BY DARREN JIGGINS
HOBART — "The small town community of Ranelagh has stood its ground at the commission hearing into the proposed Southwood woodchip mill", local activist Peter Cahill told Green Left Weekly. Forestry Tasmania is planning to build a road through the town as part of the Southwood project.
The route through Ranelagh is the third option proposed by Forestry Tasmania to bare the burden of the notorious "B-double" woodchip trucks. The first two options — a port at Electrona and upgrading of the road through Huonville — have each been defeated as a result of local business pressure.
"Forestry Tasmania thought that they would find few voices of protest from the town of Ranelagh if they were to run the trucks through our town", Cahill said. "They were wrong."
Cahill and other Ranelagh residents aired their opposition during the May 1-14 public hearing conducted by the Resource, Planning and Development Commission, which will decide the fate of the Southwood project.
"I am hopeful that the commission will dump the whole project as it's on the nose with the whole south region of Tasmania", said Cahill.
From Green Left Weekly, June 5, 2002.
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