By
LCDR Tony Underwood
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Armament
fitters from No 3 Squadron (L-R) Leading Aircraftman Judd
Paulik, Corporal Stephen Rees, Corporal Jason Hare prepare
an F/A-18 for deployment to RAAF Base Townsville as part
of Exercise Crocodile 03. Photo by CPL Mark Eaton
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APART
from “fighting and winning the war”, the 10,000 participants
in Exercise Crocodile 03 on and off the central-north coast of
Queensland face the challenge of doing so with minimal impact
on the environment.
Defence
has exercised in the Shoalwater Bay training area for many decades.
The property centring on Samuel Hill was bought by the Government
for Defence purposes in 1965.
Crocodile 03 is the first major Defence exercise subjected to
the environmental impact assessment requirements of the Commonwealth
Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.
There was extensive community consultation during exercise planning,
including liaison with Environment Australia, the Great Barrier
Reef Marine Park Authority and the Queensland Environmental Protection
Authority.
As part of the approval process by the Federal Minister for the
Environment and Heritage, Defence was required to conduct a public
review process of the proposed activity.
This involved the public display of all the information provided
to the Environment Minister in public libraries and councils.
Safeguards in place apply equally to US forces participating in
the exercise.
The Directorate of Environmental Stewardship in Defence has set
up a network to monitor compliance with the Combined Exercise
Instruction.
“The environment chapter of the CEI considers operational
limitations and restrictions for land, marine and air activities
to minimise environmental impacts during the exercise,” said
Exercise Control Environmental Officer Dr Maria Schroder.
“We have four environmental monitoring teams in the exercise
area doing just this. They comprise Defence civilians with a variety
of environmental specialisations.
“Two teams are ashore in the Shoalwater Bay training area
and two are afloat, one each in HMA Ships Kanimbla and Melville.”
Dr Schroder said the teams report in a variety of ways to the
Combined Environmental Monitoring Group – with pre-exercise
inspection reports, daily SITREPs, minor damage reports, incident
reports and post-exercise reports.
“We have already issued environmental advice through pamphlets,
video and DVD,” she said.
“These canvass such things as the fact that targeting, harassing,
feeding, injuring or killing animals or birds in the exercise
area is strictly prohibited.
“And people have been asked to avoid unnecessary damage to
vegetation and to seek approval from environmental personnel before
clearing large trees or areas of vegetation.
“There are very strict limitations on construction of latrines
ashore and on the discharge of sewage offshore.”
Dr Schroder said Defence environmental monitors will provide input
into a post-exercise report to be submitted to the Environment
Minister.
Snappy
convergence
By
LCDR Tony Underwood
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Exercise
director Air Commodore Dennis Green.
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AIRCRAFT,
troops and ships have converged on the exercise area for Crocodile
03 which runs until September 25.
Featuring some 10,000 Australian and US participants, the exercise
is the culmination of more than two years work by a planning staff
of about 30 under the Commandant of the Australian Defence Force
Warfare Centre, Air Commodore Dennis Green, who is also exercise
director.
The chief controller of the exercise, Colonel Tim Simkin, has
had prime responsibility for leading the detailed planning over
the past two years with his team of permanent and reserve staff.
In terms of overall numbers, it’s somewhat different from
the biennial exercises that took place in the more benign environment
of the late-1970s and ’80s.
There are fewer people on the ground and the balance of numbers
– around 7000 Australian and 3000 Americans – reflects
demands of operations in world troublespots.
“The aim of the exercise is to practise and evaluate a combined
Australian and United States task force in the planning and conduct
of operations,” AIRCDRE Green said. “The exercise will
develop the high level warfighting skills that haven’t been
used in recent operations.
“These include defence against air strikes on ships, anti-submarine
warfare and mine-countermeasures, the work of the armoured brigade,
parachute battalion and coordinated live firing of weapons by
all three Services and the US forces and all those particular
skills we haven’t had an opportunity to practise.
“Some
of these skills have very long lead times and we need to keep
the current generation of Defence personnel familiar with the
skills and procedures involved in as close to actual battle conditions
as we can achieve.”
The US contribution is an important part of the equation. It includes
Naval and Marine Corps input, including two surface combatants,
a submarine and clearance divers from the US Navy; a Special Purpose
Marine Air-Ground Task Force based in the 3rd Marine Expeditionary
Brigade with a ground combat element of an infantry battalion
and supporting arms, and air combat assets with fighters and attack
helicopters, utility helicopters and a combat service support
element.
“In this case, Crocodile 03 is providing us with an opportunity
to refresh our ability to work with US Pacific Command,”
AIRCDRE Green said.
“We aim to crawl, walk and then run so we can safely rebuild
the skills required to conduct high-level warfighting.
“So at this stage, for example, individual ships have been
refreshing their skills against fighter aircraft and individual
ships have been refreshing anti-submarine warfare skills.
“But, by the end of the exercise, we will have combined task
groups and multiple ships and submarines participating in events
involving surface, sub-surface and air attacks.”
Thousands
of people will focus on correct and safe operation of state-of-the-art
equipment in disciplines to be exercised in the course of Exercise
Crocodile 03.
Air Force units will participate alongside maritime and land elements,
including:
Australia
