GEEVES EFFECT

Blown away by wet walk

MAYBE it should be called ‘Miserable Walk’. The lake is surrounded by the most impenetrable scrub you can imagine. The lake receives no sunlight most of the year and is bitterly cold. It gets the worst weather in the state and very high rainfall. You couldn’t see the summit from lake level due to the angle of the cliffs. There are almost no views at all along the vast majority of the track to Federation Peak. The irony of proposing an ‘eco hub’ at Farmhouse Creek, the start of the track to Federation Peak, is breathtaking.

I could write another list based on the loss of World Heritage values and a third based on the economic black magic from the $70,000 study. It is not being elitist to keep the area remote and wild as not even ‘elite’ walkers go there (or want to). The people who have made it to the lake would be less than a dozen in 50 years. The type of bushwalker who does a dry boot walk such as Three Capes Track will be bitterly disappointed by shocking weather, lack of views, inability to explore more than a few metres from the track, and the hordes of mosquitoes and leeches. There are so many better places for development. struction of the Three Capes Track degraded the wild character of Tasman National Park. But the impact of the Geeves Effect would be in a different league. It would destroy some of the highest-quality temperate wilderness in Australia, in an area that has been a focus of self-reliant recreation for more than 60 years. Such areas should remain inviolate. There are plenty of settings outside the WHA’s wildest country for activities and facilities. The proposal does not even comply with the pro-development management plan for the TWWHA, signed off by the Government only last year.

Keep it wild

YET another adventure group has jumped on the bandwagon with ‘foot in the door’ syndrome, attempting to squeeze yet closer to the World Heritage Area. There already exist the Three Capes, Overland and South Coast tracks as well as many shorter walks to satisfy the ever-growing number of tourists. Already there is evidence of invasive botanical damage, pollution and disturbance of animal and bird life in these areas. This has resulted in restrictions of visitor numbers at peak seasons. We are destroying the very thing visitors wish to see.

Co-founder of the Hobart Walking Club (1929), Jack Thwaites, said, “A road to Port Davey will be the beginning of the end”. Will tourists be told to expect adverse weather, cutting grass, leeches and possibly freezing temperatures? Does anybody realise the sound pollution in an area where you can hear conversations at Lake Geeves from the top of Federation Peak A new way to have your say themercury.com.au readers have a new way to have their say. It’s free to use, just register and have your say. For more details and to register, visit the website. on a still day? As for creating jobs, at what cost to the World Heritage Area? Please consider an extra 35,000 visitors to the Huon area and how it may affect the wilderness hanging by a thread for future generations to enjoy in all its glory.

Insulate rare places

THE construction of tracks and other facilities at the foot of Federation Peak in South-West Tasmania would be an intrusion into one of the remotest areas in Australia. The Government seems utterly indifferent, and perhaps even hostile, to qualities such as seclusion, tranquillity and mystery. Should every nook and cranny of the natural world be regarded simply as a resource to exploit? With 7 billion people on Earth, shouldn’t we be taking every step possible to insulate such places from the spreading impacts of humanity?

Dangerous blizzards

HAS everyone forgotten the South-West is prone to inclement weather most days of the year (blizzards, rain)? Or not realised the danger in placing foreigners in sandals at the base of one of Tasmania’s most perilous peaks? The South-West is not a playground for the wealthy, it is a reward for those who make the effort and respect the dangers and have a passion for true wilderness. The Three Capes Track is an example of our government trading the sanctity of our wilderness for easy money.

There goes neighbourhood

REMEMBER what attracted you to settle and stay in the neighbourhood you’re happily living in now? Well, thanks to the “permitted” residential development provisions in the Government’s new planning laws, you’re about to undergo a “lifestyle change” (Talking Point, October 28).

Tax unfairness

KERRY Packer, Australia’s richest man, was boastful that he did everything to minimise his tax. It says a lot about attitudes to flagrant tax avoidance that John Howard granted him a State Funeral that cost those ‘mugs’ who actually paid tax $73,000. Very little seems to have changed.

Dubious licence

WHY, oh, why, do overseas drivers get a free pass on our roads when all they carry is a driver’s licence they have gotten out of a Cornflakes packet.

All too much

WATER and sewerage up, rates up, power up, necessities up, seafood up, meat up, wages zero. What’s the future?

Cat attack

ALL other football teams had better watch out for Gaz, the cat attack is back. There will be Danger on the field now at Geelong.