YES 'IF' ... From Don Parry Ecosurf Coodinator at Mudjimba SLSC in Queensland

24.09. 2009

WHY ARE WE ACCEPTING A FUTURE OF RISING COSTS, REDUCED SERVICES AND LOSS OF LIFESTYLE?

I, for one, don't want that to be OUR FUTURE as I intend spending the rest of my life in it.

I was reading an article from the Courier Mail 8-9, 2009 P4 headed State in a power dilemna. "Queensland will need a massive injection of at least a dozen electricity generators costing billions of dollars over the next 20 years, according to energy expert Keith Orchison".

My simple (perhaps simplistic) question is why?

All the time we hear reports from all levels of government telling us about the population growth we will have in south east Queensland whilst we who live here are already feeling our lifestyles negatively impacted by infrastructure lag (roads, public transport, hospitals, schools, electricity and water). We are already paying more for less so how can more people make it better for anyone or anything? or in other words, if population growth is the answer then it must have been a stupid question.

Why do our government's have such a fatalistic view and at times their predictions of population growth seem to be reported as if they think it is a good thing and something we should want to thank them for?

Now I know we can't put up the full house sign and there may be economic argument that some growth is good.

When negotiating with my children I found that saying NO was giving away any power I might have and was almost as useless a technique as an unconditional YES. I found that YES IF was by far the best strategy so lets apply the YES IF strategy to our shared challenges.

YES there can be some large scale greenfield development IF that development can generate and manage all its electricity, water and waste on site.

Can residents have a reasonably priced waste collection service? - YES IF the bin capacity is half the current volume - any more and you pay a big premium.

Can Queenslanders have reasonably priced electricity & water? - YES IF they can keep their demand to much lower levels. If we use more than a low level we pay through the nose (and so we should).

I am convinced our challenges can be solved by a blend of education, demand management and clean technology solutions. It appears that many of the answers may be about decentralising power, water, food production and waste management. Looking to the solutions used by people who live away from centralised power and water supply and the way things were done in the 1950s and 1960s may provide many solutions eg. collect and reuse water on site; generate some of our power on site eg. solar hot water & wind plus minimize the energy we need and get our food as locally as possible (with minimal packaging).

Is there room for more people in south east Queensland?

YES IF (and only if) we all take a less wasteful attitude to water, electricity, transport, waste and food production.

Kind Regards,
Don Parry B.Bus.
ECOSURF COORDINATOR MUDJIMBA SLSC

Thanks to Don for this article. Food for Thought!

x jo

Jo Cooper | Ecosurf Manager
Surf Life Saving Australia
t: 02 9300 4000 | f: 02 9130 8312 | m: 0418 475 400
Locked Bag 2
Bondi Beach NSW 2026 Australia
jcooper@slsa.asn.au
www.ecosurf.org.au
www.slsa.com.au