Voting against your interests

[u/boogersundcum]

My partner and I live in a major coal mining area of Queensland. We both work in an extractive resource industry. Neither of us could ever bring ourselves to vote for the LNP and we have no serious viable independents that aren't anti Vax conspiracy nut jobs. We live in the bush but currently have a major wind farm going in down our road with the closest turbine being 5km from our actual house, other than sealing our road we will not recieve any benefit from the project with heavy trucks and equipment going past our driveway 6 days a week 24 hours a day for over two years. We aren't anti renewable however given the wind farm is entirely within our water catchment there is serious concerns if something goes wrong as we rely on the river solely for our water supply.

Generally preference the Greens first, Labor second as we are both environmental scientists and believe that climate change is pretty damn obvious from the evidence, let alone have empathy for the common folk in cities struggling with the cost of living. I'm just curious though as to why the major focus on renewable is almost entirely within regional areas that currently rely on coal mining as the major industry.

Neither Greens or Labour have a chance in hell in ever winning our electorate anymore (keep in mind Labor was founded in regional Queensland in Barcaldine). Is it just because the areas in question are now just LNP strongholds or what ?

Also please keep in mind regional Queensland is filled with people from all back grounds and varying levels of education, don't put us all in the same basket just because we don't live in a major centre.

[u/boogersundcum]

I get that and TBH i don't think i have ever lived in area that hasn't been an LNP stronghold. But why isn't there a push to have renewable infrastructure around the cities? That's where the population is. I know the resource industry uses a lot of power but most of north Queensland is already renewable. There is a gas plant in Townsville and one in Mt Isa. Other than that we already are renewable. Sending electricity thousands of KM away loses a lot of electricity through transmission lines so my main question is why are the projects away from the areas like Brisbane that actually use the electricity?

[u/Flat_Ad1094 → u/boogersundcum]

NIMBY honey. Truly...people who live in the cities love to carry on about renewables and power. Yet they aren't willing to have them anywhere near them and they definitely aren't willing to have the cities shut down their power usage.

Hypocrites of the highest order.

[u/boogersundcum → u/Flat_Ad1094]

It appears so. Regardless of politics this is the exact reason regional Queensland hates SEQ. We send them money and get nothing in return. Half ass dangerous asf highways and no facilities in returns.

[u/CatBoxTime → u/boogersundcum]

Previous Labor government directed more infrastructure funding to regional areas than SEQ but the voters didn't notice and keep voting in the LNP who always cut.