Australia promoting nuclear power in our region
AUSTRALIA PROVIDES ADVICE ON NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY (FED) 15 June 12, Federal Parliament’s Treaties Committee will examine the extension of an international treaty aimed at improving regional cooperation for the peaceful uses of nuclear material. Australia has been a signatory to the treaty, aimed at strengthening the ability of countries in the Asia-Pacific region to safely and securely use radioactive materials for peaceful purposes.
In order to remain a party to it, Australia needs to ratify an extension to the Regional Cooperative Agreement for Research, Development and Training relating to Nuclear Science and Technology. The principle behind the Agreement is that the signatories cooperate with each other to promote research, development and training projects in nuclear science and technology.
Australia-based Barefoot Power provides small scale solar power to 10 million impoverished homes
The Australia-based social enterprise Barefoot Power aims to expand access to its high-quality, energy efficient, affordable light-emitting diode (LED) lamps, home lighting systems and phone chargers, to more off-grid communities with expansion in Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria and India as a focus by 2015. The company has already captured the majority market share in East Africa.
Solar energy enterprise to provide 10 million with access to renewable energy , PR Wire 24 May 12 The BCtA is a global initiative that encourages private sector efforts to fight poverty, supported by several international organizations including the UN Development Programme (UNDP).
Ten million low-income people living in rural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America
and the Caribbean, will gain access to low-cost solar energy by 2015, in part due to a commitment made by solar energy provider Barefoot Power to the Business Call to Action (BCtA).
The BCtA is a global initiative that encourages private sector efforts to fight poverty, supported by several international organizations including the UN Development Programme (UNDP). Continue reading
India’s democracy in peril
Should India’s troubled democracy give way to an authoritarian, and more militaristic regime – should Australia be send ing India uranium, the fuel for its nuclear weapons? – Christina Macpherson
Australia’s next big problem: India’s democracy, SMH, May 21, 2012 Here’s a nasty thought: the big threat to Australia’s commodities-underwritten prosperity extending out to 2030 and beyond is India’s democracy. Much worse though is the threat that irresponsible democracy poses to India itself.
Present crises aside, Australia’s is supposed to live happily ever after thanks to India picking up the commodities demand slack as the Chinese economy matures, thus extending our resources boom for another decade or
two,….,
India barely has manufacturing industry thanks to a conspiracy of poisonous protectionism, stifling bureaucracy and
endemic corruption, never mind the gross waste of resources that is the caste system……
.Should the day arrive when one brand or another of authoritarianism – nationalistic, religious or military – is able to seize control through gross government failure, lack of demand for Australian coking coal could be the least of the region’s concerns. http://www.smh.com.au/business/australias-next-big-problem-indias-democracy-20120521-1z08u.html#ixzz1vYS6w3JG
Australia’s love-in with USA and NATO
(I don’t know about the rest of Australians, but I found this article a bit sick-making – Christina Macpherson)
every time NATO deploys Australia is there as a great, great friend of the United States.
The increased formalisation of ties between NATO and partnership countries will be discussed at a meeting on Monday to be addressed by the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard.
US turns the screws on NATO, lauds its ally Australia SMH, May 19, 2012 “… the report was enthusiastic of the expanding role of non-NATO partnership countries, such as Australia, which was, it noted, among a small group of countries that contributed ”real combat or niche capabilities to the mission” in Afghanistan. Continue reading
Pakistan says it, as well as India, should get Australian uranium
Pakistan has contended that since Australia has lifted its ban for a country that has not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it too should be allowed to benefit from the concession.
Uranium sale: Australia says cases of India, Pak different, Business Standard, 18 May 12, Unlike Pakistan, India has an exemption from Nuclear Suppliers Group Press Trust of India / Islamabad May 18, 2012, Amid Pakistan’s demand that it be given access to Australian uranium for which India has been granted green light, Australia has said it
believes Islamabad is not eligible to buy the yellow cake from it. Continue reading
Australia’s uranium to India, but not to Pakistan
Nuclear deal with Pakistan not possible: Australian HC, Business Recorder 18 May 12, Australian High Commissioner Tim George on Thursday said nuclear deal similar to Australian-Indo nuclear agreement was not possible with Pakistan. George, whose three-year term as Australian envoy to Pakistan comes to an end, was speaking at a farewell news conference. To a question, he said Pakistan does not qualify for Nuclear Supplier Group (NSG) and a bilateral nuclear agreement similar to his country struck with India, was not possible with Pakistan…… http://www.brecorder.com/general-news/172/1190658/
Australian rare earths company Lynas held back by public opposition in Malaysia
the expanding protest movement …… has already delayed the project by eight months and cast a shadow over its future.
The resistance – fed by social networks and Malaysia’s increasingly lively independent online media – also raises broader questions over the global expansion of an industry that has created huge environmental problems in China
Opponents say the Lynas plant doesn’t meet with best practice standards for the industry as it is too close to heavily populated areas and in a place where the ground water level is high. Molycorp’s plant in California, by comparison, is situated far from residential areas in an arid climate.
Citizen backlash keeps Malaysia rare earth plant on hold, The West, Siva Sithraputhran, Reuters May 9, 2012 GEBENG, Malaysia – The expensive machinery lies silent, idling as Malaysia’s government weighs a delicate decision to allow shipments of raw material to arrive from Australia and finally start operations at the world’s largest rare earths plant outside China. Continue reading
Australian government has been intelligent about free trade agreements
virtually every free trade agreement we’ve [ USA] negotiated since the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has contained language that lets foreign corporations sue governments directly — in private and non-transparent tribunals — for unlimited cash compensation over almost any domestic law (environmental or otherwise) that the corporation argues might hurt its profitability.
The sole exception is our free trade agreement with Australia — because the Australian government refused to allow its laws to be attacked by foreign corporations.
That was smart, because corporations have been quick to take advantage of this ability to attack a country’s laws and protections.
What Are They Trying to Hide? HUFFINGTON POST, Michael Brune , 4 May 12, Odds are that you haven’t heard of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement. And even if you’ve heard of it, I’m willing to bet you don’t know what might be in it. That’s because, although this massive new trade agreement could have profound implications for our environment, our health, and the rights of workers, it is being negotiated in almost complete secrecy. Continue reading
Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation helping Japan to study radiation
It’s interesting that ANSTO will be studying ‘naturally occurring radiation” and will be “supporting Japan in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster “. They don’t seem to be showing much interest in monitoring nuclear-power-caused radiation, and I can’t help wondering about that support for Japan. Could it be support for the Japanese government and nuclear industry minimising the real impact of the Fukushima disaster? After all, ANSTO’s main business is in keeping the door open for nuclear power in Australia.
Centre gauges radiation St George and Sutherland Shire Leader BY KATE CARR 27 Apr, 2012 AFTER months of searching for the perfect concrete and pre-World War II steel, ANSTO’s new $8.7 million radioactivity measurement centre officially opened on Tuesday. Federal Science and Research Minister Chris Evans helped ANSTO chief executive Adi Paterson cut the red ribbon and opened the centre, where scientists can accurately measure naturally occurring radiation…..
Dr Paterson said the centre would give ANSTO the tools to monitor the amount of radiation in the environment and undertake research which could support Japan in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster that followed an earthquake and tsunami.
The new centre needed to be built using specialised materials so that it had such low background radiation that equipment could detect tiny amounts of radiation which might otherwise be drowned out. The centre also includes the only ITRAX core scanner in Australia, a piece of equipment used to measure the composition of sediment core samples taken by drilling. http://www.theleader.com.au/news/local/news/general/centre-gauges-radiation/2535888.aspx
U.S. marines unwelcome in Okinawa, moving to Australia
US to move 9,000 Marines out of Okinawa, By Reuters, 27 April 12, WASHINGTON — The United States and Japan announced on Thursday a revised agreement on streamlining the U.S. military presence on Okinawa that will shift 9,000 Marines from that southern Japanese island to Guam and other Asia-Pacific sites. The new plan, unveiled days before Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda visits President Barack Obama, helps the allies work around the still unresolved, core dispute over moving the Futenma air base from a crowded part of Okinawa to a new site that had vexed relations for years.
Under the agreement, 9,000 U.S. Marines will relocate off Okinawa: 5,000 to Guam and the rest to other locations such as Hawaii and Australia, U.S. officials said……
Friction over U.S. bases intensified after the 1995 gang rape of a Japanese schoolgirl by U.S. servicemen. The case sparked widespread protests by Okinawans, who had long resented the American presence due
to crime, noise and deadly accidents. There are about 47,000 U.S. troops in Japan under a 1960 bilateral
security treaty. Okinawa, occupied by the United States from 1945-72, accounts for less than 1 percent of Japan’s total land, but hosts three-quarters of the U.S. military facilities in the country in terms of land area…..
http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/04/26/11418757-us-to-move-9000-marines-out-of-okinawa
Australian company Lynas has ‘no concrete radioactive waste management plan’
Unlike the Lynas plant, the other three refineries’ radioactive wastes are sent back to the respective mines.
“Lynas has no concrete radioactive waste management plan. Lynas claims it can store its waste onsite forever.
The Lynas plant, she added, would have 500 tonnes of liquid discharge per hour channelled into the Balok River.
Lynas whitewashing refinery safety concerns, says Fuziah, The Malaysian Insider, By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal April 16, 2012 KUALA LUMPUR, — PKR’s Fuziah Salleh has accused Lynas Corp of whitewashing safety concerns of its planned refinery in Kuantan by claiming there is a “concerted political campaign” against the plant’s construction,
In response, Fuziah accused the Lynas Corp head of “deviating” from the real issue of safety, saying that a simple
comparative study showed the Lynas refinery did not support any form of “sustainable development.”
“They are not addressing concerns of safety, whitewashing safety concerns, silent about safety issues. “They have only addressed radiation aspects, external radiation… they are narrow-minded in terms of perspective of radiation,” the PKR
vice-president told The Malaysian Insider. Continue reading
Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (LAMP) – profits to Australians, radioactive wastes to Malaysia
Today, the government is the official custodian of this repository in Bukit Merah. This site in Bukit Merah is declared as a restricted and dangerous dump site for radioactive materials but a curtain of official silence has descended on it. Has the government not learnt from Bukit Merah?
The Lynas project is likely to be a replay of the ARE fiasco but on a much larger scale.
The benefits gained by Malaysia from the Lynas investment are very little relative to the risks involved. Whilst the profits of the project go to Lynas (untaxed) and the few Malaysian companies that are involved in the construction of and the provision of supplies to the Gebeng rare earth plant, the radioactive waste will remain in
Malaysian soil for hundreds of years.
Lynas issue: Not learning from bitter experience —The Malaysian Insider, Richard Pendragon, April 12, 2012 — Every Malaysian should know that Australia has a land mass 58 times bigger than peninsular Malaysia. But the Australian government and people have not permitted rare earth processing to take place on Australian soil.
With a population that is vigilant and a government that answers to the people, Australia dares not permit a rare earth plant because the health and environmental risks are too high.
Why does Malaysia – a country with less scientific and engineering expertise – think it is all right to go ahead with the plant? Continue reading
Danger in Australia hosting USA military bases
If too closely aligned with the US, Australia will be associated with any mistakes. US actions, mounted from Australia, will implicate Australia. In the Cold War US joint intelligence facilities were a target for Soviet nuclear weapons……
Australia needs to be careful that it does not make inevitable the future that it should fear the most. Current decisions are being made without public debate or discussion. Once made they will be difficult to reverse.
We must not get too close to the US, BY: PETER LEAHY The Australian April 12, 2012 “……. there can be too much of a good thing, especially if it involves putting unnecessary pressure on China. By substantially increasing its
close relationship with the US, Australia may unduly complicate its relationship with China. Care needs to be taken to ensure that Australia is not caught between the US, as security guarantor, and China as economic underwriter.
As a sovereign nation Australia should maintain the ability to say no to the US and separate itself from its actions. This will require careful thought and deft diplomacy……By agreeing to the US Marine Corps and potentially more extensive air and naval access requests, Australia has confirmed that it is firmly in the US security camp……. Continue reading
2500 U.S. marines in Darwin could be immune from Australian criminal laws
Lawyer Diana Rickard from Basewatch said she had concerns over the Status of Forces Agreement between Australia and the United States, which sets out the legal terms under which the US forces operate while in Australia.
She said the agreement could allow Americans to escape punishment for crimes committed in the course of their duties….
Critics cautious as US marines head to NT, 9 News, 3 April 12, Critics of the US troop build-up in Darwin remain cautious about the move, despite a recent meeting with a senior military official. As many as 250 US Marines are due to arrive in Darwin late on Tuesday, the first of a build-up that will see 2500 American troops in the city by 2017. The troop influx comes after a defence agreement announced by Barack Obama when he visited Darwin in November last year. Continue reading
Australia urges Israel not to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities
Australia joins list of countries warning against Israeli strike on Iran, Haaretz, 31 March 12, Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr phoned Lieberman to lay out Australia’s opposition to an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, and to say that sanctions need more time. By Barak Ravid More and more Western countries are joining a growing list of countries who are applying heavy international pressure on Israel to prevent it from attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities. The latest voice is that of the new Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr….. http://www.haaretz.
1 This month
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
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