Page 2794 - Week 10 - Tuesday, 14 August 1990
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The greenhouse consultation paper we are discussing tonight was released by the Chief Minister in conjunction with the statement we are debating now. It demonstrates, I think, first of all that the Government is prepared to consult the community about the implications of that issue and our strategy for combating the greenhouse effect, and also it shows that the Government is realising that a whole community response - that is, one that brings in every member of the community at one level or another - is necessary to deal with this problem.
Before I refer to the health implications of the greenhouse phenomenon, I think it is important to recognise the link between the greenhouse effect and another significant environmental problem, namely, the depletion of the ozone layer which, of course, also has very dire health implications. The earth has an atmosphere of two levels, the troposphere and the stratosphere, and the troposphere helps retain the earth's climate through the absorption of heat radiated from the earth by gases.
Mr Duby: Well, where did you find that?
MR HUMPHRIES: Credible sources of information to my office, Mr Duby. The heat these gases absorb keeps the surface of the earth 40 degrees higher than it would otherwise have been, as I think Mr Duby probably told us a few moments ago.
Mr Berry: They are struggling for business, fellows. They are struggling for business.
MR HUMPHRIES: I see Mr Berry is a bit confused by all this information. He is probably not used to taking in facts very much but I think others might be interested in this.
Mr Berry: I am not confused; I think we are just struggling for business to have to have so many speakers on this issue. It is important, I know, but this is tedious and repetitive.
Mr Duby: I think your shoes might be environmentally unsound, Wayne. Maybe you had better take them off and put them in a paper bag.
Mr Berry: Tedious and repetitive.
MR HUMPHRIES: I think they will contribute to the ozone effects somehow. The problem is that in the 150 years since the industrial revolution the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has risen significantly, such that more heat is being trapped in the troposphere, and so temperatures are rising. That is, in a nutshell, the greenhouse effect. However, one of the more recent greenhouse gases - namely, chlorofluorocarbons - not only add to the greenhouse effect but also damage the second layer of the atmosphere, the stratosphere. This layer is high in ozone, which filters out the sun's harmful
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