Letters to the editor, The Daily Advertiser, August 23, 2021

But I find it funny how we in regional NSW have always joked that NSW stands for Newcastle, Sydney and Wollongong.

Now, because of COVID, the three cities are actually divided from us by law.

The fact we now have such a clear distinction between city and country leaves me to wonder, what if this became permanent? What if we broke NSW into two states after COVID?

Would we be better off or not?

The way I see it, immediately we would have 12 extra seats in the federal parliament's Senate.

That may be a good thing. The rural and regional voices would have a greater say at the federal level.

At the state level, rural people would have control and jurisdiction over issues that affect them like irrigation, water, rural health, rural education, rural housing and state nature reserves (which are almost all within our regions).

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Topics like unpopular council mergers could be solved quickly by people who live with the impacts.

I just wonder, maybe, just maybe, if it is time we in regional and rural NSW have a serious discussion about self-governance?

Would such a move improve our lives and fortune?

I'm not exactly convinced. What are you thoughts?

Not wishing to belittle the COVID crisis, but I can't help but see parallels between COVID and climate change.

Both are global issues but need to be attacked both at the global and local level to return to, or maintain, our usual activities and comforts.

Delaying action has detrimental consequences.

With the sudden appearance of COVID in 2019, delayed action to immunise a majority of the Australian population has allowed a new and more virulent strain to take hold.

With the slowly unfolding impact of climate change over decades, the immediate threat has been disguised, but the threats to water and food security, human health and infrastructure are ever escalating, as was witnessed with unprecedented heatwaves, floods and fires throughout the world this year.

Have we forgotten the fires of 2019 and 2020 that ravaged so much of eastern Australia?

The evidence is here and the solutions are here, as they were for COVID and as they are for climate change.

COVID will not go away and adjustments to activities will continue beyond its containment.

For climate change, it is not just about reducing our carbon footprint, but preparing for climate adjustments to farming systems, national, community and personal infrastructure to accommodate the changing climate conditions.

Let's not continue to "kick the can down the street", a 2050 target doesn't mean we start acting in 2049 but adjustments need to begin now.

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