Congratulations to the local community for your overwhelming support for love and voting yes. 

The marriage equality survey results show the majority of the community across Australia voted yes, with 64.9% of people in the Eden-Monaro electorate supporting marriage equality. You have taken a stand in this historic survey and showed how love can win.

Thank you to everyone who took part in local events, made calls to family and friends and otherwise worked hard to get the job done. We now look forward with hope to a free vote in the Federal Parliament to turn the survey result into laws guaranteeing marriage equality.

The Greens will do all we can so we have marriage equality nationally before the end of the year. We know the local community will be watching closely so it becomes a reality. 

We have been living in the Bega Valley for over 35 years and have enjoyed the peaceful and quiet environment that rural living provides. The proposed flying school at Frogs Hollow will change the area considerably, particularly due to increased noise pollution and general traffic to and from the proposed facility.

It is our view that if this project goes ahead it will change our immediate Toothdale environment as well as the Bega Valley generally as the impact of such a large out of scale proposal takes hold.

lt is likely that the population frustration and anger at such a proposal will increase to such a level that our present relatively quiet and harmonious Bega Valley will change for the worst.

Many people will be affected in such a way that their property values, including ours, will be drastically reduced and will be unable to move on to a more pleasant location, and this will be all for the sake of some joy riders who will come and go from the area after causing a lot of pain and suffering to those of us that live here.

Over recent years we have had sufficient time to enjoy the natural world in the Bega Valley, including our amazingly vast and magnificent bird life. These creatures including the wedge tailed eagle have a right to inhabit our skies. What impact will be placed upon them from the vast amounts of noisy small aircraft?

lf this proposal goes ahead, the potential of extending our organic garden, including herbs and spices, to commercial use with an organic certificate is highly unlikely due to the overhead pollution.

Our property is heavily bushed and over the years we have cleaned up the undergrowth and debris for fire protection. We are in a dangerous position if a fire did break out and there is no doubt that the proposed flight school with its busy and ambitious program would drastically increase the risk of fires starting through human error or mishap.

This makes us anxious and worried as it should all residents of the Bega Valley Shire as we all know how amazingly quickly fires can travel on a bad day.

Finally the bottom (dollar) line, we have always thought it desirable to retire in our present home with peace and quiet prevailing. However we feel it will be difficult for us to stay in the Bega Valley if this project goes ahead.  We would be at a financial loss if we were to sell our place as the flight school would on all indicators drastically reduce the value of our property as well as the likelihood of anyone wanting to buy it.  

Difficult situation all around.