Our rates in Merimbula are quite high enough. The council needs to prioritise funds a bit better. Stop wasting money on feasibility studies for every little thing that gets built round town. Don't let our town fall behind with amenities and attractions to encourage new families into the area.

I knew nothing about any meeting and wonder if it wasn't advertised properly, hence the poor attendance.

I am going to the meeting of the council tonight regarding the BVSC SRV proposal for pools. Very few know of the proposal, the consultation process is failing. Notes should have been sent out to all ratepayers with rates notices for such a large increase.

It's also biased, having meetings only in locations with a pool. A Tura/Merimbula meeting hasn't occurred for a very large group of older citizens, while there's small populations in several pool towns eg Cobargo, Bemboka, Candelo.

Pensions and incomes are reducing drastically. Centrelink-only and fixed income people are already stretched over the limit. Many don't have super. Higher rates will push up rents and make more stores close with likely on-flow of job losses in the region. Ghost towns equal fewer visitors and less money into our economy. Ongoing maintenance costs for six pools is too high an impost on non-users.

It's hard to find info on council's website. The links are obscure and when the survey is finally reached, it is geared to just the people that use pools. Older people, of which Tura and Merimbula have many, often have no internet and don't drive later in the evening to give their opinion at meetings.

Suggestions for the council: put full details of the proposal in the next rates notice to all ratepayers. Make transparent consultation available to all. And convene a meeting for the large populations of Tura Beach and Merimbula.

I can't let pass the misplaced views of Jody McKenzie-Smith (MNW, 25/9) pass without comment. Livestock provide an important component of agricultural ecosystems, servicing the animal protein needs of mankind.

The animal products, milk and meat provide the balance of protein building blocks or amino acids, minerals and vitamins most closely resembling our dietary needs. Plant products can't match them.

The microbia of the stomachs of dairy cows in our Bega Valley are converting water, grass and forage crops not consumable by humans into milk, which they can do continuously for up to 300 days.

In developing economies of Asia and Africa millions of families depend on the milk from their house cow for their sole supply of balanced protein. They utilise their manure to generate methane as biogas to provide fuel to cook the family meal. Electricity is a rare commodity for many.

So as you drive through our Bega Valley spare a thought for the farmers and their cows who work day and night to convert grass into one of the world's most complete foods, milk, for us all to enjoy. You might also like to research some of the other vast less productive sources of greenhouse gas entering our environment.

Urgency to control global warming is paramount, but let's make sure we have our control measures sorted correctly.

Sails Real Estate has given a generous donation to the Animal Welfare League NSW Far South Coast Branch to support its upcoming Santa Paws event and the ongoing efforts of desexing and rehoming in the Bega Valley Shire. Pictured above is Sails property manager Shae Postlethwaite (right) and AWLNSWFSC president Kerri Brady.