Mr Brown states "... it concerns me that the [union] keep drawing this link that PFAS causes cancer".

The UFU has never made such a claim. We have pointed to correlations between PFAS exposure and diseases.

Only last year the World Health Organisation International Agency for Research on Cancer (WHO IARC) identified perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), one of the thousands of PFAS chemicals, as possibly carcinogenic to humans (IARC Vol 1-22).

Since 2001, research into PFAS chemicals has increased, and links are becoming clearer. Sadly, it will only be shown that "PFAS causes cancer" when enough people with PFAS exposure die of cancer. This is what occurred in relation to tobacco smoke and asbestos prior to them being listed by WHOIARC as carcinogens.

Mr Brown concludes: "Even if we did provide data to firefighters on the level of PFAS in their blood, what do they do with that information?"

Aside from research being undertaken into reduction of PFAS chemicals in blood, testing might help reduce the concerns of those exposed, including firefighters who donate blood concerned that they might be unintentionally passing the problem to someone else.

While the state of research points to uncertainty, we can be certain that the problem will not simply go away.

Greg McConville, Secretary United Firefighters Union of Australia, ACT

Your editorial "Making old mistakes in new suburbs" (CT, October 4, p16) states that, if the Zapari proposal to increase the number of units on the Coombs block to 212 units is approved it would "give Zapari and the government a significant windfall. The developer would pocket the profits from the sale of up to 168 additional units. The government would benefit from the rates."

Does this mean that Zapari would not be required to pay the government more for the privilege of building 168 extra units when its original bid of $3.4 million was for 44 units (or whatever)?

On these figures Zapari paid about $77,000 per unit. Why should Zapari not pay the government a further $12.9million for the additional 168 units at $77,000 per unit? Alternatively, why would not the government resume the block, refund Zapari its $3.4million and put it up for resale under the revised conditions.

Whatever happens, one wonders why we don't hear complaints from unsuccessful bidders (if any) at the original sale of the land if the sale conditions can be so blatantly ignored.

One must sympathise with the protesting Coombs residents and hope that their complaints are treated seriously.

On the basis of past experiences with these kinds of land transactions one would have to be pessimistic about them being taken seriously by the ACT government.

Gordon Shannon, O'Malley

While not decrying Peter McDonald's concerns about traffic noise (Letters, October 9), the quality of the noise also has considerable bearing.

A NASA study found a systematic difference between the annoyance generated by the noise of drones versus other ground vehicles. Going from the noise of a car to the noise of a drone increased annoyance by the same degree as making the car sound twice as close. This result casts doubt on the idea that drone operators "can expect their operations to be greeted with minimal noise-based opposition as long as the sound of their systems are 'no louder than' conventional package delivery solutions".

Murray May, Cook

Colliss Parrett's letters about the dangers of drugs might be taken more seriously if he acknowledged that the rates of alcohol-related deaths appear to be more than double that of illicit drugs.

If Colliss was interested in reducing the harm caused by addiction, disease, overdose and misadventure he shouldn't be ignoring the single biggest cause: 5554 deaths and 157,132 hospitalisations were caused by alcohol in 2010 (Source: Vichealth website).

I don't have the most recent figure to compare with Colliss' 1808 drug-induced deaths in 2016 but I doubt it has suddenly dropped in the last 7-8 years.

Anthony Adams, Reid

I've been alive for more than 80 years and, for all that time, and while living all over the country, have had access to a working telephone network.

A few weeks ago a nice young technician converted our phone to the NBN.

Shortly after that, and now for the last three days, we have had no phone service.

Apparently the problem is not confined to our phone and covers quite a wide area.

My conclusion is that the NBN was badly planned, badly implemented, poorly organised, and is dangerous at all levels.

Think of someone in peril reaching for a dead handset.

The next federal election will see me remembering this fiasco, as my out-of-area family, friends, and others struggle for contact.

It is an absolute disgrace.

Bob McDonnell, Weston

There is money and effort being put into programs sadly as a result of our high level of domestic violence against women and also to help young people cope with bullying at school and by social media.

What is the point when last Friday a well-known radio presenter in Sydney got away with bullying a highly respected female chief executive because she would not do as he wanted?

Where is the condemnation from, at the very least, Minister for Women, Kelly O'Dwyer?

Prime Minister would you like your wife or daughters to have been bullied in the way Louise Heron was on Friday?

Gail McAlpine, Griffith

A bully boy shock jock barracks for turning Opera House sails into a horse racing billboard.

The Prime Minister is also gung ho about the idea. Giddy up, let's go! Such exquisite taste, Prime Minister.

Ditto the NSW Premier who is happy to decorate the Opera House with galloping steeds and helped elevate feral horses in Kosciuszko National Park to heritage status.

So-called "leaders" ignore legislation in their pursuit of the big buck. Who'll benefit most from the promised racing windfall? Not those who need it most.

We're fast sinking into a morass of cultural and moral crassness with no limits, boundaries, or principles.

Judy Kelly, Aranda

While we do not have the final report of the Commonwealth Religious Freedom Review, reports suggest it will recommend changes to the Commonwealth Sex Discrimination Act (SDA) which will expand the rights of religious organisations to discriminate against people because of sexual orientation and gender identity. This would be a disappointing outcome.

We know the significant effects discrimination and exclusion have on people's health and well being. Prioritising the rights of religious organisations to discriminate over people's right to identity, inclusion and fair and equal treatment is a backward step. Religious organisations already get special protection in some situations under the Discrimination Act in the ACT where they are lawfully allowed to discriminate.

In our experience schools rarely rely on these provisions to exclude students, recognising the devastating impact this has on a child or young person.

Suggested changes to the SDA would expand and entrench exemptions in State and Territory laws and allow schools to exclude children on the basis of their identity and sexuality at a time when they are most vulnerable. Amendments to the SDA of this nature would render pointless the ACT reviewing current exemptions in our Discrimination Act in line with community expectations.

Public debate on excluding people due to gender identity or sexual orientation is harmful to individuals and our whole community.

Karen Toohey, ACT Discrimination Commissioner

If we have created a society in Australia where children are discriminated against by law, and their lives made miserable for the way they are born, and we refer to this as progress, we have indeed crawled back into the Dark Ages.

If any religion discriminates against a person for the way they are born then the punishment should be imposed on the God who created them that way.

The process is driven by the human insecurities and concerns that are central to any religion's existence.

Religions use peoples' insecurities and fears to obtain power over them.

They then punish those who don't support them or who reject their teachings.

If ever our laws support institutionalised discrimination against children for something they have no control over then Australia will no longer be a democracy.

We will have replaced that with a theocracy that suffocates human rights and civil liberties in the name of religion.

If the government gives in to the views of the faithful it will have disengaged itself from what recent census reports have found to be an ongoing trend away from religion, particularly amongst young people.

While most Australians couldn't give a hoot about religion, they do care if those religions are given the power to punish individuals through legal discrimination.

Wayne Grant, Swinger Hill

The government's religious freedom review has delivered a report that should surprise no one, given that it reflects the views of the dominant theocratic wing of the Coalition parties.

It is already a disgrace that some states have enshrined laws allowing schools to practice bigotry against members of the LGBTI community; giving Federal government endorsement to such policies encourages the narrow-minded cruelty of some so-called "religious" organisations.

All of the world's major religions claim to be about love and respect for others; in the case of Christianity in particular, loving others is a central tenet upon which doctrine is built.

Religious organisations already have the freedom to be hateful and hypocritical, but for any Federal government to support such cruel injustice is simply wrong.

If "practicing their religion freely" involves demonising and damaging children then such religions have placed themselves outside human decency.

Schools and other institutions have been allowed to display their prejudice.

But the corollary to this freedom must be the withdrawal of public funding of any kind. They should not be given a farthing of taxpayer's money, nor should they retain their tax-exempt status; I for one do not want my taxes supporting bigotry.

Steve Ellis, Hackett

Any definition of religious freedom that would allow schools to discriminate based on sexuality or relationship status will have a major negative impact on our society and the individuals concerned.

Any school which chooses to discriminate against sectors of the community based on sexuality or indeed relationship status should not receive a cent of funding from any level of government.

Nor should the religious institutions that run them have charitable status with regard to our tax laws since their behaviour is anything but charitable.

The suggestion that children should be excluded based on their sexuality indicates the churches have learned nothing from the Royal Commission into child abuse in institutions.

Discrimination like this makes children (and adults) unbelievably vulnerable to abuse.

If the government allows this discrimination without prosecution it should at least make it clear it will not actively support it by funding such practises.

Sheila Hughes, Dickson

Re: "Future generations of Australians will be left paying price if hefty cuts are made to immigration, warns researcher" (October 9, pp4,5).

How to maintaining our standard of living with mankind's increased longevity and the resultant decrease of the workforce as a percentage of society has been a topic of discussion for decades. Espousal of a Ponzi population scheme only establishes that our economic, social and political models continue to fail to address the problem.

G. Wilson, Macgregor

David Pope's Lilliput cartoon on the gay school ban has taken pride of place on my fridge.

M. Moore, Bonython

PEACE TOO SHORT

Armistice Day brought peace. It is a pity that the peace did not last very long.

Ken McPhan, Spence

VIGIL REACTION ODD

The idea that people might find a vigil held to remember all victims of war on Remembrance Day "offensive" is very strange. If we cannot somehow avoid war in the future, the soldiers would have died in vain. I feel sure that they would have wanted an emphasis on the tragedy of war itself on Remembrance Day.

Harry Davis, Campbell

CUT THE FUNDING

According to the Australian Human Rights Commission, people who are gay, lesbian or bisexual are protected from discrimination by law. The Sex Discrimination Act makes it unlawful to treat a person less favourably than another person in a similar situation because of their sexual orientation. If religious schools are allowed to discriminate against LGBT teachers and students they should not receive taxpayer funding.

S. MacDougall, Scullin

TENETS MISINTERPRETED

The proposal to give religious schools the right to reject gay students is an example of misinterpreting religious teaching. Religious beliefs do not ban gay people from fundamental human rights such as education..

Fariz Abdussalam, Muslims Writers Guild Turramurra, NSW

IF THE CAP FITS ...

What is the difference between Prime Minister Morrison and President Trump given they both think they look good in baseball caps?

Bill Gillespie, Wamboin, NSW

NEED FOR MINES

About 1300 new coal-fired power plants are under construction globally and may need the planned Adani coal mine in Queensland.

R. Matthews, Melbourne,Vic

WEATHER PATTERNS KEY

Some people like Geoff Cass (Letters, October 10) do not believe the so- called "experts" from IPPC's warning about the weather and warming. He should look at the current weather patterns. Re his increasing electricity bills: get some solar panels and a battery. My bills are paid for, maybe forever, by my solar system.

Jens Svensson, Chifley

SHORTSIGHTED APPROACH

Alexander of Macedon destroyed Persepolis. Rome and Byzantium destroyed the Great Alexandrian Library. To the politicians of all persuasions I can only say "you lot of ignorant self-opinionated bright sparks will end up destroying the very place we all call home. An entire planet. Don't even consider your great-grandchildren."

Congratulations. Recorders of history will love you.

F. Moore, Melba

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