Letters
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Think about disaster readiness
GIVEN the Black Saturday fires, Victoria’s storms of last year and now the huge flooding events further north of us, its time we thought about how we can make our communities disaster ready. We are already living in a warmer climate that throws up more disasters. It has become clear that fires, floods and storms that drop trees over power lines, may leave communities without power and communication for weeks. The recent floods have shown how tenuous our food supplies may be, with Brisbane's wholesale markets under water, and swathes of crops and stock washed away. We need to rethink where we build and how we build. This applies to infrastructure like roads and bridges, as much as to our homes and businesses. We also need to find more reliable ways of powering our lives in difficult times, which may require such things as localised community grids, which can be self sufficient if cut off for long periods. Or perhaps we could have portable trailer-sized outfits, which can be brought in as back-up, including battery, solar, etc. We also need to find more reliable ways of communicating when phone networks are impacted. Additionally there are health impacts both of air and water quality after an event, as well as other threats like asbestos in ruined buildings. We need a local response capacity that understands local conditions, so it will need quality community consultation to envision and set out how we do it. It will need the ABC, the telecommunication companies, food retailers, community gardens, sporting organisations, the CWA, first responders, health bodies, anybody who is keen to be involved. There needs to be an agreed plan, with clear chains of command and decision making powers, that goes to work straight away when issues arise. Then there is the aftermath. Perhaps we need a citizen assistance movement like the mud army, or an extension of the SES, or an environmental army reserve? We may need a skills register so that we know who can be called upon in an emergency. Above all we need a nimble authority that can trigger an immediate response when and where it is needed, and we all need an emergency response kit such as folk in Los Angeles have in case of earthquake. There is so much involved that we really need a local structure perhaps through our local government that can plan and implement a disaster response that does not take weeks to arrive, is well coordinated even in the absence of phones, and keeps all our people safe. Similarly, the country needs a national plan led by the federal government that obviously first needs to acknowledge the need and then quickly provide leadership that could perhaps initiate a template that can be adapted to enable bespoke local responses. Jo McCubbin, Sale
Pandemic’s toll lingers for Victorian women
AS our state comes up for air after two exhausting years of uncertainty and six long, draining COVID lockdowns, we are assessing the damage on our kids, our small businesses and across our communities and the Victorian economy. We know some parts of our society were more heavily affected than others. With the marking of International Women’s Day this week, I want to reflect on the disproportionate impact the pandemic has had on women and girls in our community and the
Coalition living in the past
I FIND it greatly concerning that recent comments made by the federal government’s Resources Minister Keith Pitt make it abundantly clear that any renewed interest in exploring the Great Australian Bight would be welcomed and that he wanted state and Territory governments to fast track approvals for stalled oil and gas projects. It would seem that our Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce are living in the past. The majority of people in Australia have made it clear, as a result of recent polling concerning belief in climate change, that they want a future where our energy needs are met by using clean renewable energy sources, and not by burning fossil fuels that are the prime cause of climate change. I am pleased that a federal government election is to be held in May this year. Brian Measday, Myrtle Bank, South Australia
Concerns over rail trail
The duck season continues to attract Letters to the Editor. desperate need for targeted support as Victoria recovers and rebuilds. International Women’s Day is about celebrating women’s achievements, but it’s also a frank reminder we still have a mountain to climb to reach gender equality and equal pay. The problems persisted even before the pandemic. In 2019, Victoria recorded a gender pay gap of 9.6 per cent. It remained steady at May 2020, but by May 2021, it had risen to 12.2 per cent, the biggest increase anywhere in the nation. In the same period, South Australia decreased its gender pay gap by 1.5 per cent, from 8.5 to 7 per cent. The setback isn’t insignificant and will take years, if not decades, to recover. The state government’s six COVID lockdowns and two years of yo-yo-ing in and out of restrictions have shattered financial security for many families and business owners. Sadly, the data shows those carrying the worst of the pandemic’s mental, social and economic devastation are women. Women working on the front line as nurses, doctors, aged-care workers, pharmacists and allied health professionals wore the dual pressure of high-stress work environments and constant exposure to COVID. Nearly four in five workers in healthcare and social assistance are women. These professions were among those most exposed to becoming sick with the virus and to the constant uncertainty of mandatory isolation requirements on both themselves and their family. During the pandemic, Victorian women lost their job at nearly five times the rate of men. Nearly a third of Victorian women relied on federal government support through lockdown. By comparison, a fifth of men found themselves in the same situation. More women than men had their working hours drastically reduced or shifted to full-time work-from home arrangements. This had a direct impact in the home. Women took on the lion’s share of caregiving when the state government closed schools and childcare centres, juggling the pressures of full-time work alongside delivering their child’s education.
Photo: File
Women’s Mental Health Alliance reports one in 10 women in a relationship reported experiencing domestic violence during the pandemic. Half of those said the pressures of the pandemic made the violence worse. Data also shows heightened levels of anxiety, eating disorders and depression among young women. A significant number of them had never experienced problems with their mental health in the past. Without a doubt, two years in and out of lockdown is still taking its toll. Government has a responsibility to ensure each and every Victorian has the best opportunity to recover and rebuild: mentally, socially and economically. Targeted measures to ensure women and girls can access mental health support now, not years down the track, will be crucial. Increased demand for mental health support in the pandemic has exposed the serious shortage of workers and seen women and children at crisis point told they have to wait months to see a psychologist or counsellor. It’s why it was so disappointing the state government recently blocked the Liberals and Nationals’ reforms to immediately unlock 4000 workers to help meet demand. All that’s needed is small amendments to the Mental Health Act and to government funding criteria. Other positive plans proposed by the Liberals and Nationals will also help support women to thrive and lead Victoria to recover and rebuild. This includes financial incentives for the recovery of sectors that predominantly employ women, including accommodation and food services, retail trade and tourism. And a guarantee that under a Liberals and Nationals government, schools will stay open and our kids will stay in the classroom. These measures are just a start. We know there’s still a long way to recover the progress we’ve lost in the past two years. The pandemic has transformed the lives and livelihoods of virtually every Victorian. The impacts have been devastating, which is why we must focus on delivering positive change to recover and rebuild. Emma Kealy, Shadow Minister for Women
AFTER many years of bike riding in the area I am now a senior who just had a beautiful electric trike bought for me. But there is a limit to where I can ride. I am appalled at the start of the rail trail off the bridge over the Avon River where the approach has been updated. Also to get on the trail over Maffra Road is deplorable as it is narrow, uneven and right on the bend of a very busy road. Hopefully the powers to be will address the situation and make it safer for old and young alike. Cecilia Temple, Stratford
Saving our fauna ... and the duck season
IN response to Karen Mander’s letter in the Gippsland Times (8/3/22), re “Facts are facts”, I understand and respect what she has to say. Good on you, Karen. However, my letter, published by the Gippsland Times (1/3/22), RE: “Stick to the facts Mr Meddick”, to which Karen was responding, was not to debate the legitimacy (or otherwise) of duck hunting. My view, not correctly represented in her letter, is that a “duck murdering season” cannot be justified. More importantly, my article was an intended rebuke of Mr Meddick’s approach to most things, in particular his advocacy for banning of the feral fox bounty … when the feral fox population in our country is totally out-of-control! He’d rather support the lives of feral (introduced) foxes, than save the lives of what remains of our indigenous mammals, reptiles and birds (including ducks), which feral foxes are driving into extinction. Fact! Yet, this bloke represents The Animal Justice Party? Trevor Tucker, Sale
A great time had at festival
CONGRATULATIONS to everyone involved with the Sale Music Festival. I was among the many people to soak up the wonderful entertainment at the Sale Botanic Gardens on Sunday. After a wretched past couple of years due to COVID lockdowns, it was great to enjoy a great day out in the sunshine. Gavin Norman, Sale
Times-Spectator, Tuesday, 15 March, 2022 – Page 13
