Ethics, Australia’s media, politicians, and the Uranium Paydirt Conference
Christina Macpherson 27 April 13, Today I’ve posted an item from The Conversation, in which 4 very serious writers raise the question of Australia’s politicians having an ethical duty to seek out the scientific consensus on climate change, rather than to just rely on their own personal opinions.
I think that these writers are being far too kind to Australia’s Climate Denying politicians. With the facts on climate change becoming ever more widely known, and increasingly urgent, – are we to believe that these politicians are just a bit stupid?
No. They are smart. They know who funds their campaigns. They know who best articulates the hidden case for the fossil fuel industries – and they draw on propaganda material from America’s well organised think tanks, whose opinions are paid for by fossil fuel interests, especially the notorious Koch Brothers.
I know that climate change is a critical threat to the planet, and especially to Australia. However, it’s not the only critical threat. This website is dedicated to opposing the equally critical threats of nuclear war, and nuclear pollution.
I found it very interesting that our 4 ethically minded writers singled out Australia’s new Resources Minister, Gary Gray, as one who has 
rather suddenly seen the light on climate change – ” Gray renounced his previous position that climate science was “pop science” and a “middle-class conspiracy to frighten schoolchildren”.
But why did Gray do this sudden u-turn on climate change?
Well, that’s not hard to discover. Minister Gray is to deliver his first address in his new role ( since Minister Ferguson got kicked out) – and Gray’s “maiden address” is to the Australian Uranium Association’s 3 day “Paydirt Conference in Adelaide – April 30 – May 2.
What’s the connection? I hear your cry. Well, the connection is that Australia’s (rather desperate) uranium industry is spruiking the lie that nuclear power is the solution to climate change,
Well, you can’t pose as one trying to solve climate change, if you are saying that you don’t believe in climate change – now, can you?
And that is why the opportunistic Gary Gray now states that he believes in climate change.
Apology for news on renewables, instead of on nuclear
This is my apology for putting up so many items about renewable energy, instead of ones about nuclear energy
Yes – I know that my websites are supposed to be all about nuclear news. But what IS the nuclear news? And what IS happening in the energy world.
Well – my problem is that IT’s ALL HAPPENING IN RENEWABLE ENERGY.
The nuclear lobby huffs and puffs, and tries to blow down the house of renewable energy.
But it’s all hot air. The reality of the nuclear industry is that it hobbles on, in its servitude to nuclear weapons, it pretends that it’s economic, which it clearly isn’t, and it touts for markets all over the world.
The real news about the nuclear industry is that it can’t solve the waste problem, that it can’t convince the world’s health authorities, as it lies its head off about ionising radiation. And its costs just keep skyrocketing. Nuclear news is all negative stuff, and I get sick of it. In Australia, it’s sad stuff, – with the uranium industry in decline, and even South Australia’s Premier admitting that uranium has been “over-hyped”.
Meanwhile there’s all sorts of positive things happening in renewable energy, small and large scale, in energy storage, and in constantly falling costs.
Of course, as the nuclear lobby huffs and puffs, it tries to fight, to destroy, the clean energy movement. It brings to mind Mahatma Ghandi’s sayng:
“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win”
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Muckaty was never selected scientifically as a nuclear waste dump site
15 July 2005 The Minister for Education, Science and Training, the Hon Dr Brendan Nelson MP, announces three potential locations to be investigated for the Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Facility. The three locations are properties located near Katherine and Alice Springs in the Northern Territory: Fishers Ridge, Department of Defence property, southeast of RAAF Base Tindal; Mt Everard, Department of Defence property, northwest of Alice Springs; and Harts Range, Department of Defence property, northeast of Alice Springs. The new facility will co-locate low-level and intermediate-level radioactive wastes.
http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/Publications_Archive/online/RadioactiveWaste#radio
Christina Macpherson 19 April 13. It’s hard to discover exactly what sites were recommended by Bureau of Resource Sciences in the 1990’s, but Muckaty wasn’t one of them.
NRIC, A Radioactive Waste Repository for Australia: Methods for Choosing the Right Site, DPIE, Canberra, 1992.The Commonwealth releases its report National Radioactive Waste Repository Site Selection Study, Phase 1 for public comment by December 1992. The Phase 1 report is prepared by the National Resource Information Centre (NRIC), a science unit within the Department of Primary Industries and Energy (DPIE). The report:
describes the nature of radioactive wastes
briefly describes the criteria for assessing the suitability of sites for hosting a waste repository
outlines a Geographic Information Systembased system for applying the criteria, and
describes the way a repository would be constructed.
Of the eight regions identified by this study, five were selected entirely by using ASSESS. These were the
Tanami, Bloods Range, Everard, Billa Kalina and Olary regions. Continue reading
Around the nuclear/uranium traps in Australia this week
North Korea continues to be a source of anxiety for Australia, though we are not seen as a target at present, and perhaps they don’t have a nuclear missile anyway? Intrepid Dr Helen Caldicott takes off for nuclear lectures in South Korea.
USA militarism in the Pacific is now seen even by the right wing Australian Strategic Policy Institute as increasingly risky. The concept of the “Air Sea Battle” is likely to draw Australia into any war in the Asia Pacific, potentially a nuclear war.
Nuclear lobbying revs up, as Tony Shepherd (Transfield Services, -construction, resources, energy) of Business Council of Australia calls for nuclear power to be “on the table”. Barry Brook, the nuke lobby’s favourite spruiker, spruiks again. And the political party ”Australian Voters Party” calls for a string of nuclear power plants in regional Australia.
Commonwealth Bank, in a magnificent piece of jargon, refuses to answer on the question of funding nuclear weapons manufacture. http://www.abc.net.au/tv/thecheckout/futube/default.htm?WwEQu-_c3Bw The question was asked by the Medical Association for the Prevention of War, (who have now changed their bank).
Paladin Energy, Australian uranium company forced to renegotiate a deal with Malawi, which will include removing the confidentiality clause, and getting a better financial deal for Malawi.
Solar Power: 1,000,643 small solar power systems were installed in Australia as at April 5; with a collective total capacity of 2,461,696 kW. Based on an average 25c/kWh retail electricity cost (day rates); these home solar power systems could generate as much as $913,086,737 worth of electricity over the next 12 months.
Greenhouse gas emissions: National Greenhouse Accounts released on Monday show Australia’s carbon pollution from electricity generation fell by 14 million tonnes during 2012.Around the nuclear/uranium traps
Queensland ALP reaffirms their policy against uranium mining.
Victoria‘s Premier Denis Napthine gets this week’s Hypocrisy award. He enthused over the opening of Macarthur wind farm (largest in Southern Hemisphere – ““I think they are majestic, and I actually love them.” but then Napthine stated that he will not be changing Victoria’s anti wind farm laws.
In doom laden economic climate for nuclear power, Australia’s pro nukes fight on
The outlook for the nuclear power industry becomes ever bleaker. Why? Well as Bill Clinton famously stated “It’s the economy, stupid”. Nuclear power just isn’t economic, as the industry itself knows better than anyone.
Still, Australia’s uranium/nuclear lobby presses on gallantly, Barry Brook keeps spruiking it. The Lowy Institute put on apathetic panel last month.
And there’s the political party “Australian Voters Party”. No idea who is behind this, And I doubt that anyone voted for them. They were started, curiously, a very short time after the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011. And they’re gung ho for nuclear power in Australia. Fom their website
“The Party believes that a series of nuclear power plants should be built in regional areas across Australia away from the major cities.”
The nuclear/uranium week that was, in Australia
Western Australia. Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke, has given approval to Toro Energy to open WA’s first uranium mine, at Wiluna. An inexplicable decision, uranium mining on a flood-prone lake bed, home to a number of unique and endemic groundwater dependent plants and animals. Still – there’s many a slip .. Toro, a small company, inexperienced, under financial constraints, and casting around for investors. And, let’s not forget, the uranium price remains in continued slump. How does Toro solve these problems? Well, first step, put a woman, better, two women in charge. If Wiluna uranium mine does go belly up, which is on the cards – well it’ll be their fault, CEO Vanessa Guthrie and chair, Erica Smyth.
South Australia. The uranium State’s media suffered a lapse, when even the Roxby Downs Sun posted an anti uranium call from a visiting Indian, and Adelaide radio aired a compregensive criticism of nuclear power, by Dr David Palmer.
Australian uranium miner Paladin Energy in the news again, as they try to pacify the Malawians with a new, and complex bond. Among other things this deal obliges the company to sensitize people on the potential dangers associated with radioactive substances and prevention procedures. Many Malawians still unhappy with a general feeling that Africans are being ripped off by Western uranium mining companies. Shock horror, how could they think that!
Climate Change. Scientific evidence that Australia is already in the grip of climate change. But that hasn’t deterred Tony Abbott from promising to abolish the Climate Commission, and sack Prof Tim Flannery. He also says he’ll scrap the carbon tax, but this is pretty well impossible – would bring down a cloud of legal actions.
Meanwhile new information builds on the ever cheaper renewable energy, and developments in energy storage.
Good news – nuclear lobby’s man, Martin Ferguson resigns from Cabinet
In all the kerfuffle of the the Labor government’s non-spill yesterday – something good emerges. At last, Australia is rid, and well rid of the Minister for promoting nuclear power, Martin Ferguson.
Supposedly Minister for Resources and Energy, Martin Ferguson had his own very narrow view of what that meant.
It meant promoting nuclear and fossil fuel power. While paying lip service to renewable energy, Ferguson appeared to sabotage renewable energy at every possible turn.
Ferguson has also been notorious for being unapproachable, and particularly so, if you happened to be an Aboriginal who didn’t want nuclear waste dumping on your land.
Goodbye – Ferguson – you will not be missed! – Christina Macpherson 22 Mar 13
Recent nuclear news – Australia
Over the past two weeks there have been many events across Australia, in recognition of the two year anniversary of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. This included the visit of Japanese from Fukushima. I regret that I have been away in USA over this time, and consequently have been out of touch with the Australian efforts.
Meanwhile I did attend the New York symposium – The Medical and Ecological Consequences of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident. A prestigious gathering of scientists, doctors, engineers gave memorable and up to date lectures – focussing on the situation in Fukushima, but also examining America’s critical problem of nuclear wastes. The full coverage can be seen and heard at http://www.totalwebcasting.com/view/?id=hcf# . While this symposium was in itself a great experience for those attending, its wider effect will go on in video, film, and a forthcoming book.
Australia this week – EARTH HOUR Saturday 23 March at 8.30 p.m – still a fine reminder of the power of energy conservation, and this year with a focus on renewable energy http://earthhour.org.au/
Renewable Energy Target to be maintained by the Australian government, though there are warnings that the Coalition may later muck it up.
Queensland. The Newman government won’t rule out the option of exporting uranium through the Great Barrier Reef. Senator Larissa Waters (Greens) bringing in a Bill to prevent this. A Queensland state governmnet committee reports that the Mary Kathleen uranium mine, (closed 30 years ago) is still leaking radioactive water.
The ABC does it again! South Australia, as world’s nuclear waste dump
The ABC does it again!. ABC Radio National’s Ockham’s Razor chose March 11 to give a platform to the nuclear lobby. The anniversary of the Fukushima nuclear disaster.What timing!
No such uncertainty for Terry Krieg, ABC Radio’s favourite nuclear spruiker. Here are a couple of thoughts from Krieg about nuclear waste:
The fluoride issue and why it is important
The anti nuclear movement is a very broad collection of scientists, doctors, and ordinary concerned citizens. The main focus of concern for many of us is the scientifically proven fact that ionising radiation damages cells, bringing about genetic mutations, embryonic deformities and cancer
I really deplore the way in which anti fluoride campaigners often want to connect up the two campaigns.
Fluoridation of water is the most proven public health measure, effective in protecting teeth, and without side effects. In areas where fluoride is naturally present in high proportions, people have strong teeth, but they may have a mottled appearance, and that’s all.
Yet in Australia, especially in some rural areas in Victoria, the anti fluoride mob have for decades been on the bandwagon – claiming all sorts of preposterous ill effects from fluoride. This campaign was rampant back in the 1970s , led by right wing extremist Eric Butler, with his “League of Rights”
The anti nuclear movement has a strong scientific basis. and no connection with right wing conspiracy groups.
Fluoride cuts tooth decay for all age groups, University of Adelaide study finds http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/fluoride-cuts-tooth-decay-for-all-age-groups-university-of-adelaide-study-finds/story-e6frea83-1226590762881HealthReporter Jordanna Schriever
adelaidenow March 05, 2013
- Tory Shepherd: When anti-scientists attack fluoride http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/opinion/tory-shepherd-when-anti-scientists-go-on-the-attack/story-fn34ojzj-1226590190515
- Something toxic in MP Ann Bressington’s fluoride claim FLUORIDE cuts tooth decay in adults of all ages, a University of Adelaide-led international study has found. http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/opinion/something-toxic-in-mp-ann-bressingtons-fluoride-claim/story-fn34ojzj-1226587983885
- The world-first population-level study has uncovered the strongest evidence for adding fluoride to water.Director of the university’s Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health, Professor Kaye Roberts-Thomson, said the results added to already established evidence that fluoride in drinking water benefits the dental health of children.
- “By looking right across the Australian population, we now have good evidence that fluoride in drinking water is effective in preventing tooth decay in adults,” Prof Roberts-Thomson said.The study looked at data from a random sample of 3800 Australians aged 15 and over.”We’ve known for some time that fluoridated drinking water can prevent tooth decay in children, but this is the first time that research has conclusively shown this in an adult population.”
- The researchers found adults with more than a 75 per cent lifetime exposure to water fluoridation have up to a 30 per cent reduction in tooth decay compared with those with less than 25 per cent lifetime exposure.”Those people who have had longer exposure to fluoride in water obviously will have the greater benefit. However, and this is an important aspect of the study, even those people who were born before water fluoridation existed have since received some benefit in their lifetimes,” Prof Roberts-Thomson said.
Nuclear and climate news for the past week – Australia
Uranium – still being hyped up by the industry, and a few politicians – and yet – even the Australian Uranium Association is now admitting that the prospects for the industry in Queensland, in particular, are not good. By their own reckoning Queensland’s uranium would fetch less than $4 billion at the current rate for Australian uranium sales. The $4 billion figure is of little relevance since the uranium price is too low for any mines to be viable in Queensland.
Maralinga The scandal of Australian 80,000 troops used as radiation guinea pigs for British nuclear tests in the 1950’s and 60’s just won’t go away, as we await the hearing of their case, by the Human Rights Commission
Climate change and Australia’s 2013 election. As usual, the media focusses on personalities. However, there are ructions around issues of renewable energy and climate change. The fossil fuel lobby, and by consequence, the Liberal Coalition are getting very annoyed about Australians’ new bad habit of using less electricity. Worse, Australians’ new bad habit of switching to home solar power. As well, there are those annoyingly cheap wind power sources.
So – the battle is on – to get rid of Australia’s Renewable Energy Target, and the Clean Energy Act, the carbon price and so on. Greg Hunt, Opposition spokesman on Climate Change, is pushing the Coalition’s “Direct Action” policy. Christine Milne has effectively exposed this policy – a sham that could never succeed. Which, no doubt, is the aim of it, in line with the wishes of the Coalition’s fossil fuel industry backers.
I am happy to be going to the New York Symposium on The Medical and Ecological Impacts of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident To Be Held at the New York Academy of Medicine nuclearfreeplanet.org . Still hoping that some other Australians will join me – to hear this most impressive array of international scientists and doctors .
Nuclear lobby is really just a bunch of guys each squabbling over their pet project
There is an area of the “nuclear debate” that needs exploring. That is – the realm of contradictions and humour in it all.
People agonise, thinking that the “nuclear lobby” is one great monolith – too big to successfuly oppose.
But in reality, it’s more like a little bunch of squabbling bovver boys. One lot wants to build “Generation III” reactors, using uranium. Another lot want Gen IV reactors of various competing types, that are still not much more than a glint in the eye of the pro nukes. Then there are “fast breeder” and various types of reprocessing reactors (fraught with problems). Then there are the new geewhiz Bill Gates “travelling wave”. small reactors. Then there are the small “thorium” reactors (that would ruin the uranium industry).
The beauty of it all is that the proponents of each type are really in cut-throat competition with each other.. It shouldn’t take too much to show the public how damn silly they all are.
But I suppose that the winning argument will always boil down to money. Because it is so heinously expensive to properly shut down nuclear reactors, pro nukes might prevail over governments – to keep right on with nuclear power, so that the ever more expensive problem of burying it can be avoided, by passing it on to our grandchildren.
Good riddance Marius Kloppers, and let’s hope that Andrew McKenzie is not worse
Many reasonable people rejoiced at BHP’ Billiton’s decision to abandon the grandiose plan for a new uranium mine at Olympic Dam. We might rejoice also with the demise of its prime pusher, CEO Marius Kloppers.
Now BHP will have CEO Andrew McKenzie, who is also a fan of Olympic Dam expansion.
I am reminded of one old poem for children, by Hilaire Belloc – which ends – “But always keep a hold of Nurse, for. fear of finding Something Worse”
Australia – nuclear news for the past week
Perhaps the antinuclear website should change to “climate news”. I think about this often, because it is surely apparent to Australians that the climate is changing, and extreme events are happening more frequently here, and overseas – as well as the ‘creeping events’ of glacial and polar ice receding, sea level rise, and warming global average temperatures. Then there are the news items and forecasts of climate experts, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It’s all happening, and faster than we had anticipated.
In the light of this, I, for one, am glad that the Australian Greens, now led by (shock horror – a woman!) Christine Milne, have severed their bond with the Australian Labor Party. Of course, the fossil fuel puppets of Liberal and Labor are now even more scathing about the Greens. Labor is wobbling its way to the Right. Paul Howes, ambitious pro nuclear union spokesman, (and wannabe Prime Minister one day) is vitriolic in his condemnation of Christine Milne.
Yet, in today’s climate of climate change, Australia’s little children may have no future. And the Greens are the only political party facing up to this reality.
While the useless Australian media frolic about encouraging the pointless dance of Gillard versus Rudd, Abbott versus Turnbull – the issues that matter to our children are ignored.
Happenings
- Maraling nuclear veterans making legal appeal for compensation, to the Australian Human Rights Commission
- Aboriginal community leaders refute Marcia Langton’s claim that mining is the solution for Aboriginal progress
- Very mysterious circumstances surround the death in Israel of Australian citizen Ben Zygier, but Israel maintains secrecy on this.
- Engineers Australia urge for greater cuts to greenhouse gas emissions, and for development of renewable energy
- Victorian research on 20,000 breast cancer patients shows that genetics is not a factor for 75% of them. (time we looked at environmental causes
- Julian Assange getting organised for Senate bid in 2013 elections
- In Australia, renewable energy is now cheaper than fossil fuel energy.
Australia’s Labor Party lurches to the Right- example Paul Howes attack on The Greens
I always thought that Paul Howes had his own political career firmly in mind. Now, as the Greens sever their support from
Labor, Howes sees an opportunity to move up in the Party, as it wobbles its way further to the Right.
Howes has previously compared The Greens to the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) which brought about a traumatic split within Labor.
Howes does not seem to grasp the fact that The Greens have a very clear agenda for a sustainable economy, providing both jobs and the very basis of the economy, a clean environment. Today, Howes criticises the fact that the Greens support polices towards those aims, whether those polices are Labor’s or Liberals. They have no obligation to mindlessly support Labor, as Howes seems to think.
In an interview with Tony Jones, on ABC Lateline ( http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-02-20/howes-calls-for-greens-destruction/4530952?section=qld) Howes calls for Greens’ destruction,
In a fairly vitriolic attack on Greens leader, Christine Milne, Howes praises the Mineral Resources Rent Tax, but fails completely to refute Christine Milnes very clear exposition of the reasons why this tax is a failure.
“…..TONY JONES: Now in July of last year when the Labor/Green alliance was still very much alive you described the Greens as “extremists who threaten Australia’s democracy” and that the Labor Party, you said, “should concentrate its efforts on destroying them”. Will that now happen?
PAUL HOWES: Absolutely…….
TONY JONES:……this is what Bob Brown says, “the increasingly powerful Howesian Labor cause has a simple political recipe to prefer the Liberals over the Greens”. What do you say to that?
PAUL HOWES: Howesian! I’d rather be a Howesian than an Earthian…..
..the Greens are no different than the Liberals insomuch as they are a political party that stands for values that are fundamentally different to the values of the Labor Party…”
1 This month
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
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