Actor Michael Caton tells Brisbanites to kick up a fuss over clean air and water. Michael Caton, lead actor from the movie, The Castle today told Brisbane residents they should be up-in-arms over the threat to their water supply. Coal exploration covers 281,417 hectares in the Nanango electorate alone, with permits covering the water catchment areas for Wivenhoe Dam that supply water for Brisbane and south-east Queensland. Areas around the Somerset Dam region are also under threat. Mr Caton, a former Queenslander, launched the Clean Air Queensland (CAQ) campaign at Morningside with CAQ’s coordinator, Michael Kane and Lock the Gate President, Drew Hutton. “I can’t believe that Brisbane people aren’t kicking up a massive fuss over this issue just as Sydney residents did when their water supply was threatened,” Mr Caton said. “There was such a community back-lash about the threat to Sydney’s clean drinking water that the government was forced to put their mining plans on hold. But here in Brisbane people don’t seem to be talking about it at all. It’s crazy.” Mr Kane said CAQ was campaigning during the election to highlight the health impacts that coal was having on the 40,000 children who attended school and day care within one kilometre of the south-east Queensland coal corridor. “These children can’t vote but their health will be impacted,” Mr Kane said. “Campbell Newman broke an election promise by approving the Acland coal mine expansion and that will result in many more millions of tonnes of uncovered coal being transported through Toowoomba, Ipswich and 21 suburbs of Brisbane in uncovered coal wagons to the massive coal stockpile at the Brisbane port.” Mr Hutton criticised the LNP’s scaling back of basic democracy and sense of fairness in Queensland. “I’m an anti-corruption fighter from way back but it still amazes me what the LNP has done since it gained power, favouring the big end of town over ordinary hard-working Queenslanders,” he said. He urged voters to number every box on the ballot paper.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 07:12:54 +0000
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