GREENS Councillor candidate Aaron White played dirty at the Marine Plastics Pollution Forum held at The J last Wednesday night (9 March) as he had a dig at Noosa Council’s failure to adequately fund stormwater infrastructure.
Queensland Greens Senator Larissa Waters hosted the event and around 100 people heard from a line-up of speakers including Cr Joe Jurisevic, representatives from Boomerang Alliance, Noosa Community Biosphere Association, Surfrider Foundation, Sunshine Coast Environment Council and special guest, Tasmanian Greens Senator Peter Whish-Wilson.
Mr White slammed council when he took to the floor, saying he believed plastic and other pollution entering creeks and rivers during weather events, may be putting Noosa’s “enviable” Healthy Waterways A-rating at risk.
“I have concerns with a Noosa Council Committee report tabled last month, showing across the shire, only $25,000 was spent maintaining stormwater Gross Pollution Traps (GPTs) and only 25 per cent of Bio Retention Basins had been audited in newer developments at the Civic, Noosa Springs, RACV Resort and Doonella Estate,” he said.
Tasmanian Greens Senator Peter Whish-Wilson, nicknamed the “Surfing Senator”, commended the Noosa community for their great work in reducing pollution on beaches and waterways.
The Tasmanian Senator is visiting Queensland to attend hearings of his ‘Marine Plastic Pollution’ Senate inquiry, which outlines serious long-term issues, including plastics being ingested by marine life and ending up in the human food chain as seafood.
“I’m so pleased the environmentally proactive community here has an opportunity to vote for a great representative like Aaron to raise these issues and make sure the next Noosa Council does all it can to live up to its clean image,” Senator Whish-Wilson said.
Mr White said he would support the recommendations put forward in council’s Planning and Organisation Committee report to allocate $550,000 from the Capital Works budget to address the stormwater issue.
“Through great initiatives like “Ban the Bags” and the “Container Deposit Scheme” the Noosa community is setting an example on plastic pollution and it would be a shame if all our volunteer work, wasn’t being backed up by an effective stormwater management system,” Mr White said.
