PerthNorg

Water - Desalination what price the environment?

With a state government surplus in excess of $1.3 billion, is it too much to ask of the labour government that they spend a mere $70 million protecting the ecology of Coburn Sound? The EPA have already indicated that there is every likelihood that there will be a negative impact on the area if the huge amount of salt is pumped back into the Sound. It seems that there is indeed a way to negate the potential ecological disaster, but at a cost, that cost being $70 million. That is the projected cost to provide the means to dispose of the huge amount of salt back into the ocean but in a way, and location that will not have a negative impact on the local marine environment. It seems that for the additional $70 million the waste can be fed back into the ocean in an existing channel between a couple of reefs. In effect it would act as a 'flush' back into the ocean and adequately, without detrimental impact on the ocean ecology, disperse the salt and in doing so save the marine environment of Coburn Sound. I cannot speak for everyone, but to my mind with the surplus cash the State Government has available a little spent here could save a lot more further down the track!