QUEENSLAND PARTY CALLS FOR FAR NORTH TO BE TRIAL ZONE FOR SOLAR CITY

The Queensland Party Candidate for Cairns D.J.HUNT has called on the Far North to be used as a trial zone for renewable energy sources to power a city.

Mr Hunt said "Recent studies have shown that Queensland is better placed than anywhere else in the world to harness commercially viable solar power generation. It makes sense that this should be located in areas that are going to get the most exposure to the sun to generate a viable and economical power source. As a result of the geographical location that makes Far North Queensland the perfect place to trial this concept”.

Mr Hunt’s statements came after details were released of the report compiled in association with former US president Bill Clinton’s Climate foundation that found Queensland was perfectly positioned to deploy large scale solar plants.

“The Tablelands Regional council for example has already recently given its backing to renewable energy production in the area. There are huge tracts of land in the Tablelands area that are not viable for primary production due to soil, climate, topography etc. that would be perfect for this process. You would be able to power a town the size of Mareeba or Atherton from renewable power and feed the rest back into the grid so that those environmentally minded consumers wanting to pay the extra for green sources of power have a viable option.” Mr Hunt said.

Mr Hunt stated “By conducting scaled trials with proven methods, instead of schemes like those that failed in Cloncurry, it could then be assessed if that location would be sufficient to supply power to a major city like Cairns and how the process can be replicated for other areas. With hydro power generation in the area already the infrastructure costs are reduced because transmission lines etc are already in place.”

“It makes perfect sense for this trial to be conducted in the Far North bringing infrastructure, jobs and a diversified economy to the region which we desperately need." Mr Hunt said

Labor's new fishing tax

QUEENSLAND PARTY HIGHLIGHTS LABORS TAX BY STEALTH

The Queensland Party Candidate for Cairns D.J.HUNT has condemned the Queensland Labor government for trying to introduce a tax by stealth and cripple struggling Far North businesses by introducing a $90 license fee for fishing.

Mr Hunt said "This is another example of the financially and ideas bankrupt Labor government trying to squeeze money out of battlers by introducing a tax by stealth. This idea to slug fishers $90 is nothing but a revenue raising stunt that will cost people their livelihood and further reduce the options for Queenslanders to enjoy our great outdoors.”

Mr Hunt’s statements came after the Fisheries Minister Tim Mulherin announced steps to address concerns raised about snapper numbers with one proposal being a fee for recreational anglers.

Mr Hunt said “They don’t even know who’s going to enforce these stupid rules. If mum and dad want to take their 5 year old son or daughter down to the wharf to throw in a hand line with a piece of bread on it, does the 5 year old have to pay the $90? How would slugging that 5 year old child, that would be lucky to catch a toad fish, $90 save one extra snapper?”

“This has huge implications for the Far North which has long been a fishing tourism destination. This places at risk the livelihoods of tour operators, charter operators, recreational businesses, fishing and tackle shops, fuel suppliers etc. The list goes on.”Mr Hunt said

“In these tough times the last thing the Far North needs is another new tax by stealth that will cripple our local businesses or worse send them to the wall. If it’s really about managing our fish stocks let’s talk about that issue. The fact is, it’s nothing but revenue raising plain and simple and Labor should be condemned for it. ” Mr Hunt stated.

QUEENSLAND PARTY CALLS FOR CAIRNS TO BE TRIAL ZONE FOR SOLAR LIGHTS

The Queensland Party Candidate for Cairns D.J.HUNT has called for Cairns to be used as a trial zone for renewable energy sources to power its street lights and return power to the electricity grid.

Mr Hunt said "Recent studies have shown that Queensland is better placed than anywhere else in the world to harness commercially viable solar power generation. We now have the technology developed in Australia to put solar collectors on top of power and light poles.”

Mr Hunt’s statements came after details were released of the report compiled in association with former US president Bill Clinton’s Climate foundation that found Queensland was perfectly positioned to harness solar power options.

“Imagine if we put a solar collector on every light pole in Cairns. All the lights could be powered from the energy collected. Just to reduce the power used for our street lights alone would save the government $millions in energy costs that could be applied to other areas such as health. It would reduce green house gas emissions and reduce the need for fossil fuel driven power stations.” Mr Hunt said.

Mr Hunt stated “The excess power collected from these cells could then be returned to the electricity grid. By placing the cells on light/power poles the infrastructure costs are minimal because the transmission lines, poles etc are already in place. You just slide it over an existing light or pole structure.”

“The Queensland Party is committed to sensible environmental policies and there are basic steps such as these that the government could take for the long term benefits of all Queenslanders.” Mr Hunt said.