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I'm sorry, but I for one am not totally convinced that adding recycled water to our drinking supply is a good idea. By all means lets use it for industry and watering ornamental gardens and the like.

Whilst recycled water is being tasted before our eyes by politicians proving that there are no health threats, this water is coming out of a functioning water treatment plant. But what happens if there is a failure in the treatment system? What happens if effluent or partially treated water gets through the system and into the water supply? Don't try to tell me that this is not possible. Any mechanical and computerised system can fail or have a breakdown. Can we be certain that this will never happen? Look at the past history of sewage outfalls.

If we do have a failure and untreated water gets through, who will be responsible for the health costs to the community? What effect will this have on Queensland's tourism industry - Come to QLD and get a virus or worse when you drink the water. We are told that treated waste water is commonly in drinking supplies in other countries, but I am yet to see which countries and how much treated water they use in their drinking supplies.

So at the moment Mayor Abbot, I for one am happy for the water pipeline to the Sunshine Coast to be a one way operation. I'm sure that we want the potential for any more effluent from Anna Bligh and co. flowing north to the Sunshine Coast.

A very good friend of mine is growing a mo for Movember. To support his efforts and donate to the cause , read on below.

Regards
Joe


Hi Folks,

During Movember (the month formerly known as November) I'm growing a Mo. That's right I'm bringing the Mo back because I'm passionate about tackling men's health issues and being proactive in the fight against men's depression and prostate cancer.

To donate to my Mo you can either:
1.     Click this link https://www.movember.com/au/donate/donate-details.php?action=sponsorlink&rego=1465151&country=au and donate online using your credit card or PayPal account, or
2.     Write a cheque payable to 'Movember Foundation', referencing my Registration Number 1465151 and mailing it to:

                                            Movember Foundation
                                             PO Box 292
                                             Prahran VIC 3181

Remember, all donations over $2 are tax deductible (print out a receipt when you donate online and keep it for the tax man!).

 The money raised by Movember is used to raise awareness of men's health issues and donated to the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia and beyondblue - the national depression initiative. The PCFA and beyondblue will use the funds to fund research and increase support networks for those men who suffer from prostate cancer and

Thanks for your support,

Cheers,

Wayne.

More information is available at http://www.movember.com/. And check out my mospace for regular(ish) updates J http://au.movember.com/mospace/1465151

Am I the only person disgusted by the welcome home parade for our Olympic Athletes, or did anybody else notice that the Paralympic games were still being contested at the time.

Surely the organisers could have waited until the paralympics were over, or better yet, waited until the paralympic athletes returned home and had a parade for ALL our olympic and paralympic athletes, not just the able bodied ones. There was no need to take the sporting headlines away from those courageous athletes with disabilities and missing limbs who were still competing. Were the efforts of our paralympic athletes any less impressive? In many instances they were more impressive and courageous by far.

While I question the need to stop cities and rip up paper for parades of this nature, the numbers that turned out obviously relished the opportunity to congratulate our sportsmen on their achievements, and thus justifies the exercise. But with funding always an issue, just who organises and pays for the event, the cost of transporting the athletes around the country, and the clean up?

Will the justification be that there will be another parade for the paralympians when they return?  Judging by the contempt shown by hosting these parades around the country, that would be the least we could do. Well done Paralympians!

Dear Fellow Australian

I am sick of the rubbish that I see discarded by the pigs that we share this country with and as a result I am starting an Email Campaign to try to combat the problem.

The message is simple:

DON'T BE A TOSS-A!

I think it speaks for itself, but just in case it needs interpreting it means:

Don't throw your rubbish out the car window - Take it home with you and put it in the bin.
Don't dump your trailer load in the bush - Out of sight is not out of mind.
Bin Your Butt - Don't put it out under your shoe on the street.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - Plastic and glass bottles, Aluminium cans, paper can all be recycled. They can't be if they are on the roadside.
Recycling reduces our dependance on mining. - Why dig another hole when we can reuse the stuff we have already dug up?
Garden waste doesn't belong in the bush - That is how weeds begin.
Is your load secure? - Make sure your trailer or boat load is covered and items on board are secure when travelling.
If you brought it with you, take it home - Don't dump it here, there or anywhere except for a bin.
Takeaway means YOU take it away and are responsible for it. I don't want to see it after you're done with it.

Your waste doesn't belong in our bush. It gets washed down the drain, into our creeks, rivers, beaches and oceans. I don't want to eat a fish that has just swallowed a cigarette butt, see a bird that is tangled in fishing line. or witness a turtle that has suffocated on plastic. Do you?

DON'T BE A TOSS-A!

DO THE RIGHT THING!

Copy this message and Email it to everyone you know. I am hoping that this message will spread around the world faster than the rubbish that piles up everyday. Help spread the message and reduce littering.

Thanks

It was just 6 months ago that we had Clean Up Australia Day. I was so proud of the effort of our team of volunteers as we managed to clean along Beckman's Rd for the first time - 3.3 kms of very busy roadway that links Tewantin with Noosaville, with Noosaville State School along it's path. But just 6 months after Clean Up day you wouldn't know that we had been near the place. The road side is strewn with litter, and the problem is getting worse.

I decided to see how much litter there was and decided to do a collection of aluminium cans along the stretch. I chose cans as they can be crushed, are light enough to carry and are worth $1.70 per kilogram. In just over 2 hours I picked up over 500 cans! This averages out to 1 can for every 6 metres of roadway!!! Most of the cans were alcohol mixers with Bundy and Coke and Jim Beam constituting over 50% of the cans collected. There were a number of VB and XXXX beer cans, plenty of Red Bull, V and Mother cans as well as a scattering of Coke and other soft drinks. And this was just the cans.

What I didn't pick up were bottles by the hundred, McDonalds cups, bags and wrappers and someone was even thoughtful enough to dump their carpet and besser blocks by the side of the road as well. All this just 6 months after Clean Up Australia Day. What does it take to get the message through?

It seems obvious from the brands collected that a certain target market are responsible for most of the problem. Maybe the manufacturers can find a way to target them to DO THE RIGHT THING and throw their recyclables and waste in the bin, instead of along the roadways.

At least we know in 6 months time the streets will be clean again, but unfortunately only for one day a year.