Nuclear and Climate News to 6 January -Australia
One wonders if Donald Trump’s aim is to take the world to the brink of nuclear war, and then to pull back , with himself appearing like the global hero. Trump ordered the drone assassination of an Iranian hero. Iran will now no longer restrict uranium enrichment, part of the 2015 deal limiting the country’s nuclear program in exchange for easing sanctions.
A bit of good news – For the 29th consecutive year, India and Pakistan exchange lists of nuclear facilities.
The world is realising how quickly even a rich and ‘developed’ nation, Australia, can be devastated by extreme weather, exacerbated by climate change. Celebrities are donating to bushfire relief. Which is great. I’d like to think that they are equally generous to non-anglophone countries, which suffer even greater climate disasters.
AUSTRALIA
CLIMATE .
Prime Minister and marketing man Scott Morrison is getting a lot of flak for his loyalty to fossil fuel interests, but in my opinion, “ScoMo” will weather this storm. He will use his one great talent, sloganeering, to eventually turn the whole bushfire thing to his advantage, – helped by the Murdoch media -expect lots of ‘feel-good’ stories..
Michael Mann- climate change is now upon Australia. Liberal former Foreign Minister Julie Bishop calls for Australia to show leadership on climate change. Morrison’s Aussie ocker, very religious, fans won’t care, but he’s not popular globally. Scott Morrison’s govt under pressure for its lack of climate policy.
Mega fire set to form as ‘frustrated’ authorities plead with ‘stubborn’ residents. Guardian’s latest updates on fires. Not only is the bushfire disaster devastating for Australia: it’s bad for its image, too.
Scott Morrison’s condescending call for “patience” and “calm” on bushfires and climate change. Murdoch media: The Australian, Herald Sun and Courier Mail downplay bushfire news. The Institute of Public Affairs has poisoned climate discussion in Australia. How the Murdoch media murdered Australia’s climate policy.
NUCLEAR. The hazards of nuclear wastes, radioactive particles travel in smoke. Kimba nuclear waste ballot – a one-sided exercise by the Australian government. Why does the Australian govt want to put nuclear waste onto Australia’s precious agricultural land? Nuclear waste dumping and Australia’s bushfires – the unmentionable connection.
INTERNATIONAL
War planners ignore the fire effects of nuclear bombing.
Not nuclear bombs, but the cutting of undersea cables, could be the decisive war weapon.
Researchers still don’t fully understand Arctic melt and sea level rise.
The rise and rise of global offshore wind capacity.
Liberal former Foreign Minister Julie Bishop calls for Australia to show leadership on climate change
Julie Bishop says Australia must show leadership on climate change, SMH
By Megan Gorrey, Former foreign minister Julie Bishop says Australia needs to show global leadership on climate change by putting forward a “coherent energy policy” in response to the nation’s bushfire crisis.
Amid growing international criticism of Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s climate change policies as fires burn across six states, Ms Bishop said on Monday other countries looked to Australia for “direction, guidance and leadership”.
“Australia is a highly developed country,” Ms Bishop said in an interview on Nine’s Today show. “We should be showing leadership on the issue of climate change.”
“We don’t have a national energy policy in this country and a national approach to climate change so we are part of a global effort.
“If a country like Australia fails to show leadership, we can hardly blame other nations for not likewise showing leadership in this area.”
Australia should be putting forward “a cogent, a cogent, coherent case for an energy policy” at international conferences, Ms Bishop said…….
Ms Bishop said at the gathering of prominent Liberal figures before Christmas that Mr Morrison was “testing the theory that the best way to resolve a crisis is to be as far away from it as possible”. …..
Greens leader Richard Di Natale told ABC Radio on Monday the bushfires “should be a wake-up call to every single member of the political establishment in Australia”.
“The reality is we’ve had a prime minister who has chosen to effectively work as a lobbyist for the coal industry at a time when he should have been keeping Australians safe.”
Greens leader Richard Di Natale told ABC Radio on Monday the bushfires “should be a wake-up call to every single member of the political establishment in Australia”.
“The reality is we’ve had a prime minister who has chosen to effectively work as a lobbyist for the coal industry at a time when he should have been keeping Australians safe.” https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/julie-bishop-says-australia-must-show-leadership-on-climate-change-20200106-p53p48.html
Mega fire set to form as ‘frustrated’ authorities plead with ‘stubborn’ residents
Mega fire set to form as ‘frustrated’ authorities plead with ‘stubborn’ residents— Yahoo News 6 Jan 2020
Residents in Victoria have been told a giant 180,000 hectare fire will join with out-of-control fires across the border in NSW to create a ‘mega fire’.
Exhausted firefighters worked tirelessly to contain the bushfires throughout the weekend but a powerful and volatile southerly on Saturday quickly stretched the blazes, with the fires edging closer to each other throughout Sunday.
And while rain has brought a brief period or respite, residents were told at a CFA meeting in Tallangatta on Sunday night it is only a matter of time before the Corryong fire connects with the huge 297,000-hectare Dunns Road fire around the Snowy Mountains, the ABC reported…….
‘Uncharted territory’ for NSW
Ms Berejiklian labelled the ongoing threat “uncharted territory” with hundreds of homes feared lost across southern NSW.
“We can’t pretend this is something we have experienced before – it’s not,” she told reporters on Sunday.
At 6am, there were 136 fires burning across NSW, with 69 uncontained.https://au.news.yahoo.com/mega-blaze-forming-nsw-victoria-border-500000-hectares-213253196.html
Guardian’s latest updates on fires
Australia fires live: NSW and Victoria bushfires heap pressure on Scott Morrison – latest updates, Guardian 6 Jan 2020
The PM’s handling of the Australian bushfire crisis comes under further scrutiny as NSW and Victorian towns gain brief reprieve from fires. Follow the latest news and live updates
The impact the bushfire emergency is having on our First Nations people is required reading as well.
From Lorena Allam:
For First Nations people the bushfires bring a particular grief, burning what makes us who we are ……
Complex and tortured history of Iran and nuclear weapons debate
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IRAN DOES NOT HAVE NUCLEAR WEAPONS, BUT HERE’S WHY ITS PROGRAM IS AT THE HEART OF THE CRISIS https://www.newsweek.com/why-iran-does-not-have-nuclear-weapons-1480355BY TOM O’CONNOR ON 1/3/20 Iran is not believed to possess nuclear weapons and officially has never sought them—although its top foes the United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia are among those who argue that the Islamic Republic has always secretly wanted such a weapon of mass destruction. This dispute has been at the heart of a worsening Middle East crisis that flared up with the Pentagon’s killing of a top Iranian military leader.
The assassination of Revolutionary Guard Quds Force commander Major General Qassem Soleimani along with top Iraqi militia figures Thursday in Baghdad came amid a series of deadly, tit-for-tat escalations that has worsened since President Donald Trump pulled out of a 2015 nuclear deal in May 2018. The accord granted Tehran billions of dollars in sanctions relief in exchange for severely restricting its nuclear activities. The agreement has since begun to unravel, with European powers struggling to normalize trade ties under threat of U.S. sanctions and Iran reducing its own commitments in response. While Soleimani’s death may be the most dramatic salvo in the U.S. and Iran’s feud in some time, it was not at all the first blood shed throughout the two nations’ complex, tortured history. Continue reading |
Iran pulling out of nuclear deal commitment after U.S. strike that killed Soleimani
State TV reported Iran will no longer restrict uranium enrichment, part of the 2015 deal limiting the country’s nuclear program in exchange for easing sanctions. Jan. 6, 2020, By Max Burman and The Associated Press
Iran said Sunday that it was ending its commitment to limit enrichment of uranium as part of its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, more fallout from the U.S. strike that killed Gen. Qassem Soleimani.
President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the deal in May 2018, renewing tensions between the two countries that reached new heights after Friday’s air strike.
Iran’s state television reported Sunday that it will no longer abide by the limits of the deal, which restricted nuclear development in exchange for the easing of crippling economic sanctions.
The agreement placed limits on Tehran’s uranium enrichment, the amount of stockpiled enriched uranium as well as research and development in its nuclear activities.
America’s European allies have attempted to salvage the deal despite Trump’s decision to withdraw and reimpose sanctions, but Iran has gradually reduced its commitments and now leaves the deal in tatters.
The country’s foreign ministry said earlier Sunday that recent events meant it would take an even bigger step away from the deal than initially planned.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif confirmed the news on Twitter, stating that there “will no longer be any restriction on number of centrifuges.”
“This step is within JCPOA & all 5 steps are reversible upon EFFECTIVE implementation of reciprocal obligations,” Zarif said.
The foreign minister added that the country will still cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Not only is the bushfire disaster devastating for Australia: it’s bad for its image, too
‘People aren’t stupid’: bushfire crisis scorches Australia’s image, The Age, By Andrew Taylor, January 5, 2020 A photo of a kangaroo leaping across the pages of British newspapers is the sort of free publicity that tourism authorities usually crave.
Except the animal was another victim of the months-long bushfire crisis, fleeing as flames engulfed a house at Lake Conjola on the NSW South Coast.
Another photo of two German tourists wearing surgical masks against a backdrop of the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge published in the Financial Times last month under the headline “Wildfire smoke endangers lives and Sydney outdoor lifestyle” is likewise the sort of coverage money would not want to buy.
Apocalyptic images of tourists sheltering in water as flames threatened the Victorian seaside town of Mallacoota or stranded on beaches on the NSW South Coast have also featured across television screens, newspapers and news websites around the world.
They provided a stark contrast to Sydney’s New Year’s Eve fireworks, which went ahead despite calls for the event to be cancelled.
Images of terrified tourists, fire-devastated communities and distressed wildlife are also a far cry from the idyllic beaches and landscapes in Tourism Australia’s new $15 million tourism campaign targeting the British market…….
The vitriolic debate over climate change was also at odds with Australia’s claim to be laid back and friendly, Mr Derwin said. “Our reputation as a tourist destination would be greatly enhanced by taking leadership on climate change, and showing the world that we’re serious about protecting our natural habitats.”
Antinuclear 