Thursday, October 5, 2015

She says “We have communities and food producers that are in despair as millions of litres of water are sent out to sea, yet scientists are unable to demonstrate the environmental benefit.”

Actually many scientists have demonstrated enormous benefits arising from the implementation of the basin plan, including increases in water quality, water flows and numerous species brought back from the brink of extinction.

There is ample evidence, much of it produced at Charles Sturt University, of large improvements in environmental health. It’s also a little misleading to say that water is “sent out to sea”, when you really mean it’s not extracted from the rivers.

One of the beneficial impacts of the Basin Plan is that millions of tonnes of salt is also “sent out to sea”, making the land much more productive than it has been.

To view the Basin Plan purely from the view of those who miss out on water is not looking at the whole picture. There are also many benefits arising from the plan.

BARNABY Joyce, the new minister in charge of our increasingly precious water, said recently wasn't interested in water for the environment.

Water's for agriculture, he said.  If "the bush" dies, who's interested?  No one goes there. Who cares? Well, I and my family care, Mr Joyce.  

I'd far rather see water reaching into the billabongs lining the watercourses of the Murray Darling Basin, and the camping grounds that line the river further downstream, than into the pockets of shareholders owning agribusinesses investing in eucalyptus or walnut plantations.

Water is definitely not “any other commodity”, it's essential to all life on earth and needs to be held in the greatest respect and care, certainly not traded on the open market to those with the deepest pockets.

Who were the wise guys who privatised our public water anyway?  As our lovely little Melbourne Cup-winning jockey said, so succinctly, “Stuff 'em”!!!

ARE the food bins a success? I was visiting Rutherglen last week and at the bottom of Main Street was a line of about 10 bins.

The smell was appalling. They were right opposite Poachers Paradise Hotel, a bakery and next to a pizza shop and restaurant. How hygienic is that?

Surely there is another solution to this.

Come on Indigo Shire – you are made up of tourist towns. This is not very encouraging for visitors.

AN open letter to Malcolm Turnbull, Prime Minister of Australia. 

Dear Rt Hon. Malcolm Turnbull MP, let me congratulate you on your election to the position of Prime Minister of Australia. 

I believe in terms of your experience, humanity and enlightened views you are ideal for the job. This includes your recognition of the peril posed to our people, civilization and much of nature from accelerating global warming, as expressed earlier in your own words: “We are as humans conducting a massive science experiment with this planet. It's the only planet we've got”. 

Meteorological Organization and the world's Academies of Science, is daunting. Nor is it helped by opposition on the part of vested interests and their media friends.

Mr Turnbull, this is your chance to make a difference and to help defend the realm from the advancing calamity of global warming and its consequences.