The same principles should be applied to our current and future energy policies, meaning listen and act on scientific evidence.

Ian Kirkwood's article 'Renewables mean new power grid' (Herald, 16/11) provides an excellent background to the recently released NSW government plan to keep the lights on with a combination of wind, solar and 'firming' mainly from pumped hydro, while progressively shutting down our ageing coal-fired power stations.

Interestingly there is no mention of any transitional gas or coal fired peaking plants for power 'firming', let alone building any new base load plants.

Presumably this is because fossil fuel-based power stations are expensive to build and operate and are at great risk of becoming stranded assets in the future.

Other factors that make this plan even more attractive are the reduction in greenhouse emissions as well as reducing particulate matter pollution, especially in the Upper Hunter. These are great health outcomes for our Hunter communities.

It is telling that all NSW political parties, as well as other relevant groups, are generally backing this package.

It will be interesting to see what the Commonwealth's response to the NSW government's energy plan is, given their recently released energy road map with gas, not pumped hydro, as a transitional fuel to a renewable future.

THE editorial in the Herald, 10/11, suggested the pumped hydro (PHS) method of "storing" electricity remains relatively untested technology. Switzerland installed the first pumped hydro system in 1917. By 2018 there was 161,000 megawatts of pumped hydro capacity providing 94 per cent of installed global energy storage capacity.

The rapid increase of variable renewable energy has driven renewed interest in PHS, and an additional 78,000 megawatts of installed capacity is expected to be commissioned by 2030. A 50 per cent increase. History shows it has been pretty well understood and tested.

YES we are destroying our planet, our home, but it has nothing to do with fossil fuels, it's to do with why we are burning these fuels in ever-increasing amounts.

Yes climate has changed, but it's due to our ever-increasing populations and the need to meet their requirements to exist.

Over the past few decades, we are the guilty ones, it's our fault that the oceans are polluted, our fauna and flora are near extinction, because we haven't realised that increasing population explosion is the main and only reason behind our problem and possible demise.

MORE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:

By 2060 our earth's population will reach 50 billion, civil wars will be out of hand and starvation will be worldwide, ocean levels will have engulfed thousands of low-lying lands, so chasing the burning of existing fossil fuels won't correct our wrong doings, nor turn the tide of climate control. Stem the population growth and then and only then will our planet start to recover.

Scientists know this, why do you think they are pushing the space exploration, they're looking for alternate locations for "termite mounds".

I HAD almost finished this letter when I opened Monday's Herald and read Paul Scott's piece on Newcastle Baths - I felt a bit guilty, but not anymore. Thanks Paul.

On a different subject, but with similar complaints, I visited one of our fabulous beaches this week (I go there quite often), but felt the facilities should be better.

Yes, it has a great stretch of sand and reasonably shallow water for kids, unless it is low tide and the rocks appear. The main bone of contention however is the infrastructure above the beach. It is reminiscent of the "beaches east of Edinburgh in the 1950s with cracked and broken concrete, patchy tarmac, seating with rotting wood and retaining bolts missing, and the approach to the showers serves well as a precursor to the infamous "bed of nails".

The toilets are a good example of the standard in the City of Newcastle - need I say more?

To cap it all the three timber shade shelters were occupied, fair enough except the last one was taken by two small dogs lying on a cover at a "no dogs" beach. Another example of dog owners know best.

EXCELLENT column by Jeff Corbett on Saturday 14/11 regarding the cost to us all for the senseless vandalism that goes on in our communities. He says it as it is and Mr McCloy is right to chase this person even if the justice system will take the side of the graffiti vandal, a stand must be taken sometime about these people.

Further to that, on the same day, Topics was giving praise to people recycling cans and bottles, good job, but there is a picture there of a bloke wheeling a shopping trolley full of cans, a push bike and other stuff.

All very good, but the trolley belongs in the supermarket, not stolen to use for other things.

All over Newcastle and Lake Macquarie one can see trollies abandoned in street, drains, parks etc, here again is a cost burden to the people.

These trollies cost the supermarkets, they get stolen and the cost gets passed on to the consumer, not to mention the filth of the trolley after it has been returned by the pick-up people and we then use it to put our groceries in.

Let's get these thing fitted with brakes so they stay where they belong. Keep up the good work, Jeff.

SATURDAY'S Herald story "Land grab" has developers describing the boom as unprecedented and largely the result of low interest rates and the home buyer grants.

But there is a bit more to the story since most of the buyers are from what the SMH called the "wealthy city folk" who are looking for somewhere safe from the dangers of pandemics and the misery of lockdowns.

It's a sad indication of how Sydney's growth has left it vulnerable and hopefully something we could avoid if our city planners left us more open space.

Unfortunately there is even more to the story because while the boom might gladden the heart of economists and developers it just adds to the difficulty of those trying to buy their first home and is a disaster for our non-government debt level which even before the pandemic was well over two trillion dollars. With so many people in mortgage debt up to their eyeballs it will be a bold Reserve Bank that decides to increase rates again, something that is deemed essential for managing the economy.

PETER Devey's convoluted cheerleading for coal (Letters, 17/20) kind of makes sense, but only if you ignore some key things, as Peter does. The obvious is coal's contribution to climate change. Then Peter's tired claims that renewables can't supply despatchable power ignores plans for several pumped hydro plants, which can last 100 years, far longer than a toxic coal generator. Perhaps Peter should contact AGL and let them know their engineers and consultants are all wrong about their plans to replace Liddell.

ANOTHER big announcement from the government about a $1 billion vaccine manufacturing facility for Melbourne. Whilst I don't have an issue with the plan, I am concerned that they have nominated Melbourne as the location. When will the government wake up to the concept of decentralisation? Build the facility remote from major cities where traffic congestion is always a problem. Governments should be promoting rural and regional Australia as good places to work and live.

I SUPPOSE it's time for the privileged white male to leave the appropriately named White House so the next privileged white male can assume superiority over African-Americans and Hispanics. God bless America's privileged.

YEP, Steve Barnett, you've summed up the view of your typical LNP voter - just high enough to look down on everyone else!

ROBODEBT was a massive policy failure. The Morrison government apologised and then wanted to take the victims to court. What kind of apology is that?

ANTHONY Albanese should have a good look around while he's in the Hunter because he won't be back as long as Labor is in bed with the Greens and other climate change fanatics. He and Pat Conroy haven't learnt a thing since the last election. Joel Fitzibbon should be Labor leader.

THE federal government is unwilling to take the world climate emergency seriously enough to settle for a zero emissions target by 2050 for three main reasons: Caving into the coal and gas lobbyists, not wishing to upset the denialists in the National and Liberal parties, and the federal election next year. Such short-term thinking will put the health of the planet and the future of our grandchildren in great jeopardy.

TYPICAL Sydney media "boost" for Newcastle the other morning - a TV station's news covered the storm damage as being, yes, in the town of Newcastle, north of Sydney!