Senate opens the door for nuclear developments
Senate opens the door for nuclear developments: From ENuFF[SA]
https://www.facebook.com/sanuclearfree/–13 Feb 20
February 11 2020
Senator HANSON-YOUNG (South Australia) (16:12): I move:
That the Senate:
(a) affirms its commitment to a complete moratorium on nuclear energy, as expressed in the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Act 1998 and the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999;
(b) notes the devastating and lasting impacts of the nuclear disasters in Fukushima, Chernobyl and Three Mile Island; and
(c) call on all Ministers to commit to Australia being a nuclear-free zone.
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DIVISION:NOES 35 (6 majority) AYES 29 PAIRS 6
Question negatived.
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Rex Patrick voted No
P Wong paired
https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id%3A“chamber%2Fhansards%2Fc220a265-e5aa-42c9-8cd9-19390fabb066%2F0127”
#ScottyFromMarketing ‘s bushfire inquiry studiously ‘ignores’ carbon emissions
 PM’s bushfire inquiry ‘ignores’ carbon emissions, Barr says, Canberra Times, Dan Jervis-Bardy 11 Feb 20,
Chief Minister Andrew Barr has criticised the scope of Scott Morrison’s proposed royal commission into the summer bushfire crisis, saying it overlooks the role that cutting carbon emissions plays in combating climate change and future fire threats.
How the Prime Minister responds to Mr Barr’s concerns will determine if the ACT supports the national inquiry. Mr Barr wrote to the Prime Minister on Tuesday with his feedback on draft terms of reference for the royal commission into the bushfire disaster.
The Chief Minister wants a national inquiry into the horror fire season, but has repeatedly said that any review would be inadequate unless it thoroughly examines the effect climate change has had on the length and ferocity of bushfire seasons…… In his letter to Mr Morrison, the ACT Chief Minister said the inquiry also needed to look at strategies to tackle climate change, such as cutting carbon emissions.
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MPs Andrew Wilkie and George Christensen to UK to help free Julian Assange
MPs take Assange freedom campaign to UK
https://www.news.com.au/national/breaking-news/mps-take-assange-freedom-campaign-to-uk/news-story/633a9baa272bd155623423565e86e6b4 12 Feb 20,
Tasmanian independent MP Andrew Wilkie and Queensland Nationals MP George Christensen will travel to the United Kingdom to lobby for Julian Assange’s freedom Paul Osborne, Two Australian politicians will travel to the UK this weekend at their own expense to visit Julian Assange in jail and seek his release.
Tasmanian independent MP Andrew Wilkie and Queensland Nationals MP George Christensen, who chair a parliamentary group in support of the WikiLeaks founder, will pay a visit to Belmarsh Prison near London and lobby the British government.
Assange is set to face trial on February 24 to determine whether he should be extradited to the US, where he has been charged with 17 counts of spying and one count of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion.
5.2-magnitude earthquake near Fukushima
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Japan is rattled by 5.2-magnitude earthquake near Fukushima, Daily Mail UK
By TIM STICKINGS , 12 February 2020 Japan was rattled by a 5.2-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Fukushima province today. The quake struck just over 50 miles from the city of Fukushima where the nuclear disaster occurred in 2011. Witnesses said they had felt a 10-second long shake during the tremor at around 7.30pm local time. No tsunami warning has been put in place by Japan’s meteorological agency. The US Geological Survey said today’s earthquake had struck at a depth of around 50 miles under the sea. One witness told earthquake monitoring service EMSC that the quake produced a ‘weak but long shake’ lasting about 10 seconds. Another said their heater had moved around on its four wheels while making a sound. Officials in Fukushima prefecture warned residents that there could be aftershocks and directed them to official public safety advice. Energy company TEPCO, which runs four nuclear power plants in the prefecture, said it was awaiting further information about the earthquake’s impact. …..https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7995301/Japan-rattled-5-2-magnitude-earthquake-near-Fukushima.html |
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New Resources Minister Keith Pitt ignores renewables, pushes for more coal, gas and uranium exports
 New Resources Minister calls for more coal, gas and uranium exports, Brisbane Times, By David Crowe, February 11, 2020 Australia will need more coal, gas and uranium exports to pay for essential services and lift living standards, incoming Resources Minister Keith Pitt has declared in a warning shot to activists trying to block new projects.Mr Pitt vowed to use his new job to make Australia an even bigger energy exporter and sent a message to state governments to open up new coal seam gas fields to drive down the price of energy for households……
An advocate of nuclear power in the past, Mr Pitt said he would not be making any decisions about nuclear energy given this was the responsibility of Energy Minister Angus Taylor, but he backed more uranium exports……. https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/politics/federal/new-resources-minister-calls-for-more-coal-gas-and-uranium-exports-20200211-p53zu5.html |
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Despite historically low uranium prices, nuclear power cannot compete
 Uranium Week: The Nuclear Conundrum https://www.fnarena.com/index.php/2020/02/11/uranium-week-the-nuclear-conundrum/
By Greg Peel, Lack of demand continues to drag on uranium prices despite ongoing production curtailments, yet nuclear energy remains a matter of cost. -Uranium spot prices drift lower he world’s largest mining investment conference, now in its 26th year, began in Cape Town last week. Given the tenuous state of South Africa’s energy supply, the focus this year of the “Investing in African Mining Indaba” is on a transition from coal toward renewable and clean energy resources to deal with power shortages across the African continent. (Indaba means meeting.) The five-day conference brought together representatives from 94 countries and regions, including more than 38 ministers, under the theme “Optimizing Growth and Investment in the Digitized Mining Economy.” The CEO of the Minerals Council South Africa said at the conference the Council fully supports a transition from coal to non-fossil fuel forms of power generation such as wind and solar power and, where cost is not prohibitive, nuclear power. “Where cost is not prohibitive” underscores the dilemma facing the global nuclear power and uranium mining industries at present. The US experience is one of US uranium miners being unable to compete with cheaper imports from the likes of Canada and Kazakhstan, with uranium prices near historically low levels. Yet the US nuclear power industry cannot compete with gas-fired and renewable power, despite historically low uranium prices.
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South Australia’s renewable energy future hampered by lack of electricity infrastructure
South Australia’s renewable energy future hampered by lack of electricity infrastructure https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-11/sa-renewables-future-hampered-lack-of-instructure/11935392
By Emma Pedler and Lucy Robinson South Australia’s drive to be the national leader in renewable energy is being hampered by infrastructure unable to support the future growth potential, according to economist Ross Garnaut.
Key points:
- A lack of infrastructure is undermining SA’s goal to lead the nation in renewable energy, experts say
- A windfarm that was approved almost 20 years ago was never developed because of a lack of support for large-scale operations
- State officials say a proactive approach to infrastructure would attract businesses and create jobs
Dr Garnaut highlighted the Eyre Peninsula and Spencer Gulf as two of the regions most likely to be able to both create renewable energy and house the industries that want to use it.
But he said the region would not be able to capitalise on opportunities without high voltage transmission infrastructure similar to the interconnector recently approved to link SA and New South Wales.
“We need lots more of that kind of infrastructure … so that we can bring together at single points a range of high quality wind and high quality solar, so that we can balance the requirements of different parts of the region,” he said Continue reading
Correcting Anti-Renewable Energy Propaganda
Correcting Anti-Renewable Energy Propaganda, Clean Technica B1 By Georg Nitsche, 12 Feb 20, In 1989, pro-nuclear lobbyists claimed that wind power couldn’t even provide 1% of Germany’s electricity. A few years later, pro-nuclear lobbyists ran ads in German newspapers, claiming that renewables wouldn’t be able to meet 4% of German electricity demand. After the renewable energy revolution took off, in 2015, the pro-nuclear power “Breakthrough Institute” published an article claiming solar would be limited to 10–20% and wind to 25–35% of a power system’s electricity. In 2017, German (pro-nuclear power) economist Hans-Werner Sinn tweeted that more than 50% wind and solar would hardly be possible. And in 2018, Carnegie Science reported a study claiming that “wind and solar could meet most but not all U.S. electricity needs.” According to one of the authors, their research indicates that “huge amounts of storage” or natural gas would need to supplement solar and wind power. From a pro-renewable perspective, this is encouraging. The claims about the limits of renewable energy have moved from “not even 1% of electricity” to “most but not all of the electricity.” And yet, the anti-renewables message has always been the same: renewables will lead to a dead end. In order to underscore their point, anti-renewable energy propagandists now publish incorrect cost figures that claim a fully renewable electric grid would be unaffordable or way more expensive than other options, such as, you guessed it, nuclear power. Continue reading |
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Australia’s global opportunity to lead on solar power
Australia should be leading the way on solar power https://www.crikey.com.au/2020/02/12/daily-fix-solar-power/ We have sunshine falling on vast areas of land that are too hot and dry to be productive in other ways, and we have the scientists and engineers to develop and apply the best available technology.
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FEB 12, 2020 Australia should become a world leader in solar electricity generation, both on rooftops and on a larger scale. We have sunshine falling on vast areas of land that are too hot and dry to be productive in other ways, and we have the scientists and engineers to develop and apply the best available technology for electricity generation and storage. The federal government needs to facilitate the shift from fossil fuels to solar for most of our electricity generation, and we could become an exporter to Singapore. Once we have abundant clean and cheap electricity, we can shift to electric cars. That will leave meat and dairy as our major source of greenhouse gas emissions. It will be more difficult, politically, for the government to do something about that — but the way people are switching to plant-based foods means that it may happen anyway. Peter Singer is the Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University. |
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Zali Steggall’s climate Bill, Labor’s befuddlement on coal
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Mike Cannon-Brookes says Zali Steggall’s bill could repair Australia’s reputation on climate
Guardian, Atlassian co-founder says the MP’s bill is the exact type of action we need and deserves bipartisan support, Katharine Murphy and Adam Morton, Tue 11 Feb 2020 Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes has thrown his support behind a climate action bill proposed by the independent Zali Steggall and has urged the major parties to put down the cudgels and support it.And the Australian Energy Council, representing major electricity and gas businesses, said the Steggall bill deserved to be seriously considered as it had the potential to deliver certainty and a path forward for the national economy. Cannon-Brookes said on Tuesday the Steggall proposal, unveiled this week, was “a smart bill, and the exact type of action we need to change Australia’s international reputation on climate”. The bill includes a proposal for a net zero emissions target by 2050, a carbon emissions budget, and assessments every five years of national climate change risk. The MP has called on the major parties to bring the bill to the floor and allow a conscience vote. Cannon-Brookes said the proposal contained all the elements of a viable settlement to the climate wars. “The legislated 2050 target and five-year increments are precisely what is required, and the bill deserves bipartisan support.” ……. It follows a declaration by the Business Council of Australia that Australia should work to achieve net zero emissions by 2050……. Steggall’s bill will not be brought on for debate unless either the government or Labor supports it reaching the floor of the House. The government has not yet made a decision but it is unlikely to support it. On Tuesday morning, the Labor leader Anthony Albanese said it was highly unlikely the bill would be voted on “because that’s what happens with private member’s bills in the House of Representatives, unless the government agrees to allocate time for the bill, it will not be voted on”. Albanese said the proposal was very well intentioned, and he “respected” Steggall for bringing it forward, but told the ABC “we are unlikely to have a conscience vote on climate change. What we’ll do is support action on climate change.” The Labor leader said the opposition would commit to a long-term emissions reduction target “very soon” and, referencing an internal split within the Coalition about taxpayer backing for new coal plants, said: “I don’t think there is a place for new coal-fired power plants in Australia. Full stop.” On Sunday, Labor’s deputy leader Richard Marles, in a particularly awkward interview, did not rule out the party supporting new coal developments, saying it would be a decision for the markets despite previously declaring it would be a “good thing” if the thermal coal market collapsed. https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/feb/11/mike-cannon-brookes-says-zali-steggalls-bill-could-repair-australias-reputation-on-climate |
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#ScottyFromMarketing and his crew – blind to the economics of renewable energy
were at it again, warning that increased climate action would lead to
“higher taxes and higher electricity prices” and implying it was the
desire only of “those in the inner city”. Of course, this is nothing
more than marketing fluff. You could be forgiven for thinking that they
must have missed the memo on the record take-up of ultra-cheap solar and
wind power, now generating nearly 20 per cent of Australia’s electricity
supply, with more than 50 per cent renewables expected by 2030.
Chris Hedges: What Is Happening to Assange Will Happen to the Rest of Us — Rise Up Times
“The publication of classified documents is not yet a crime in the United States. If Assange is extradited and convicted, it will become one.”
via Chris Hedges: What Is Happening to Assange Will Happen to the Rest of Us — Rise Up Times
February 12 Energy News — geoharvey
Opinion: ¶ “Is This The Start Of An Aviation Revolution?” • Electric flight has been around since the 1970s, but it’s been limited to light-weight experimental planes. But as the threat posed by the climate crisis deepens, there has been renewed interest in developing electric passenger aircraft as a way of reducing emissions and airline […]
Energy Insiders Podcast: There’s no “new normal” in climate change — RenewEconomy
ANU’s Mark Howden explains why we have a climate crisis, not an emergency, and why we shouldn’t expect a “new normal” in climate change. The post Energy Insiders Podcast: There’s no “new normal” in climate change appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Energy Insiders Podcast: There’s no “new normal” in climate change — RenewEconomy
Rooftop solar makes flying start to 2020 with 33 per cent boost in January — RenewEconomy
No long summer break for rooftop solar, with another 206MW of residential and commercial systems registered in January – usually a quiet month on the solar calendar. The post Rooftop solar makes flying start to 2020 with 33 per cent boost in January appeared first on RenewEconomy.
via Rooftop solar makes flying start to 2020 with 33 per cent boost in January — RenewEconomy
Antinuclear 