(20.05.2025)
Falls Creek
19.05.2025
11.25am
After a few days of slowly exploring Bogong Village, I’ve spent the morning listening to the snowfall in the Alpine areas above Falls Creek. I was walking in search of Cope Creek, a tributary that joins the water systems of the Kiewa Hydroelectric Scheme. As the sun began to gradually rise over the trees, I observed a small Alpine Snow Gum bearing the weight of overnight snow accumulation. What began as an exploration of flowing water evolved into attentive listening to the environment—hearing the sounds of snow falling from branches, the thuds of branches releasing their weight, and the rustling grasses as the wind moved through. I paused to observe as snow descended from the tree branches to the ground. It was a moment of quiet observation, recognizing that even small elements like this tree play a role in the water cycle connected to the broader infrastructure of the Kiewa Scheme. It serves as a reminder that the water passing through this landscape has traveled across the planet for billions of years, far beyond the memories of the pipelines and turbines.
I arrived at Bogong Village to reflect on the connection between my grandparents’ migration to Australia and their work on the Snowy Mountains Hydroelectric Scheme, alongside the similar history of migrant labour involved in constructing the Kiewa Hydroelectric Scheme. I came here thinking of how we might relate to the remnants of these industrial developments, what these modifications to the environment reveal about our social histories, and how life might persist in these places as our climate changes. The Snow Gum I encountered does not provide answers, but it helps bring these questions into dialogue—moving them from spaces of production like Bogong Village into the broader context of the Alpine environment that existed long before infrastructure was buried within it.