The issue of the century is the environment and the state we leave it in for our grandchildren. But another pressing concern in Australia is creating jobs to counter the impact of the global financial crisis. Those two factors are on a collision course in Tasmania as the Gunns company doggedly persists with its plan to build a pulp mill.
The project would create jobs but would pour 64 million litres of effluent into Bass Strait every day. The pipeline would take the discharge 3km offshore but how much pollutant is going to be dumped into the ocean and what will be the effect on the maritime environment?
Whales swim in those waters and scallops are farmed nearby. Tasmania trades to the nation and the world on the strength of its pristine environment. Therefore any damage to water quality from the mill would have significant implications for other jobs in tourism, and the fishing, wine, beer and honey industries. There is also the issue of whether it is sustainable to continue to cut native forests for woodchips to feed pulp mills.
We have a right to expect that governments will follow due process. Notwithstanding the Tasmanian Government's enthusiasm for this project, the Federal Government is required to give final approval. That puts Environment Minister Peter Garrett at the centre of this controversy. Before the election, he stood in favour of value-adding to replace the export of wood chips from a limited supply of native forest. In Government, he can't satisfy everyone and he must know the Greens will not be satisfied unless they halt the mill.
Former environment minister Malcolm Turnbull gave the go-ahead for the mill, which flies in the face of the Coalition's claims now that Garrett is trying to hide the fact that he has approved construction. Garrett says he will not overturn a legal and valid approval granted by the Howard government, so he has continued with the process, giving approval to some aspects of construction but withholding final approval until new studies of the mill's impact on the marine environment in Bass Strait are completed in two years.
That timetable allows environmental groups to make the mill an election issue, again. At the 2010 poll, their campaign will focus its fury on Garrett's seat. Voters will judge whether it was wise to put him into the environment portfolio where he was set up for a fall by being forced to compromise on his previous hard-line green credentials. He dismisses any conflict, saying he is now a team player.
He says that if the mill's discharge exceeds prescribed limits, the company will face sanctions presumably being temporarily shut down. He suggests the mill might be forced to install tertiary treatment for its effluent to satisfy environmental guidelines.
The company says it will begin construction when it secures finance, that is, it will take the risk that it will gain final approval, either through the current design or modifications. The proponents are expressing confidence they can obtain financial backing for the troubled project but clearly this could be difficult. Potential investors could ask why Gunns is so nervous about a CSIRO report on the mill that the company successfully appealed against the decision by the Department of Environment to release the document under Freedom of Information provisions.
The bottom line in this row is that while new industry is welcome, the environment must come first.
Rising to challenges
We are buying more bicycles than cars and the sales of hybrid petrol-electric vehicles are on the rise. These are the positives to emerge from another set of very gloomy economic statistics issued yesterday. Our buying habits are being driven by the economic downturn, climate change and our health. The best spin that can be put on this is that Australians are rising to the new challenges facing them as expected.
The bad news is that business confidence is at record lows, creating more tension for workers already fearing for their jobs. Despite this sombre prediction, it is hoped Australia can avoid a recession. Backing this argument is the drop in cash rates by 3 percentage points and the lower price of petrol, both helping to ease the burden on households. Meanwhile, the federal stimulus package which gave more than $1000 to pensioners added significantly to cash in the economy. One result was retailers reported record pre-Christmas spending of $38billion. Now, the slump in business confidence underlines the slowdown in economic activity as Australia feels the impact of the global slump, and braces for longer dole queues. Against this background of doom and gloom, it is difficult to maintain optimism, but we can adapt to these difficult times.