LETTERS: Speedy Cobargo motorists a serious worry

Traffic is normally heavy this time of year but what will happen when the upcoming Wallaga Lake bridge closure happens? That's really a big concern.

Cobargo Bermagui Road, for the main part has no footpaths or kerbing and guttering beyond the couple of blocks nearest the highway.

It means mums with prams, old folk with mobility issues, schoolkids and walking groups often need to use the roadside. The location of the town swimming pool means families often need to cross the road and we all know how quickly kids can run. The risk posed doesn't bear thinking about.

Every single day we see vehicles of all sizes - cars, utes, trailers, heavy delivery trucks, caravans etc - tearing through the village at speeds often bordering on 80-100kmh.

It's been common for a long time and I've yet to see a police presence to address this despite repeated requests. A few residents have said that council ought to install speedbumps or some other traffic calming device.

Whatever the solution, something needs to happen before someone is injured or worse.

In response to the NSW government's decision to support the Eden Aboriginal Land Council's land claim for the significant Crown Land site at the Eden Wharf.

The original concept was for the NSW government and council to demolish the existing shops and restaurants and replace them with new facilities to cater for cruise ships and the local community as a whole.

As I understand it, Crown Land is public land and as such is for the betterment of the general public and not for a minority group. Why did this Labor NSW government push this through without consulting the local community?

It's yet another example of broken promises and non consultive practices by this government.

IPART and the governments are simply fiddling with calculating who should pay what to fund emergency services (BDN, 5/12) while the state continues to 'burn'.

The solution is simple. Every resident in Australia should contribute to paying the costs of providing essential emergency services, so every resident should, simply, be charged a levy to fund the services. This would be exactly the same as the current taxation Medicare levy: a yearly small additional percentage of one's income.

Those who insure their properties would see a reduction in their premiums, which could be passed on to renters. Those who currently choose not to insure their properties or are renting properties (and therefore are not currently contributing to the costs of provision of emergency services), but who still regularly call on the services provided by emergency services, would be paying their fair share of the cost of funding essential emergency services. Those with very low incomes would pay nothing.

This is a simple no-additional-administrative-cost solution to ensuring our essential emergency services are adequately funded.

I suspect our politicians will be unable to see the logic, or the benefits, such a simple arrangement will immediately deliver.

It is not surprising that after successive La Ninas, and now an El Nino in the hottest year on record, that a clear majority (55 per cent) of respondents to the recent Farmers for Climate Action (FCA) survey felt the "single greatest threat to the future of farming in Australia" was climate change. The next biggest group (15 per cent) said it was "bureaucracy and red tape".

Despite these concerns, many Australian farmers are adapting to climate change and leading the way to a low-carbon economy with increased productivity.

The latest Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) figures show that "climate adjusted productivity in Australia's broadacre industries grew by 0.6 per cent per year on average between 1988-89 and 2021-22".

However, the October survey by the National Farmers Federation found that eight-in-ten respondents were concerned by federal climate change policies and environment laws. The FCA survey also found that a barrier to reducing on-farm emissions was a "lack of government policies or incentives".

Let's hope the government's forthcoming Agriculture and Land plan addresses these concerns and supports farmers to not only keep farming but also to reduce emissions and tackle climate change in the process.

2023, the hottest year on record, was a year marred globally by war and extreme weather events. In Australia it was also a year tarnished by disinformation and social division, evidenced most clearly throughout the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum campaign and outcome.

Most of us, however, want peace, a stable climate, and to close the gap of indigenous disadvantage. So how do we move forward in 2024?

Instead of feeling disempowered, we choose love and connection. We listen. We learn from each other. We find common ground. And we work together to create the society and environment we want to live in.

In 2024 we encourage governments to work for people and planet instead of big corporations, we support truth, and as much as possible we bring optimism to every interaction. One community garden, shared meal, or donation to charity at a time, each of us can contribute to a positive future