Climate hero fighting fire with fire
He’s a green hero living in a climate change ‘code red’ emergency ... and while some leaders can’t admit there’s a problem, Peter Gash is ready with solutions
THE world is on fire.
Massive blazes are burning across America, Turkey, Canada, Northern Europe, Algeria, Siberia and Greece.
In South America, homes are falling into the sea as the ocean creeps ever higher, while Western Europe is under water after record floods.
So perhaps it’s no surprise that world leaders this week issued a global “code red” on climate change.
It’s not a shock, but it’s still shocking.
But there is good news, because right here on the Gold Coast, we already have a homegrown solution.
His name is Peter Gash. He’s the eco-tourism pioneer responsible for resurrecting an island from ashes to paradise, transforming Lady Elliot Island on the edge of the outer Great Barrier Reef into an ecological ark and a blueprint of how to grow a sustainable – and profitable – business.
He’s long been recognised for his achievements, including an Order of Australia Medal last year for his services in advancing the fields of local eco-tourism and aviation (he’s also the owner and chief pilot of Seair Pacific) and has a string of A-list eco-admirers from David Attenborough to Prince Charles.
But it’s his message that matters almost as much as his actions right now.
Because while climate denial is a problem, climate delay is even worse. And rather than waiting for politicians to come to a climate consensus, Peter’s advice is to get out there and do what you can, right now … and to make a noise about it.
“We’re in a political situation right now where, no
matter which party you’re talking about, the tail is wagging the dog,” says
Peter, speaking from his Runaway Bay home.
“We don’t have leaders, we have followers – and what they’re following is the noise of public opinion. They’re just trying to keep their jobs so that one day they can take up that lucrative consultant job in private industry. That’s what I see.
“They’re not making the tough decisions and taking action … they’re more interested in protecting their own bums.
“Climate change at one time was a mystery, but now we absolutely know it’s there and we even know how to fix it – but we simply don’t have the political will yet.
“That’s why it’s really up to us to make a noise about climate change and the environment. The more the public pushes for action, the sooner the leaders will come around … even if we have to drag them by the nose.”
Peter knows all about having the will to take action.
He didn’t just wake up one morning to find that Lady Elliot Island had been declared a notake fishing green zone and was running almost 100 per cent on renewable energy – he fought for it. Because he wanted to.
For the 63-year-old, along with his wife Julie and their two daughters Amy and Chloe, it’s not just a matter of leaving a legacy but living it.
“Rome wasn’t built in a day. It took us 13 years on Lady Elliot Island to go from fully dependent on diesel fuel to get down to zero,” he says.
“The only reason we got there was because we were single-minded and determined. That’s why I get so annoyed when I hear governments talking about goals in 2050. Let’s get a bit of sweat in the deadline. The only thing that’s preventing us from reaching those targets sooner is just pure political will.”
Back in 1973, Lady Elliot Island was a dead 42-hectare coral atoll that after almost a century of mining for guano fertiliser was left barren, with no bird or sea life.
Now it boasts 1200 species of marine life including turtles and manta rays, whole forests of native Pisonia trees and grasses and the second-highest diversity of breeding birds of any feature in the Great Barrier Reef after Raine Island on the reef’s northernmost tip.
It all began when Peter first snorkelled off Lady Elliot Island. Captivated by its natural beauty, he became a licensed pilot and began flying tourists – through his Gold Coast-based Seair Pacific charter company, which he bought in 1989 – to the Great Barrier Reef.
Between 1985 and 1995 he chartered scenic flights to Lady Musgrave Island but realised that Lady Elliot Island, with its own runway and resort, made more business sense.
“We did a deal with the guy who owned Lady Elliot. He had aeroplanes and pilots, but was struggling to keep the fleet going well. By that time I had put myself through engineering school early in the morning and late at night, so I was qualified to fix them.
“We shook on it – just a handshake deal, but the understanding was that when his lease expired we were buying it off him.”
And that’s exactly what happened in 2005. Peter secured the lease on Lady Elliot Island and its 150-bed Eco Resort, and set about transforming the island … and his own life.
Of course, not everyone has their own island to resurrect, but Peter says even small, individual actions can have a great effect – just look at the Gold Coast. If you want to make a difference in this world, it doesn’t have to be big.
“Even in business, not every eco-tourism offering has to be huge. Too often that just makes it all too hard … hard to manage and hard to control. The little changes can still produce a big difference.
“When I look at the Gold Coast, I don’t focus on the mistakes we’ve made, I see the changes we’ve accomplished.
“Let’s stop focusing on the negatives and look at what we have already done – and see how much more we can still do. All is not lost.
“I like to think about how, 40 years ago, I might see one or two whales when I was flying over the Gold Coast … now I see 30,000. Now we have dugongs in the Broadwater … that just never used to happen.
“I remember how dirty the Moreton Bay waters were, now it’s a marine park and is amazing. There are so many positive changes we’ve made here. Even planting out the former dairy farms has a great effect. You know, the dairy farms seemed like a good idea at the time but now we know it’s even better to regenerate that land.
“We’ve seen sugarcane farms sold for green space, we’ve stopped sand mining on Stradbroke Island, Moreton Island has been given back to its native people … if you look around, we are actually protecting our local environment.
“Look at the sky, it’s just bracingly clear. You didn’t always see that in the 1970s. When I was a young bloke racing motorbikes I used to feel sick from the air pollution.
“Even things that feel counterintuitive like high-rises and light rail … they are the right decision for our environment. They use less land, less cars, less spread and less pollution.”
In fact, Peter says while our politicians can be blamed for not taking things seriously enough, some environmental activists are perhaps taking things too far.
He says while it’s inarguable that environmental damage has occurred in the Great Barrier Reef, it’s not necessarily as dire as some have said.
He says while the intention of that messaging is understandable, negativity can create hopelessness – and ultimately inaction.
“The reef has absolutely been degraded but it’s not true that it has lost 50 per cent of its coral population,” he says
“I would say 20 per cent of the reef is damaged, the majority of the 380,000 square kilometres is good … but we absolutely cannot take our foot off the accelerator.
“I know that these things are said with good intention. That is, to stop coal lobbying. But I don’t like to see activists spinning lies. The truth is bad enough … the reef is under threat and we do have to act now to preserve it.
“But I think we’ve seen the worst because we know what we’re dealing with, we know what to do and what not to do.
“While some areas are certainly still degrading, I’m seeing increases in coral numbers in a number of areas. A lot of the reef has white tips but underneath the coral is fine.
“What concerns me is that too much negativity is a turnoff. If you feel hopeless, what’s the point in even trying?
“Even when the situation is bad, if we have hope we can have action and we can make change. Look at Lady Elliot Island. To see you can take a place that was degraded and make it beautiful and recover it, makes it exciting.”
But for this eco-warrior, the work is never finished.
It’s not simply a matter of helping every guest to see that sustainability can be sexy, but also to prove to politicians and the public alike that the environment is a business worth backing.
“We certainly turn a profit, but I take that profit and plant it right back into the island,” he says. “But we’re spending so much time defending the old ways instead of exploring new opportunities that are good for business and good for the environment.
“Covid has been a test for us all, but on the island we have come through surprisingly well and that’s because people want to support us. And that helps the Gold Coast too, because half of our crew comes from here.
“We’re also huge supporters of a project that started on the Gold Coast but now is based in Seattle, and that’s creating an electric aircraft. It’s flying already but the battery is the limit.
“My aim is that by the time I’m 65, in three years, we’ll be flying a fully electric Cessna Caravan.
“I’d love to stop burning coal tomorrow, but meanwhile we carbon offset every mile we fly.
“To me, eco-tourism is really about ethics, morals and values. It’s about caring about each other and the environment, it’s about looking after each other. We are all interlinked.”
The world is Peter’s passion … and he’s all fired up to stop it burning.
Climate change at one time was a mystery, but now we absolutely know it’s there