Major NSW environment groups have expressed serious concerns about the content of the environmental section of the official Sydney Olympic bid.
Sid Walker, executive officer of the Nature Conservation Council, the umbrella group for the NSW environment movement, said, "This document contains numerous factual errors which seriously misrepresent the position of the environment movement. It also exaggerates the quality of the environment in Sydney, NSW and Australia and significantly overstates the 'greenness' of current government policies on environmental matters."
The document claims, "The efficiency of Sydney's wide network of rail, road and water transport contributes to the maintenance of low levels of atmospheric pollution in the city. The fast electrified rail system carries 70% of commuters to work in the CBD each day; the remainder use public and privately owned buses."
Walker called such statements "complete nonsense. Anyone reading the document would imagine Sydney commuters don't use cars, and that Sydney's air quality is something to boast about."
Milo Dunphy, director of the Total Environment Centre, added, "Contrary to the claims in the bid document, Sydney's waste collection and water supply systems will not 'easily cope with the new competition facilities and residential development required for the 2000 Olympics'".
Dunphy said the document "conveys the impression that all is well with our waste disposal and water supply systems, and that both have plenty of spare capacity. In reality, Sydney will run out of existing landfill sites by the year 2000 — and is facing a major waste crisis which can only be addressed with radical waste minimisation and recycling policies."
Grahame Douglas, president of the National Parks Association of NSW, said, "The Premier states in the document that 'major Federal and State programs have been implemented to ... preserve habitat and protect the continent's unique native plants and animals'. This is highly ironic, as the NSW coalition government has doggedly resisted community demands to put in place an adequate reserve system, and the federal government has not exercised its responsibility to override a recalcitrant state government on this issue."
Ted Floyd, convener of Friends of the Earth (Sydney) said, "We are concerned that millions of dollars will be spent on the Olympic games, diverting scarce resources away from essential services and from desperately needed improvements to Sydney's infrastructure such as an upgrading of the public transport and sewerage system. Who will pay for the Olympics — and who will go without?"
Sue Salmon, of the Australian Conservation Foundation, called "unacceptable" the document's claim that environmental groups have ndorsed" Sydney's bid. "I am not aware of any bona fide environment group which has done so. Certainly the ACF has not."
She added, "Environment groups have agreed to meet with representatives of the Sydney Olympic 2000 Bid Ltd to discuss these issues further".