Joan Dehle-Emberg
‘Tamania’s twin towers of Democracy are about to be knocked down by the Terrorists of Tasmanistan’
These were Dr Warwick Raverty’s opening words to 380 people who packed Launceston’s Pilgrim Uniting Church to hear his views concerning Gunns’ proposed pulp mill at Long Reach.
Dr Raverty made it clear that he was speaking independently and that his views were not those of the CSIRO. He also made it clear that he had come to Tasmania of his own accord and at his own expense.
In refutation of Forestry Terry Edward’s insult, Dr Raverty declared that his 30 years at the ‘coal face’ made him more than an expert on cardboard boxes.
Dr Raverty said he had joined the RPDC with an open mind. He was not against pulp mills per se. His job as a member of the panel was to assess whether Gunns’ proposed kraft mill was properly located. After two years of investigation, he had come to the conclusion that the Tamar Valley is one of the worst locations possible.
One of Dr Raverty’s main concerns was the effect of the mill on air quality. It was clear he was in agreement with the AMA that the mill would have a disastrous effect on the health of the 100,000 people of the valley. Citing the already high level of particulants from wood smoke in combination with frequent temperature inversions and prevailing winds from the north, Dr Raverty left no doubt that emissions from the mill would produce an offensive ‘pong’.
Referring to a Swedish expert’s statement that there is no such thing as an odour-free pulp mill, Dr Raverty’s question was, ‘Can Gunns be the first in the world to build an odour-free pulp mill?’ Implicitly, his answer was a clear ‘no’.
Referring to an interstate pile-up in Alabama caused by a combination of steam and fog, Dr Raverty warned of a repetition in the vicinity of the Gunns’ mill. With characteristic humour, he referred to it as ‘suicide alley’ where a mixture of fog and steam from the mill’s boiler combine to cause a white-out. ‘If you’re lucky you’ll be rear-ended by a log truck,’ he said.
Dr Raverty was also concerned about water, saying the prediction of climatologists is that el Nino and global warming will reduce water flow in the South Esk catchment.
Dr Raverty’s other concerns were the mill’s detrimental effects on tourism, primary industry, fishery exports and vineyards … except Gunns’ Tamar Ridge and their ‘Dry Retch Vintage 2009’, he said.
Find a place like New Hampshire where there is no inversion, little tourism, not many people, high unemployment and the mill would be OK, he said. That’s where Gunns’ plantations are and that’s what they should be using.
Dr Raverty’s advice … Take political action! Inundate the Federals! Set up an independent Tasmanian EPA with teeth! Call for a Royal Commission into Forestry!
Dr Raverty’s closing words… ‘The Terrorists of Tasmanistan should have a restraining order.’
