Tasmania and the risks to Rudd

Of course, the state Labor governments have their own agendas and are likely to act to sideline Rudd wherever his ideas are a threat to them. In this case that means pretending that there are no other serious impacts, that a bonanza of benefits is all that we’ll see, that farmers shouldn’t be allowed to live on their own land and that trees are an agricultural crop.

Overall, the big problem for the federal Labor party is that this project exposes them in ways that are pretty much indefensible. The community is clearly coming from the high moral ground when they demand representation, inclusion in planning, pure drinking water and support for food producers. The government only has the support of the forestry industry as its higher purpose. Tough to defend I’d say.

On the media front, the mill proposal threatens the lives of tens of thousands of Tasmanians in their very homes! This is not some remote wilderness, it’s a battle about people’s livelihoods and futures.

It’s The Castle writ large.

There is no regulatory control against offensive mill odours (PDF 239KB) that can hang in the air for weeks. If that happens in the Tamar as independent experts have forecast, people aren’t going to forget the role that Labor played in their misery.

It is, and always has been, a serious mistake to underestimate the problems from continuing to ignore the socio economic impacts of a proposal of this magnitude.

Now, it is the ignoring itself that has become the defining issue.

One thing is for sure, mill proponents aren’t going to want to give up the gravy train easily so whatever happens, it’ll be interesting.

Which is it to be for Australia - Labor run on Rudd’s principles or dump those principles and cosy up to corporate mates?

Watch this space.