mill overwhelmingly opposed in tasmania

http://www.themercury.com.au/article/2011/05/12/229291_tasmania-news.html

Gunns hunt for mill support
NICK CLARK
May 12, 2011 12.01am

PULP mill proponent Gunns Limited has tried to counter claims that its Tamar Valley proposal is overwhelmingly opposed in Tasmania.

The company released a survey yesterday which showed 40 per cent of Tasmanians opposed the proposed mill, 37 per cent were supportive and 23 per cent were neutral or had not made up their minds.

The survey, conducted for Gunns by Tasmanian firm Myriad Research, also showed 34 per cent were negative about Gunns as a company, 32 per cent positive and 34 per cent neutral.

The results come as Gunns continues to seek a joint-venture partner and finance for the $2.5 billion mill proposed for Long Reach, north of Launceston.

Under the 2007 pulp mill permits, Gunns has until August 24 to "substantially commence" construction of the mill.

Gunns managing director Greg L'Estrange said the poll results showed the company still had work to do to convince Tasmanians the mill was safe and would not be to the detriment of air quality or the marine environment.

"The survey reinforces what we've been hearing from our discussions with various community members and that is that Tasmanians want to be confident that their families and the environment won't be worse off through the pulp mill's operations," he said.

"It shows too that we need to be much more active in communicating about the reasons why we are so confident that it is not only safe but also a credit to Tasmania to have such an environmentally world-class mill here."

He said Gunns would need to emphasise that the mill was 100 per cent plantation fed.

The survey showed support for the mill was strongest (52 per cent) in the North-West, and Tamar Valley (45 per cent) and weakest in Launceston (34 per cent) and southern Tasmania (27 per cent).