Bass Coast Shire Council declares Climate Emergency
Climate change is an emergency, Mirage News, 23 Aug 19
Bass Coast Shire Councillors have resolved that climate change poses a serious threat and should be treated as an emergency.
A motion was carried at last Wednesday’s Ordinary Council Meeting and will see Council develop a Bass Coast Climate Change Action Plan 2020-30, to set out how Bass Coast Shire can more effectively contribute to climate change mitigation and be more resilient and well adapted to the effects of a changing climate.
It will also include a target of zero net emissions by 2030 across Council operations as well as the wider community.
Bass Coast Mayor, Cr Brett Tessari, said while Council’s Natural Environment Strategy, adopted in 2016, recognises climate change, this declaration goes one step further….. https://www.miragenews.com/climate-change-is-an-emergency/
Parliamentary Inquiry into nuclear power for Victoria
Inquiry to explore Victoria going nuclear, Yahoo News Benita Kolovos
Australian Associated Press, 14 August 2019 The Victorian parliament is set to explore lifting the state’s bans on nuclear activities in an effort to tackle climate change.
A Liberal Democrats motion for an inquiry into the potential for nuclear power passed the state’s upper house on Wednesday.
The 12-month inquiry will explore if nuclear energy would be feasible and suitable for Victoria in the future, and will consider waste management, health and safety and possible industrial and medical applications.
Liberal Democrat MP David Limbrick said the political climate – and actual climate – have changed significantly since nuclear energy was last seriously considered in the 1980s.
“The young people of today no longer fear nuclear holocaust. Today’s young have a new fear – global warming,” he told the Legislative Council…….
The Greens’ Tim Read said it makes “absolutely no sense” for Victoria to consider getting into nuclear energy.
“This inquiry is a waste of resources and a waste of time,” he said in a statement.
“Dredging up the tired old debate on nuclear will only delay the urgent work needed to end our reliance on coal and gas and transitioning to clean and safe renewable energy.”
Similar inquiries are being held in NSW and federal parliament…… https://au.news.yahoo.com/inquiry-explore-victoria-going-nuclear-093346544–spt.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9uZXdzLmdvb2dsZS5jb20v&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAABq2naeyyQ9ohtcPQW2Ho9e2-qDfI6XSbDwfZUneTxi4VhdT3GWx-zWbqg0MCFS2ArOO-cBI7xrEXbGJxc_Z4MEQGCMb8xZYz9GdF6dLu3azUPUvN5EB4x2GgyUSjwZkX1E93xGECuqxS4HnxqOETaVwytGf9KBTZIzT3QuaBP-R
National Party Member for Gippsland Darren Chester makes reassuring, but rather ambiguous, noises against setting up nuclear power
“No plans” for move to nuclear: MP Latrobe Valley Express, Michelle Slater , 26 July 19,
The Australian Nuclear Association released a paper recommending five nuclear power plants be built in the Latrobe Valley, with the support of a handful of Coalition MPs, including Barnaby Joyce.
He said it was his priority to “secure reliable and affordable energy for Gippsland families, businesses and the farming community”…….
ANA vice president Robert Parker said they had been studying several sites in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, but it had not gone “beyond a broad brush approach at this stage”. ….
Gippsland Trades and Labour Council secretary Steve Dodd said the union did not support nuclear energy due to the amount of risks it presented.
“People talk about clean energy, but you only have to look at Japan and Chernobyl with these massive accidents where people have been evacuated,” Mr Dodd said….
Voices of the Valley president Wendy Farmer was sceptical about the viability and safety of nuclear power and described the idea as a “brain fart” and an “expensive pipe dream”.
“We can use the existing energy grid with renewable energy much faster and cheaper than nuclear without the risk of a spill,” Ms Farmer said.https://www.latrobevalleyexpress.com.au/story/6292224/no-plans-for-move-to-nuclear-mp/
Melbourne’s tram network is set to be powered by the state’s largest solar farm
 Victorian solar farm to generate enough electricity to power Melbourne’s entire tram network
The 128-megawatt solar farm near Numurkah, north of Shepparton, took less than a year to build and will use more than 300,000 panels to power the city’s trams. Key points:
It is one of two solar farms supplying renewable energy to the network, and will generate approximately 255,000 megawatt hours of electricity into the national grid each year. Victorian Minister for Energy Lily D’Ambrosio said the project was the largest in the state. “The Numurkah solar farm will play an important role in supporting the transformation of our energy system towards clean, renewable energy and reaching our renewable energy target,” Ms D’Ambrosio said. Farm built in record timeBased just outside of Numurkah in the tiny town of Drumanure, the farm spans 500 hectares of land once used for cattle grazing and cropping. The carbon emission reduction generated by the farm is the equivalent of taking 75,000 cars off the road or planting 390,000 trees…….. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-07-20/numurkah-solar-farm-to-power-tram-network/11327346 |
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Climate change bringing sea-level rise to Victoria’s low-lying towns and suburbs
Rising sea, erosion to wreak havoc in low-lying suburbs: report, The Age , By Benjamin Preiss and Adam Carey
Other places at risk include areas around Queenscliff and Barwon Heads on the Bellarine Peninsula; the south-west Victorian towns of Port Fairy and Portland; and Tooradin, Lang Lang and Seaspray in the state’s south-east.
A report tabled in Victoria’s Parliament last week examines the myriad threats to the state’s fragile coastline, painting an alarming picture of damage to the environment and suburban Melbourne if no action is taken.
The Victorian Environmental Assessment Council report cites a 20-centimetre sea-level rise by 2040 and between 40 centimetres and one metre by century’s end.
Sea-level rise will lead to more frequent inundation of low-lying areas, loss of coastal habitat, cliff, beach and foreshore erosion,” the report says.
“Climate change will also put pressure on ageing coastal infrastructure and ultimately impact on feasibility of living in or developing some coastal locations.”
Increasing storm intensity, coupled with rising seas, will cause extensive erosion of the Victorian coastline by 2040, the report says.
“The most extensive area vulnerable to erosion by 2040 is the Gippsland coast,” it says. “Other coasts at risk include west of Portland, beaches in Port Phillip Bay between Mordialloc and Frankston, and the coast between Cape Paterson and Cape Liptrap in South Gippsland.”
Mass protest in Melbourne, demanding action on climate change.
Climate change protesters flood Melbourne’s CBD, block traffic in call to action, More than a thousand people have marched through Melbourne’s CBD and staged a mock “die-in” for climate change. ABC
Key points:
- Activists marched through the city and staged a “die-in” at Bourke and Swanston streets
- Organiser Extinction Rebellion called for a Citizens’ Assembly on “climate and ecological justice”
- The protest disrupted tram schedules in the city during the march
The protest started with speeches at the Victorian Parliament, then marchers moved through the city to the corner of Bourke and Swanston streets where they staged a “die-in”.
A number of protesters dropped to the ground to lie down in the intersection before moving on to Carlton Gardens.
Protesters young and old chanted “this is our future, there is no plan B” and “what do we want — action, when do we want it — now”.
One of the protest organisers, Extinction Rebellion Victoria, called for governments to set up a “Citizens’ Assembly on climate and ecological justice” to lead environmental policy.
Extinction Rebellion organised a series of protests in London last month which caused major disruptions……. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-24/climate-protesters-flood-melbournes-cbd/11145648
Victoria’s major bushfires still out of control
Victoria bushfires: Major blazes still out of control as residents may be allowed to return home
By 9News Staff, 6:03am Mar 5, 2019 Five of the 29 bushfires burning in Victoria this morning are still out of control this morning stretching across 59,000 hectares of land.
A cooler weather change that is moving over the state has seen yesterday’s ‘Emergency’ warning zones downgraded to a ‘Watch and Act’ level, however authorities have warned that four major fires are still out of control.
Those incidents include the largest blaze still raging in Victoria at the Bunyip State Park which is still sparking spot fires in multiple areas…….https://www.9news.com.au/2019/03/04/18/10/news-melbourne-bushfires-bangholme-dandenong-south-fire
Over 2000 firefighters working to contain bushfires around Victoria
Fires rip through Victoria: ‘worse than Black Saturday’, A fire, which has destroyed properties and more than 10,000 hectares of land is burning in the same area as the deadly Black Saturday bushfires. Bushfires have ripped through Victoria’s east, with a wind change challenging firefighters working all night to contain the blaze. SBS News 4 Mar 19
Despite cooler conditions expected on Monday, firefighters may have to contend with dry lightning, which could start more fires.
The Bunyip State Park fire, burning 65km east of Melbourne, was sparked by lightning strikes on Friday and has destroyed more than 10,000 hectares.
The blaze is still racing towards the Princes Freeway and emergency warnings remain in place for the surrounding area.
“The risk of lightning redevelops in the late morning with the chance of some showers and thunderstorms,” Bureau of Meteorology’s senior forecaster Christie Johnson said.
While there was a chance of showers, it was hard to pinpoint where they would hit, and there would only be a few millimetres of rainfall, she said…..
More than 2000 firefighters are working to contain blazes around the state …..https://www.sbs.com.au/news/fires-rip-through-victoria-worse-than-black-saturday
How bushfires generate their own weather
Why Victoria’s bushfires generated their own lightning, The Age , By Liam Mannix, March 4, 2019 — There are few sights more terrifying for a firefighter: a vast, dark storm cloud brewing above a bushfire, shooting out lightning.
On Sunday, the Licola bushfire east of Melbourne burned with such intensity it generated a huge thundercloud that fired hundreds of lightning strikes at nearby forests.
The Bunyip fire, which is believed to have wiped at least one town off the map, also generated its own weather system which fed the fire with extreme winds.
“It’s absolutely terrifying. And it’s dangerous as well, because that lightning can start new fires before the main fire,” says Dean Narramore, a meteorologist at the Bureau of Meteorology’s extreme weather desk.
How bushfires generate their own weather
As a bushfire burns, it generates hot, smoke-filled air.
This air is hotter than surrounding air and rapidly rises, forming a smoke plume.
As the plume rises, atmospheric pressure falls. This causes the plume to spread out, generating a “mushroom” on top of the plume.
The smoke plume is filled with moisture which is released by burning trees. The higher you go in the atmosphere, the cooler it gets, so the top parts of the plume get chilled.
This causes the moisture in the plume to condense (turn from water vapour into tiny water droplets) and form a cloud.
As the plume rises rapidly into the sky, cool air is sucked in to replace it. This causes extreme winds near the firefront. To fight a fire, you need to know which way it is burning. But when a fire-cloud forms and starts generating strong and unpredictable winds, the fire can become chaotic.
“All this air rushes into the fire. You can imagine air coming from all different angles, feeding in – and oxygen is a very important part of fire. It causes fires to race up and down hills,” Mr Narramore says…….. https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/why-victoria-s-bushfires-generated-their-own-lightning-20190304-p511kd.html
We’ve always had floods and bushfires, but climate change is making them worse
Queensland floods: Townsville reels under record water levels as more rain arrives, There are several more days to go in this 
flood event, Bureau of Meteorology warns, Guardian, 2 Feb 2019,
Queensland authorities have said the state’s north was entering “unprecedented territory” as monsoon rains battered the city of Townsville, setting record flood levels and destroying homes.
Homes and businesses have been destroyed as flash floods washed through streets, sweeping away cars, equipment and livestock……..https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/feb/02/queensland-floods-townsville-reels-under-record-water-levels-as-more-rain-arrives
Bushfires threaten homes across Victoria , The Age, By Nicole Precel, 3 February 2019,Out-of-control bushfires threatened homes and lives on Sunday as more than 1000 firefighters battled major blazes across Victoria.Firefighters were stretched to the limit, fighting several large fires throughout the state.
A fire in Hepburn, in central Victoria was the major focus for the day with residents warned at daybreak to evacuate the town.
Two firefighters who were fighting the Hepburn fires were treated for heat exhaustion and over-exertion and were taken to hospital as a precaution.
Elsewhere, as almost 50 new fires sparked, emergency warnings were issued at various times for fires including days-old blazes in Timbarra in Gippsland and Grantville on the Bass Coast……..
As of Sunday afternoon, there were 69 aircraft working “very, very hard” and “effectively”.
The fires were fanned by soaring temperatures, hitting 43.3 degrees in the Mallee, 43.1 degrees in Hopetoun, 42.2 in Mildura, 41.1 at Melbourne Airport and 38.2 in Melbourne’s CBD.
The Bureau of Meteorology’s Richard Russell said high winds and thunderstorms were expected throughout the night……….. https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/bushfires-threaten-homes-across-victoria-20190203-p50vf8.html
Tasmania’s fire disaster revealed in satellite images showing the extent of the damage
It’s easy to get warning fatigue, and, with only a handful or properties impacted so far, dismiss the fires as all bark and no bite.
But satellite images reveal the scale of the destruction so far.
The Gell River blaze, in the state’s south-west, was the first to start, ignited by a dry lightning strike in late December.
“It seems really like ancient history,” professor of pyrogeography and fire service at the University of Tasmania David Bowman said.
“It started at the end of last year and escalated in early January, so we’re looking at a fire situation that’s now gone for a full calendar month.”
Images taken by the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellite on January 3 show what seems, relative to the lakes around it, like a small blackened patch of wilderness……..
“There are multiple major fire events occurring simultaneously, which is extremely challenging for firefighters and fire managers because of the requirement to spread resources and make very difficult prioritising decisions.” …….
“This is definitely a historic event, it’s unprecedented,” Professor Bowman said.
“The area burnt is very substantial, I can barely keep up with the numbers.”
This week the fire service did put a number on it — 187,000 hectares.
At the same time as the Central Plateau fire ramped up, the Tahune fire was also burning out of control.
Of all the fires burning across Tasmania, this one has caused the most displacement, forcing hundreds of people to evacuate from communities in the Huon Valley south of Hobart.
Since last week, firefighters have issued almost daily warnings to residents, cautioning that only those prepared to defend their properties should stay behind.
A satellite image taken on January 30 shows how the fire, having burnt through more than 56,000 hectares, was still sending smoke over towns to its east. …..https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-02-02/tasmanian-bushfires-from-the-air-satellite-images/10771528
Climate change: Victoria’s iconic Great Ocean Road at risk from sea level rise
Great Ocean Road at risk from surging sea , Canberra Times, By Royce Millar, 10 January 2019 Key sections of the Great Ocean Road are at risk of being washed away, raising safety fears and calls for the Andrews government to reroute parts of the world-recognised tourist road.
New studies of dramatic beach erosion around Apollo Bay over the last two years highlight the mounting problem of erosion, flooding and sea level rise along Victoria’s coast.
In a report to the State government released exclusively to The Age, leading coastal geomorphologist Neville Rosengren and engineer Tony Miner recommend urgent action to protect the foreshore of Mounts Bay next to Apollo Bay, after major erosion there in 2017.
They warn the national heritage-listed road could be “compromised” within five years.
A second report on erosion at Apollo Bay by engineers GHD also recommends the eventual “realignment” of the road outside township areas at Apollo Bay. It notes that five metres of erosion at Apollo Bay beach during a June 2018 storm put the road “at risk”.
The studies point to erosion at critical levels at the very time the state’s south-west is hosting ever greater numbers of visitors, now more than five million a year.
Similar problems are being faced along the wider coast, from Port Fairy in the south-west to Inverloch and the Ninety Mile Beach and Lakes Entrance in the south-east and east……..
findings raise the prospect that rising seas due to climate change are now proving a real problem for vulnerable coastal locations.
Mr Rosengren said rising sea levels contributed to the erosion at Mounts Bay.
“You’re witnessing the effects of a complex of processes of which sea level is one,” he said.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC’s) current projection for sea level rise, based on high emissions, ‘business-as-usual’ scenario, is almost 90 centimetres by the year 2100, relative to an average sea level for the period 1986-2005.
That projection will be updated, most likely upwards, in the IPCC’s special oceans report due for release this year.
Other peer-reviewed studies have forecast a much steeper rise in sea level by 2100.
……… While possible, realignment of the road would be difficult and expensive at Mounts Bay because the Barham River runs along the landward side of the road, making the area also susceptible to flooding.
…….. A quandary for all concerned is that sea walls of any form will alter the character of a coastline renowned for its rugged, natural beauty. Sea walls also interfere with the coast’s ecology and its ability to naturally replenish itself.
Bankrolled by public donations, the 243-kilometre Great Ocean Road was built by World War I veterans between 1919 and 1932 as a memorial to soldiers killed in the war, and to open the south-west coast to tourists and daytrippers. It was built as close to the ocean as possible.
……… A Victorian Department of Environment Land Water and Planning spokesperson said accounting for sea level rise was now “embedded” in the Victorian planning system.
The Age has sought an interview and comments from federal Environment Minister Melissa Price about the Morrison government’s policies on, and plans for, sea level rise. https://www.canberratimes.com.au/national/victoria/great-ocean-road-at-risk-from-surging-sea-20190110-p50qjb.html
Victoria’s bushfires could burn for weeks
Bushfires across Victoria could burn for weeks, The Age, By Rachael Dexter, Liam Mannix, Rachel Wells & Simone Fox Koob, 5 January 2019, Firefighters will use a brief reprieve from the hot weather to try to get on top of a major bushfire in Gippsland – before temperatures start to rise again.
The bushfire at Rosedale, suspected to be deliberately lit, ripped through more than 10,000 hectares of scrub and forest before it was brought under control about 2.30am Saturday.
After a cool change following one of the hottest days in years on Friday, the mercury is forecast to rise to 31 degrees on Tuesday. Another cool front will bring relief Wednesday and Thursday with temperatures of 23 and 25 degrees.
But the fire, which is burning through a state park and pine plantation, could take weeks to extinguish. Gippsland will get a week of cool weather, before the temperature starts to get into the 30s next weekend. Firefighters hope to have it well under control by then. ……..
The Rosedale fire was the largest of more than 200 that burnt across Victoria on Friday, as high temperatures and fast winds combined to apply a blowtorch to the state. Melbourne recorded its hottest day in five years with a top temperature of 42.6 degrees…….. https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/bushfires-across-victoria-could-burn-for-weeks-20190105-p50prw.html
Bushfire threat to vital koala habitat
Salamander Bay bushfire threatens homes, vital koala habitat in Port Stephens, ABC 11 Dec 18 An entire koala population in Port Stephens could be wiped out after a fire devastated their habitat near Port Stephens, an animal rescue group fears.
An estimated 16 hectares of the Mambo Wetlands, north of Newcastle, was scorched on Monday night, according to Port Stephens Koalas.
The reserve is about 40 per cent of the vital koala habitat.
The blaze broke out near the Salamander Bay shopping centre about 6:30pm and dozens of firefighters spent the night backburning to protect homes.
It burnt away more than 80 hectares of swampy scrub, which made access difficult for fire crews.
The fire flared up to a watch and act level at 3:00am, but weather conditions eased in the early hours and the blaze was brought under control.
Carers from the rescue group today surveyed the damage and fielded calls about stranded and injured wildlife.
Simone Aurino, senior carer at Port Stephens Koalas, said the reserve was one of the most important areas in the Tomaree Peninsula.
“It has a viable breeding population and its central to all the other habitats,” she said.
“It’s a really, really essential habitat.”
Ms Aurino said the blaze would lead to significant flow-on effects which may not be known for some time.
“It has the potential to wipe out the population in this area, it’s really quite devastating,” she said.
“The habitat’s been changed, so the animals are going to move…….https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-12-11/bushfire-threatens-vital-koala-habitat-in-port-stephens/10605160
The Royal Nuclear Show — exhibition on in Victoria
Public works: Royal Nuclear Show, THE AUSTRALIAN, By BRONWYN WATSON, DECEMBER 7, 2018
“……….Screen-printing workshops across the country, such as Redback Graphix, Earthworks Poster Collective and the Tin Sheds, created posters that adorned cafes, telephone poles, university campuses, libraries and virtually any public space. They had slogans such as No Nukes No Tests, No More Hiroshimas, and End Uranium Mining. At the time, perception of a nuclear future was seen as progressive and positive, with governments and industry trying to promote nuclear experimentation as necessary to the nation’s security and beneficial to humanity.
One artist who emphasised these issues in her poster prints was Toni Robertson, whose work, The Royal Nuclear Show — 3, is on show at the Burrinja Dandenong Ranges Cultural Centre in Upwey, Victoria. Produced while Robertson was an artist-in-residence at the Experimental Art Foundation in Adelaide in 1981, it depicts a dystopian post-nuclear carnival where crowds wander past a billboard with a baby sleeping and sucking a bottle. On the baby’s pillow is written Bomblet. The billboard reads: “Meet the nuclear family, Bomblet the baby nuke. He’s so like his dad! This little boy was conceived as a low yield, tactical weapon for use in limited theatre war.” “Little boy” was the name given to the bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
……. Gallery and exhibition curator JD Mittmann says this work “really resonates quite strongly with me. It is really a statement of the time, but I think not much has changed in some ways. We are still sold nuclear technology, especially as a solution to climate change problems. Certainly, it is important to remember how dangerous these things are, and so I think this print might have been from 1981 but if you had 2011 underneath it, it would work in just the same way.” https://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/review/public-works-royal-nuclear-show/news-story/aa2b2b7a2a0dd38f6f6efcc61d15d081
Victorian Labor’s policies on Aboriginal issues
 ABORIGINAL CULTURE AND COUNTRY5.2.1.1 SELF DETERMINATION Labor supports the development of a treaty with our first nation’s people. Labor will: * resource and support the Victorian Treaty Advancement Commission to develop a representative structure to negotiate the terms of a Treaty with Victoria; * support the representative structure to negotiate a treaty; * work with Aboriginal Victorians to determine a process that reports against a set of key indicators and monitors government efforts to improve outcomes across the Victorian Aboriginal Community: 5.2.1.2 LAND RIGHTS AND CULTURAL HERITAGE Labor acknowledges and supports traditional owners and their connection to land, culture and heritage. Labor will develop and lead a policy reform that provides self-determined land-based initiatives, aimed at providing economic development and employment opportunities and reaffirming the access and development rights of traditional owners of the land estate of Aboriginal Victorians. Labor will: * accelerate the negotiation and resolution of outstanding Traditional Owner Settlement claims; * investigate the application of a revenue scheme for traditional owner groups, incorporating best practice from other models and jurisdictions; * work with Traditional Owners as equal partners in the management of public lands and natural resources, planning and management; * ensure that Caring for Country will become embedded as the best practice approach to land and sea management in Victoria; * support Victorian Aboriginal landholders to map their cultural heritage includingintangible cultural heritage; * acknowledge, recognise and remember our Aboriginal legacy and history in partnership with Aboriginal Victorians and follow appropriate protocols to create lasting memorials and markers that recognise and contribute to Reconciliation with the legacy of the past; * continue and expand the practice of having Traditional Owner Country plaques/signs at geographic markers at government boundaries or Traditional Owner boundaries; * roll out State-wide initiatives across cemeteries to ensure culturally appropriate resting places; * work with relevant Aboriginal groups and individuals to establish codes of conduct that ensure consent of Aboriginal Victorians is obtained when collecting and using Indigenous information for research; and * promote and resource Victorian Aboriginal Languages Week.
POLICY IN ACTION 7.6.8 COMMUNITY AND INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE IN ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 7.10.4 RECOGNISING ABORIGINAL VALUES OF WATER |
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1.This month
For international nuclear news go to https://nuclear-news.net/
FEDERAL. Inquiry into the prerequisites for nuclear energy in Australia (Submissions close 16 September 2019 https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Environment_and_Energy/Nuclearenergy?fbclid=IwAR0Sw4LB2qdcxSI6U6l67lI7Mwz9IEWw7_0RIq3mtN-nfpkfBn4z2VkQGog
FEDERAL Submissions about the proposed National Radioactive Waste Management Facility in Kimba or the Flinders Ranges. The Standing Committee on Environment and Energy are accepting submissions to the ‘Inquiry into the prerequisites for nuclear energy in Australia’ until 16 September 2019. Please write your own submission or use FOE’s online proforma.
AUSTRALIA’S LAWS PROHIBITING THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY
FEDERAL LAW prohibits
Nuclear actions are:
- establishing or significantly modifying a nuclear installation
- transporting spent nuclear fuel or radioactive waste products arising from reprocessing
- establishing or significantly modifying a facility for storing radioactive waste products arising from reprocessing
- mining or milling uranium ores, excluding operations for recovering mineral sands or rare earths
- establishing or significantly modifying a large-scale disposal facility for radioactive waste. A decision about whether a disposal facility is large scale will depend on factors including:
- the activity of the radioisotopes to be disposed of
- the half-life of the material
- the form of the radioisotopes
- the quantity of isotopes handled
- decommissioning or rehabilitating any facility or area in which an activity described above has been undertaken
- any other type of action set out in the EPBC Regulations.
STATE OF VICTORIA
PROHIBITION OF CERTAIN NUCLEAR ACTIVITIES
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- 5 Prohibition against exploration etc. for uranium or thorium
- 6 Mining in the course of mining for minerals other than uranium or thorium etc. 7 Radiometric surveys etc. to be permissible
- 8 Prohibition against constructing or operating certain facilities
- 9 Prohibitions against possessing etc. nuclear material
- 10 Where two or more persons commit etc. an offence under the Act
- 11 No advances for exploring etc. for uranium or thorium
NEW SOUTH WALES
Uranium Mining and Nuclear Facilities (Prohibitions) Act 1986 No 194
a) to prohibit mining for uranium, and
(b) to prohibit the construction or operation of nuclear reactors and other facilities in the nuclear fuel cycle,
in order to protect the health, safety and welfare of the people of New South Wales and the environment in which they live.
STATE OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Nuclear Waste Storage Facility (Prohibition) Act 2000
8—Prohibition against construction or operation of nuclear waste storage facility
9—Prohibition against importation or transportation of nuclear waste for delivery to nuclear waste storage facility
13—No public money to be used to encourage or finance construction or operation of nuclear waste storage facility (this law is already being broken!)
14—Public inquiry into environmental and socio-economic impact of nuclear waste storage facility.
………any waste material that contains a radioactive substance and is derived from—
(i) the operations or decommissioning of—
(A) a nuclear reactor; or
(B) a nuclear weapons facility; or
(C) a radioisotope production facility; or
(D) a uranium enrichment plant; or
(ii) the testing, use or decommissioning of nuclear weapons; or
(iii) the conditioning or reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel;
nuclear waste storage facility means any installation for the storage or disposal of nuclear waste;
public authority has the same meaning as in the Environment Protection Act 1993;
radioactive substance means any substance that spontaneously emits ionizing radiation.
STATE OF QUEENSLAND.
Laws to protect Queenslanders from dangers of nuclear energy
Nuclear facilities, including power stations and radioactive waste dumps, are now banned in Queensland.
Nuclear facilities banned under the Act include:
·nuclear reactors (whether used to generate electricity or not);
·uranium conversion and enrichment plants;
·nuclear fuel fabrication plants;
·spent fuel processing plants; and
·facilities used to store or dispose of material associated with the nuclear fuel cycle e.g. radioactive waste material.
Exemptions under the legislation include facilities for the storage or disposal of waste material resulting from research or medical purposes, and the operation of a nuclear-powered vessel.
1 FEDERAL Submissions about the proposed National Radioactive Waste Management Facility in Kimba or the Flinders Ranges. The Standing Committee on Environment and Energy are accepting submissions to the ‘Inquiry into the prerequisites for nuclear energy in Australia’ until 16 September 2019. Please write your own submission or use FOE’s online proforma.
2. FEDERAL. Inquiry into the prerequisites for nuclear energy in Australia (Submissions close 16 September 2019 https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Environment_and_Energy/Nuclearenergy?fbclid=IwAR0Sw4LB2qdcxSI6U6l67lI7Mwz9IEWw7_0RIq3mtN-nfpkfBn4z2VkQGog
3, NEW SOUTH WALES. Uranium Mining and Nuclear Facilities (Prohibitions) Repeal Bill 2019 (Submissions close 18 October 2019)
4 .Inquiry to explore Victoria going nuclear
ALSO Sustainability of energy supply and resources in NSW (Submissions close 15 September 2019)
https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/committees/inquiries/Pages/inquiry-details.aspx?pk=2542#tab-termsofreference
Australia has long rejected nuclear power, and it is banned in Federal and State laws. The nuclear lobby is out to first repeal those laws, and then to get the Australian government to commit to buying probably large numbers of Small Modular Nuclear Reactors (SMRs) . This could mean first importing plutonium and/or enriched uranium, as some reactor models, (thorium ones) require these to get the fission process started. That would, in effect, mean importing nuclear wastes.
There’s an all-too short period for people to send in Submissions to the 4 Parliamentary Inquiries now in progress.
You can be sure that the well-paid shills of the nuclear industry will already have sent in their glossy submissions. But let’s remember – these SMRs do not actually exist except as designs – they haven’t been tested. This would be a huge financial gamble by the tax-payer. And that’s just one of the drawbacks. For a few more, see //independentaustralia.net/environment/environment-display/seven-reasons-why-small-modular-nuclear-reactors-are-a-bad-idea-for-australia,13010
Inquiry to explore Victoria going nuclear
CN LIVE! Mark Davis Wikileaks Revelations
