Aboriginal opposition to Wiluna and and to all uranium mining in Western Australia
“We are calling on the State and Federal Governments to stop any further approvals or development of the Wiluna uranium mine until the full project can be assessed and made public.”
Forty uranium mines is the plan for Western Australia The Stringer, by Gerry Georgatos November 29th, 2013“ Credible sources in the uranium sections of resource companies first told The Stringer, in February, of futurist uranium mining plans that are being deliberated by mining companies for Western Australia –……. A couple of insiders estimate potentially 40 uranium mines will arise right throughout Western Australia in the decades to come.
Environmentalists reject that this is possible while Aboriginal Elders resident on Country say they will resist uranium mining at all costs.Local Aboriginal Elder Mr Glen Cooke has travelled from Wiluna to attend Toro Energy’s annual meeting today to highlight community concern over Toro’s plans for uranium mining in the region. Mr Cooke and another proxy shareholder, Kylie Fitzwater, have come to Perth to raise concerns about Toro’s long term plans and the company’s failure to communicate these to Wiluna residents.
“Toro have been talking about one project on the Lake and now we hear that they are planning lots of uranium mines from Meekatharra all the way to Lake Maitland.”
“They never talked to us about that,” said Mr Cooke.
“Me and my family we never wanted one uranium mine, we sure don’t want seven of them scattered through that country.”
“Does this mean they will put uranium on trucks from all over and bring it to Wiluna and if so what will they do with the radioactive mine waste, and where will they get the water?”
“It’s just too dangerous. This is people’s homes, not just in town but we live all over and love all of that country. That place is a very special place – for all men north to south, east to west. It’s is too important to muck it up, once it’s broken it is broken forever, we could never get that back.” Continue reading
Protests against Trans Pacific Partnership, December 3, – in 24 USA cities, and internationally
see below for actions in 24 USA cities
Call To Action: December 3, International Day of Action Against Toxic Trade Agreements
Join the International Call to End the WTO and Stop the New Wave of Free Trade Agreements on December 3rd, the first day of the World Trade Organization meetings in Bali, Indonesia. The WTO meeting will be followed by another round of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) meetings by lead negotiators in Singapore. Negotiations for the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TAFTA) are also underway.
All of these trade agreements share the same fundamental principle that profits are more important than the health and needs of people and the planet. They are destroying local economies and public infrastructure in order to establish a global neo-liberal economic system that privatizes all goods and services. These agreements grant transnational corporations the power to change laws even down to the local level and challenge court decisions in their own tribunal that operates outside of sovereign judicial systems and cannot be challenged by domestic courts.
On December 3, we call on all allies for fair trade, peace and justice to gather in a public space at noon and declare global resistance to these toxic trade agreements. Continue reading
Australia has hottest Spring on record
Australia records its warmest spring after blazing September, http://www.thebull.com.au/premium/a/42492-australia-records-its-warmest-spring-after-blazing-september.html Blair Trewin Climatologist, National Climate Centre at Australian Bureau of Meteorology. 1 Dec 13,
The spring of 2013 has been Australia’s warmest on record. Mean temperatures for the season were 1.57C above the 1961-1990 average, surpassing the previous record of 1.43C (set in 2006) by 0.14C. Daytime maximum temperatures were also the highest on record, coming in 2.07C above average and 0.24C above the previous record (also set in 2006), while overnight minimum temperatures were the fourth-warmest on record.
The warmth was most dramatic in September, which saw a mean temperature anomaly of +2.75C, setting a new monthly record by more than a degree. October was also a very warm month, 1.43C above average. Temperatures during November were closer to normal, 0.52C above average, but were still warm enough to complete a record spring.
The warmth was extensive, with virtually the entire country experiencing above-average mean temperatures for the spring. It was the warmest spring on record over an area covering most of western Queensland (sufficient to give Queensland its warmest spring on record), and extending into the eastern interior of the Northern Territory.
Records were also set on the west coast around Perth, on the east coast around Sydney, and on parts of the Nullarbor. The spring ranked in the 10 warmest on record over 83% of the country. The record warm spring leaves Australia on track to have its warmest calendar year on record. Mean temperatures for Australia for the 11 months ending in November were 1.23C above average and 0.18C above the previous record year, 2005.AUTHOR
Blair Trewin
Climatologist, National Climate Centre at Australian Bureau of Meteorology
December 5 meeting to examine impacts on Australia of the Trans Pacific Partnership
| Impact of the National Commission of Audit (NCA) and Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) on Australia’s governance and economy. http://billboard.anu.edu.au/event_view.asp?id=105050 | ||||||||||||
| This Roundtable event will examine how the impacts of privatisation and deregulation as framed by the NCA’s terms of reference and the signing of the TPP will coalesce into a force for radical change in Australia, raising critical questions about our sovereignty and the health of our democracy.Light refreshments will be served from 5.30 pm.
This lecture is free and open to the public. Please rsvp by Monday 2 December 2013 to rsvp@law.anu.edu.au
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Hugely expensive new cover for highly radioactive Chernobyl nuclear reactor
Workers can only spend a few hours at the reactor site before they reach the maximum radioactive exposure limit, and work is thus progressing at a snail’s pace
Despite the incredible lengths required to build the structure, it’s still only a band-aid
This Massive Steel Structure Will Entomb Chernobyl’s Reactor 4 (GREAT PHOTOS) http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2013/11/this-massive-steel-arch-will-entomb-chernobyls-reactor-4/ KELSEY CAMPBELL-DOLLAGHAN 30 NOVEMBER 2013 When an unexpected power surge sparked the world’s worst nuclear accident in Chernobyl, nearly a quarter of a million construction workers risked their lives to build an ad hoc “sarcophagus” of concrete around the stricken reactor. It was a stop-gap measure — and now, almost 30 years later, one of the biggest engineering projects in history is underway to protect it.
The BBC reports on the $US2 billion project to protect the decaying metal sarcophagus, using an even larger metal shield called the New Safe Confinement, or NSC. In simple terms, the NSC is a massive steel archway that is designed to protect the surrounding region if the 27-year-old sarcophagus eventually collapses. Continue reading
Permanent closure of high school in Fukushima
Fukushima high school permanently closes its doors December 1, 2013 Jiji Press http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0000835400 FUKUSHIMA —A private high school near Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s disaster-stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant will close its doors permanently at the end of March, it has been learned.
Shoei High School in the city of Minami-Soma will be the first primary, middle or high school in Fukushima Prefecture to be closed due to the nuclear crisis at the plant, according to the prefectural government. The Fukushima prefectural government has approved the plan to shut the school.
Located 22 kilometers north of the plant, it has gone unused since the nuclear accident in March 2011. Soon after the accident, its neighborhood was designated by the national government as an area that needed to be evacuated. About 110 students, including those who were to enter the school in April 2011, have since transferred to an affiliated school in the city of Fukushima or schools in locations where they took shelter.
“We will fight uranium mining in Western Australia, every step of the way”
“There has never been a successful uranium mine in Australia. Each one has had its accidents, its spills, its leaks and its failed rehabilitation.”
“Uranium is the asbestos of the 21st century”
Forty uranium mines is the plan for Western Australia The Stringer, by Gerry Georgatos November 29th, 2013“……….Ms Pepper said there is still time to halt the push for uranium to be mined. “It is a long way from a Federal approval to an operating mine and we will be there every step of the way contesting and opposing this uranium mine and any other proposed uranium mine in WA.” Continue reading
Senator Johm Madigan receives pro wind energy submission from Waubra community
Wind Critics Running Out Of Puff, Renewable Energy News, 2 Dec 13 The winds of change appear to be blowing, with 
myths surrounding wind turbines and those who perpetuate them increasingly losing credibility as time goes on.
Last Tuesday, Senator John Madigan received a copy of a petition with hundreds of signatures from members of the Waubra community who object to the anti-wind organisation Waubra Foundation using their town’s name.
Waubra is home to the Waubra Wind Farm, which became a focus of anti-wind activity in Australia; to the point one group named itself after the town. “The truth of the situation is that the vast majority of the Waubra community are living happily with the wind farm,” said Waubra farmer, Doug Hobson. “We’ll continue to put the case to the foundation that the decent thing to do is to allow Waubra to have our name back.”
“We are passionate about our town and it hurts when this group drags our name through the mud,” said Waubra resident, Kerryn Gallagher. “We’re very grateful to Senator Madigan for agreeing to pass on our concerns.”
It’s understood that none of the directors of the Waubra Foundation actually live in the area……
Solar Citizens a formidable lobbying force in Australia
Sun Tax’ Petition Hits 25,000 Signatures http://www.energymatters.com.au/index.php?main_page=news_article&article_id=4054 2 Dec 13 20 advocates associated with Solar Citizens will be travelling to Canberra on Monday to present a petition signed by more than 25,000 Australians who are demanding politicians to not tax the sun.
The group will be meeting with dozens of federal politicians, dispelling the myths and highlighting the need for positive measures to help the growth of solar throughout Australia. Prime Minister Abbott signalled he had renewable energy in his crosshairsrecently and incorrectly stated that the RET was contributing significantly to electricity bills. That certainly isn’t the case, even with home solar.
“Solar is a small portion – less than 6%. So, why is solar being blamed?” said Adrian Brown, a spokesperson for Solar Citizens. “The simple answer is that it appears that big energy companies are trying to dictate our energy future, attempting to salvage their profit margins and investment in the network – and penalising solar along the way.”
Mr. Brown stated the ‘sun tax’ concept may have just been a recommendation and is by no means set in stone, but slugging solar seems to be the default solution for politicians.
More than 1.1 million Australian households have invested $8 billion to take power over their bills says the group; saving families collectively many hundreds of millions of dollars on energy bills annually. “Making the move to solar is a real way for families to take power over their bills and do their part for our environment,” Mr Brown says.
In addition to the substantial power bill savings, the solar revolution in Australia has created many thousands of jobs. Geoff Bragg, NSW Chairman of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), says the industry could continue to grow; however, stability must be ensured. The trip to Canberra is only another step in the anti-sun tax campaign, not the end. Later this month, the group intends presenting the petition to State Premiers and Energy Ministers.
Solar Citizens is a grassroots initiative bringing together existing and future solar owners to ensure their rights are protected and to help see solar panels on every rooftop in Australia.
1 This month
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– go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com/
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