New short films show the shocking impact of nuclear waste plan on the Kimba community
The stories of Kimba farming families and local townspeople opposed to the proposed National Radioactive Waste Management Facility in the district have had their story documented in a message to wider Australia.
Port Pirie filmmaker Kim Mavromatis has released a series of mini-documentaries over the past three months telling the stories of communities impacted by the four-year process to determine whether the facility had broad community support at Kimba or Hawker.
Mr Mavromatis said he had been following the debate around both the waste facility and the SA nuclear fuel cycle process, and he believed the communities involved were only given one side of the story throughout consultation.
“At the end of the day… the government weren’t doing the right thing by the people,” he said.
He said as a member of the Port Pirie community he had also been concerned that his community, which could potentially see the waste transported through their town or port, had not had the same opportunity for consultation as the Kimba and Hawker communities who late last year participated in community ballots to measure support for the proposal.
In one of Mr Mavromatis’s videos, Kimba locals and members of the No Radioactive Waste Facility for Kimba District group spoke about why they remained opposed to the proposal, and the impact the years of uncertainty and community debate has had on them personally.
Among those featured were neighbours of the proposed sites.
Secretary of the group Toni Scott said through the years they had discussed ways of getting their message out to a wider audience, and while it was difficult for many to tell their story there were still many people across the wider Eyre Peninsula and the state who needed to know what was going on as a final decision looms.
“We’re at the stage now where we really want to create as much awareness as we can,” she said.
“We’re hoping people can relate to it.”
Many of the interviewees featured are visibly emotional in the film, which Mrs Scott said was an unintentional outcome of individuals being encouraged to share their stories openly.
“Those raw emotions just came out… I think it’s important for people to see that and realise how affected members of our community actually are,” she said.
Mr Mavromatis said it was “shocking” to see first-hand the impact on the community.
“It’s their livelihood, it’s their future, it’s their kids’ future and it’s permanent,” he said.
The filmmaker has also created a documentary about the impact of the process on the Barngarla people, who in an independent ballot last year voted 0% in favour of the facility.
Mr Mavromatis said the lack of genuine engagement with the traditional owners, who are native title holders of areas neighbouring both proposed sites, was a “total disgrace.”
A rally is planned for Kimba on February 2, with Kimba community members encouraging the wider state to join them.
“We are asking people from Eyre Peninsula and SA to join us in a peaceful protest so the minister (Resources minister Matthew Canavan) can get the message that Kimba is not the right place and farming land is not the right place,” Mrs Scott said.
The video series can be found at vimeo.com/mav17557967.
Scandalous that the Australian government plans a nuclear waste dump on our precious, scarce, agricultural land
earth would you think Agricultural farmland is a good place to dump radioactive nuclear waste ?????? ARPANSA (the regulator) don’t think so – they state in their own guidelines and Site Selection Criteria, that the proposed Radioactive Nuclear Waste Dumps should not be placed on Agricultural land, in the immediate vicinity of land with significant Natural Resources, or Outdoor Recreational use???Bureau of Meteorology chart shows how temperatures have soared in Australia over the past century
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Key points:
A chart produced by the bureau and updated with 2019 figures (shown above) displays a stark transformation over the past century. It shows the anomaly of mean temperature for each calendar year from 1910 to 2019, compared to the average over the standard reference period of 1961–1990. The colours range from dark blue (more than 3 degrees Celsius below average), through blues and greens (below average), yellow and orange (above average), and then brown (more than 3C above average). “Australia’s climate has warmed by more than a degree since 1910, which means very warm years like 2019 are now more likely to occur,” said Karl Braganza, the bureau’s head of climate monitoring.
Dr Braganza said alongside warmer temperatures, we were also seeing a trend in recent decades towards drier winter and spring seasons in some parts of the country. Andrew Watkins, manager of long-range forecasting at the bureau, said the hot 2019 — which had an average mean temperature 1.52C above average — was front of mind for many. “It was the talking point of all last year,” he said. “All the states and territories were in the top handfuls of temperature. Hot everywhere, pretty much. “Almost by definition if they’re records they are unusual.” The bureau has also produced another chart showing rainfall in each year since 1900. [on original]…..https://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-14/bureau-of-meteorology-chart-shows-how-temperatures-soared/11857404
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THE HEATING OCEANS
 Oceans are as hot as humans have known them and we’re to blame. We must use energy more wisely going forward and trust in the actions of our youth, https://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-consensus-97-per-cent/2020/jan/13/oceans-are-as-hot-as-humans-have-known-them-and-were-to-blame [excellent graph] John AbrahamTue 14 Jan 2020 Each year, unfathomable amounts of energy are added to the oceans. Scientists measure heat in joules; the amount of heat in the oceans is so large that we report it in zettajoules. What is a zettajoule? It is 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 joules. The amount of heat we are putting into the oceans is equivalent to about five Hiroshima atom bombs of energy every second. I am part of the team of researchers that published a paper on ocean warming that shows the total heat of Earth is increasing with global heating, as scientists have predicted for decades. Each year, we take Earth’s temperature to try to determine what is happening to our climate. Each year the news is worse than the year before. There is hope, which I will discuss later. But first, let’s talk about the new study. As humans emit heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere, it creates an energy imbalance. There is more heat coming in than going out. That means the Earth is out of balance, and temperatures are rising. The vast majority of the excess energy – more than 90% – ends up in the oceans. Consequently, ocean temperatures are rising, and we can measure it. Global warming is really ocean warming, and it has severe consequences. First, it makes ocean levels rise, because warming water expands. Scientists estimate that by the year 2100, oceans will be about 3ft higher than they were in the year 2000, displacing 150 million people around the world. Warmer oceans also make our weather more extreme. They supercharge typhoons and hurricanes. They make rains more deadly and flooding more severe. The rising temperatures are also threatening sea life. We are experiencing major die-offs of coral reefs, which are incredibly important to ocean biodiversity. Rising ocean water is not just a problem for fish and sea life, it is a problem for everyone. The leader of our team, Dr Lijing Cheng, developed an innovative way to measure ocean temperatures. We only get data where we place temperature sensors, and sophisticated mathematics are used to fill in the gaps and create a continuous picture of what is happening. His method of filling in the data gaps has been shown to be very accurate and scientists around the world have adopted the techniques. Often when scientists report climate data, they try to show trends. It isn’t so important what the ocean temperatures were last year or what they will be this year. What really matters is the trend: are the oceans getting hotter or colder? Using the late 1990s as a reference, we see that years prior are colder and years after are warmer. In fact, we see that the oceans have warmed continuously since about 1990. This long-term trend is what climate breakdown looks like, and it is terrible news for the future of the planet. All reasonable people know that the climate is warming and humans are the cause. Sometimes, I am asked for proof of warming, and there are many things I can point to: ice is melting, air temperatures are increasing, sea levels are rising, etc. But the best proof of warming is in the oceans. No one can dispute the data. The oceans are unequivocally warming. So, what do we do about it? Well, we can begin to use energy more wisely. This will not only help with the climate crisis but save money as well. Secondly, we can maximise our energy from renewable sources such as wind, water, and solar. One of the things that gives me hope is that energy from solar and wind power is now cheaper than dirty coal. The benefits of solar and wind depend, of course, on how sunny or windy the conditions are, but with the drop in green energy prices, it no longer makes economic sense to build coal plants. Another bit of hope is represented by the growing actions of our youth. Make no mistake, the Greta Thunbergs of the world will change things in ways that privileged middle-aged white men like me cannot. Their generation will inherit a dire situation, but they have the passion to act, and decades of unarguable evidence that they must. So yes, 2019 set yet another dire record for Earth’s climate. But the fight continues to make the future more habitable for our children and their children.
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Coalition right wing unhappy, as moderate Liberals seize on PM Morrison’s comments about cutting emissions.
Coalition MPs split over Scott Morrison’s apparent shift on climate policy, Moderate Liberals seize on PM’s comments to argue the government will do more to cut emissions but conservatives push back, Guardian Sarah Martin 13 Jan 2020 Chief political correspondent Moderate Liberals have seized on Scott Morrison’s apparent shift on climate change policy to argue the government will do more to cut emissions, as some conservatives push back against any “symbolism” that could damage the economy.
In a sign of the challenge facing the prime minister as he seeks to “evolve” climate change policy, government MPs have split over the prime minister’s comments on the weekend that the Coalition wanted to reduce emissions “even further” than current commitments.
While saying Australia’s 2030 emission reduction targets remain government policy, Morrison said he wanted to do “better” and would only rely on the use of carryover credits from the Kyoto protocol if needed.
Australia is the only country relying on carryover credits to meet its Paris 2030 target of 26% to 28% of 2005 levels by 2030, which critics say do not represent the cuts required to limit global warming to as close to 1.5C as possible.
Katie Allen, the Liberal MP for the Victorian seat of Higgins, welcomed Morrison’s remarks, telling her constituents that she would be a “strong voice” in the party room for stronger action on climate change…….
The self-styled modern Liberal MP Tim Wilson also endorsed Morrison’s comments, saying the commitment at the last election to “cut emissions, but not jobs” was a baseline for action.
“The prime minister has rightly identified there’ll be more evolution of policy to cut emissions, but not jobs, and I look forward to contributing to that important evolution,” Wilson told Guardian Australia.
Dave Sharma, the MP for Malcolm Turnbull’s former seat of Wentworth, said he was “pleased to hear” Morrison’s comments on the importance of responding to climate change and promoted the government’s plan to “continue to evolve our policies with a view to reducing our emissions further”…..
But as moderates welcomed the shift, conservative MPs were warning against a change in policy.
The Queensland Nationals MP Llew O’Brien told the Courier Mail that if Australia went beyond its current commitments, it would be “pure symbolism at the expense of the economy”.
The former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce also issued a thinly veiled warning that the government risked a backlash in the bush if it moved to ramp up emission reduction targets……..
The divide comes as Morrison insists the role of climate change is “not in dispute” within his ranks, despite several MPs denying the role of a warmer planet as an underlying cause of the severe bushfire season.
The Nationals MP George Christensen was the latest to promote his view that climate change was not a factor, telling his supporters on Facebook that climate change is not “a bogey man who can go around lighting bushfires”…..
The Liberal MP Craig Kelly last week caused a storm of controversy after appearing on UK television to argue that there was “no link” between climate change and Australia’s drought.
Following the appearance, Morrison told his MPs that backbenchers should not do any international media interviews. https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jan/13/coalition-mps-split-over-scott-morrisons-apparent-shift-on-climate-policy
Australia can have zero emissions and still profit from minerals, says Ross Garnaut
 Australia can have zero emissions and still profit from minerals, says Ross Garnaut, ABC NEWS BREAKFAST BY PATRICK WOOD 13 Jan 2020 Australia could have avoided the scale of the devastating bushfires, Professor Ross Garnaut has said as he warned the situation would continue to worsen if there wasn’t global action on climate change, something he said didn’t have to come at the expense of the economy.Key points:
The economist said he “strongly endorsed” Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s focus on reducing emissions without damaging the economy, and believed Australian industries could still reap the benefits of the country’s mineral resources in a zero-emissions world. As this bushfire season has claimed lives and thousands of homes, Professor Garnaut has become a focus on the debate around climate change and the Government’s response.That is because in 2008 he conducted a widescale review into the impact of climate change on Australia and its economy, and came to a conclusion: the nation would face a more frequent and intense fire season by 2020. As that prediction comes to pass, the Prime Minister is facing renewed scrutiny on the Government’s climate change policy and whether it will change due to the fires……..
Professor Garnaut said the bushfire crisis could have been avoided if Australia, as part of a global effort, had “done a lot more much earlier”. “The tragedy has been building over a long time,” he said. “Things will continue to get worse … until the world has zero net emissions of greenhouse gases.” In this zero-emissions world, Professor Garnaut argued Australia could be a world leader by processing its minerals locally using renewable energy. “I think the point about avoiding cuts to the economy is a sound one,” he said in response to the Prime Minister’s interview. “The way you make steel in a zero-emissions economy is using renewable energy to make hydrogen, to make steel, instead of using coal.
The way you make aluminium in a zero-emissions world economy is to use renewable energy to turn bauxite and aluminium oxide into aluminium metal. “Australia is by far the biggest exporter of aluminium ores and iron ores, [and] when the world is producing aluminium and iron without emissions, we’ll be the place that’s done. So it will be positive for the economy. “So I strongly endorse the Prime Minister’s focus on getting to zero emissions without damaging our economy. It can do us a lot of good.” Carbon pricing ‘faster and cheaper’The question of how Australia reduces its emissions is still up for debate. He said policies would continue to evolve but did not outline specific plans. Professor Garnaut said putting a price on carbon was a good option, but one he acknowledged was not going to happen with the current Government. “We would have got to low emissions much more cheaply if we’d had an economy-wide carbon price, but you can get there without a carbon price,” he said. “For the time being we have to make progress without a carbon price. We can do that. “We would make faster and cheaper progress later on if later we adopted a carbon price.”He said the current fires could also prompt a shift in the way the country tackled climate change. “My reading of the complex electoral arithmetic of the last election is that on balance the electorate was favouring stronger action on climate change,” he said. “Not in every place. The coal-producing areas in the Hunter Valley and up the Queensland coast were very nervous. “We have to show those communities that there are alternatives … [that] those places can do very well in the zero-emissions economy of the future. “But we’ve actually got to develop the programs that have them doing very well.” https://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-13/ross-garnaut-on-bushfires-scott-morrison-climate-change/11861846 |
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It is a big MISTAKE to equate COAL MINING with jobs
It is a big MISTAKE to equate COAL MINING with jobs
1. Australian Tourism employs 10 times more Australians than does mining
2. There are job vacancies in the setting up and maintaining renewables
3. Australia has an opportunity to Lead the World manufacturing and building the equipment and technological infrastructures and components required to set up renewable and sustainable community and economy e.g.. Let’s build Australian Made solar panels instead of importing them
4. Build our own iron ore processing plants run by green hydrogen/hydro/wind/solar/ To make aluminium Keeping profits and jobs in Australia
5. Build sustainable industry, farming, tourism, land management, water management and houses, towns and cities, Leed the world in recycling and green energy transport solutions Manufacture electric cars, buses, commercial vehicles There are so many jobs to be had and created in zero emissions
The world would flock here and pay us to advise and share our sustainable progressive technology and solutions
6. Eco tourism would not only create even more jobs for Austalians boosting the industries that benefit ie. restaurants, bakeries, farmers etc The tourism industry would bring even more billions of $$$$ into Australia
Federal government seeks powers to regulate Australia’s offshore wind farms — RenewEconomy
Environment department launches consultation on proposed regulatory regime for offshore wind farms in Australian waters. The post Federal government seeks powers to regulate Australia’s offshore wind farms appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Federal government seeks powers to regulate Australia’s offshore wind farms — RenewEconomy
Australian carbon price jumps as climate policy pressure builds — RenewEconomy
The prospect of tighter emissions regulation may lead to a more bullish outlook for carbon prices over 2020. The post Australian carbon price jumps as climate policy pressure builds appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Australian carbon price jumps as climate policy pressure builds — RenewEconomy
Letter from Canberra: The apocalyptic fires in Australia signal another future — RenewEconomy
It’s impossible to suppress an incipient rage against the political leaders and coal lobbyists who have only pretended to take the scientific warnings seriously, or dismissed them as fantasies. The post Letter from Canberra: The apocalyptic fires in Australia signal another future appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Letter from Canberra: The apocalyptic fires in Australia signal another future — RenewEconomy
Cattle Hill wind farm begins production in Tasmania — RenewEconomy
Cattle Hill sends first regular output into the grid in Tasmania, adding a third producing wind farm to the island state’s grid. The post Cattle Hill wind farm begins production in Tasmania appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Cattle Hill wind farm begins production in Tasmania — RenewEconomy
January 13 Energy News — geoharvey
Science and Technology: ¶ “Can solar geoengineering mitigate both climate change and income inequality?” • Research from the University of California San Diego finds that solar geoengineering – the intentional reflection of sunlight away from the Earth’s surface – may reduce income inequality between countries. The study was published in Nature Communications. [EurekAlert] World: ¶ “EIB […]
1.This month.
Zoom webinar – “Nuclear Winter: The Environmental Consequences of a Nuclear Exchange.”
April 7th at 11:30 am PST / 2:30 pm EST
Nuclear Winter: The Environmental Consequences of a Nuclear Exchange”
Join us for an informative webinar with renowned atmospheric scientist, Professor Brian Toon, as he discusses the environmental risks and global impacts of a nuclear war. Despite the potential damage caused by the blast from even small nuclear weapons, many countries continue to invest in and expand nuclear arsenals. Professor Toon will provide a scientific assessment of civilian fatalities, agricultural failures, climate concerns, and complications with food supply that would follow any international nuclear conflict. We need to plan how to prevent nuclear conflict and avoid catastrophe. Politicians and military planners must be made aware of global climate and agricultural complications that would ensue. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from, and engage in, this vital conversation
The Road to War brings a sharp focus to why it is not in Australia’s best interest to be dragged into a war with China which will almost inevitably go nuclear very quickly. The filmmaker has interviewed some of Australia’s senior foreign policy analysts who have vast experience behind them in analysing what really is going on here as the United States rattles its sabres with China. And sets us up to be its proxy, like the poor Ukranians have been fed into the Meatgrinder. So America can remain the Top Dog. The Road to War reveals how the United States through its spy base at Pine Gap and by stationing six nuclear capable B52 bombers in the Top End (without permission from the traditional owners) is making Australia a prime nuclear target if the current war of words suddenly melts down into full scale war.
The Road to War shows the implicit connection between Carbon emissions (the US military uses a whopping 70% of America’s annual petroleum to move its armies and vast War Machine around the globe to its 800+ military bases..but under a loophole wangled at Kyoto, the US military does not have to report its C02 annual emissions). The Road to War starts screening at selected cities and regional centres in March. See the trailer end for details.
Antinuclear 