Birdlife dwindling
I WAS saddened to read of Greg Taylor’s observations about the decline of birdlife in Jericho (Letters, October 22). Since my wife and I moved to our current suburban home we have also noticed a decline in bird numbers and species. We used to have regular visits from musk lorikeets to a big old apple tree in our garden, but they are now rarely seen in the district as a whole.
These days all we see usually is little wattlebirds, sparrows, blackbirds and doves and occasionally smaller honey eaters, with seagulls flying over. My wife puts the decline down to tree removal. Since we’ve been here several houses have changed hands and in most cases owners have cut down a tree or two, reducing the amount of cover for the smaller birds es- pecially. If Greg wants to see some native hens I suggest he come to Beedhams Bay, Claremont, where there’s a thriving colony. However I do remember that over 40 years ago when we took over the Oatlands Pharmacy we were approached by farmers wanting to buy strychnine to get rid of the bloody native hens which were ruining the crops, and I believe that the rural supplies business used to sell poisoned wheat.
Positive public schooling
WHAT an impressive line up of senior and student ambassadors for the celebration of 150 years of public education in Tasmania: people who acknowledge they have achieved or are achieving highly because, not in spite, of attending public primary and high schools and senior secondary colleges in Tasmania. Adequately resourcing and supporting public education to keep up the good work and investing in birth-4 programs to positively change culture right from the start, will do much to address the “failings” commentators like Michael Rowan (Talking Point, October 19) would prefer to blame on the college system.
Earth health check
THE IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report should again be a clarion warning of the dire trajectory the Earth is headed. Imagine our planet rolling up to a GP for a medical check (certainly overdue after 4.5 billion years!). Following the doctor’s tests, the outcome would not only be destabilising, but alarming. The body of evidence points to global surface temperatures increasing and nulli- fying it’s self-regulatory mechanisms. This equates to severe planetary distress. Deforestation and industrial smoke also have negative impacts on the globe’s lung capacity and air quality and undermines the well being of animal and human life. The unsustainable explosion of human population is also a portent for famine and water scarcity; and the toxicity and waste of modern systems has the disposition to choke the natural world.
The prognosis for longevity of this planet is particularly ominous, according to the IPCC. If we truly value the world we inhabit, there are imperative steps: Divest from coal power as a necessity; Limit population growth, worldwide; Implore and pressure politicians to accept the IPCC report, and adopt the transition to renewable energy sources.
Lagoon trashed
WE visited Penstock Lagoon for a fly fishing and camping trip only to find our spot completely trashed. Unfortunately there are some people who have no idea how to look after a campsite let alone the native bush surrounding it. These morons must have been young and stupid beyond belief. Not only did they smash beer bottles in and around the fireplace and leave their empty crushed cans strewn everywhere, they also left assorted rubbish and even cut down small green saplings just for the fun off it. Idiots even tried to burn them! To top it off one of these fools carved his nickname into one of these saplings. Very clever. They even left their calling card to make sure I knew how much they appreciated this wonderful area; FU was carved into a large fallen tree.