7News Just InWith an explosion in online shopping, the Port of Brisbane is a critical corridor but a costly one for freight companies. A $3.5bn proposal is being floated to widen the city's shipping channels making it more competitive by letting bigger boats in.
For more, Michael Hammond reports.
For sixteen years, Brett Plumbers owned one of Brisbane's biggest freight hauling companies. He says Australian trade is now at a disadvantage by larger ships being shut out from our port.
The bigger ones that call the US and called Europe and China, they are a much more efficient way to move freight.
In other words, because those foreign power ports run bigger and fewer ships, they can lower their shipping fees.
The lower our unicosts are in Australia than obviously, the more competitive we are overseas.
And to this multi billion dollar proposal for larger shipping lanes at Port of Brisbane, the consortium behind it telling seven US it's deeply committed to investing in sustainable development which supports the growth of the Queensland economy.
The port is an engine room of our state's economy. It's a really important but.
The plans could come at a significant environmental and cultural cost. It would involve dredging ninety six point five million cubic meters of material from Morton Bay, an area of indigenous importance. Even with all the planning hurdles it'll have to clear. The Port of Brisbane says this project could start in just four years. Brett argues in action is not an option.
Other countries will take our markets that we have currently, which means we'll shrink.
The proposal is now with state and federal governments. Michael Hammond seven News
