In May, a personal letter was hand delivered to the $10 million mansion of Mike Smith, the CEO of the ANZ bank in Melbourne’s most affluent suburb of Toorak. The letter, signed by the E.L.F., declared that his property, including his and his wife’s luxury cars, amongst a detailed list of other personal items, would not remain safe so long as ANZ continued its financing of the proposed Gunns Tamar Valley Pulp Mill in Tasmania.
The proposed pulp mill, run by Gunns- Tasmania’s forestry corporation which holds a virtual monopoly over the state, would contribute greatly to global warming, it would spew 64,000 tonnes of effluent into the Bass Straight every day, bring the Tasmanian wedge-tailed eagle, the spotted tail Quoll, and the giant freshwater crayfish to extinction, and would turn the ancient old growth forests of the Great Western Tiers, the North East Highlands, and the Ben Lomond forests into pulp.
The same night, vegan pizzas from numerous multi-national chains were delivered unsuspectedly to the doorstep of Mike’s family home.
By strange coincidence, the following week ANZ withdrew its support for financing the $2 billion Gunns Tamar Valley Pulp Mill project.
This effectively puts the pulp mill’s future in a dire situation. Unfortunately the state and federal governments of Australia still continue their backing of the eco-cidal project.