The Tamar River should be the jewel of Northern Tasmania

But due to the mud and weeds it is not.

In my 40 years of selling real estate in Launceston and Tamar Valley one of the major determining factors influencing sales is lifestyle benefits-proximity, to attractive water views and access to recreational activities, be it river, lake or the sea.

I strongly support the suggestion (The Examiner, September 25) that we should have a freshwater lake, rather than a pipeline to supply water to Bell Bay.

Negative comments from locals ,interstate and overseas buyers are all too frequent with regard to the poor state of the Tamar River and foreshores.

Overall, the proposed lake concept would place Launceston very high amongst the better cities in Australia.

It would be a generational investment.

A NEW group has formed to lobby the University of Tasmania to retain its Sandy Bay campus. The university has revealed that it intends to move to the Hobart CBD, selling its Sandy Bay site for development.

A spokesperson for the group, Professor Pam Sharpe, explained that the aim of the group would be to lobby the University Council which made the relocation decision at a meeting in Burnie in April 2019.

Professor Sharpe said "There is anger in the community that the people of Hobart were overlooked when the University Council made its decision".

The group also intends to ask the Hobart City Council to review and report on the likely impact on Hobart of what Professor Sharpe describes as "possibly the most historic and significant single proposal for change that Hobart has ever seen".

Professor Sharpe pointed to the constant stream of readers' letters to The Mercury over recent months which have highlighted concerns including increased CBD traffic, the loss of amenity and best interests of students and staff.

Professor Sharpe said that anyone interested in supporting the group could find information on the Facebook group "Save UTAS Campus: or by emailing whataboutthecommunity@gmail.com

TASNETWORKS Boss Dr Sean Mc Goldrick article (The Examiner, October 16) has answered the questions needed whether Tasmania could produce enough electricity for the Marinus Link as well as hydrogen production.

The article left one feeling Dr Goldrick was in charge of the Hydro in Tasmania and not the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union, who are opposed to the Marinus Link being built

Tasmanians must feel confident that this very important project is in the hands of a man that is showing very excellent signs of leadership in this article.

THE madness of opening up with rampant Delta is folly of the highest order.

NSW and Victoria are following the UK's lead but the UK is considering new restrictions due to rampant and rising COVID.

The UK opened up in July three days after a peak had passed and infections were declining as rapidly as they had risen. The decline continued for a week before the graph started to rise, this time not a rapid, narrow peak but a broad long-term rise that has now surpassed the former peak.

When there is a lot of virus around it has the chance to mutate and that is what we have seen with the new AY 4.2 variant, informally known as Delta Plus. It is 10 to 15 per cent more transmissible and may be less inhibited by vaccination.

Tasmania has done the right thing so far, let's not open the floodgate to the Delta Plus variant or infections and death will follow just as it has done in the UK.

DR FRANK Nicklason highlights the perils of the Tasmanian government's approach to mandating the vaccination for all healthcare workers. Our already-stretched healthcare system is set to be stretched even further if mass terminations result from the non-negotiable stance that has been taken by the Tasmanian government.

As Dr Nicklason points out, many roles in the healthcare system require specialised training and experience and are "not something that can be filled in with agency staff".

Many healthcare workers, including myself, have questioned the hard line that the government has taken despite the high vaccination rate amongst healthcare workers and the public alike.

We have spent hours writing to - and speaking with - our local elected representatives, many of whom understand and appreciate the issues we are raising.

Yet our calls for options including regular testing, personal protective equipment (PPE) and redeployment for those who are conscientious objectors, go unanswered.

We remain ready to work out viable solutions, while the government prohibits everyone from speech therapist to emergency nurse, from providing any health service at all (including Telehealth) without a vaccination or medical exemption.

If the Tasmanian healthcare system suffers because of this mandate, people need look no further than their own government, which has shown unprecedented levels of inflexibility and poor leadership.