Cooks Hill Surf Club at Bar Beach hit by huge waves as sea rises in storm surge

"Some bad weather was moving in off the coast as I was setting up the camera, so it became quite dark and gloomy just as I was preparing to capture the image," David said.

He had spent the previous half hour taking photographs at Merewether Ocean Baths. He noticed the waves crashing against Bar Beach increasing in size, as the high tide began to peak.

Then a monster wave came through.

"My initial reaction when I saw this wave break against the concrete wall and explode upwards at such height, was one of surprise," he said.

"I had not seen that amount of water that high up against Cooks Hill Surf Club in my 15 years in Newcastle.

"While I admire and respect the untamed force of mother nature, it's also just as sad to know the damage that is being done to our coastline and the way it is affecting our community and many of its organisations."

The image was taken on Sunday afternoon shortly before 5pm.

David is a professional photographer. New puzzles, based on his local photos, will be released in September at daviddiehmphotography.com.au.

A public forum titled New Energy will be held on Wednesday.

The event, hosted by Newcastle Institute, will discuss the future of Newcastle and the Hunter Region.

The Institute's spokesperson Dr Ross Kerridge said the forum will feature a panel of three prominent experts to provide "unbiased, rational discussion of what is going to happen with energy in the near future and how the Hunter Region will be affected".

The panel includes: Dr Jessica Allen, a researcher focusing on solar hydrogen technologies, direct carbon fuel cells and carbon-negative technologies; Adam Clarke, a policy manager with the NSW government's Energy Corporation, who is leading renewable energy zones across NSW; and Warrick Jordan, Hunter Jobs Alliance co-ordinator.

The panelists will present their perspectives on green hydrogen as a future industry for the Hunter and what infrastructure and engineering solutions are needed to stabilise short- to medium-term energy supply.

They will discuss the state's renewable energy zones and what else governments can do to ensure a just transition from coal for the region.

Future jobs and jobs to disappear will be outlined as part of a broader audience discussion on the socio-economic aspects of a new energy future.

Dr Kerridge said Newcastle is the biggest coal port in the world and many of the region's jobs are dependent on energy-intensive industries.

"The recent instability in energy supply threatened blackouts and threw the viability of some industries into focus," he said.

"BHP has just announced the planned closure of the Mount Arthur coal mine, and international coal trade is forecast to fall rapidly over the next two decades," he said.

"At the same time, the state government is investing in renewable energy zones."

The forum will be held from 6pm to 7.30pm at Souths in Merewether. Entry is free for Newcastle Institute members and $10 for non-members.

The forum is livestreamed and uploaded for free on the institute's Facebook page.

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