspiring, actually, 511 00:33:54,065 --> 00:33:56,065 looming above you. 512 00:34:20,068 --> 00:34:24,208 One of the things that's most surprised me about Australia during this journey 513 00:34:24,308 --> 00:34:27,968 is just how closely linked the country is with Asia. 514 00:34:28,068 --> 00:34:30,329 I think, before coming here, I rather outrageously thought of 515 00:34:30,429 --> 00:34:33,569 Australia as being a bit of Europe on the other side of the planet. 516 00:34:33,669 --> 00:34:36,809 When you come here, you realise that economically, politically, 517 00:34:36,909 --> 00:34:40,090 even militarily, this is a country that's closely connected with 518 00:34:40,190 --> 00:34:42,570 and partnering with, even competing with, 519 00:34:42,670 --> 00:34:45,090 the new emerging Asian superpowers. 520 00:34:45,190 --> 00:34:49,091 But more than that, the identity of Australia is really changing. 521 00:34:49,191 --> 00:34:51,091 Look at the faces around me now. 522 00:34:51,191 --> 00:34:56,091 This is a multicultural country where a quarter of the population was born overseas 523 00:34:56,191 --> 00:35:00,572 and where more than 10% of the population are of Asian origin. 524 00:35:00,672 --> 00:35:04,792 Australia's changing. In fact, Australia's changed! 525 00:35:09,913 --> 00:35:13,573 and the new arrivals don't always want the traditional Aussie dream 526 00:35:13,673 --> 00:35:16,374 of a suburban house and a pool. 527 00:35:16,474 --> 00:35:21,574 I went to meet the billionaire who's helped to turn Sydney into a city of skyscrapers. 528 00:35:21,674 --> 00:35:24,575 Hello. Thank you. Thank you very much. 529 00:35:24,675 --> 00:35:28,375 Hello, Simon. Harry. Simon Reeve. Lovely to meet you. 530 00:35:28,475 --> 00:35:30,175 My goodness! 531 00:35:30,275 --> 00:35:33,456 Harry Triguboff is one of the richest men in Australia. 532 00:35:33,556 --> 00:35:38,176 Yes, it's the tallest apartment in Sydney. 533 00:35:38,276 --> 00:35:40,216 Now that is a view. 534 00:35:40,316 --> 00:35:44,217 I hear you're known as High Rise Harry. 535 00:35:44,317 --> 00:35:48,937 Can you explain? It seems obvious given that we're on the 78th floor, I think, 536 00:35:49,037 --> 00:35:52,458 but can you explain how you've come to acquire the nickname? 537 00:35:52,558 --> 00:35:57,698 Well, I think I'm the only one in the world that has built so much residential, 538 00:35:57,798 --> 00:35:59,938 but has never built any cottages. 539 00:36:00,038 --> 00:36:01,779 Never built even one cottage. 540 00:36:01,879 --> 00:36:06,699 I always wanted to be higher and higher and higher because I think it's better. 541 00:36:06,799 --> 00:36:08,939 Now, my average development 542 00:36:09,039 --> 00:36:11,460 is probably 600, 700 apartments. 543 00:36:11,560 --> 00:36:13,580 600 or 700 apartments? 544 00:36:13,680 --> 00:36:18,460 I read that you were born in China to Russian parents, I think. 545 00:36:18,560 --> 00:36:21,461 You came here when you were very young... 14. 546 00:36:21,561 --> 00:36:25,741 You even worked... At one point you drove a taxi. Well, I had a taxi, yeah. 547 00:36:25,841 --> 00:36:28,462 Were you a good taxi driver? Hopeless. 548 00:36:28,562 --> 00:36:32,462 Dreaming all the time, dreaming all the time, can't concentrate. 549 00:36:32,562 --> 00:36:35,882 I mean, I can go from here to there, but not all day. 550 00:36:36,922 --> 00:36:41,463 What proportion of your properties are selling, I mean, just roughly, to Chinese buyers? 551 00:36:41,563 --> 00:36:45,463 And are these Chinese buyers from Chinese Australians or Chinese from China? 552 00:36:45,563 --> 00:36:48,464 Mainland. Mainland. Mainland. Mainland China. 553 00:36:48,564 --> 00:36:52,464 Of course some Australian Chinese buy too, but it's mainland Chinese. 554 00:36:52,564 --> 00:36:55,464 I would say probably 70% come from China. 555 00:36:55,564 --> 00:36:57,665 70%? Yeah. 556 00:36:57,765 --> 00:37:03,985 Why do the Chinese, particularly, love your apartments so much? 557 00:37:04,085 --> 00:37:06,946 Because I give them what they are looking for. 558 00:37:07,046 --> 00:37:09,466 They want to live where there is work. 559 00:37:09,566 --> 00:37:13,026 He wants to be on transport and he wants to have good schools. 560 00:37:13,126 --> 00:37:15,707 It's quite simple. The recipe is quite simple. 561 00:37:15,807 --> 00:37:19,667 What have you built here, as we look out over Sydney? 562 00:37:19,767 --> 00:37:23,948 I'll show it to you. Here is Meriton, right? Right, yes. 563 00:37:24,048 --> 00:37:29,468 That is where our head office is, and we have 450 serviced apartments there and some shops. 564 00:37:29,568 --> 00:37:32,308 450 apartments in the tower there? Yeah. 565 00:37:32,408 --> 00:37:35,109 You see that one with the white and the black top? 566 00:37:35,209 --> 00:37:38,949 Oh, yes. There is another block there, also serviced apartments. 567 00:37:39,049 --> 00:37:41,069 220 apartments there. 568 00:37:41,169 --> 00:37:45,470 I read somewhere that 3% of people in Sydney 569 00:37:45,570 --> 00:37:48,590 live in one of your homes. 570 00:37:48,690 --> 00:37:51,531 Well, if you work out that between... 571 00:37:53,051 --> 00:37:56,951 I would say 6%. 5% to 6% at any one time. 572 00:37:57,051 --> 00:38:00,192 Did you just do all the maths then just at that speed? Yes. 573 00:38:00,292 --> 00:38:03,472 That's why you're one of the richest men in the country. 574 00:38:03,572 --> 00:38:06,712 You see that other one... It would take me a week and a calculator! 575 00:38:06,812 --> 00:38:10,813 Ah, you've no confidence. You've built half of Sydney! Not half, no, no. 576 00:38:16,813 --> 00:38:19,474 Millions of immigrants have come from Asia, 577 00:38:19,574 --> 00:38:22,474 particularly from India and China. 578 00:38:22,574 --> 00:38:24,954 This is a dramatic shift. 579 00:38:25,054 --> 00:38:28,475 Until they were finally ended in the early 1970s, 580 00:38:28,575 --> 00:38:34,115 white Australia policies restricted who could come here and the rights of non-whites. 581 00:38:34,215 --> 00:38:40,656 Some studies suggest Australians are now less racist than Europeans and Americans, but tensions remain. 582 00:38:43,056 --> 00:38:47,037 Sydney's now home to a sizeable Muslim community. 583 00:38:47,137 --> 00:38:50,077 I went off the regular tourist trail 584 00:38:50,177 --> 00:38:53,257 to one of the beaches Muslim families traditionally use. 585 00:38:56,378 --> 00:38:57,638 Hello! Amna! Yes, how are you? 586 00:38:57,738 --> 00:38:59,878 Salam alaikum. Very well, thank you. How are you? 587 00:38:59,978 --> 00:39:02,798 Salam. I'm good, thank you! Your name? Simon. Simon. 588 00:39:02,898 --> 00:39:04,759 Hello, hello! Hi, Simon. 589 00:39:04,859 --> 00:39:08,559 Hello, ladies! Hello! Hello! Hello! Hello! 590 00:39:08,659 --> 00:39:11,159 I was meeting a group of young Muslim women 591 00:39:11,259 --> 00:39:14,320 who've started playing a uniquely Australian sport. 592 00:39:14,420 --> 00:39:17,280 You're a team of what? Tell us about your team. 593 00:39:17,380 --> 00:39:20,600 So Lael and I co-founded the Auburn Tigers Women's AFL team. 594 00:39:20,700 --> 00:39:21,680 And AFL is what? 595 00:39:21,780 --> 00:39:23,441 AFL's Aussie rules. 596 00:39:23,541 --> 00:39:24,641 Aussie rules football. 597 00:39:24,741 --> 00:39:26,121 Yeah, Aussie rules football. 598 00:39:26,221 --> 00:39:29,081 For those of us who are unfamiliar with Aussie rules football, 599 00:39:29,181 --> 00:39:30,841 can you describe it to us? 600 00:39:30,941 --> 00:39:33,282 There's a lot of tackling, a lot of barging, it's... 601 00:39:33,382 --> 00:39:36,002 Basically, you just go on the foot and run after the ball. 602 00:39:36,102 --> 00:39:39,162 You just run back and forth, run back and forth. 603 00:39:39,262 --> 00:39:42,083 And it's basically you get the ball and kick at goal. 604 00:39:42,183 --> 00:39:44,283 It's a hundred times harder and tougher than rugby. 605 00:39:44,383 --> 00:39:45,963 It's a better game. It's a better game. 606 00:39:46,063 --> 00:39:50,324 Why did you think it was the best sport to choose for your team, 607 00:39:50,424 --> 00:39:51,524 for your friends to play? 608 00:39:51,624 --> 00:39:53,724 What inspired you to get involved in it 609 00:39:53,824 --> 00:39:55,444 and set up the team in the first place? 610 00:39:55,544 --> 00:39:57,724 All my brothers played AFL growing up, 611 00:39:57,824 --> 00:39:59,725 so that was something that I always followed. 612 00:39:59,825 --> 00:40:01,845 All your brothers. How many brothers do you have? 613 00:40:01,945 --> 00:40:03,945 Nine. Nine older brothers! 614 00:40:05,545 --> 00:40:11,486 Wow! OK, and so you're their princess inevitably? 615 00:40:11,586 --> 00:40:14,406 I'm their princess but I'm better than them on the field so... 616 00:40:14,506 --> 00:40:16,826 Are you now? Yeah. 617 00:40:18,267 --> 00:40:21,007 The group's engaging with Australian life in a way 618 00:40:21,107 --> 00:40:23,367 immigrants are often accused of failing to do. 619 00:40:23,467 --> 00:40:25,467 Ready, girls? 620 00:40:26,467 --> 00:40:28,468 So it begins. 621 00:40:32,988 --> 00:40:35,328 And to my untrained eye they seemed to score 622 00:40:35,428 --> 00:40:39,089 plenty of points for enthusiasm, at least, at this training session. 623 00:40:39,189 --> 00:40:41,809 This is a whole new world, isn't it? You enjoying it? 624 00:40:41,909 --> 00:40:44,009 It's a whole new world. I remember things like... 625 00:40:44,109 --> 00:40:46,650 There's still stuff I don't know like, "Go to the fat side." 626 00:40:46,750 --> 00:40:48,450 I'm like, "What's the fat side?" you know, 627 00:40:48,550 --> 00:40:51,850 when I was at coaching class, seminars and stuff. 628 00:40:51,950 --> 00:40:55,451 There's lingo that I still don't get but that's OK, you know? 629 00:40:55,551 --> 00:40:57,771 Like the full-back and the full-forward 630 00:40:57,871 --> 00:40:59,731 I still get muddled, but, you know. 631 00:40:59,831 --> 00:41:02,571 So it being new, they're not familiar with the language 632 00:41:02,671 --> 00:41:04,672 so we're all learning together. 633 00:41:08,832 --> 00:41:09,932 Goodness me! 634 00:41:10,032 --> 00:41:12,032 Good work! 635 00:41:12,592 --> 00:41:15,653 Racial tension has long been a problem here. 636 00:41:15,753 --> 00:41:17,853 In 2005, these beaches were the scene 637 00:41:17,953 --> 00:41:22,314 of some of the worst race riots in Australia's history. 638 00:41:23,674 --> 00:41:28,334 What were the consequences of the riots for you? 639 00:41:28,434 --> 00:41:30,134 This is the beach that my family would come to, 640 00:41:30,234 --> 00:41:31,455 and when I say my family, 641 00:41:31,555 --> 00:41:34,855 I'm not talking about my parents and siblings - whole family. 642 00:41:34,955 --> 00:41:39,175 So it was a huge occasion for us to go to the beach on the weekend. 643 00:41:39,275 --> 00:41:42,296 At some point, those visits stopped entirely. 644 00:41:42,396 --> 00:41:45,096 By the time it hit 2005, that was just a no-go, 645 00:41:45,196 --> 00:41:46,376 we stopped coming to Cronulla. 646 00:41:46,476 --> 00:41:47,656 Because of the riots? 647 00:41:47,756 --> 00:41:51,457 It was never said by my parents but subconsciously, when they saw 648 00:41:51,557 --> 00:41:55,777 that on TV, it reinforced this migrant thinking, 649 00:41:55,877 --> 00:41:57,577 that we don't belong in this country, 650 00:41:57,677 --> 00:41:59,578 we're sort of hubbing here temporarily, 651 00:41:59,678 --> 00:42:03,058 we're not really wanted, that one day we'll have to migrate back home. 652 00:42:03,158 --> 00:42:06,378 But what's your view of growing up, 653 00:42:06,478 --> 00:42:11,499 living now in modern Australia as a person of Lebanese descent 654 00:42:11,599 --> 00:42:14,939 but also a Muslim who wears the headscarf? 655 00:42:15,039 --> 00:42:18,020 Do you get abuse? Do you get harassed, hassled or anything? 656 00:42:18,120 --> 00:42:21,060 It's funny you should say that. I was abused two days ago... 657 00:42:21,160 --> 00:42:23,500 Not even, I think it was yesterday, actually. 658 00:42:23,600 --> 00:42:26,461 I went to Lael's house and I was crying. 659 00:42:26,561 --> 00:42:30,061 I was totally overwhelmed by the fact that some angry Anglo person 660 00:42:30,161 --> 00:42:32,501 came out of the car and went off their nut at me 661 00:42:32,601 --> 00:42:34,861 at the service station and I was like, "Wow!" 662 00:42:34,961 --> 00:42:37,622 What did they say, or do? 663 00:42:37,722 --> 00:42:40,422 He got out of his car, started yelling, swearing, 664 00:42:40,522 --> 00:42:43,622 and I was just like, "Whoa!" 665 00:42:43,722 --> 00:42:46,143 About what? At you or...? 666 00:42:46,243 --> 00:42:47,503 At me for no reason. 667 00:42:47,603 --> 00:42:48,663 Did you report them? 668 00:42:48,763 --> 00:42:50,783 No, I didn't report the guy in the petrol station. 669 00:42:50,883 --> 00:42:53,423 I think quite often when those experiences happen that women 670 00:42:53,523 --> 00:42:56,824 don't report them because they feel like there's going to be no outcome. 671 00:42:56,924 --> 00:42:59,824 Like I know the AFL, at the elite level, are really strict, 672 00:42:59,924 --> 00:43:03,585 for example, if someone from the crowd will call out a racist comment, 673 00:43:03,685 --> 00:43:07,105 that that person, like, has to make a public apology. 674 00:43:07,205 --> 00:43:10,865 They have to go to counselling, like they've got some measures in place. 675 00:43:10,965 --> 00:43:14,746 But that's in a very specific setting. 676 00:43:14,846 --> 00:43:17,626 What happens when this stuff is happening out on the streets 677 00:43:17,726 --> 00:43:19,346 and it's not being dealt with? 678 00:43:19,446 --> 00:43:22,027 Australia now wants more skilled immigrants 679 00:43:22,127 --> 00:43:24,907 to help economic expansion, and racism's an issue 680 00:43:25,007 --> 00:43:27,947 Australians must deal with if the country's going to be 681 00:43:28,047 --> 00:43:31,068 a harmonious society that makes the most of its position 682 00:43:31,168 --> 00:43:33,988 on the edge of Asia. 683 00:43:34,088 --> 00:43:35,868 What's fascinating about that 684 00:43:35,968 --> 00:43:38,588 was there was no doubt in any of their minds, of course that 685 00:43:38,688 --> 00:43:42,829 "We're Aussies, we're Australians and we're proud of it!" 686 00:43:42,929 --> 00:43:45,069 Other people might see them as outsiders 687 00:43:45,169 --> 00:43:48,349 but they see themselves as being Aussie to the core and, 688 00:43:48,449 --> 00:43:51,810 my goodness, what amazing young women they are. 689 00:43:58,371 --> 00:44:02,351 I set off towards Melbourne, a 500-mile journey that took me 690 00:44:02,451 --> 00:44:05,651 across one of Australia's most spectacular mountain ranges. 691 00:44:28,494 --> 00:44:30,534 What a magnificent view. 692 00:44:33,974 --> 00:44:36,935 This is such a beautiful country. 693 00:44:41,055 --> 00:44:44,196 So these are the Blue Mountains which are part of the great 694 00:44:44,296 --> 00:44:49,956 dividing range which runs down much of the east of Australia, 695 00:44:50,056 --> 00:44:56,277 and separates the outback, which is on that side to the west, 696 00:44:56,377 --> 00:45:00,177 from the coast over my shoulder. 697 00:45:01,697 --> 00:45:05,318 One of the big misconceptions about Australia is that most people 698 00:45:05,418 --> 00:45:10,998 here live some sort of rugged, outback life when, in fact, 699 00:45:11,098 --> 00:45:15,219 most of them live thataway in the big coastal cities. 700 00:45:17,739 --> 00:45:22,060 They're actually one of the most urbanised people on the planet! 701 00:45:35,741 --> 00:45:39,161 Australians are heavy users of energy, powering their homes, 702 00:45:39,261 --> 00:45:43,602 mod cons and air-conditioning, and they consume huge amounts 703 00:45:43,702 --> 00:45:47,302 of electricity mostly generated by dirty old coal. 704 00:45:52,103 --> 00:45:59,244 Australians are among the very worst emitters of carbon in the world 705 00:45:59,344 --> 00:46:05,004 so they're among the most polluting people on the planet. 706 00:46:05,104 --> 00:46:08,805 It's very hard really for us still to fully be certain 707 00:46:08,905 --> 00:46:13,325 of what the consequences of that will be, but I'm heading now 708 00:46:13,425 --> 00:46:15,765 to an experiment that's being run 709 00:46:15,865 --> 00:46:18,406 which should give us at least a clue. 710 00:46:18,506 --> 00:46:19,646 Here we are! 711 00:46:19,746 --> 00:46:23,046 I went to visit the woodland site of a unique experiment. 712 00:46:23,146 --> 00:46:25,367 Somebody's waving. 713 00:46:25,467 --> 00:46:28,687 Professor David Ellsworth is investigating the consequences 714 00:46:28,787 --> 00:46:30,887 of increasing levels of carbon dioxide 715 00:46:30,987 --> 00:46:34,848 from fossil fuels like coal in the atmosphere. 716 00:46:34,948 --> 00:46:40,348 In this research station, there are these whopping towers! 717 00:46:43,588 --> 00:46:46,569 So, Professor, what exactly are you doing here? 718 00:46:46,669 --> 00:46:49,129 We're trying to create the atmosphere of the future 719 00:46:49,229 --> 00:46:52,449 that we expect in about 35 years to be able to understand 720 00:46:52,549 --> 00:46:56,930 how that affects plants and animals and critters in the ecosystem. 721 00:46:57,030 --> 00:47:00,130 So you're creating the atmosphere of the future how? 722 00:47:00,230 --> 00:47:04,451 This area is exposed to a high CO2 atmosphere 723 00:47:04,551 --> 00:47:10,811 by emitting bits of CO2 out of these perforations in those pipes. 724 00:47:10,911 --> 00:47:13,132 We don't need to enclose any of the vegetation, 725 00:47:13,232 --> 00:47:16,992 we can do it in the out-of-doors, and we can do it in these big plots. 726 00:47:18,632 --> 00:47:23,173 CO2 or carbon dioxide levels have increased by more than a third 727 00:47:23,273 --> 00:47:25,253 since the industrial revolution. 728 00:47:25,353 --> 00:47:27,733 Most of that increase has happened since the 1950s 729 00:47:27,833 --> 00:47:30,574 and the level's now increasing even faster. 730 00:47:30,674 --> 00:47:33,714 Still quite a long way down, but what a sight you get! 731 00:47:34,914 --> 00:47:39,175 You do get a real sense of the scale of what you're doing here. 732 00:47:39,275 --> 00:47:42,775 That's right. But you have to do the experiment at a large scale because, 733 00:47:42,875 --> 00:47:46,075 in fact, climate change is happening at a large scale. 734 00:47:48,556 --> 00:47:50,896 Increased levels of carbon dioxide 735 00:47:50,996 --> 00:47:54,776 are predicted to dramatically change our global climate, 736 00:47:54,876 --> 00:47:58,937 but it'll have different impacts on different plants and animals. 737 00:47:59,037 --> 00:48:02,537 Clamp it into the chamber and start measuring. 738 00:48:02,637 --> 00:48:04,617 What are you checking for? 739 00:48:04,717 --> 00:48:08,058 I'm checking about what is the rate of photosynthesis in the leaf 740 00:48:08,158 --> 00:48:12,698 and has it been increased by an increase in carbon dioxide. 741 00:48:12,798 --> 00:48:17,099 What I see is really quite a high photosynthetic rate. 742 00:48:17,199 --> 00:48:21,019 Photosynthesis can be stimulated by a rise in CO2. 743 00:48:21,119 --> 00:48:24,699 Stimulated would suggest to me that you're wondering 744 00:48:24,799 --> 00:48:26,820 whether photosynthesis actually increases, 745 00:48:26,920 --> 00:48:29,260 whether there's more growth with increased carbon. 746 00:48:29,360 --> 00:48:31,980 Well yes, that's what makes some plants winners 747 00:48:32,080 --> 00:48:33,860 and some plants losers. 748 00:48:33,960 --> 00:48:37,061 And this is a chance to actually be ahead of the game 749 00:48:37,161 --> 00:48:44,462 and not be sitting here saying, "Oh, well, we released gigatonnes of CO2, 750 00:48:44,562 --> 00:48:47,742 "teratonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere, 751 00:48:47,842 --> 00:48:50,222 "now figure out how we fix it." 752 00:48:50,322 --> 00:48:55,023 Let's rather understand ahead of time what it's looking like 753 00:48:55,123 --> 00:48:59,663 and maybe that's going to help us actually do something ahead of time 754 00:48:59,763 --> 00:49:03,424 that's going to avoid some of the negative consequences 755 00:49:03,524 --> 00:49:05,144 we don't want out of that. 756 00:49:05,244 --> 00:49:07,064 Certain plants might thrive, 757 00:49:07,164 --> 00:49:09,864 but scientists expect that the changes in our ecosystem 758 00:49:09,964 --> 00:49:13,425 will be catastrophic for much of Australia's biodiversity. 759 00:49:13,525 --> 00:49:17,825 Well they look like pods, really, don't they? Alien-looking pods. 760 00:49:17,925 --> 00:49:19,906 But they are... You have covered these, 761 00:49:20,006 --> 00:49:21,946 these are strange greenhouses. 762 00:49:22,046 --> 00:49:25,786 These are covered, and the reason why is to warm an area 763 00:49:25,886 --> 00:49:29,267 when the air is mixing is actually hard to do 764 00:49:29,367 --> 00:49:33,267 and by covering, you can use conventional technologies to do it. 765 00:49:33,367 --> 00:49:36,987 OK, so this one, this is a proper time machine. 766 00:49:37,087 --> 00:49:39,988 Increased levels of carbon dioxide 767 00:49:40,088 --> 00:49:44,548 and a plus three degrees on natural temperature here. 768 00:49:44,648 --> 00:49:47,108 Now that's the prediction for when? 769 00:49:47,208 --> 00:49:51,549 That's the prediction for about 2060 or 2070, around then. 770 00:49:51,649 --> 00:49:55,109 Now, everywhere I've been, almost, 771 00:49:55,209 --> 00:49:59,750 on the journey, there's been bushfires, there's been scares 772 00:49:59,850 --> 00:50:03,070 where towns have been threatened by fires. 773 00:50:03,170 --> 00:50:06,231 Bushfires are such a huge issue in Australia. 774 00:50:06,331 --> 00:50:09,951 Is there any connection between bushfires and our change in climate? 775 00:50:10,051 --> 00:50:14,631 If plants actually produce more in a CO2-rich atmosphere 776 00:50:14,731 --> 00:50:19,872 and they also cast off more leaves, then that means more fuel 777 00:50:19,972 --> 00:50:22,592 essentially that's available for fires. 778 00:50:22,692 --> 00:50:27,113 And there is a big, big concern about that spectre 779 00:50:27,213 --> 00:50:33,073 of increased bushfire, increased fuel loads, and we're very worried 780 00:50:33,173 --> 00:50:37,094 about what to do about that if that's a future that comes to pass. 781 00:50:38,414 --> 00:50:41,754 More fuel on the ground poses an enormous bushfire threat 782 00:50:41,854 --> 00:50:44,475 to Australia in the future. But scientists also warn 783 00:50:44,575 --> 00:50:47,995 that Australia is likely to be one of the first countries 784 00:50:48,095 --> 00:50:52,356 that experiences the severest effects of future climate change, 785 00:50:52,456 --> 00:50:55,876 Including prolonged droughts and extreme weather conditions. 786 00:50:55,976 --> 00:50:58,156 but will we heed their warnings? 787 00:50:58,256 --> 00:51:01,557 The thought does really strike me that the people we rely on 788 00:51:01,657 --> 00:51:04,277 to protect us and look after us for the future, 789 00:51:04,377 --> 00:51:07,957 our politicians, in Australia, as almost everywhere else, 790 00:51:08,057 --> 00:51:12,238 are elected for short-term periods and they've got no real incentive 791 00:51:12,338 --> 00:51:16,518 to ask us to do something difficult, like use less energy, 792 00:51:16,618 --> 00:51:21,319 use less oil or coal, because they want our votes! 793 00:51:21,419 --> 00:51:24,319 They want to keep promising us the good life! 794 00:51:24,419 --> 00:51:28,900 They're thinking short-term and we need to be thinking long-term. 795 00:51:33,180 --> 00:51:35,940 Thank you very much. And you. Bye-bye. 796 00:51:46,581 --> 00:51:48,582 Look at this. 797 00:51:50,302 --> 00:51:53,802 A bushfire is burning and not far from here. 798 00:51:53,902 --> 00:51:57,083 Bushfires have been such a feature of this part of the journey. 799 00:51:57,183 --> 00:51:59,883 They've been everywhere we've been. 800 00:51:59,983 --> 00:52:03,063 I really think we need to try and get up close and see one. 801 00:52:04,503 --> 00:52:07,644 The bushfire that made the front page of the local paper 802 00:52:07,744 --> 00:52:09,564 was being fought from an airbase 803 00:52:09,664 --> 00:52:12,404 near the small town of Myrtleford in Victoria. 804 00:52:12,504 --> 00:52:16,785 Fire-fighters in helicopters were directing fire crews on the ground. 805 00:52:22,865 --> 00:52:25,946 Larger choppers were being used as water bombers. 806 00:52:30,026 --> 00:52:33,967 Brett Newman has been fighting bushfires in this part of the world 807 00:52:34,067 --> 00:52:36,327 for more than 30 years. 808 00:52:36,427 --> 00:52:38,607 We're at the airbase just out of Myrtleford. 809 00:52:38,707 --> 00:52:41,887 The fire at the moment is running along this mountain top here, 810 00:52:41,987 --> 00:52:46,008 putting the Hotham Heights and these villages and towns under threat. 811 00:52:46,108 --> 00:52:48,448 What area is this fire burning over at the moment today? 812 00:52:48,548 --> 00:52:51,929 This particular fire was 2,500 hectares. 813 00:52:52,029 --> 00:52:53,129 That's huge! 814 00:52:53,229 --> 00:52:57,689 But the fire down here is 67,000 hectares 815 00:52:57,789 --> 00:53:00,650 and that's 260 square miles. 816 00:53:00,750 --> 00:53:02,650 That's abso... That's... 817 00:53:02,750 --> 00:53:06,530 That's about half, something like half the size of London! 818 00:53:06,630 --> 00:53:08,910 That's vast! It's a big fire. 819 00:53:14,751 --> 00:53:17,771 There's a constant cycle of helicopters coming in here 820 00:53:17,871 --> 00:53:19,892 and landing and refuelling. 821 00:53:19,992 --> 00:53:24,992 It's a little bit like an airfield at war. At war with the fires. 822 00:53:29,233 --> 00:53:32,233 Brett had agreed to try and get me closer to the blaze. 823 00:53:38,674 --> 00:53:43,374 There are more wildfires in Australia than anywhere else in the world. 824 00:53:43,474 --> 00:53:45,054 They're mostly natural events, 825 00:53:45,154 --> 00:53:47,795 but often lives and livelihoods are at risk. 826 00:53:52,675 --> 00:53:56,016 The smell of smoke is really thick in the air now and beneath us 827 00:53:56,116 --> 00:53:59,056 looks like it's all burnt through in this area. 828 00:53:59,156 --> 00:54:01,616 The trees look not wiped out, curiously, 829 00:54:01,716 --> 00:54:04,236 but the hillside looks really scorched. 830 00:54:05,317 --> 00:54:08,897 So just ahead of us over here now it's like a volcano is erupting 831 00:54:08,997 --> 00:54:11,117 this extraordinary plume of smoke. 832 00:54:13,517 --> 00:54:16,158 And you can actually see the flames there. 833 00:54:20,358 --> 00:54:23,239 The town is just beyond us there, look. 834 00:54:27,039 --> 00:54:30,919 It really is advancing through the hillside in a real line of fire. 835 00:54:41,040 --> 00:54:43,381 This fire had already claimed one life 836 00:54:43,481 --> 00:54:45,941 and destroyed more than 20 homes. 837 00:54:46,041 --> 00:54:48,041 Imagine how terrifying that is. 838 00:54:49,601 --> 00:54:53,062 I wonder if they were there when the fire started heading into their land. 839 00:54:53,162 --> 00:54:55,922 This is completely taken. Oh, my God, look at this. 840 00:54:57,122 --> 00:54:58,782 That's horrendous. 841 00:54:58,882 --> 00:55:01,543 Now you can see the car and the trees burnt out 842 00:55:01,643 --> 00:55:04,363 but that certainly looks like somebody's home. 843 00:55:06,443 --> 00:55:09,544 All that was left of one house was three chimneys. 844 00:55:09,644 --> 00:55:12,204 Bloody hell! Look at it. 845 00:55:13,404 --> 00:55:15,404 Utterly blackened beneath us. 846 00:55:18,084 --> 00:55:21,105 Fires have killed scores of people here in recent years 847 00:55:21,205 --> 00:55:24,325 and caused billions of pounds worth of damage. 848 00:55:27,726 --> 00:55:30,786 but if the worst fears about climate change are realised, 849 00:55:30,886 --> 00:55:32,926 wildfires here will only get worse. 850 00:55:53,328 --> 00:55:56,109 I drove another 200 miles to Melbourne 851 00:55:56,209 --> 00:55:59,709 and I arrived just in time for Australia Day. 852 00:55:59,809 --> 00:56:01,969 So we're getting close to the end. 853 00:56:04,570 --> 00:56:08,470 Australia Day commemorates the arrival of a British military fleet 854 00:56:08,570 --> 00:56:11,970 In Australia in 1788 and the declaration of British rule. 855 00:56:14,371 --> 00:56:17,711 Just over two centuries later, 856 00:56:17,811 --> 00:56:21,551 Australia is, by some measures, the wealthiest country on the planet. 857 00:56:21,651 --> 00:56:26,492 Melbourne's even been described as the best city in the world to live in. 858 00:56:28,092 --> 00:56:30,832 When you think that among the 1,500 people who arrived 859 00:56:30,932 --> 00:56:33,873 on the First Fleet more than 200 years ago there was just 860 00:56:33,973 --> 00:56:39,393 one experienced fisherman and not a single decent botanist 861 00:56:39,493 --> 00:56:42,314 or a good gardener... 862 00:56:42,414 --> 00:56:44,574 they've done all right, haven't they? 863 00:56:49,574 --> 00:56:53,315 but like any country, it's had a chequered history. 864 00:56:53,415 --> 00:56:56,635 Its treatment of its Aboriginal people has been horrific 865 00:56:56,735 --> 00:56:58,735 and many still suffer today. 866 00:57:01,336 --> 00:57:02,796 My journey's shown me 867 00:57:02,896 --> 00:57:06,356 that Australians now face many challenges. 868 00:57:06,456 --> 00:57:08,917 They need to wean themselves off a dependence 869 00:57:09,017 --> 00:57:12,717 on just digging up and selling natural resources. 870 00:57:12,817 --> 00:57:16,117 They need to harness the talents of their newly diverse population 871 00:57:16,217 --> 00:57:20,258 and secure and exploit their position on the edge of Asia. 872 00:57:23,298 --> 00:57:28,119 For a Brit, Australia is a curious mix of the familiar and exotic. 873 00:57:28,219 --> 00:57:31,939 On my travels, I've seen another side of a country we think we know. 874 00:57:34,619 --> 00:57:36,840 I have seen a dark side to life here, 875 00:57:36,940 --> 00:57:40,680 including the destruction of wildlife and the environment 876 00:57:40,780 --> 00:57:44,880 and some communities blighted by addiction and crime. 877 00:57:44,980 --> 00:57:47,761 But I've also seen that for most Australians this place 878 00:57:47,861 --> 00:57:52,421 really does seem to justify its nickname as the lucky country. 879 00:57:54,381 --> 00:57:56,382 Perfect timing. 880 00:57:59,302 --> 00:58:02,002 I'm bowled over by Australia. 881 00:58:02,102 --> 00:58:05,603 Remember, this place used to be seen as something of a backwater 882 00:58:05,703 --> 00:58:09,123 on the other side of the planet and now it's ideally placed at the 883 00:58:09,223 --> 00:58:13,424 edge of perhaps the most dynamic and exciting region of the world, Asia. 884 00:58:17,264 --> 00:58:22,265 And the country is well placed to prosper for many years to come.