By ERWIN CHLANDA
Six new, large, double-sided structures for advertising signs on the South Stuart Highway were pressed into service over night – not quite the way their owner, the airport, had in mind.
Anti-fracking graffiti in big, black letters are covering the formerly blank billboards, on airport land, opposite the ‘Welcome to Alice’ sign.
Lauren Mellor, from the Frack Free Alliance, says: “The community groups linked to us are focused on getting our message across as part of the fracking inquiry process and we are not involved in this action.”
The successive single-word messages say “you can’t safely drink poison” and “NT Frack free – clean water forever”.
Airport manager Dave Batic says a report has been made to the police on what amounts to trespassing on Commonwealth land.
Police say the graffiti were reported at 9.40am today. Investigations are still under way and police are seeking witnesses who are asked to ring 131444.
Mr Batic says the sign structures – erected only in the last few days – are airport property and are part of an initiative to promote the town and businesses.
Revenue from this will go to the airport company, he says.
Town council permission was not required but all NT Government rules have been followed, such as minimum distance from the road.
He says there have been no complaints about advertising billboards drawing away the attention of tourists, just arriving in town, from the vista of the ranges to the north.
Monday, November 18, 2024
The freedom of the press still furnishes that check upon government which no constitution has ever been able to provide – Chicago Tribune.
So this is how responsible adults act. I guess this totally validates the outstanding contribution to any rational discussion by our special frack free folkers.
Sigh. Another significant community discussion hijacked by the feral few. I’m starting to hope a political party will promise to fence the Old Eastside.
Half the residents may need be classed as suspects!
Significantly less than half, Paul. Don’t let a small angry mob fool you into thinking it is representative of the greater population.
One of many pleasant things about living in the NT is the lack of visual pollution from outdoor billboard advertising, other than those on the racecourse land on the Stuart Highway which preceded (and perhaps prompted) the legislation which does not permit advertising outdoors other than for the products or services provided by the owners of the premises.
Some may remember various attempts by real estate agents to circumvent these rules, with a proliferation of L J Hooker signs in relation to sponsoring litter collection, and other agents putting signs up on houses they had sold long ago, after letters to the local paper in complaints, the signs all disappeared.
The other loophole is for signs on the highway approaching NT towns, advertising tourism-related services, and very tacky they look too, with no provision for anyone to remove them when the business goes bust, leaving many of them rubbishing the landscape forever and a day.
So has there been a change in legislation with no public consultation, or has the airport corporation found some new loophole?
If indeed we are stuck with the signs, then presumably it is open to anyone to advertise on them. If so, would anyone join me in a crowdfunding campaign to buy space to call for a Frack-Free NT?
Harold, it is not the quantity that counts, but the quality: Moses was alone in his quest to save the world.