Prevent Victorians from starving - Keep agricultural land for food production - SPA

Earlier this year, Population Minister Tony Burke went through an elaborate theatre of consultation with 3 expert panels, and public submissions, on Australia's population growth, and a sustainable future. As a result, he simply brushed away all environmental concerns, and other minor trivialities such as food and water security, in favour of addressing our so-called "skills shortage". Thus, with no population policy for the States and Australia, all concern by growers, farmers and scientists have been brushed aside. There is nothing to stop State government cashing in on the easy flow of population growth, and leave the fallouts to following governments. The economic growth paradigm, based on infinite natural resources and infinite population growth, is well and truly active in Australia. Addamo, a fresh fruit and vegetable supplier and packager from Victoria which supplies to the major supermarkets, has collapsed after racking up more than $5 million in debt to banks and suppliers. With free trade agreements ruining and engulfing our own home-brand food production and manufacturing, we will be relying more on imported food. Another threat to food security is coal seam mining. In Victoria alone, as reported by The Weekly Times last month, there are already more than a dozen CSG exploration applications, from Werribee in the west to large tracts of the Macalister irrigation district in the east. The most fertile agricultural land will continue to be lost to expanding cities and urban sprawl, and there will be increased urban competition for water availability, and food imports. Ultimately urban sprawl will need to be knocked down because of food and energy security and cost, and the carbon tax. We must get used to higher food costs - the government created this reality. With the Coalition coming to power, Matthew Guy's first priority was to "tackle housing affordability with increased land supply and urban renewal". This is really a case of moving the deckchairs on the Titanic! Land is not a limitless resource. We are covering some biodiversity habitat and fertile land, limited in Australia, with housing estates. At a time of climate change and numerous "peaks" in demands for natural resources, once the lines cross, we are in ecological "overdrive". We should be stabilising our economy, and our population, not have our leaders addicted to growth at all costs!

Already we have more people than required by our economy, and skilled graduates are struggling to find jobs. Victoria used to have a vibrant manufacturing base, and many industries. They have largely gone overseas. We don't have the resources boom of WA. Our economy doesn't need more people and we are already in ecological overshoot. People are being added to create larger consumer and tax bases. We need peak oil to cut into the growth mentality. Government policies are trashing any efforts to be sustainable. Forcing growth onto Australia at a time of global decline is reckless, irresponsible, and contrary the the interests of future generation who will be left with the task of rationing energy and food, and untangling the transport knot. Adding all these extra one million people is the easiest route, and lazy way, for the governments to make money, and ensure donations from real estate and developers. Victoria is going backwards by abandoning planning for quick and easy money from myopic policies.