In “Fortuna’s future uncertain” (The Advertiser, Wednesday, October 21) there is mention of a report to Council said to state that “between $16 million and $24 million would have to be spent” in order to make Fortuna economically viable.

In fact, this range of costs comes from the material presented at the Council meeting of August 5 2009 and at that meeting these figures were put to councillors specifically in terms of them being only “plausible estimates”.

Councillors were also then told that the precise level of such capital investment was virtually impossible to estimate in the absence of the known end use and that any figure assumed all necessary site remediation works being done.

It is unfortunate when “plausible estimates” begin to read as if a detailed professional report has already been conducted for councillors and the wider community to carefully consider.

Might there be a release of the detail as to how such an estimate was arrived at and, also, from what sources did this come?

With published information such as this having a strong influence on public perception around the “economics” of Fortuna, the public deserves to have the best possible investigated figures coming before it, rather than a perpetuation of what may be exaggerated and unsubstantiated “estimates”.

TERRY DAVIDSON,

Secretary Villa Fortuna Action Group , Eppalock