When big business needed money for a new project the traditional source of finance was to either borrow from the banks - or a public float on the stock exchange.
Public sentiment is now a stumbling block - as Tasmanian timber company - Gunns - is finding.
Gunns proposed building a pulp mill on the banks of the Tamar river and in the early stages the ANZ bank was only too happy to be the financier. ANZ has since backed away from the project and the reason seems to be a surge in public sentiment.
The " little people " who invest their savings and superannuation money with the banks and other financial institutions are starting to demand a say in where those funds are invested.
They demand a good rate of return, but they are leery about investing in tobacco interests - and more recently anything that draws flak as detrimental to the health of the planet.
There is considerable opposition in Tasmania to the Gunns proposal. The Tamar river is flanked by farms and has developed a large wine industry. Pulp mills pollute both air and water and one of the attractions of this site is the availability of a deep water shipping port nearby.
Investors fear two things - lack of support and therefore profits where investment firms offend the public by getting involved in polluting projects - and heavy handed government regulations that might leave them exposed to loss.
It is a double edged sword. If money is hard to come by it forces the developers to offer bigger rewards to those willing to take the risk. As a result, new projects in the future are likely to attract those hard nosed wealthy people who put profit far ahead of any concern for the planet.
As a new direction develops - the fate of the Tamar river remains undecided !
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