AUSTRALIANS – YOUR COUNTRY NEEDS YOU

I recently attended my first meeting of the Clarence Environment Centre in South Grafton, where I met some dedicated and committed people who are working to protect the natural environment in the Clarence Valley. However, the job at hand is very large and much support is required from the local population if they wish to continue to enjoy living in the pleasant environment that they currently experience. The environment that we live in cannot be taken fore granted, for everything is subject to change and evolution. Unfortunately much of the change that has taken place in the environment since the arrival of Europeans 200 years ago has been of a very damaging kind. Massive areas of forest have been cleared, soil has eroded, many species have become extinct or endangered, and pest species have been introduced. More recently we have begun to experience the effects of climate change, otherwise known as global warming. Many locals will have noticed how over the years even the Clarence River is changing – silting up in some areas, becoming shallower. Perhaps less fish can be caught than was once the case. These changes in the environment have the potential to rapidly escalate so that our standard of living, our quality of life, can decline.

Too often, those that strive to protect our natural heritage are derided as ratbag greenies, dole bludgers and similar epithets. This is usually because of the vested interests or ignorance of those making the comments. People who do not want to change their behaviour patterns even when these patterns are obviously self-destructive will attack verbally or otherwise those that are often trying to help them, or show them the folly of their behaviour. The truth is that those who work to protect the environment are the true patriots and heroes of Australia, not the paid sportsmen who score a winning goal, or hit the winning run. Environmental change and climate change are coming to Australia, whether we like it or not! Our only choices are whether we are prepared to face it head on, to confront the challenge, or whether we will just wait until events overwhelm us.

Many people think that the ‘environment’ – the natural world, is some sort of mental abstraction, just an interesting idea, and the economy is all-important. What they do not realise is that the only reason we have an economy is because we have an environment which supports our civilisation and our very existence. The ‘economy’ does not create the food, air, water, soil, plant and animal species that allow us to exist; these all come from the environment. What is the economy, the job potential, the wealth potential of the Sahara Desert or the surface of the moon? In these locations the environment is not very supportive of life. We can turn our whole planet into the Sahara Desert or the surface of the moon very easily. All we have to do is continue in our present behaviour patterns and we will surely get there. The Earth is our true mother for she nurtures us all from conception to grave. Our mother needs our support right now! What can we do to help her? Plant trees, consume less, waste less, recycle, be more thoughtful in our behaviour, fight inappropriate and destructive development, be aware of those politicians and businesses with vested interests to protect, who will promote activities that are counter productive to our family’s long term health and survival. The fight to protect the environment is going on right now all around us. It is time to join up and support the planet that supports us. If we screw up this planet we don’t have another one to go to!

MC. South Grafton