Here are some highlights from the 5th Grade school project funded by Gunns and completed by the following tax-paid dolts and their lobbyist mascot:

“The following members of the Tasmanian Parliament undertook the research trip to three pulpmills
with technology similar to the one being proposed.
Hon. Ruth Forrest MLC Independent
Hon. Ivan Dean MLC Independent
Hon. Tania Ratray-Wagner MLC Independent
Hon. Paul Harriss MLC Independent
Hon. Greg Hall MLC Independent
Peter Gutwein MHA Liberal
Hon. Sue Napier MHA Liberal
Robert Eastment, Director of IndustryEdge, travelled with and assisted the parliamentary Members
to inquire, discuss and assess the information and data at their disposal during the research being
undertaken.”

“4. The suppliers and major consultants are largely providing contracted guarantees
regarding the performance of the mill during the commissioning phase. Andritz is staking
its international reputation and considerable financial penalties on the successful
performance of machinery and plant in meeting the standards set out in the RPDC
guidelines.”

“11. A discussion evolved regarding current and future pulpmill concepts. Taken to the
extreme, rather than a pulpmill of the future producing predominantly pulp plus green
energy for supply to the grid, future bio refineries will be likely to produce a range of
products from forest / plantation resources including green energy, bio fuel such as
ethanol, oil extracts including turpentine and tall oil (a derivative of wood), conceivably
plastics, medicines and textiles as the predominant products with less emphasis on pulp.”

“15. From a market perspective, it has become apparent Gunns does not have a ‘do nothing’
option. There is an imperative for value adding low value forest resources since the longterm
viability of woodchip exports to Japan has serious limitations.”

It is impossible to read more than 5 pages at a go without feeling ill. Long story short:

pulp mills don’t damage the environment.
pulp mills only stink twice a year.
pulp mills don’t reduce tourism.
handpicked locals love living near a pulp mill.
consultants hired by Gunns can be trusted and there is no need to think there may be a conflict of interest.
jobs jobs jobs
log log log
money money money
pulp mills may just save the world.

Geez, those photos of pulp mills are sooo scary - the mills look like monsters from outer space.

Get real you guys.  Read the report and repent. 

Gunns and the parliament – just get the bloody thing built and up and running. 

In five years time we’ll all then wonder what the fuss was all about.  We’ll wonder why the world hasn’t ended, why tourists still come to the Tamar, why we haven’t now built a paper mill, why there isn’t any odour, why the scallops are still there, why the surfers haven’t all broken out in sores, why the vines haven’t all died, and why we are all that much more prosperous.

yeah sure brian, read ruth forrests independent report on her trip in chile, and then get in touch with Victor Rabanal local vineyard owner near the supposedly clean Nuvea Aldea Pulp Mill and tell him your theory..you might get a very different perspective, why dont you wake up, book a plane, and go see for yourself before making such ill informed grand comments(something only one of our public representatives did)

2) maybe in 5 years time all the prophecies of toruble iwth the project will come true.
If you read the recents MLC’s report closley and read the additional info about the MLC whose talked more closley with locals you will find.

1) there were noticable odour issues noted
2) there were regular stoppages and maintaince issues, leakages and emissions
3) there were reports of dissafect by local busineses
4) there were reports of children with illneses
5) there were other issues noted but not adressed

It obvious people are being blindsides by company spin and a lust for short term prosperity…

In your dreams Brian,your wonders that you have stated will become a reallity.
Just the fact of what will be pumped into Bass Strait,daily is scary enough to convince anyone with half a brain that this mill is not for the Tamar valley.
Get real,read the experts reports, not the government and Gunns propaganda,you don’t have to be a rocket sciencist// to see the difference between fiction and fact

The word is that Malcolm Turnbull will release a pulp mill “package” on Monday.  Doesn’t sound much like an approval to me.  Any ideas anyone?

Brian, if you would move from the comfort zone, do a bit of research like reading the article “Banks, pulp and people” available at http://www.pulpmillwatch.org
you will see a very different story to what the pulpmill tourists tell. Try it Brian, you will learn something that the touring MLC’s did’nt.

(2)
O.k brian or Mcdonald or whatever other freeloading pollie oinker you are, give us ALL a lesson on just how this bloody monstrosity is going to offer more employment than the cottage industries ,fishing, and wineries etc it will eventually replace ,also why should you give a rats arse about the health of those in an area in which you don’t reside, your most likely just another one of those fucking southerners up to your armpits in gunn’s shares and haven,t a clue that if and when this gets the green light that it creates a precedent and plans are on the back burner for a southern mill,so i have been reliably informed .
  Get some mates and hire alight plane and take a little flight over the south , esperence, Southport, Dover, Catamaran area,s for a little eyeopener. then again i doubt that you like the rest of the rednecks don’t give a goddamn.
                    d.d.

Official Thinking - how it works sample.

Bang Bang, you’re dead!

In a report by the gun lobby and several armament manufacturers, it was agreed that guns are not dangerous objects. A gun by itself is a benign possession, incapable of doing any harm to anyone. A club is more dangerous than anything we have produced. It is actually bullets that are dangerous, and when these antisocial elements are introduced, then there could be trouble, but the gun itself must remain blameless.

In an article published recently by the Shot Loaders Association, they went to great lengths to repudiate the notion that ‘Bullets are Dangerous’.
We have examined thousands of bullets, and none, I repeat, none, have shown any symptoms of being harmful. Handled well, they can be kept indefinitely. It is believed that this libellous statement was issued by the gun manufacturers to protect their own vested interests. Without the association of our socially acceptable product with their antisocial item, there would be absolutely no danger to anyone.

In another article published in ‘Psychology Today’, it was pointed out that it is people who are their own worst enemy. Wherever there is trouble, you will find that it is generally irresponsible people who are behind it. Weapons are a symptom, not a cause, and it is therefore recommended that the government should forthwith arm all ‘responsible’ citizens, thus maintaining a balance and furthering the dream of everlasting peace.

In a statement from the United Nations, it was advocated that to end international and local conflicts, that the issue of guns should be to one side only, and that all bullets should become the undisputed possession of the opposing party. In this way, conflict would cease and the economy, through free trade, would flourish.

The Education Minister, in a recent address stated that there was a great deal of merit in the suggestion to educate children about the ‘facts’ relating to weaponry. He therefore recommended that there should be a national ‘Guns for Peace’ day and that children should be encouraged to bring whatever weapons they possessed to school with them on that day. However, when questioned, he did say that, even though this could be a major step forward for this country, he would not go so far as to recommend the plan to his American counterpart until local field trials were complete.

The more important question ( in my mind ), is what were the other Independants doing that was so important that they were unable/unwilling to travel with Ruth Forrest and do their own digging?
Apparently Ruth didnt need her Gunn’s minder and apparently he was unaware of her actions. The obvious thing with the Lib delegation (Gutwein & Napier), was to accept what they were spoonfed, but what of Dean, Harris,Hall & Rattray - Wagner? What was the purpose of the visits?Was it not to look at real mills and their impacts on surrounding communities? These are the lazy pollies, who do not want to rock the boat.
Perhaps with the exception of Forrest & R-Wagner, ( who has concerns about the mills impact on the East Coast), I doubt if these MLC’s will survive another election.

re: Brian #2

A key point from the Federal Environment department report is that there are no greenfield pulp mills with documented data for the impact of ocean outfalls.

Mills in Finland etc dump effluent into the Baltic which has dioxin concentrations in sediment which are 10,000 times higher than the Bass Strait area. They saw a fall using ECF technology because the water was already very polluted. For Tasmania, the department’s recommendation would allow dioxin concentrations insediment to increase by 224 times from 3.8 pg TEQ/Kg to 850 pg TEQ/Kg at the Commonwealth boundary, implicitly concentrations in state waters could be much higher, and given that Scallops are filter feeders, could lead to very high concentrations closing the fishery. Previous effluent tests have shown scallop larvae to be impacted, but the Fed report indicates that the process didn’t follow scientific protocols and therefore there is no reliable test for the toxicity of the effluent.

Other issues associated with the mill, such as air pollution interactions with the Tamar Valley inversion layer are also site specific.

It is science, not international site-seeing that will address these issues.

When I was a project financier I often enjoyed a “Jolly” visiting sites with the proponent, but that doesn’t extend to allowing the proponents (Gunns and the government) corrupting the technical reports as has happened with SWECO PIC.