Aboriginals and Environmentalists combine to save Arnhem Land from unchecked resource development
Aboriginal-green link to fight gas projects BY:AMOS AIKMAN , THE AUSTRALIAN, July 19, 2013 ENVIRONMENTAL groups are seeking to capitalise on the beauty of Arnhem Land and the plight of its indigenous people to build support for campaigns against resource development and a northern food bowl.Five indigenous people from the remote community of Maningrida will hold a protest in Sydney’s Martin Place today, objecting to petroleum-licence exploration applications covering about 1500km of coastline.
Their $8000 travel bill was paid by The Wilderness Society, the Australian Marine Conservation Society and Environment Centre NT, which are co-sponsoring the event.
Anti-coal-seam and shale gas group Lock the Gate Alliance and a coalition of anti-nuclear protesters are also involved.
A traditional owner from the nearby Blythe River area, Eddie Mason, said he was worried about the safety of his country and about songlines and sacred sites beneath the sea. Indigenous landowners cannot veto exploration or mining in open water. “That’s our main food source, our supermarket,” Mr Mason said.
He accused Palter Petroleum, which has applied for the Arnhem Land exploration licences, of failing to consult properly with indigenous people, who he said should have veto rights over territorial waters.
Gavan McFadzean, The Wilderness Society’s northern Australia campaign manager, said his organisation was keen to use iconic sites in the Kimberley, Arnhem Land and Cape York Peninsula to develop a national campaign around the dangers of resource extraction and northern food bowl development.
He said the prospect of a future Abbott-led Coalition government was a particular threat.
Lock The Gate Alliance spokesman Drew Hutton said his organisation was also increasing its work in the Top End.
Mr Hutton predicted that Aboriginal land would be the next battlefront after farmland in the war to control unconventional gas developments.http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/indigenous/aboriginal-green-link-to-fight-gas-projects/story-fn9hm1pm-1226681650900
New South Wales students taking their zero emissions house to China’s Solar Decathlon
Win or lose, beyond Datong, the long-term plan is to convert the Illawarra Flame into a commercially viable concept that will work at scale, so Australia’s fibros can be cleaned up, revitalised and power on for another lifetime.
Chic shack SUE WHITE ABC Environment 16 JUL 2013 A humble Australian home is an unlikely contender in the ‘energy olympics’ being held in China in a few weeks.
When 33 students from the Wollongong region started packing for their upcoming travels to Datong, China, luggage limits were put to the test. Fifty packets of Tim Tams. Hundreds of koala key rings. At least one cricket set. And oh yes, an entire house.
The “Illawarra Flame” renovated fibro at an open day earlier in the year.Clearly, this was no normal end of semester break. But for the students and their supporters (totalling 51 students, staff and contractors from the University of Wollongong and TAFE Illawarra Institute), not much is normal about their entry into this year’s Solar Decathlon China.
Even getting in was no small feat. Team UOW, as it’s known, is the first Australian team ever accepted into the prestigious international event. This two-week marathon is the largest sustainable building research and innovation competition in the world. There are 23 teams from around 30 countries entering their eco-friendly houses, and all are hoping to come home as the winner of 2013’s ‘Energy Olympics’.
For Team UOW, it’s been a two-year journey to demonstrate it’s possible to transform a typical uninspiring Aussie fibro house into the Illawarra Flame; a stylish, net zero-emission home powered by the planet and, of course, plenty of student power — of both the brain and brawn varieties. Continue reading
Gary Gray, Minister for Energy is loyal to the nuclear lobby, not to Australia
Gray shows folly of making ex-mining boss a Minister by backing nuclear power – again http://greensmps.org.au/content/media-releases/gray-shows-folly-making-ex-mining-boss-minister-backing-nuclear-power-%E2%80%93-again17 Jul 2013 Resources and energy Minister Gary Gray has again advocated nuclear power and uranium mining, showing his loyalty to the mining industry is distorting his judgement, the Greens warned today.
Senator Scott Ludlam said “An economists report has found the proposed first uranium mine for Western Australia – Toro’s Wiluna project – could only scrape a profit if the taxpayers foot the bill for the closure and clean-up of the site. The uranium sector is terminal, and it seems Gary Gray needs to be dragged kicking and screaming to the funeral”.
“At today’s uranium conference Minister Gray praised the Ranger mine’s output without mentioning its long and sorry history of accidents and spills.
“The deliberate myopia was particularly bad when the Minister mentioned the Fukushima Daiichi ‘incident’ and the fall in the world uranium price, ignoring the fact the uranium price had been disintegrating for four years prior to Fukushima, from a record high of almost $140 a pound to around $65 a pound. Minister Gray also neglected the fact Australian uranium was in all four reactors at Fukushima.
“Minister Gray’s claim that there is a significant role for uranium to play in addressing climate change is pure fantasy. In Europe 150 nuclear power stations are ear-marked for closure as countries such as Germany, Spain and Switzerland lead the way with huge and growing renewable energy sectors.
“Labor and the Coalition are in lock-step supporting the dangerous, dirty and obsolete nuclear power sector. Only the Greens are standing up for the clean energy and sustainable jobs the renewable energy sector will deliver.”
Mildura’s concentrated solar power plant officially launched
Australia’s largest concentrated solar power plant officially launched REneweconmy, By Sophie Vorrath on 17 July 2013 Australia’s largest concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) solar power plant was officially opened today, with the Victorian energy minister joining executives from the plant’s developer, Solar Systems, to cut the ribbon on the 1.5MW demonstration facility in Mildura.
The demonstration of the “dense array” solar technology of parent company Silex Systems is a fore-runner for what is expected to be a 100MW power plant, with construction slated to begin in 2014. Another 1MW demonstration plant is being built in Saudi Arabia, with hopes of further development as that country pushes into the start of a $100 billion solar spending program
The array – whose 40 CPV dishes have been feeding power into the national grid for almost a month, after their successful commissioning began in April – collects sunlight in more than 100 curved mirrors and focuses it onto ultra-high efficiency “mulit-junction” PV cells; technology originally developed by Boeing to power satellites. Silex CEO Michael Goldsworthy says the cells currently boast efficiency rates of around 43 per cent – about double that of today’s best silicon-based cells and up to four times the efficiency of thin film solar cells – but he hopes this can be lifted to more than 50 per cent, or even 60 per cent, with further research.
The technology also uses ‘active cooling’ technology to maximise power output while minimising water consumption and prolonging the technology’s lifespan…….. Continue reading
Victorian and New South Wales wind farms kick-started by Clean Energy Finance Corporation.
Clean Energy Finance Corporation funding two Australian wind farms – K. Jalbuena Eco Sees, 17 July 13, Two major wind farm projects in Australia will be the beneficiaries of the Australian government’s Clean Energy Finance Corporation. The C.E.F.C., a legislated fund dedicated to investing in clean energy, will invest 50 million Australian dollars ($45.94 million) to refinance Macarthur Wind Farm and will provide 37.5 million Australian dollars in senior debt finance to help build the Taralga Wind Farm.
Largest wind farm in the southern hemisphere
The 420 MW Macarthur Wind Farm in south western Victoria is said to be largest wind farm in the southern hemisphere. It is a joint undertaking between Meridian Energy Limited and AGL Energy Limited through AGL subsidiary Macarthur Wind Farm Pty Limited.
Fully operational since January 2013, the Macarthur Wind Farm can generate enough energy to power 220,000 Victorian households and reduce carbon emissions by 1.7 million tonnes a year…….
Australian engineered and sourced
C.E.F.C. will also be providing 37.5 million Australian dollars in senior debt finance for the construction and operation of the Taralga Wind Farm, 45 kilometers of Goulburn in New South Wales…… Continue reading
New South Wales to get advanced wind power turbines with energy storage
So where are these cutting-edge turbines headed? Sixty-seven of them will be built for installation in the mountains of New South Wales in Australia i, with power expected to be flowing into the grid by the end of 2014.
Gamechanger: Next Generation Wind Turbines With Storage Are Cheap, Reliable And Brilliant Climate Progress, By Ryan Koronowski on Jul 14, 2013 What makes a new wind turbine exciting?
Wind companies are always trying to making their next turbine spin more efficiently and generate more power than the last, just as car companies are looking for better fuel efficiency and engine power. Advances usually come in small jumps in both cases, with a single percentage improvement cause for celebration.
GE announced a new line of wind turbines in May that generate between 20 and 24 percent more power than the previous best turbine in its class. It does this through traditional improvements in turbine design, but also through innovations that address one of the main issues that critics of wind power raise: intermittency. Continue reading
Australian invention: device to measure radiation exposure in pilots
New technology to measure radiation exposure in pilots (Medical Xpress) 17 July 13, —Researchers from the University of Wollongong have developed a unique device that measures how much radiation pilots and astronauts are exposed to. The silicon-based microdosimeter assesses the radiation risk to astronauts and pilots, and radiation damage to microelectronics, during long-term space missions and high altitude flights.
Exposure to too much radiation can cause cancer, damage to the foetuses of pregnant women and genetic defects that can be passed onto future generations.
Professor Anatoly Rozenfeld, Director of the Centre for Medical Radiation Physics (CMRP) – the largest research body of its kind in the Asia Pacific region – has just been granted a US patent for his invention.
“Silicon microdosimetry is providing a new metric for the estimation of hazards from ionizing radiation in mixed radiation fields. It is an essential contribution toradiation protection of pilots and astronauts in avionics and space, where the radiation environment is not easy to predict,” Professor Rozenfeld said…..
Professor Rozenfeld also recently received a Chinese patent for a skin dosimetry technology that was 10 years in the making. ‘Drop-in’ accurately measures (in real time) the amount of radiation absorbed into a patient’s skin during procedures such as radiotherapy and CT scans that can give off high levels of ionising radiation.
“An accurate skin dose measurement can help prevent a patient’s skin from being overdosed, and at the same time, provide a vital indication of overall radiation safety,” Professor Rozenfeld said. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-07-technology-exposure.html
Can you believe Queensland’s Energy Minister – about uranium and nuclear?
‘No plans’ for uranium mining and nuclear energy http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/no-plans-uranium-mining-nuclear-energy-queensland/1948775/ Rae Wilson 17th Jul 2013
WATER and Energy Minister Mark McArdle has categorically ruled out nuclear energy options in Queensland during an estimates committee hearing.
He said there were “no plans at all” during questioning from the Opposition about uranium mining and nuclear energy.
The LNP lifted a 30-year ban on uranium mining last year and has been undertaking research into best practice for resuming mining in some parts of the state for export.
Mobile phones and kids; not ionising radiation, but still cause for concern
Cell phone radiation has been classed by the World Health Organization as a possible human carcinogen in the same category as diesel engine exhaust, some pesticides, and some heavy metals. As Dr. Devra Davis of the Environmental Health Trust points out, “we would never let a child play with some pesticides, heavy metals, or diesel engine exhaust. Yet people are giving their children cellphones.”
The people from down under are waking up to the importance of keeping children safe from cell phone radiation; all parents must wake up and act now
Parents should limit their child’s cell phone use; says federal radiation health watchdog http://www.naturalnews.com/041231_children_cell_phone_use_radiation_exposure.html#ixzz2ZQSQ02gK , July 17, 2013 by: Lloyd Burrell (NaturalNews) It’s an all too familiar scene: children, some as young as nine, spending an exorbitant amount of time on cell phones. What may not be as familiar, and therefore go unnoticed, is the sight of children who are suffering and sick from cancer, specifically brain cancer. Australia has noticed and is very concerned about the connection between these two trends. Through the federal government health watchdog, Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA), Australia has issued a warning. One which speaks volumes.
In a “fact sheet” distributed to parties interested in purchasing and using cell phones, the consumer watchdog group has put out a warning in regards to children and mobile phones. Or more importantly, children and cell phone radiation.
How many kids does this really affect?
As many as 25 percent of nine-year-olds living in Australia and three out of four teenagers attending high school in the land down under have regular access to a cell phone. ARPANSA recommends that parents assist their children in limiting their exposure to the radiation that is emitted from cell phones. The federal organization bases this on the research surrounding children and cell phone use. Continue reading
Western Australia’s Noongar land deal not in the best interests of Aboriginals
It will be a mistake for Noongars and taxpayers to let this deal go through and allow the argument that all future claims have been extinguished.
If the deal goes through, future Noongars will have courts telling them that their ancestors signed their rights away
LAND DEAL FAILS IMPORTANT TESTS Lateral Love Australia Doubts surround the State Government’s native title deal, say Len Collard and Gerry Georgatos. 16072013 Doubts surround the State Government’s native title deal, say Len Collard and Gerry Georgatos. Much has been made of the State Government’s billion-dollar-plus offer to the Noongar people via the South West Aboriginal Land and Sea Council.
But is it a genuine native title offer or a politicised move to coerce a proposition that native title rights have been settled for all those considered Noongars and that all future rights are extinguished?
Noongar is a generic term and not representative of all the different cultural clans across Perth and southern WA — others include Whadjuk, Yuet, Mineng, Koreng, Ballardong, Bibbelmun and so on.
Legally, these Aboriginal clans and families will maintain connection to country that are exclusive domains and do not overlap one another. Continue reading
Fukushima radiation did reach Australia
Traces of Fukushima reach Australia Asian Correspondent, By Gavin Atkins May 03, 2011 Tiny traces of radioactive particles from Fukushima have been picked up by monitoring stations in Australia, Fiji, Malaysia and Papua New Guinea.
Detected on April 13, the small amount of Xenon detected in Darwin is too small to be of concern for public health. The Government agency responsible,the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA) has kept the news at a low profile by burying the information in its media releases. ARPANSA operates some of the monitoring stations and is tasked with informing the Australian public about radiation risks……..
The system of more than 270 monitoring stations around the world (eventually to number 337) is being established primarily to ensure that all nuclear tests are detected.
Eighteen of these stations operate around Australia and in Antarctica, and another two are being constructed…….
The monitoring system can detect a range of radioactive isotopes that would have been emitted from Fukushima including Caesium-137. The CTBTO says that current readings are clearly consistent with material from a damaged nuclear power plant, almost certainly Fukushima.
The monitoring stations are astonishingly sensitive, being able to pick up a few atoms of radioactive materials and can, for example, detect one tenth of a gram of Xenon if it is evenly distributed throughout the earth’s atmosphere. http://asiancorrespondent.com/53525/traces-of-fukushima-reach-australia/
Legal case drags on, as Aboriginals fight for their land, against radioactive trash dump
Court date marks eight-year NT nuke fight http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/court-date-marks-eight-year-nt-nuke-fight/story-fni0xqi4-1226679665473 16 July 13 FOR Dianne Stokes, it was fitting that the eight-year anniversary of a fight to stop a Northern Territory nuclear dump was marked by a brief and frustrating court appearance.
Ms Stokes, an elder with the Yapa Yapa people, is one of the traditional land owners taking action to stop the federal government dump proposal, which is earmarked for Muckaty Station. She was present on Monday when the Federal Court heard a delay in an anthropologist’s report may push back a 2014 trial date.
Ms Stokes says the traditional land owners’ complaints to the government had for years fallen on deaf ears. “It’s been a long struggle, many years of struggling to say we didn’t want the waste to come to our land when no one is listening,” she said outside court in Melbourne.
But she said new Resources Minister Gary Gray had agreed to visit the site and meet community members – a move she welcomes. “We’re going to try to hassle him until he comes down,” Ms Stokes said. “It’s a spiritual country, it’s a cultural land and it’s a very strong belief we have in that county.”
The waste dump was originally planned to be built in South Australia, but in the face of local opposition the federal government sought to relocate it to the NT. A site at Muckaty Station, about 110km north of Tennant Creek, was flagged as a possible site.
Australian Conservation Foundation spokesman Dave Sweeney said Mr Gray’s visit was a step forward in the conflict, but that it signalled a “change in tone, not necessarily a change in policy”.
Mr Gray declined to comment.
The parties will return to the Federal Court for another directions hearing in August.
Old men prefer nuclear power, women prefer solar power
Graph of the Day: Women prefer solar, old men like nuclear http://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/graph-of-the-day-women-prefer-solar-old-men-like-nuclear-48452 By Giles Parkinson on 16 July 2013 Today’s graph of the day comes courtesy of The Climate Institute, and its new publication, Climate of the Nation. The results are from a poll of 1,009 Australians (over 18) taken in the first week of June.
Solar and wind are by far the most popular, and wind gained the most support from the previous year, jumping from 59 per cent to 67 per cent. Coal and nuclear were the least popular, with nuclear falling from 20 per cent to 13 per cent. No fossil fuel gained more than 28 per cent approval, and geothermal and ocean energy have yet to capture the imagination.
But while this graph is self explanatory, there were some interesting findings along gender lines….. Continue reading
Kevin Rudd’s Emissions Trading Scheme is far from satisfactory
Five reasons why Rudd’s ETS move should make us wince CRIKEY.COM GILES PARKINSON | JUL 15, 2013 Scrapping the carbon tax might push household costs higher rather than lower. That and other problems await the Labor Party as it seeks to wedge Tony Abbott with emissions trading……There are reasons why the manner of Rudd’s move on the carbon price should make us wince. Here are five of them …
The cost to households……
It’s about politics rather than policy……
A low price is useless for Australia……
A policy without ambition
There is no evidence that Labor is going to aim for a more ambitious emission reduction target……
And what of the opposition?…... http://www.crikey.com.au/2013/07/15/five-reasons-why-rudds-ets-move-should-make-us-wince/
Ignorance among Australians, even doctors, on the radiation hazard of CT scan
“It’s easier to administer, so it’s used more frequently – and is performed more often on children.
” we were astonished to find that many GPs incorrectly believe that CT scans deliver only a low-to-medium dose of radiation, and that MRIs and ultrasound scans also deliver radiation – they don’t.”
Radiating good health? Health Canal, Karen Green 15 July 13 CT scanning technologies have been simplified, but there are complex issues associated with the procedure, including its unnecessary use and the potential risk to the patient…….
“Australians are very keen to use new technologies. Current generations have different expectations of health care and thehealth system,” says Associate Professor Rachael Moorin, from Curtin’s Centre for Population Health Research……
Although most of us are keen to try medical innovations, Moorin is concerned about our lack of knowledge on some of the technologies we embrace – especially computed tomography, or CT, scanning. Continue reading
1 This month.
20 September –National Day of Action in Melbourne on the International Day of Peace
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