Police Emergencies
FOLLOWING the tragedy in central Launceston where a police car collided with another car and a pedestrian was killed, solutions could be implemented that involve modifying available technology.
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When a police car is dispatched, the general direction of the problem (North, South, East or West) should be keyed into a console so that all the traffic lights the police car will encounter will be green. Or, an automated system could monitor the police vehicle using its GPS to determine the direction of travel and the actual street it is in.
The system could then activate any subsequent traffic lights to ensure they are green when the police car passes through.
An opponent might raise the high expense of modifying our traffic light system, but what price do we apply to a lost human life.
Also, the misery experienced by affected people including relatives and police personnel can extend for decades.
A. Frellek, Trevallyn.
Wood Chip Burning
TYPICALLY we witness another tree hugger group cheering the burning of the Eden Woodchip Mill with 75,000 tonnes of residue chips.
These blind heroes of the forests certainly are not community people as that mill takes surplus residue or head wood and exports it.
Bringing in substantial money to this region be it farmer growers, contractor workers, truck fleets, mill workers and ship loaders.
All of these dollars then flow to the local towns and are the difference between survival or bankruptcy of communities.
At a rough guess, this is at least 35 per cent of the economy, while our tree huggers live in wooden houses that are from the forests or they are city slickers in high energy cement condos.
Most of this residue wood in older days was pushed up and burnt, we must support ventures in downstream processing of trees or sit by and watch them die of age, fire, drought or grub infestation.
Healthy forests come from cold fire burning like our first people and by expert science growing, thinning and treating forest as a value.
Value adding is our future in climatic evolution that history shows will rise and lower over time in temperature.
To not believe this is dumber than dumb. We need fresh aerial seeding of many natural species thus arresting the valuable ash and top soil, planting tree is a short term woodchip plan over 15 to 20 years as no tap root anchor grows.
It's a greedy profit means of production for export.
The Victorian 1929 fires are proof forests will regenerate but must have regular intervention by thinning and aerial spraying for beetle destruction.
Smoke and carbon are a tree main meal as they absorb from above converting to expel oxygen for us as biota.
Mike Grey, West Tamar.
Kookaburras Problem
WITH the astronomical amount of native Australian wildlife lost in the current catastrophic bushfires, I find Kyl Eastely's (The Examiner, January 11) comments utterly repulsive. Certainly humans are the "problem" plaguing this land, not our native kookaburras.
Rachael Walsh, Launceston.
Gutwein's Big Gambit
ROB Inglis states (The Sunday Examiner, January 12) Treasurer Peter Gutwein often talks of a need to "sand bag" the economy in anticipation of difficult economic times.
His approach to these is two pronged, spending big on infrastructure ($3.6 billion across the forward estimates) and therefore, to stimulate business confidence, and attract investment. I agree with him "it's a good time to invest intergenerational assets looking to the future, whilst interest rates are at record lows". Labor's David O'Byrne has accused the government of raiding its businesses. Mr O'Byrne must have a short memory. Labor sold The Tote and further let the Keno go to a private operator against the sound advice of the Tote board.
Madeleine Ogilvie must reflect on the crossbenches that Mr Gutwein is emulating former relative Albert Ogilvie, Labor Tasmanian premier during the 1930s. Volunteer Groups were encouraged by him, unfortunately as ex-premier Robin Gray has stated, ministerial bureaucrats are having too much influence and ignoring sound advice. For example, the Legislative Council and Launceston City Council about North-East rail line and the tourist icon Bridestowe Estate which attracts 85,000 visitations per annum.
Brian P. Khan, Bridport.
A Prison is not a Craft Fair
IT BEGS the question why did Deralyn O'Donnell (The Examiner, January 12) settle in Westbury if it doesn't suit her needs?
Deloraine offers little more than Westbury in services - the only difference is the craft fair held once a year which in turn attracts artists to sell their wares in shops.
Westbury would be no less vibrant than Deloraine if we packed all into a 500m section of road.
I like it spread out, way less traffic hassles unlike the main street mayhem in Deloraine. So D. O'Donnell, what are you going to contribute to Westbury to improve it or elaborate how a prison is going to improve Westbury? A prison is not a craft fair.
My suggestion: Agfest moves to the government's "preferred prison site" and the prison built on the Agfest site. Does it not make more sense to give Agfest main road exposure and keep a prison out of sight?
I'm a member of WRAP and I'm not opposed to a prison in the North - I only oppose the "preferred prison site".