Tasmania’s great leap backward: Gas, diesel and now video tapes

The epitome of the modern economy: Tasmania, the state that could and should have been leading the country, and possibly the world in adopting a low carbon economy, is rapidly regressing.

First, thanks to its drought-affected dam levels, the cutting of the Basslink cable to the mainland, and its poor investment in renewable energy, the country was forced to fire back up its gas-fired generators, and also import some 200MW of diesel generators packed away in containers.

It’s not just the electricity that’s affected – it’s the telecommunications line as well. As the local paper, The Mercury reports, the cutting of the Basslink cable for repairs has also impacted the cable linking to the mainland for the internet.

Some customers are without internet connections altogether, and it seems that many have returned to the old favourite, the video store.

Like gas and diesel, many have thought these to be on the verge of extinction. Given the state’s dependence on imported oil for its motor transport, perhaps that’s the next affected. Don’t sell your horse and cart just yet.