I know nothing about Penrhyn Estuary and can't comment on the proposals
there.
I do know about the possibilities that occur when changes are made to SOME
areas of the environment.
Whether we like it or not, people inhabit our continent. With this
inhabitation, comes degradation and destruction of the environment.
Production of food, construction of cities and towns and the infrastructure
required (roads, airports, ports, etc) all contribute. Much as we dislike
it, if we insist on having this infrastructure (and most of the population
do) we must accept the inevitable. This does not mean that there are not
better, and less destructive ways to build most of these things but they
will still be built.
With the work of people such as Jill Denning (I know there are many others
but Jill is the one I know about in SE Qld), developers have built an
artificial roost for waders at Bribie Island. It is a major success. Many
will say that it would have been better left alone but people need housing,
Australians have shown (at least in SE Qld) what they don't want to live in
apartment blocks and governments are not going to force people to live where
they don't want. The governments are aiming at re-election. This is what a
democracy is all about.
A great fuss has been made about the removal of mangroves. So there should
be a fuss, but in parts of Queensland it has backfired and those that cared
enough to protest have been left with a monoculture of one species on
mangrove only. This is almost as bad as no mangroves.
A final note. On Hope Island, on the Gold Coast, there is a small swamp.
An insignificant drain, Dools described it as and I won't let him forget it.
This swamp was made accidentally by the building of an electricity
sub-station and the blocking of the natural drainage. This spot has become
one of the most prolific sites for bird species in southern Queensland with
species such as Painted Snipe, Pectoral Sandpiper, Little Bittern, Spotted
and Spotless Crake, Red-kneed Dotterel, and many others (a bird list of over
120 species) either resident breeders or regular visitors.
Artificial environments can work and are sometimes better than nature
provided.
Terry Pacey
Birding-Aus is on the Web at
www.shc.melb.catholic.edu.au/home/birding/index.html
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