Thursday 21 June 2007 - Estimates Committee B (Wriedt)  Part 1
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
ESTIMATES COMMITTEE B
Thursday 21 June 2007
MEMBERS
Mr Dean
Mr Finch
Mrs Jamieson
Mrs Rattray-Wagner
Ms Ritchie
Mrs Smith (Chair)
IN ATTENDANCE

Hon. Paula Wriedt, Minister for Tourism, Arts and the Environment
Department of Tourism, Arts and the Environment
Scott Gadd , Secretary
Felicia Mariani , Chief Executive, Tourism Tasmania

TOURISM & THE PLUP MILL

Mr FINCH - I just want to go back to something that Mr Gadd was commenting on in respect of the workers who will come in if the pulp mill gets the go ahead. Of course those workers - maybe up to 1 500 workers - will be in the Tamar Valley for probably 12 months and more. Sure, the local accommodation places will benefit tremendously over that time but then there is the problem for tourists who want to come and stay in that region on the marketing of the State that is in place. Has Tourism Tasmania looked at that potential problem? What does it see as possible remedies?

Ms MARIANI - We did initially have a look at that about six months ago. What we have tried to do is gauge it according to the timing of the peaks and troughs within the industry depending upon when the start of the construction will begin. Obviously there is ramp-up period and then it will reach a peak and then it will decline.

Mr FINCH - If that occurs.

Ms MARIANI - Yes. But we worked on that premise in doing the study. We overlaid that against occupancy levels of different times of the year. So we did try to see the impact of, for instance, when the construction period would peak - and if that happened in the winter period, we would not have those implications. We have worked on a whole lot of assumptions but we did have a look at that as part of a process about six months ago.
[11.00 a.m.]