Beyond Nuclear Initiative (BNI) calls forAustralian government transparency on nuclear waste site nominations
Window closes for waste dump sites nomination 6 May 15 A national environment group has called on the federal government to release details of possible sites for a national radioactive waste facility at the end of a public nomination period provided for landholders to nominate a potential site for Australia’s first purpose built national radioactive waste dump and store.
The revised national nomination process was launched after a dedicated community campaign stopped a national dump being built at Muckaty in the Northern Territory. In early March Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane announced a two -month public nomination period with a closing date of May 5.
The Beyond Nuclear Initiative (BNI) has urged the federal government to consider the full range of available management options, adopt transparent and inclusive processes and ensure any potential sites meet key social as well as environmental criteria.
“There are many people, particularly in regional and remote Australia, with a keen interest in and a close eye on this issue,” said BNI convenor Natalie Wasley.
“Muckaty was rightly labeled a disaster by Federal Resources Minister Ian Macfarlane. To move beyond a discredited Decide-Announce-Defend approach the government needs to show a commitment to genuine volunteerism- including ruling out any sites where land ownership or support for the dump is contested or unclear”.
“Previous failed proposals in both South Australia and the Northern Territory saw a pattern of government secrecy and community distrust.
“We urge the Minister to rebuild community trust and confidence by releasing the full list of nominations received through this process so nearby communities and affected people can have the greatest opportunity to consider and comment and Australia can have the best chance of advancing a responsible and effective radioactive waste management”. Further context and comment: Natalie Wasley 0429 900 774
Kintyre uranium project
Kintyre Uranium Project. WA (EPBC 2010/5637)
Minister’s approval decision and conditions
http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/notices/assessments/2010/5637/2010-5637-approval-decision.pdf
(Even though the decision has been made by Environment Minister Greg Hunt, concerned readers can still send him messages here: http://ccwa.org.au/takeaction/kintyre and here: https://www.action.org.au/kintyre )
Julie Bishop downplays the biggest threat – nuclear war
But I think she goes too far when claiming Islamic State is the most significant threat to the global rules-based order to emerge in the past 70 years, including the rise of communism and the Cold War.
The Cold War was not a period of comforting stability and mutual understanding of avoiding Armageddon. To the contrary, it was a time of deep strategic uncertainty and extraordinary danger. There were numerous near misses from the Cuban missile crisis in 1962 to the events of 1983, when the Soviet leadership believed the US was about to embark on a disarming first nuclear strike.
When US president Ronald Reagan saw the film The Day After it had an enormous impact on him. Pentagon briefings advised him that an all-out nuclear exchange between the Soviet Union and the US would see about 100 million casualties on both sides in the first 24 hours and that America, the Soviet Union, most of Europe and Japan would cease to exist as modern functioning societies.
Much of the rest of the world, if not all of it, would have been subject to a nuclear winter involving massive radiation and catastrophic climate change.
Civilisation as we knew it would have ceased to exist. Continue reading
The Real State Of Australia’s Energy Resources Highlights Need For Significant Renewable Energy Investments, IBT, By Reissa Su on April 28 2015 “…………………Outlook For Australia’s Renewable Energy
The need for significant change to the Australian energy market is highlighted by the international effort to shift to renewable energy sources to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The journey to a lower emissions economy has already begun for Australia with the introduction of the renewable energy target and other government policies.
In 2012, the Australian government had established the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, or ARENA, to provide funding for research, development and demonstration of renewable energy technologies. ARENA initiatives include helping renewable energy technologies move closer to commercialisation and providing system-wide solutions to renewable energy output variability. According to a press release on April 13, ARENA has announced a $20 million research and development round dedicated to industry-partnered projects that seek to commercialise renewable energy.
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten released his own statement in response to the government’s white paper. The Australian Labor Party has fully expressed its support for efforts to boost renewable energy investments and retain jobs in the sector. Continue reading
Aborigines bear the brunt of Australians’ unspoken racism
Aboriginal action groups are prepared for yet another arduous battle for political and physical space in a place that was once theirs.
Don’t mention the R word, The Guardian, 29 Apr 15 Sisonke Msimang
Is there a place where white people are more committed to faux race blindness than South Africa?
The first thing that strikes you when you arrive in Australia is how racist this place is, and yet how committed many Australians are to not talking about race. As a South African I recognise this purposeful, focussed commitment to faux race blindness. Even as someone slags off Aboriginal people and immigrants, and rants about the need to “reclaim Australia,” many here will insist that they are not racist………..
The levels of racism amongst many white Australians seem to match the levels of denial about their being racist. And there is no doubt that the deepest and most abiding forms of racism are directed against Aboriginal people. It is as though on some psychic level, white Australians are angry with Aboriginal people for still being here, for reminding them of their sins, for refusing to conform to their own ideas about what Australia is or should be……
white Australia’s history of dealings with the Indigenous people of this continent are as ugly as you’ll find anywhere in the world. Continue reading
Australia – a military colony of USA
THE US OF AUSTRALIA’S MILITARY PRESENCE, Curiouser and Cruriouser e musing APRIL 26, 2015 SAGEOTHYME It is no real secret that the United States has had a military presence in Australia for a long time. I would speculate this presence became permanent as far back as WWI. The post WWII era saw the building of Pine Gap [plus at least 2 other US controlled bases on (under) Australia’s soil]… Pine Gap is still a vital component of the US arsenal according to the Age in July 2013…
and a potential pivotal target for a false flag event or other sinister plot…………..http://www.e-musing.net/?p=195
Australia an international pariah for its anti climate action policies
Australia seen as ‘public enemy No.1’ on climate, Peter Doherty says, The Age April 25, 2015 Dan Harrison Health and Indigenous Affairs Correspondent Nobel Laureate Peter Doherty says Australia is being seen internationally as “public enemy number one” on climate change and risks being isolated as China seeks to reduce its reliance on coal.
Professor Doherty, who is in Hong Kong for an Asia Society symposium on making cities more sustainable, said there was a perception that Australia was not playing a constructive role in the lead-up to the United Nations climate change conference in Paris later this year, which many see as the world’s “last best chance” for global action to reduce carbon emissions.
“Australia is being regarded as public enemy number one,” said Professor Doherty, who won the Nobel prize in physiology or medicine in 1996.
“That’s a statement that’s been made to me by a couple of people – so that’s obviously a kind of buzz that’s going around the climate change community.”
He said the Abbott government seemed to have “firmly popped themselves into the climate change denial camp”.
“I don’t know if that’s necessarily the position of the Environment Minister [Greg Hunt] but you can’t say that you accept the realities of climate change and then want to maximise the sale of coal – it just doesn’t make sense.”
He said Australia had gone from being seen as a global leader in addressing climate change under the former Labor Government, to being “behind the game,” under Mr Abbott’s leadership.
He said he was concerned Australia could be isolated internationally as China reduced its reliance on coal and made greater use of solar, wind and nuclear power.
“What worries me is that Australia will kind of be seen as the fall guy for this – the guys that didn’t do anything and really behaved irresponsibly – and we’re pretty vulnerable.”…….
Professor Doherty attacked the government for its decision to allocate $4 million to establish a think tank headed by “sceptical environmentalist” Bjorn Lomborg.
“It’s in character, but it’s a pretty extraordinary thing to do, after all the talk about the need to constrain resources,” Professor Doherty said.
“To hand our that sort of money, presumably on the basis of no peer review whatever for what is really a blatantly political exercise – well, you know they’re the government and they can do it, but it certainly doesn’t cause you to have any great respect for them.”
He said Australia needed to do more to foster the use of renewable energy and sustainable building technologies, and said massive continued urbanisation in Asia offered enormous opportunities for Australian companies that excelled in these fields……..http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/australia-seen-as-public-enemy-no1-on-climate-peter-doherty-says-20150425-1mt5fe.html
AGL Energy to shut all coal power stations by 2050
Australian energy firm AGL to shut all coal power stations by 2050 About-face after buying coal power stations in 2014
*Will add to pressure on Australia’s coal industry
* Environmental lobby sceptical (Adds reaction from environmentalists, background)
By Byron Kaye SYDNEY, April 17 (Reuters) – AGL Energy Ltd, Australia’s No.2 power retailer and its biggest carbon polluter, said on Friday it would not buy any more coal-fired power stations and would close all its existing coal-fired power plants by 2050.
The company, which became Australia’s biggest owner of coal-fired power stations when it bought two plants from New South Wales state for A$1.5 billion ($1.17 billion) in 2014, announced the apparent about-face in a new “greenhouse gas policy”.
Although the shutdowns may be far in the future, the AGL policy introduces a domestic element to a slowdown already confronting the Australian coal industry as exports to Chinadrop and that country shifts towards cleaner energy options………
However, the move won only grudging praise from environmentalists.
“It’s good that they’re finally listening to the nine out of 10 Australians who want more renewable energy but it’s a shame that they’re going to keep pumping carbon into the atmosphere until 2050, when most of their dirty power plants would have been shut anyway,” said James Grugeon, director of market impacts at GetUp!, an activist group. “It’s a step forward after several steps backwards.”……..http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/17/agl-energy-coal-idUSL4N0XE1Q320150417
Green bonds promise steady returns
Emerging frameworks for green bonds could boost finance for renewable energy, REneweconmy By Elena Basic, Mark Robinson and David Fullbrook on 16 April 2015 Green bonds are an emerging class of debt promising investors steady returns without costing the Earth. Since the label appeared a few years ago enthusiasm from nuanced investors worldwide has ensured a warm reception. Next, frameworks and standards now being drafted should deliver credibility for the mainstream and globally connect many more investors to sustainable activities, including renewable energy.
Globally, in 2014 investors snapped up US$36 billion of labelled green bonds, against US$11 billion in 2013, with the Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI), estimating the market could reach US$100 billion in 2015. Inclusion of unlabelled environmental bonds puts the current market at over $500 million estimates CBI. Indeed, if recent trends hold for labelled green bonds then the market could come 2017 top US$1 trillion.
US and Europe have dominated issuance, though momentum is gathering in Australia too. The first green bond in Australian dollars, raising A$300 million, was issued by the World Bank in 2014 to finance climate change mitigation and adaptation. National Australian Bank (NAB) followed initially seeking to raise A$150 million through the bond issue, which subsequently doubled due to A$300 million, for a portfolio of 17 renewable-energy projects in late 2014. NAB went on to help arrange refinancing of the Hallett Hill 2 wind farm in March 2015 with a A$205 million green bond in the US private-placement market.
While the sums pale compared to the $100 trillion global bond market, the trends are promising. Continue reading
Sale of uranium to India is NOT a done deal, despite Julie Bishop’s enthusiasm for it
However, the deal has run into opposition at the parliamentary committee level in Canberra where the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties has yet to submit its report on the deal. In February this year, the committee held several hearings with nuclear experts opposed to the deal because of India’s refusal to sign the NPT (Non-Proliferation treaty).
Australian Minister upbeat on clearing snags in n-deal http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/australian-minister-julie-bishop-upbeat-on-clearing-snags-in-ndeal/article7099688.ece
Hopes that framework for trade can be fixed in 2015
The Australian government is confident of resolving issues over the civil nuclear deal when officials meet next week, said visiting Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop. “Given that the United States and Canada have come to an understanding with India that satisfies their requirements, I don’t see why Australia cannot,” Ms. Bishop told journalists during a closed-door interaction in Delhi. The Foreign Minister also said she hoped the framework for uranium trade could be concluded in 2015.
India and Australia signed the civil nuclear deal in September 2014, which would have enabled Australia to supply uranium to India, once the treaty was ratified by Australian parliament. Continue reading
South Australia’s Premier Jay Weatherill stunned NT Treasurer in his U turn on nuclear power
NT Treasurer stunned by nuclear about-turn in SA Financial Review, by Simon Evans 15 Apr 15 The Northern Territory Treasurer is amazed by the backflip on nuclear policy in South Australia.
Dave Tollner was part of John Howard’s government more than a decade ago when South Australia’s Labor Premier Mike Rann waged a vigorous battle, which went all the way to the High Court, to stop a low-level nuclear waste dump being located in far north South Australia.”I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a turnaround,” he says.
South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill’s royal commission into the potential establishment of a nuclear industry is now well into its first few weeks in South Australia and a likely final report is due early next year.
Mr Tollner, who is now in charge of the purse strings in the Northern Territory in a government led by Chief Minister Adam Giles, recalls the struggle by the Howard government to site a low-level dump near Woomera in far north South Australia which ended in 2004 after Mr Rann won a High Court challenge………
The decision by Mr Rann to oppose a low-level nuclear waste dump ultimately resulted in a federal government proposal almost 10 years later to site a dump on indigenous land at the remote Muckaty station in the Northern Territory. But that proposal also was abandoned when an agreement was terminated by traditional owners in June, 2014 leading federal Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane to seek proposals for a new location……..http://www.afr.com/business/nt-treasurer-stunned-by-nuclear-aboutturn-in-sa-20150414-1mks7n
Tax-payers $billions in auction for Abbott govt’s Direct Action scheme
Direct Action: Billions of taxpayers’ dollars up for grabs in Government-run auction to buy pollution, ABC News 15 Apr 15 By national environment reporter Jake Sturmer and Lisa Main The centrepiece of the Federal Government’s flagship climate policy begins today, with billions of taxpayers’ dollars up for grabs in a Government-run auction to buy pollution.
The Government’s flagship Direct Action climate policy was designed to replace the carbon tax, which was removed in July last year.
At its core is the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF), which is designed to do the heavy lifting in reducing Australia’s emissions, but analysts who have modelled the scheme doubt it will work.
Comprised of $2.5 billion of taxpayers’ money, the ERF will directly pay polluters not to pollute and, among other things, encourage farmers to develop carbon sinks.
Around 250 projects are eligible to bid in this first auction according to the Clean Energy Regulator, with most of those in the land sector.
Bidders will include farmers who allow their property to revegetate with native bushland and piggeries that capture methane released from their animals.
The auction began at 9:00am (AEST) today and closes at 5:00pm tomorrow, with bidders committing how much they will reduce emissions by and then setting a price per tonne of carbon……..http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-04-15/direct-action-taxpayer-dollars-up-for-grabs-in-auction/6392634
2,500 jobs lost through Abbott govt’s attack on renewable energy
Renewable energy sector has lost almost 2,500 jobs in last two years, says ABS report, ABC News, 13 Apr 15 By national environment reporter Jake Sturmer The renewable energy sector has lost almost 2,500 jobs in the last two years, according to official figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Job numbers in the sector peaked between 2011 and 2012 at 14,890, but fell by 15 per cent to 12,590 (a loss of 2,300 jobs) between 2013 and 2014.
Uncertainty surrounding the future of the Renewable Energy Target (RET) hit the sector hard, with industry groups claiming investment in clean technology has virtually stalled.
Major political parties are currently locked in a standoff over how much to cut the RET by, with the Government rejecting a proposal backed by Labor and the Clean Energy Council for a 33,500 gigawatt hour target………
The Australian Bureau of Statistics’ first report into renewable energy employment highlighted how Government policies influence job levels in the sector via taxes, subsidies and pricing policies.
“Uncertainty over the future of the RET, or over the size of the renewable power percentage, is likely to have a flow on effect on future investment in renewable energy infrastructure,” the report said.
Since 2011-12 all mainland Australian states have experienced a decline in annual direct [full time equivalent] employment in renewable energy activities.”
Among the hardest hit were the states of Queensland and Western Australia.
“The largest such fall was in Queensland, where employment fell by 34 per cent from 3,820 to 2,520 between 2011-12 and 2013-14,” the report said.
“For the same period, Western Australia experienced a fall of 920 (from 1,740 to 820), or 53 per cent.”
The report shows the industry grew by 41 per cent between 2009 and 2010 and the peak of 2011-2012. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-04-13/renewable-energy-job-losses/6389242
Energy Australia, Origin Energy and AGL – Australia’s top carbon polluters
Energy Australia’s and Origin Energy’s toxic emissions soared by 500%: GetUp, Guardian, Michael Safi, 15 Apr 15
Activist group also says AGL has become Australia’s biggest carbon polluter, despite generating the highest proportion of its energy from renewable sources Emissions of toxic pollution by EnergyAustralia and Origin Energy have increased by more than 500% in the past financial year, and AGL has become the country’s biggest carbon polluter, a new study claims.
Together the trio account for 13% of Australia’s total carbon emissions, according to the report by the activist group GetUp. It claims the companies operate behind a “smokescreen of sustainability” that obscures their reliance on high-pollution power stations and lobbying to reduce the renewable energy target (RET)……….
GetUp’s director of market impacts, James Grugeon, said he hoped the data would help consumers “to start to make informed decisions” about their power provider. About 70% of Australians are customers of the three companies; that figure climbs to about 90% in NSW……..http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/apr/14/energy-australias-and-origin-energys-toxic-emissions-soared-by-500-getup
Thousands of Australians rally against closure of remote indigenous communities
http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Australians-Protest-Forced-Indigenous-Community-Closures-20150410-0009.html
1 This month
Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes – A good documentary on Chernobyl on SBS available On Demand for the next 3 weeks– https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-program/chernobyl-the-lost-tapes/235274195556
21 April Webinar: No Nuclear Weapons in Australia
Start: 2026-04-21 18:00:00 UTC Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney (GMT+10:00)
End: 2026-04-21 19:30:00 UTC Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney (GMT+10:00)
Event Type: Virtual
A virtual link will be communicated before the event.
Host Contact Info: australia@icanw.org
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity
Antinuclear 