Fears over Yarragadee aquifer approval plans

March 19, 2007 - The ABC reports that Western Australia's Conservation Council is warning the State Government to be wary of advice that tapping the Yarragadee aquifer, in the state's south-west, is sustainable...

YARRAGADEE RALLY - TUESDAY 27 MARCH - 1PM PARLIAMENT HOUSE - 11.30 ESPLANADE

See: http://www.yarragadee.org

The Water Corporation is pushing to take 45 gigalitres of water from the aquifer a year for Perth's water supplies. The Minister for Water Resources, John Kobelke, is expected to present a report from the state's sustainability panel on the aquifer proposal.

The WA Conservation Council's Chris Tallentire says the report states the plan is sustainable if triggers are put in place to lower or stop the pumping if damage is detected in the local environment.

The Water Corporation says its plan will have little impact on the region's environment, but Mr Tallentire says there are many other reports that show the opposite.

"We understand that there are a number of consultants' reports that have gone to the panel that have actually indicated that water levels in the south-west Yarragadee area are dropping," he said.

Friends of Yarragadee spokesman Trevor Larke described the report as a 'cop-out', saying the Government’s support for the controversial plan had been a foregone conclusion.

Mr Larke said in corporate media reports that the panel had "ignored the social and environmental impacts which are going to happen to us here." He said opponents of the proposal, who have organised a rally at Parliament later this month which is expected to attract up to 5000 people, would not give up and had vowed to punish Labor at the next election if the proposal went ahead.

Shadow environment minister Steve Thomas claimed the Government would not enforce meaningful triggers on reducing the take from the aquifer after spending $700 million on it. He said the extra 45GL would push the total extraction from the aquifer to 120GL a year, putting pressure on wetlands and tuart forests.

Panel Chair, Barbara Wiese, said the Panel had concluded that the sustainability evaluation undertaken was comprehensive and thorough. "The Panel believes the SW Yarragadee proposal will be sustainable and should be allowed to proceed subject to the implementation of stringent adaptive management and monitoring commitments of the Water Corporation and the recommended conditions of the EPA", she said.

The State Appeals Convener will complete a report into more than 60 formal objections to the EPA’s conditional approval of the Yarragadee proposal by the end of the month. The WA Government is facing fierce opposition to the Yarragadee plan from local residents, farmers and green groups, who argue that tapping the aquifer will cause nearby rivers to dry up, inflicting widespread environmental and commercial damage.

Earlier this month South-West Environment Centre and Friends of the Yarragadee Coalition spokesman John Sherwood urged the Government not to be rushed or blackmailed into making a decision and to carefully assess the impact of drawing vast amounts of water from the aquifer and the potential of alternative sources.

[The Water Corporation wants to spend up to $700 million to take an extra 45 gigalitres a year from the aquifer by the end of 2009 to ensure the metropolitan area’s water supplies to 2015, reduce the prospect of sprinkler bans and negate the immediate need for a second desalination plant.]

SOURCES:
Yarragadee wins top-level approval - The West
Yarragadee delay risks sprinkler ban - The West
Yarragadee plan sustainable: Panel - WA Business News
yarragadee.org/ - Community Action

Fence looks promising in keeping Cane Toads out of WA

16 March 2007 - Toad fence looks promising: A group fighting the inexorable advance of cane toads toward the north of WA may have found the cane toad’s Achilles heel: their poor jumping ability...

The march of cane toads into Western Australia is being halted at the Northern Territory border by a simple fence. Trials of the toad fence, where shade cloth has been attached to existing cattle fences, funnels the noxious pests into traps. Graeme Sawyer from Stop the Toad Foundation says hundreds of toads have been trapped and more work is to be done...

"One of the things that we are looking at with the trial is putting traps on both sides of the fence so we can get some information about which corridors the toads are using and where the toads are hitting the fence, and the relative numbers between the east and the west," Mr Sawyer said. "Research in Queensland and places has shown that toad movement off a population base is pretty much random so you've got toads moving back to the east as well as to the west but we think the predominant movement is west."

Tests using 60cm high shade cloth attached to a 4.2km stretch of station fencing have succeeded in deflecting the toads' advance. The Stop The Toad Foundation, with support from the WA Department of Environment and Conservation, has begun the first major field trial of the shade cloth barrier near Timber Creek in the Northern Territory.

The north-south fence runs along the boundary of Gregory National Park, at the eastern end of the buffer zone where the STTF has focussed its efforts to stop the western advance of the cane toads.

Traps were set at intervals on each side of the fence to catch the toads as they hopped along seeking an opening to pass the shade cloth barrier. In the six days after the tests were started on January 24 the traps had captured 171 toads, and 85 more had been caught along the fenceline by STTF staff, volunteers and the Muyalee Women's Rangers.

Eighty per cent of the toads collected during the six days were on the eastern side of the fence.

STTF now wants to explore the potential use of similar deflection fences at strategic targets such as refuge waterholes in the dry season to deny toads access to water.

"If we can combine the potential of such barriers with the landscape-scale impacts of STTF's Great Toad Muster, which removed nearly 50,000 toads from the front line in 2006, there is a very real chance that cane toads can be delayed from reaching WA for long enough to allow CSIRO to develop a biological solution," said Mr Sawyer.

Preliminary Reprt on Trial Deflection Fence - March 2007 090307_preliminary_report_on_trial_deflection_fence.pdf (PDF 260K)




Last month, following its remarkable success in attacking the advance of toxic cane toads into WA from the Northern Territory, the Stop The Toad Foundation announced its second dry season onslaught.

In the first Great Toad Muster last September-October the foundation, aided by 126 volunteers, cleared a buffer zone 100km east of the WA border by killing 48,374 advancing cane toads. Many were adult females, capable of laying 30,000 eggs in one season. The remarkable operation, the first known attempt to remove cane toads from an area at landscape scale, was made possible because of a $500,000 grant by the WA Government, plus contributions from other organisations and individuals.

STTF Chairman Robert Edel said it was crucial that the achievements of last year's muster should be consolidated by another major effort this year, at the end of the Kimberley dry season. "The evidence gathered since the muster suggests that the operation has been highly effective. Since the muster the Department of Environment and Conservation has returned three times to the buffer zone around Auvergne Lagoon with the cane toad sniffer dog Nifty without finding any evidence of cane toads in the area," said Mr Edel. "We have shown that a concerted effort at the end of the dry season, when cane toads are at their lowest ebb, can have a significant effect in halting their colonisation."

"The toads cannot survive for more than four days without water. To survive at the end of the dry season they have to cluster around the few remaining water holes. By returning night after night to the same water holes we succeeded in wiping out virtually all the cane toads in that area. At this stage we cannot estimate how successful the toads have been in moving westward during this summer's wet season.

"To consolidate the work already done it is essential that we get further funding to return to the buffer zone at the end of the dry season this year. We are hoping that the State Government will continue to support the activity of the Foundation and that the Commonwealth Government will also contribute to this vital volunteer effort. Cane toads are deadly to Australia's native fauna. The only permanent way of eliminating them is by some sort of biological control. Meantime we have to keep up our efforts to keep them out of Western Australia."

www.stopthetoad.org.au

--

For comment contact:

Regional Coordinator
Graeme Sawyer 0411 881 378

Campaign Manager
Dennis Beros 0409 244 029

SOURCE:
http://www.stopthetoad.org.au/media/2007/media070316.php


Report all sightings of cane toads in WA to freecall 1800 084 881 which operates 24 hours a day. Make a note of the date, time and location where you saw the toad and if you can, take a photo of the suspect.

If you find a stowaway in your vehicle, remember to be careful when handling cane toads: toxin is produced in their shoulder glands just behind the ear, and is also present in the skin on the back.

Avoid skin contact with its toxin, and if it gets in your eyes, nose or mouth rinse the area thoroughly with copious amounts of fresh water and seek medical attention urgently. Thoroughly wash hands with soap and water after handling any toads, or use gloves.

Cane toads can squirt toxin from their glands when they feel threatened, so be as gentle as possible.

http://www.canetoadbattle.com/whattodo.html

Debunking the Myths about Asylum Seekers

Debunking the Myths about Asylum Seekers - From September 2001 - The EDMUND RICE CENTRE

http://www.erc.org.au/issues/text/se01.htm

Myth 1 - Boat People are Queue Jumpers

Fact: In Iraq and Afghanistan, there are no queues for people to jump. Australia has no diplomatic representation in these countries and supports the International coalition of nations who continue to oppose these regimes and support sanctions against them. Therefore, there is no standard refugee process where people wait in line to have their applications considered. Few countries between the Middle East and Australia are signatories to the 1951 Refugee Convention, and as such asylum seekers are forced to continue to travel to another country to find protection. People who are afraid for their lives are fleeing from the world's most brutal regimes including the Taliban in Afghanistan and Sadaam Hussein's dictatorship in Iraq. Antonio Domini, Head of UN Humanitarian Program in Afghanistan, states that Afghanistan is one of the most difficult places in the world in which to survive.

Myth 2 - Asylum Seekers are Illegal

Fact: This is untrue. Under Australian Law and International Law a person is entitled to make an application for refugee asylum in another country when they allege they are escaping persecution. Article 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that "Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution." People who arrive on our shores without prior authorisation from Australia, with no documents, or false documents are not illegal. They are asylum seekers - a legal status under International Law. Many Asylum Seekers are forced to leave their countries in haste and are unable to access appropriate documentation. In many cases oppressive authorities actively prevent normal migration processes from occurring. 'Illegals' are people who overstay their visas. The vast majority of these in Australia are from western countries, including 5,000 British tourists.

Myth 3 - Australia Already Takes Too Many Refugees

Fact: Australia receives relatively few refugees by world standards. In 2001 Australia will receive only 12 000 refugees through its humanitarian program. This number has remained static for three years, despite the ever-increasing numbers of refugees' worldwide. Australia accepted 20 000 refugees each year at the beginning of the 1980's. According to Amnesty International 1 in every 115 people on earth are refugees, and a new refugee is created every 21 seconds.

Refugees re-settle all over the world. However, the distribution of refugees across the world is very unequal.
o Tanzania hosts one refugee for every 76 Tanzanian people (1:76)
o Britain hosts one refugee for every 530 British people. (1:530)
o Australia hosts one refugee for every 1583 Australian people. (1:1583)

Myth 4 - We're Being Swamped by Hordes of Boat People

Fact: 300 000 refugees arrived in Europe to seek asylum last year. In contrast, 4174 reached Australia by boat or plane. In 2000, Iran and Pakistan each hosted over a million Afghan refugees. The real burden of assisting refugees is borne in the main by the world's poorest nations.

Myth 5 - They're Not Real Refugees Anyway

Fact: 97% of applicants from Iraq and 93% of applicants from Afghanistan seeking asylum without valid visas in Australia in 1999 were recognised as genuine refugees. Therefore, under Australian law they were found to be eligible to stay in Australia. Generally, 84% of all asylum seekers are found to be legitimate refugees and are able to stay in Australia.

Myth 6 - They Must Be 'Cashed up' to Pay People Smugglers

Fact: It is alleged that people who have the resources to pay people smugglers could not possibly be genuine refugees. The UNHCR disputes claims about 'cashed up' refugees saying that payments made to people smugglers in fact range from $4000 - $5000 AUD. In reality, many families and communities pool their resources in an attempt to send their relatives to safety. People smuggling is a crime that the international community needs to combat. However, this does not negate the legitimacy of asylum seekers' claims, nor their need to seek refuge. The international community, in eradicating people smuggling, is also required to address the growing numbers of asylum seekers throughout the world. As a Western nation, Australia has a role to play.

Myth 7 - There is no Alternative to Mandatory Detention

Fact: Asylum seekers claims need to be assessed for legitimacy. Australia is the only Western country that mandatorily detains asylum seekers whilst their claims are being heard. Asylum seekers are not criminals and detention should be minimal. At a cost of $104 a day per head the policy of detention is very expensive. Community based alternatives to mandatory detention can be found internationally and within the current Australian parole system.

A select Committee of the NSW Parliament has costed alternatives to incarceration including home detention and transitional housing. The average cost of community based programs are (per person, per day): Parole: $5.39. Probation: $3.94. Home Detention: $58.83. These options are clearly more economically efficient, and much more humane.

Sweden receives similar numbers of asylum seekers as Australia, despite having less than half the population. Detention is only used to establish a persons identity and to conduct criminal screening. Most detainees are released within a very short time, particularly if they have relatives or friends living in Sweden. Of the 17,000 asylum seekers currently in Sweden 10,000 reside outside the detention centres. Children are only detained for the minimum possible time (a maximum of 6 days).

Myth 8 - If We Let Them In, They'll Take Our Benefits

Fact: A common misconception is that refugees arriving in Australia will 'steal' the entitlements of Australians. The reality is that refugees, like migrants, create demand for goods and services, thus stimulating the economy and generating growth and employment. A recent UCLA study has shown that unauthorised immigration boosts the US economy by $800 billion per year.

Sources

Amnesty International website, www.amnesty.org.au

Amelia Bookstein (2001), 'UNHCR and forgotten emergencies: can funds be found?', Forced Migration Review (FMR), April, http://www.fmreview.org/fmr1014.htm.

Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (2000), 'Key Facts in Immigration', Fact Sheet, http://www.dima.gov.au/facts/02key-2.htm#6.

Interim Report on the increase in Prison Population, Issues Relating to Women, June 2000, NSW Parliament.

Peter Mares (2000), Borderline: Australia's Treatment of Refugees and Asylum Seekers, University of New South Wales Press, Sydney.

St Vincent's Reconciliation Group, 'Pamphlet', 2001.

Sydney Morning Herald, 31.8.01.

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) (2000), 'Reception Standards for Asylum Seekers In the European Union', UNHCR, Geneva.

7.30 Report, Interview with Justice Marcus Einfeld, ABC TV, Sydney, 12.4.01.

This material is the sole property of the Edmund Rice Centre for Justice & Community Education and the School of Education of the Australian Catholic University. Reproduction is not ordinarily permitted without the permission of these organisations, however, an exception has been made for this issue provided that acknowledgment is given.

Premier drives into Climate Change activists - NSW

Tuesday, March 20, 2007 - Security scuffles with protesters over climate change action - NSW election campaign.

The Premier's security team took to a group of climate change activists this morning during his visit to a Newcastle factory. The Premier's vehicle drove through the group of demonstrators...

NSW Premier Morris Iemma has been confronted by climate change activists at the foot of of the world's biggest coal port this morning, about the Government's plans to double coal exports from Newcastle - massively increasing the state's contribution to global climate change.

The Premier's security team took to a group of climate change activists this morning during his visit to a Newcastle factory. The Premier was in his car being driven into Downer EDI to inspect new rail carriages being built by the company.

Several protesters, from climate action group, Rising Tide (http://risingtide.org.au) concerned over massive coal expansion in the region, jumped onto the Premier's' car.

Protesters were violently crash-tackled to the ground and put into headlock by the Premier's security team.

As the Premier's car arrived at the EDI rail sheds this morning, next to the Kooragang Coal Terminal, 9 climate change activists from Rising Tide Newcastle stood in front of the Premier's car, attempting to engage him about his government's plans to double Newcastle coal exports.

The Premier's vehicle drove through the demonstrators, tearing a large banner.

A spokesperson for the protesters, Georgina Woods, said "Newcastle coal exports are this state's biggest contribution to global climate change, producing more greenhouse pollution than every other activity in this state combined. If the Iemma government was serious about climate change, they would be developing a plan for Newcastle to move away from the coal industry. Instead, the Iemma Government is currently doubling Newcastle coal exports."

The demonstators rejected the Premier's claims that he was attacked. "At no stage did we attempt to grab or touch the Premier in any way. We simply wanted to get as close to him as possible to attempt to engage him on the issue of coal exports. Morris Iemma can no longer ignore this issue."

Ms Woods said the people were not trying to hurt the Premier. "We were just trying to get our point across that we can't afford to increase Newcastle's coal exports any further," she said. "We do feel really strongly about this issue and we were trying very hard to get the Premier's attention and he was totally ignoring us, but nobody was trying to attack anyone. All we needed to do was to make our point."

Rising Tide Newcastle has hit out at the Labor party for what it says is misleading and cowardly greenhouse emissions policy that will condemn NSW to accelerated climate change. Rising Tide say NSW is directly responsible for 150 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent entering the atmosphere every year. Carbon dioxide released from exported NSW coal which is burnt overseas, comes to an additional 220 million tonnes per year. Neither figure shows any indication of falling in the foreseeable future.

Rising Tide say: "The trajectory NSW is following is going to devastate the ecology of this state. The Labor Government’s plan does not cut emissions by anywhere near the degree necessary to avoid a 2ºC warming scenario, which will lead to nearly 80% loss in coral reef systems globally and an up to 70 per increase in forest fires in the coming decades..."

"The Labor Government is living in a fantasy land when it comes to climate change..." Currently Newcastle exports over 80 million tonnes of coal per year. Recent extensions have lifted capacity to over 100 million tonnes per year. Two separate projects are also awaiting decisions from the NSW Government - the proposed expansion of the Kooragang Coal Terminal, and the proposed construction of a new Coal Export Terminal next door, Rising Tide say in a communique.

Together, these two projects would lift the coal export capacity of Newcastle to 211 million tonnes per year. At that level, the greenhouse emissions from Newcastle coal exports would rival the emissions from every single source within Australia's borders - every coal plant, every steel mill, every vehicle, every land clearing operation...

---

Recently a satirical website created by Rising Tide Newcastle was shut down by powerful coal industry lobby group, the NSW Minerals Council, before being relocated offshore. SEE: http://www.miningnsw.com.au/

In February, members of the environmental action group Rising Tide Newcastle built a plywood and 44-gallon drum obstacle to block the doors of NSW Labor's Sydney office. The activists placed a large wooden sign across the entrance of the ninth-floor offices of the NSW ALP shortly before 9am. One member locked herself to the barrier with a large metal bicycle lock. Police were called to the building shortly after 9am and, after negotiations, 10 of the 12 activists left the building voluntarily at 10.10am. Police cut the lock from Dean's neck and arrests were made.

SOURCES:
Security scuffles with protesters as Iemma tours factory - ABC
Labor party policy is condemning NSW to catastrophe - Rising Tide
PERTH INDYMEDIA: Coal lobby censors climate change website
Two arrests in coal protest - News Ltd: Feb 27, 07
Iemma confronted over coal exports and climate change - RISING TIDE NSW

McDonalds, Hungry Jacks, Eagle Boys charged with exploiting children in WA

March 20, 2007 - Fast food chains across WA have been charged and fined for illegally employing children. Hungry Jacks, McDonalds and Eagle Boys Pizza have been fined for employing children...

Three fast food companies in Western Australia have been fined almost $100,000 for illegally employing children aged under 15.

In the Industrial Magistrate's Court, Hungry Jacks in Kalgoorlie and Joondalup have pleaded guilty to 52 charges of breaching the act. McDonalds in Kalgoorlie has pleaded guilty to 26 charges and Eagle Boys Pizza, also in Kalgoorlie, has been fined for four breaches, including employing a 12-year-old child.


Three Kalgoorlie fast food outlets have been fined a total of $94,000 after pleading guilty to charges of breaching the law governing the employment of children. Hungry Jack's, McDonald's and Eagle Boys Pizza were all fined in the Perth Industrial Magistrates Court yesterday for a range of offences that included illegally employing children under the age of 13 and not seeking parental permission to employ a child under the age of 15.

The Hungry Jack's store in Joondalup was also fined for similar breaches of the Children and Community Services Act. Labour Relations acting director of compliance and education, Joseph Lee, said the charges were disappointing because all the businesses had been informed of the law prior to the incidents occurring.

“Under the Act children under 13 years of age are not permitted to work in such businesses at any time and employers must have written consent of a parent or guardian before employing a child aged less than 15,” Mr Lee said. It is also illegal for children between the ages of 13 and 15 to work shifts that start before 6am and finish after 10pm.

Hungry Jack's said it accepted responsibility for the breaches and had regretted the incidents. McDonald's Kalgoorlie was fined $25,000 for 26 charges. Four of the charges were for illegally employing children under 13 years. These children worked a total of 103 shifts - outside the hours permitted for a child 13 to 15 years of age.

Eagle Boys Pizza was fined $4000 for four charges, including one count of employing a 12-year-old child to work six shifts and two counts of employing children aged less than 15 years outside permitted hours. The company was also fined for failing to obtain written consent from a parent. An Eagle Boys spokesman said the company regretted the breaches.

More charges against McDonalds in Rockingham have been adjourned until next month.

--

* Under the Children and Community Services Act, it is illegal for children under 13 years to work in restaurants, and children aged between 13 and 15 cannot work shifts that start before 6:00am or finish after 10:00pm.

SAUCES:
Fast food chains fined for illegally employing children - ABC
Fast food outlets exploited children - The West

WA prison: shameful, third world conditions a national disgrace

MARCH 20, 2007: Broome prison conditions likened to Third World

Western Australia's prison inspector has been scathing about the conditions at a prison in Broome in the state's north-west, calling them "shameful" and "Third World". Broome Regional Prison was once dubbed the worst in Western Australia and the state's Inspector of Custodial Services, Richard Harding, believes not much has changed...

He has just inspected the ageing facility in Broome's town centre and says the conditions would not be tolerated in a southern prison where the population is predominantly non-Aboriginal. The outspoken former crime researcher has called on the State Government to firmly commit to additional prison accommodation in the Kimberley, where 95 per cent of prisoners are Indigenous.

The prison was built to house about 60 prisoners but often holds twice that. The professor released a similar report card on Broome Prison in 2002 and there have been three reports released since then calling for urgent change.

The Minister for Corrective Services, Margaret Quirk, has conceded the conditions at the prison are unacceptable and a new prison needs to be built in Broome. "This is one of our absolute priority issues," she said. "I've been making very strong representations and we've all been working very hard.

"I regard the conditions of Broome as being urgently remedied, so that's why we're immediately working on some important upgrades to provide a more humane environment in the meantime." Ms Quirk says plans for a new prison are well advanced and $11 million will be spent upgrading the existing facility.

Meanwhile there are calls for better incentives to attract officers to work at the prison. The Western Australian Prison Officers Union says the State Government has pledged to increase numbers, but the process is not happening quickly enough.

The union says the extra numbers are urgently needed to handle the prison population, which exceeds 100. Union secretary John Welch says a new recruitment strategy is needed. "There are things that are being done and I don't want to be critical of those, but we're saying simply that we need to go further and faster," he said. "We also need to take pressure off Broome Prison, it's running with very high ... [numbers], the number of prisoners that is within the prison."

A Labor backbencher has described the health and imprisonment statistics of Aborigines in Western Australia's north-west as a "national disgrace." Tom Stephens was commenting on strong criticism of Broome Regional Prison by the inspector of custodial services, Richard Harding.

Professor Harding has renewed his plea for new prison facilities, calling conditions at the existing overcrowded jail shameful.

Mr Stephens, the Member for Central Kimberley-Pilbara, says the jail is just part of a bigger picture of neglect which every Western Australian should be embarrassed about.

"[It is] absolutely unacceptable to me that we've got so many places around the regional areas of Western Australia where the schools are inadequate, the communities are inadequate, the housing is overcrowded and we've got a backlog of problems that is absolutely huge and channelling people almost directly from the maternity wards into the jails," he said.

Meanwhile, health organisations have gathered in Alice Springs ahead of a new Aboriginal health campaign to be launched next month. Oxfam are coordinating the 'Close the Gap' campaign, which calls on governments to commit to achieving Indigenous health equality in 25 years.

Oxfam say: "It is a national scandal that the life expectancy for Indigenous Australians is almost two decades less than the general Australian population. While most women in Australia can expect to live to an average age of 82 years, an Indigenous Australian woman can expect to live to only 64.8 years. The situation is even worse for Indigenous men whose life expectancy is only 59.4 years. From injury, to road trauma, to diabetes, to cancer, to respiratory disease and infant mortality, Indigenous health lags behind that of most Australians and is often comparable to that of the world's poorest nations including Mozambique and Bangladesh..."

SOURCES:
Broome prison conditions likened to Third World - ABC

MLA labels WA Aboriginal health, jail stats a 'national disgrace' - ABC


Organisations combine to achieve Indigenous health equality - ABC

CLOSE THE GAP - OXFAM

WA prison: shameful, third world conditions a national disgrace

MARCH 20, 2007: Broome prison conditions likened to Third World

Western Australia's prison inspector has been scathing about the conditions at a prison in Broome in the state's north-west, calling them "shameful" and "Third World". Broome Regional Prison was once dubbed the worst in Western Australia and the state's Inspector of Custodial Services, Richard Harding, believes not much has changed...

He has just inspected the ageing facility in Broome's town centre and says the conditions would not be tolerated in a southern prison where the population is predominantly non-Aboriginal. The outspoken former crime researcher has called on the State Government to firmly commit to additional prison accommodation in the Kimberley, where 95 per cent of prisoners are Indigenous.

The prison was built to house about 60 prisoners but often holds twice that. The professor released a similar report card on Broome Prison in 2002 and there have been three reports released since then calling for urgent change.

The Minister for Corrective Services, Margaret Quirk, has conceded the conditions at the prison are unacceptable and a new prison needs to be built in Broome. "This is one of our absolute priority issues," she said. "I've been making very strong representations and we've all been working very hard.

"I regard the conditions of Broome as being urgently remedied, so that's why we're immediately working on some important upgrades to provide a more humane environment in the meantime." Ms Quirk says plans for a new prison are well advanced and $11 million will be spent upgrading the existing facility.

Meanwhile there are calls for better incentives to attract officers to work at the prison. The Western Australian Prison Officers Union says the State Government has pledged to increase numbers, but the process is not happening quickly enough.

The union says the extra numbers are urgently needed to handle the prison population, which exceeds 100. Union secretary John Welch says a new recruitment strategy is needed. "There are things that are being done and I don't want to be critical of those, but we're saying simply that we need to go further and faster," he said. "We also need to take pressure off Broome Prison, it's running with very high ... [numbers], the number of prisoners that is within the prison."

A Labor backbencher has described the health and imprisonment statistics of Aborigines in Western Australia's north-west as a "national disgrace." Tom Stephens was commenting on strong criticism of Broome Regional Prison by the inspector of custodial services, Richard Harding.

Professor Harding has renewed his plea for new prison facilities, calling conditions at the existing overcrowded jail shameful.

Mr Stephens, the Member for Central Kimberley-Pilbara, says the jail is just part of a bigger picture of neglect which every Western Australian should be embarrassed about.

"[It is] absolutely unacceptable to me that we've got so many places around the regional areas of Western Australia where the schools are inadequate, the communities are inadequate, the housing is overcrowded and we've got a backlog of problems that is absolutely huge and channelling people almost directly from the maternity wards into the jails," he said.

Meanwhile, health organisations have gathered in Alice Springs ahead of a new Aboriginal health campaign to be launched next month. Oxfam are coordinating the 'Close the Gap' campaign, which calls on governments to commit to achieving Indigenous health equality in 25 years.

Oxfam say: "It is a national scandal that the life expectancy for Indigenous Australians is almost two decades less than the general Australian population. While most women in Australia can expect to live to an average age of 82 years, an Indigenous Australian woman can expect to live to only 64.8 years. The situation is even worse for Indigenous men whose life expectancy is only 59.4 years. From injury, to road trauma, to diabetes, to cancer, to respiratory disease and infant mortality, Indigenous health lags behind that of most Australians and is often comparable to that of the world's poorest nations including Mozambique and Bangladesh..."

SOURCES:
Broome prison conditions likened to Third World - ABC

MLA labels WA Aboriginal health, jail stats a 'national disgrace' - ABC


Organisations combine to achieve Indigenous health equality - ABC

CLOSE THE GAP - OXFAM

How to write a Media Release

How to write a Media Release

MEDIA RELEASE: Releasing a thing into the media!

Media releases/statments/communiques are written or recorded communication directed at producers of news media. We use them to announce something we deem as having news value. We are entering into the news media cycle. The makers of memes.

How to Write Media Release: Below is a basic outline on how to write a media release...
MEDIA RELEASE: "ACTION". FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE. NO EMBARGOS.

Media releases are generally emailed, faxed, or posted to editors at newspapers, magazines, radio, TV stations and networks, media websites etc. Commercial newswire services, such as AAP, Reuters etc, also disseminate news releases. News releases are also used to announce news conferences.

NEWS MEDIA FODDER: A news release is not a news article. A news article is a compilation of facts developed by journalists published in the news media, whereas a news release is designed to be sent to journalists in order to encourage them to develop articles on the subject.

A news release is generally considered as biased or having a particular, ideological 'Point Of View' towards the objectives of the author.

The targetted regurgitation of news releases is rampant in the PR (public relations) industry. PR people aim to procure maximum favorable/positive media focus (spin) for their clients - whose products often become major news items - consumed by millions..


Media Releases are the fundamental fuel of uber-modern media. Rarely does a journo need to leave the office to write a story. News releases feed the beast of global competitive newsmedia hyperbole - because they are fast to consume and easy to reuse. I often see Media Releases reprinted verbatim on corporate and government newswires, or regurgitated word-for-word in the press.

Journalists love it when they don't have to do much more than copy n paste a few quotes. MAybe pick up the phone or shoot an email to grab an exclusive quote - if you are important or considered newsworthy enough.

Writing a media release:
Keep it simple, mate. Ideally a media release is only one A4 page - preferably with an 'official' letterhead. The document is typed, well presented with decent margins. Head the page – MEDIA RELEASE!

Manufacturing semiotic consent: A.B.C. - Accurate. Brief. Concise.

HEADING: Provide a readable heading which clearly identifies the subject matter of your media release. Include the date.

FOOTER: At the bottom include your title, name, email, telephone, and mobile numbers for a contact person. If appropriate, include the time and date for a photo opportunity. Contact times if applicable. Embargo dates are sometimes used.

"FIVE Ws and an H": Think about constructing your media release to answer the six basic journalist questions:

1. What happened? 2. Who was involved? 3. Where it happened? 4. When it happened? 5. Why it happened? 6. How it happened? Everything else can be considered superfluous...

Make sure the intro paragraph demands attention. The intro should include the key facts about your project. In writing the intro think:

What is about to happen? What has happened? What is the most important point you want to get across here? Be clear and precise.

////West Australian environmentalists undertaking a study into wombat urine say the much loved Golden-legged Willerby Pinterbean is on the critical list.////

Assume most of your text will not be used. Go the pyramid-style. Make sure the most important information is first, then the next most interesting detail, followed by other information. Don’t save the best for last! A list of 8 second bites is the key.

/////Proffessor Phillip Jonestown-Arthurs, who is leading a research project at Perth's Yagan Valley University, says wombat urine may be a key to discovering a cure for headlice. However, in undertaking their inner-city study the scientists learned the Golden-legged Willerby Pinterbean Beetle is on the critical list////

Write from a journo's point of view. Think about what will make your story relevant to media consumers. Use plenty of short quotes from the hierarchy of relevant people involved in the project.

/////Professor Jonestown-Arthurs' team found the beetle population is in rapid decline. "The little bastards are nearly all gone," said the Professor. "We have been eating them the whole time."/////

Style: Keep the text short and simple. Be factual, but not jargonistic. Use clear, accessible, everyday, bus stop language. Technical or highly academic descriptions sound boring or may confuse - and get binned.

If editors want more information they will contact you. Be ready for them. Be courteous. Return their calls promptly. Make sure you define your comments as "Off the Record" if you are unwary or unsure of a fact.

It's critical to have a handy list of extra points ready to rattle off. And a list of other reliable people to contact.

Sometimes it may be worthwhile ringing the editor to see if they got the release. But be careful you don't piss these people off too much though. They are people in stressed out jobs - who get to decide what is and isn't newsworthy. Be nice.

Avoid abbreviations and acronyms where possible. Avoid long sentences. Complicated syntax is a problem when information is being read over the radio or television.

Try to limit your sentences to 20-25 words. All the details on one page is BEST.

DON'T HATE THE MEDIA - USE THE MEDIA

========================

Some other good sources:

Media – Preparing a Winning Strategy – Writing a Media Release:
http://www.ourcommunity.com.au/marketing/marketing_article.jsp?articleId=1575

How To Write A Media Release:
http://www.arc.org.au/groups/ARCSchoolsCompetition/page.cfm?pageID=121

How to write a media release that gets read:
http://www.write.co.nz/mainsite/HowToWriteAMediaReleaseThatGetsRead.html

How to Write a Press Release:
http://www.allinfoaboutmarketing.com/index.php?page=42

============================

READ A LOT OF REAL MEDIA RELEASES! Once you've read lots of media releases, the format becomes clear. They are pretty basic little bastards.

The entire media machine relies on media releases for content. Its the raw data for corporate, government spin.

Here's some links to good professional media releases:

Prime Minister John Howard:
http://www.pm.gov.au/News/media_releases/index.cfm

CSIRO:
http://www.csiro.au/csiro/channel/pch5,,.html

Greens Senator Bob Brown:
http://www.bobbrown.org.au/600_media.php

ECU's media releases
http://ecumediaqa.ids.ecu.edu.au/mediarelease.asp

UWA Media Statements
http://www.uwa.edu.au/media/statements/

UC Berkeley
http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/index.html

Australian Gov Media Release Homepages
http://www.australia.gov.au/media-sites

BHP BILLITON Investors & Media
http://www.bhpbilliton.com/bb/investorsAndMedia/home.jsp


==========MEDIA RELEASE EXAMPLE==========

MEDIA RELEASE

Saturday, 5th August, 2006

Flannery reveals Australia to be world nuclear waste dump

Brown challenges Beazley

The Greens have welcomed Tim Flannery's revelation that Australia has been selected as the world's nuclear waste dump by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

"Both Prime Minister Howard and Labor Leader Beazley want open-slather uranium exports," Greens Leader Senator Bob Brown said in Hobart today.

"But neither is being honest with Australians. They know their policy will lead to our country becoming the world's nuclear waste dump.

"The site selected by the IAEA, according to Dr Flannery, is the Officer Basin on the WA-SA border region.

"But Tim also makes it clear that Australia going all out nuclear will only reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by one per cent. It is a stupid proposition for our nation.

"Where Tim dips out is in failing to mention energy efficiency which can provide much more power for Australia, more cheaply and with more jobs than nuclear. And he has given scant recognition to renewables, including solar, where Australia has world's best technology.

"Mr Beazley, in Hobart for this weekend's state Labor conference, should admit that the price of Labor going all out for uranium exports is a giant waste dump with attendant nuclear shipping, port facilities and cross-continent waste transport.

"Instead of transforming Australia into a nuclear nation forever, the Greens' energy policy would make us a world leader in energy efficiency and the export of solar technology," Senator Brown said.

Contact: Katrina Willis 0437 587 562

Katrina Willis
Adviser
Senator Christine Milne
Phone 03 6234 4566
Fax 03 6234 2144
Mobile 0437 587 562
www.christinemilne.org.au

Nauru deadline 'impossible' – bring fleeing Tamils to Australia

19th Mar 07 - Six month Nauru deadline an impossible task – bring them to Australia...

Nauru's acting Foreign Minister, Frederick Pitcher, has set a deadline of six months for 82 Sri Lankan asylum seekers to be processed. Mr Pitcher says a welcoming ceremony was held for the 82 asylum seekers, mostly Tamils, who arrived on Nauru on Sunday. He says while his Government is happy to take the men, he wants their claims processed as quickly as possible.

"Six months would be the time frame that our Cabinet has agreed to," he said. He says the Government of Nauru does not want to see a repeat of a situation where two Iraqi men were forced to remain on the island for five years. "Our message to ... the Australian Government - is that they be processed as soon as possible and be taken of the island."

He said Australia is the best place to settle any genuine refugees. "That's a matter for the refugees and the Australian Government, but I would assume if they're granted status that allows them to reside in a country other than Nauru, preferably Australia if possible," he said. "I think that's what the refugees and asylum seekers want, but it's entirely Australia's decision whether or not they take them."

David Manne, who heads the Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre, said he spoke with two of the Sri Lankans late on Friday. "They were extremely fearful of their fate and desperately wanted to stay in Australia and be assessed and protected in Australia under Australian law," Mr Manne said. "They were very frightened about going to Nauru, they were uncertain about what would happen to them there. They were highly anxious, confused and desperate."

The Opposition attacked Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews yesterday, questioning his competence and knowledge of the immigration portfolio after comments he said the group could have lodged refugee claims in their home country. "They could have claimed that (refugee status) in Sri Lanka," Mr Andrews said. However the UN's definition of a refugee says they must be outside their country of nationality. Opposition immigration spokesman Tony Burke said, "You'd think as a starting point, the Minister for Immigration would have at least worked out what a refugee is," Mr Burke said.

Australian Greens Senator Kerry Nettle said that it will prove "impossible" to process and find third countries for the 83 Sri Lankans within the six month deadlines set by the Nauru government and that they should be brought to Australia now rather than delay the inevitable.

"Given the current processing system and that the UNHCR will not take part in it, the government will find it virtually impossible to assess and find third countries to take these 83 people," said Senator Nettle.

"The Nauru government has shown more morality than the Australian government by setting this deadline rather than leave refugees in limbo for years. Kevin Andrews will have to transfer a lot of departmental staff and assist the lawyers if he expects to meet the deadline. It would be far more humane, simpler and much less expensive to bring them to Australia for processing."

"The defeat of the Designated Unauthorised Arrivals (DUA) bill last year should have been a signal to the government that offshore processing was no longer acceptable to the public or parliament. The six month deadline will expire just before the federal election. John Howard must realise that this attempt to shirk our international responsibilities will come back to hurt him politically at a vulnerable time."

The Greens said about the defeated 'DUA bill' last year, that the idea "Australia should try and shirk its responsibilities under international law by sophistry and deception is morally repugnant..."

"Offshore processing and official discrimination toward asylum seekers based on their mode and place of arrival was originally implemented for political reasons. It involved shipping asylum seekers to a small island nation that is essentially bankrupt and dependent on Australia for survival. Nauru was essentially bribed by our government to participate in a scheme designed to reap political gain for the Howard government by exploiting xenophobia, presenting asylum seekers as a threat and repelling this threat, while pretending to abide by the Refugee Convention," said the Greens in a report to Senate.

SOURCES:
Nauru sets deadline for asylum seeker processing - ABC

Six month Nauru deadline an impossible task - Senator Nettle

Minority Report by Australian Greens - DUA

Tamil refugees dispute Andrews claim - The Australian

Land carve up won't deliver Aboriginal home ownership

MARCH 15, 2007: Land carve up won't deliver Aboriginal home ownership

"Mal Brough's plan to overturn Aboriginal community ownership of their land is not about private home ownership on remote communities. It is just a foot in the door strategy to overturn community land tenure," said Senator Rachel Siewert today.

"This is not the way to tackle the Aboriginal housing crisis."
Federal Indigenous Affairs Minister Mal Brough is intensifying pressure on the West Australian and Queensland governments to reform land management to force indigenous people to buy their own homes - despite widespread poverty in their communities. The Federal Government argues that promoting private ownership can break the poverty cycle, and predicts families may one day be able to buy homes.

Mr Brough said he was tired of waiting for the Territory Government to create a system under which indigenous communities could sell their land. Mr Brough said said he wanted states to change their laws to fast-track home ownership across the country.

But Senator Racheal Siewart disagrees: "For a government that promotes itself on its economic credentials, this plan is an embarrassment. The Minister has failed home economics 101. Private home ownership is not the economic panacea, nor is it realistic," said Senator Siewert. "Any Australian family wanting to buy its own home does the maths to see what mortgage they can afford."

"Aboriginal families on these remote communities have the lowest disposable incomes in the country, and houses in remote communities are the most expensive to build," she said. "Which bank would loan a family $400 000 to build a house, knowing that they couldn't meet the payments and the resale value of the asset is so poor?"

"The government is not putting on the table the $2-3 billion needed to address the Aboriginal housing crisis," said Senator Siewert. "How is it that overturning community tenure suddenly fixes this problem? Research clearly shows that land tenure is not the major obstacle to Aboriginal home ownership," said Senator Siewert.

"In the absence of a major investment to back it up, it is clear that the push for private ownership of community lands is purely ideological and will not deliver an end to the housing crisis," she concluded.

Under the existing arrangements, home ownership is only legally possible on collectively owned indigenous land in the Northern Territory. But it cannot be delivered without a body to manage buying and selling 99-year leases which confer title over housing blocks to individuals.

The Federal Government can effectively seize control of the Top End process because it is a territory, but it cannot enforce changes in other states, which would have to introduce their own legislation.

Tangentyere Council day patrol worker Creed Joseph yesterday was sceptical about whether indigenous Australians should be encouraged to buy their own houses. "It's hard enough for Aboriginal people to get jobs," he said. "And those that do work can't afford a loan, so how can people be expected to pay for it?"

Senator Rachel Siewert
NT land seize plan - The Sunday Times

Australia "deports" Sri Lankans to Nauru limbo

Thursday March 15, 2007 - Sri Lankan Nauru "deportation" does not export Howard's election problem

Eighty-two asylum seekers are currently being housed on Christmas Island and will be flown to the tiny island nation by charter plane. The Federal Government has announced it will move the Sri Lankan asylum seekers from Christmas Island for processing in Nauru. Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews says the decision will "send a message" to asylum seekers.

The group of mainly Tamils was intercepted in international waters last month and taken to Christmas Island - where the Howard Government is building a $300 million, 800-bed detention centre.

One of the men is being treated in a Perth hospital, while two Indonesian crew members have been charged with offences under the Migration Act.


WA Rights group Project SafeCom says Mr Andrews' announcement that the Sri Lankan asylum seekers will be "carted off, exported, people-smuggled to Nauru is cruel, heartless, astoundingly expensive and inhumane."

"Like a stubborn old man, basking in his past glorious victories, Howard yet again deports defenceless people to Nauru, to keep this issue out of the news, and "just because he can", but the Prime Minister is wrong," Safecom spokesman Jack H Smit said.

"Australians, through David Hicks, have woken up on the issue of human rights and decency of international conventions and John Howard's role in undermining these conventions." Mr Smit described the move as an "expulsion away from the scrutiny of Australian law and Australia's obligations to the UN Convention."

"This is another appalling disregard for the asylum seekers and their international right and some form of decency owed to them because of the situation they fled from - a rapidly deteriorating situation in Sri Lanka..." said Mr Smit.

Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews says the decision will send a strong message to those considering any attempt to enter Australia illegally.

"Australia has to continue to be vigilant in terms of maintaining a very strong border protection and we'll take whatever measures we can to ensure that Australia's borders are protected," said Mr Andrews. "These people smugglers presumably sold the passage, which has been reputed to have been between $,5000 and $10,000 US, per head, on the basis that they would get to Australia and our message of deterence is that we will process them in a way which doesn't involve the entry into mainland Australia"

One of the Sri Lankan asylum seekers has appealed to the Immigration Minister to grant him protection in Australia. The 31-year-old Tamil says he faces serious human rights abuses if sent back. The man, who had shrapnel embedded in his brain from a bomb and has mental health problems, is the only Sri Lankan able to get legal assistance after he was flown to Perth last week for urgent medical treatment.

Refugee centre co-ordinator David Manne said the man had a compelling case for refugee status because he was a Tamil who had experienced severe trauma, including being the victim of a bomb attack. "Past persecution is a powerful indicator to future risk," Mr Manne said.

Foreign Minister Alexander Downer has said the Government is still negotiating with Indonesia over the asylum seekers. There are concerns that the group will not be resettled in Australia - even if they are found to be genuine refugees.

The Howard Government recently told a group of Burmese asylum seekers they would not be issued with visas even if found to be genuine refugees. "On Nauru they are fundamentally out of sight, out of mind, out of rights," David Manne said - expressing concern that the "fundamental unfairness" of processing claims on Nauru could result in the forced deportation back to Malaysia.

The eight Burmese men currently held on Nauru have spent months in limbo since their boat arrived to Ashmore Reef last August. The Australian Government have focused on enticing them back to Malaysia where the men were previously trying to survive in difficult, insecure and often frightening circumstances.

Susan Metcalfe writes: "Australia's practice of deterring asylum seekers, by pushing them back or diverting them to other countries, is about avoiding engagement with some of the most vulnerable and most powerless people in the world. It is about blurring the lines of Australia's responsibilities while avoiding the humanity of those who arrive, as well as our own."

Greens Senator Kerry Nettle says transferring and detaining the 83 Sri Lankan asylum seekers on Nauru will cost at least $60 million of taxpayer dollars and is completely unnecessary.

Departmental figures show the cost of keeping asylum seekers on Nauru was $30 million per year in 2003-04. The average length of stay on Nauru has been over two years. If the Sri Lankans are there for two years it will have cost taxpayers at least $60 million. Indeed, the aeroplane used to transfer just eight Burmese asylum seekers from Christmas Island to Nauru cost $225,000.

"It is a long way from Christmas Island to Nauru and 83 people plus new staff and resources will need multiple jet flights. The cost may approach a million dollars. Christmas Island detention centre is also irresponsibly expensive at $1830 per detainee per day. That means keeping the Sri Lankans on Christmas Island is costing over $1 million a week," said Senator Nettle.

SOURCES:

Asylum seekers to be sent to Nauru - ABC
safecom.org.au
Sri Lankans moved to Nauru - Sunday Times
Tamil appeals to minister for asylum
Off loading our problems off shore - Susan Metcalfe
Asylum seekers fear return to Malaysia - The Age
Transferring Sri Lankans to Nauru could cost $60 million - Senator NettleChristmas Island centre in limbo - The Australian
Australia's million-dollar-a-month Nauru detention centre for two refugees - Wikinews

Howard's Nuclear Future - Reeks of Cronyism, Hypocrisy and Misinformation

MARCH 5, 2007: The controversial appointment of high profile nuclear-power proponent, Ziggy Switkowski - to head Australia's nuclear research body (ANSTO) has been widely criticised. Dr Switkowski's report to Prim Minister Howard late last year proposed a scenario of 25 Australian nuclear reactors. Critcs say "due process had been thrown out the window in the nuclear debate".

“We are talking about the world’s most hazardous energy source, yet the Government process to investigate whether Australia should adopt it has not been independent, not rigorous, not transparent, not robust. It is simply not good enough,” said ACF nuclear campaigner Dave Sweeney.

Meanwhile, John Howard's push for dozens of Australian nuclear reactors and his relationship with nuclear reactor proponents - Ron Walker and friends - highlights the cronyism and hypocrisy of a nuclear power push in Australia...
The Federal Opposition has criticised the Government's appointment of Ziggy Switkowski as chairman of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO). Science Minister Julie Bishop says Switkowski is the ideal choice to head ANSTO, as Australia considers nuclear power as an alternative to coal.

Labor's Kim Carr is critical of Switkowski's ANSTO appointment, saying: "his recent report for the Prime Minister lends weight to the view that he will be pursuing an agenda by this Government, for this Government, to impose nuclear power upon Australia."

With the Prime Minister's push for nuclear reactors, and his dubious relationship with nuclear-reactor proponent Ron Walker, the subject of intense scrutiny, the nuclear power hypocrisy deserves to be put under the microscope.

Howard admitted last week that Liberal powerbroker Ron Walker was setting up a nuclear energy company around the same time he announced the taskforce, headed by former Telstra chief Switkowski. Mr Walker and fellow businessmen Robert Champion de Crespigny and Hugh Morgan registered Australian Nuclear Energy Pty Ltd on June 1 last year, five days before Mr Howard set up his prime ministerial taskforce. ANE was forced to deny newspaper reports that it was planning to build Australia's first nuclear power station in either Victoria or South Australia.

ANE issued a statement saying it was a "private company established to examine potential commercial responses to future energy needs" and denied it had proposed to build nuclear power plants.

Greens' nuclear spokesperson, Senator Christine Milne, said Howard and Rudd need to be straight with the community about uranium mining, exports, nuclear reactors and waste dumps and the discussions they are having with party backers, pollsters, the mining industry and nuclear proponents.

"It is no wonder Australians are confused about how Australia is suddenly in the grip of a major nuclear push when overwhelmingly the community opposes it. Conflicts of interest, hypocrisy, and cronyism are rife. Transparency of process and freedom of information are the cornerstones of democracy. They are sadly lacking in Australia right now," Senator Milne said.

The federal opposition says the new chairman of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) has been appointed to follow the government's agenda. "Whatever Mr Ziggy Switkowski's considerable professional qualifications, this will be seen as a highly controversial appointment," Labor's science spokesman Kim Carr said.

Despite scientists and the community objections, Switkowski's report proposed that nuclear-power would offset climate change because it would be clean and cost competitive in its own right.

Labor's Energy spokesman Chris Evans says Mr Howard is pushing an agenda. "It's clear that the Prime Minister is encouraging people to go down the path of nuclear energy," he said. "The Howard Government's plan to take us down the nuclear path is much more advanced than people thought."

The Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) says Switkowski's appointment represents a conflict of interest. ACF's Dave Sweeney said Switkowski's appointment showed that due process had been thrown out the window in the nuclear debate currently raging in the country. Mr Sweeney said the appointment highlighted the Government's quest to push nuclear energy, especially when the Government had not yet responded to Dr Switkowski's nuclear inquiry report.

"We are talking about the world's most hazardous energy source, yet the government process to investigate whether Australia should adopt it has not been independent, not rigorous, not transparent, not robust," he said. "It is simply not good enough."

Mr Sweeney said the Prime Minister's haste towards a nuclear program had seen an unashamedly pro-nuclear Mr Howard hand-pick a taskforce to examine domestic nuclear power and then appoint as taskforce chairman a man who was on the board of Australia's largest nuclear agency.

He said the taskforce delivered a "one-eyed pro-nuclear report" that lacked detail on costing and siting, failed to address the two key issues of nuclear safeguards and radioactive waste, and was widely criticised. "Before the dust settles on this report, before the Government has even formally responded to this report, its chief author is promoted and put in charge of its implementation," Mr Sweeney said. "Mr Switkowski has a clear conflict of interest. "

Labor called Dr Switkowski a "pawn for the Government". But Dr Switkowski said his experience heading up the nuclear power study would be an advantage in his new position. "ANSTO itself, I think, is well progressed in its thinking around all aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle," Dr Switkowski said on ABC radio. "The fact that I now return as chairman will lead to a situation where the board will continue to be, I think, conversant with and in some cases quite expert in the areas of ANSTO, which is what you would want."

Meanwhile, John Howard himself told Parliament last week that: "I might remind the leader of the Opposition that the laws of the Commonwealth and the state as they now stand, prohibit any nuclear power generation in Australia..."


The Premier of Victoria, Steve Bracks, said he would hold a plebiscite if the Federal Government tried to override state laws and build a plant in Victoria. "There's no safe way of storing radioactive waste, No. 1," he said. "No. 2, the general safety of the plan is questionable, and No. 3, the economics are just not there." The South Australian Premier, Mike Rann, said no reactor would be contemplated while he was premier.

Labor's environment spokesman, Peter Garrett, said he was surprised the plans to build a plant were so advanced. "Australians are very clear that they don't want nuclear energy and nuclear power in this country."

The Wilderness Society spokeswoman Imogen Zethoven said any Australian nuclear plan must be stopped. "If we just went blindly down this path of producing nuclear power we would just end up with this massive waste problem which would become Australia's biggest waste problem ever and for an extremely long time."

The 'debate' continues...

---

SEE RELATED:
Suburban homes uninsured against nuclear accidents || NT Uranium Mine Danger: Heavy rains pose radioactive risk to Kakadu

---

SOURCES:
ABC News
Media Release - Senator Milne
The Age
News Ltd
Ziggy’s promotion a process meltdown - ACF
WA Business News
Govt to nuclear company - ABC PM
Howard's nuclear plan 'more advanced' - ABC News
Sydney Morning Herald
Businessmen deny nuclear proposal - SMH

NT Uranium Mine Danger: Heavy rains pose radioactive risk to Kakadu

MARCH 5, 2007 - Ranger danger: Heavy rains pose radioactive risk to Kakadu - Australia’s largest National Park faces the threat of radioactive and heavy metal contamination from flooding at the controversial Ranger uranium mine in Kakadu. Operations have been halted and workers evacuated from Energy Resources of Australia’s mine after access was cut by rising water...
There are serious concerns over the risk of contaminated water and mine wastes from Ranger being spread through the wider Kakadu environment. In 2003 a Senate Inquiry into Ranger concluded that ‘the intense and highly seasonal wet season of the NT makes the dispersion of mine waste waters the main threat to ecosystems’ and found ‘a pattern of underperformance and non-compliance’.

The Australian Conservation Foundation has called for the urgent implementation of the Senate recommendations and an independent review of water and waste management at the Ranger mine in the light of the latest flooding and contamination risk.

“As the flood waters and radioactive risks continue to rise the federal government remains complacent,” said ACF nuclear campaigner Dave Sweeney. “For four years the government has failed to implement a set of commonsense recommendations. It has found time to try and dump radioactive waste in the NT and promote domestic nuclear power but not to protect World Heritage Kakadu.”

“This latest flooding shows the real impacts and risks of uranium mining,” said Dave Sweeney. “ERA wants to extend the life of Ranger mine, instead they should be cleaning up and clearing out – this industry is neither foolproof nor waterproof. Uranium mining is not a clean trade. Federal Labor should not consider new uranium mines when the existing ones are leaking, dangerous and deficient.”

Uranium mining consumes millions of litres of water every day and a huge amount of electricity. It generates an estimated 1 million tonnes of greenhouse gases every year, and has displaced many square kilometres of native vegetation to make way for the processing plants and tailings dumps.

The uranium is used to generate power in a nuclear reactor, power that Prime Minister John Howard says is "cleaner and greener than just about any other form of energy". But in the rush to embrace nuclear power as a way to combat climate change, the damage uranium mining does to the environment seems to have been all but forgotten.

Australian uranium mines and tailings dumps have a history of leakages and spills; many of the accidents have been minor but some have been serious. The most notable in recent years involved the contamination of workers' drinking water at the Ranger uranium mine in the Northern Territory in 2004. It happened when water used during the uranium extraction process was mistakenly connected to the drinking-water supply.

The Northern Territory Government viewed the breaches of regulations at the mine "very seriously". It recommended the first prosecution against Energy Resources Australia since it had begun operating the mine in the world-heritage Kakadu National Park in 1980.

Doctors were unable to advise the workers about the long-term effects on their health because no one in the world had ever drunk such large amounts of uranium-contaminated water.

SOURCES:
ACF MEDIA RELEASE
The Age
Sydney Morning Herald
Anti-Nuclear Alliance of Western Australia
Cyclone causes flooding across NT - ABC

Great Southern Plantations destroying Tiwi forests

The destruction of thousands of hectares of pristine native forests on Melville Island must stop immediately! - From the newswire - March 5, 2007:

Great Southern Plantation (GSP) are clearing 26,000 hectares of native eucalypt forest on Melville Island, north of Darwin. Vast tracts of native Tiwi forest are being cleared-felled to establish introduced 'monocultural' plantations for woodchips. The project is supported by the Tiwi Land Council, but is opposed by hundreds of Melville locals. In 2006 GSP had approval to clear 10,000 hectares – making it northern Australia’s single largest native forest destruction project. [ Environment Centre NT ]

The forests being destroyed by GSP are rich in native wildlife and there is much concern that the destruction of the Tiwi forest places threatened species at increased risk of extinction. GSP have stated that they intend to expand the clearing of Tiwi native forests up to 100,000 hectares. This expansion would be environmentally devastating and economically and culturally disastrous for the Tiwi people. [ PERTH PROTEST ACTION: TWS - FEB 07 ]

The Tiwi forestry project is currently under investigation by the Commonwealth due to serious environmental breaches and despite Indigenous people being told that logs cleared and exported were "worth millions of dollars", they did not receive ANY INCOME from the sale of these logs. Around 500 Tiwi Islanders recently signed a petition calling for an inquiry into land use decisions on the Tiwi Islands. After 4 years only one local Indigenous person is currently employed full time on the forestry project - with another 2 part-time employees, out of a total workforce of around 60.

A better future for the Tiwi Islands: "Rather than continue with the greedy destruction of the beautiful, culturally valuable and wildlife-rich native forests of the Tiwi Islands, governments and business should work with the Island community to develop sustainable, high-value economic activities based on the conservation and appreciation of the unique cultural and ecological heritage of the Tiwi islands..."

READ MORE/Comment

PREVIOUS FEATURES:
Great Southern Plantations destroying Tiwi Islands |

Great Southern Plantations Ltd: ripping the heart out of Tiwi

Coal lobby censors climate change website

5 March 2007: MINING INDUSTRY SILENCING DISSENT: A satirical website created by climate action group Rising Tide Newcastle has twice been shut down this fortnight by powerful coal industry lobby group, the NSW Minerals Council...
The website is a parody of the NSW Minerals Council's big-budget spin-doctor campaign to promote the 'virtues' of the coal industry.

Climate activist group Rising Tide built the site to highlight the growing contribution coal exports make to climate change.

Greens MP Lee Rhiannon has criticised the powerful coal industry lobby group, the NSW Minerals Council, for attempting to censor the climate change debate by getting their lawyers to shut down a community based climate change website.

"This is an extraordinary case of censorship by the powerful coal industry," said Ms Rhiannon. "The NSW Minerals Council is pulling out all stops to censor public debate on the deadly impact of coal on our climate at a time when robust open debate on the future of coal is urgently needed."

"A recent Hunter survey that showed more than half of people in the Hunter now feel the negative impacts of coal far outweigh the positive benefits, has pushed the powerful coal lobby to this desperate measure."

After lawyers for the NSW Minerals Council complained to the website hosting company that Rising Tide's content was in breach of copyright, the website was shut down. Rising Tide contested this claim and hit back by re-designing the website to ensure it was not subject to copyright, but the lawyers moved in a second time and had the website shut down again. Rising Tide has now filed a counter claim that the NSW Mineral Council's grounds were spurious, and have re-launched their website today using an overseas internet service provider to protect the site from further attack.

"The NSW Minerals Council must be prepared to face open debate about coal instead of censoring community opinions that they are uncomfortable with," said Ms Rhiannon.

- NSW Mineral Council's coal public relations website – www.nswmining.com.au
- Rising Tide's parody website – www.miningnsw.com.au

The website was conceived as a response to the Minerals Council's “Life. Brought to you by Mining” advertising campaign.

The Minerals Council campaign, which argues that mining is inextricable from modern luxury can be viewed at www.nswmining.com.au. Rising Tide members created a parody website at www.miningnsw.com.au in order to present the other side of the story and address the damage wrought by mining to the local and global environment and to the local community.

Steve Phillips, spokesperson for Rising Tide Newcastle said, “The coal export industry constitutes NSW's biggest single contribution to global climate change. There is also growing public awareness of the terrible impacts of coal mining on biodiversity, water and air quality. The Minerals Council want people to know that luxury is dependent on mining: All we want is for the public to be fully informed about the consequences of that luxury, and to realise that while we can have jobs without coal, and we can have energy without coal, we cannot have a coal industry without climate change.”

Rising Tide has now moved the site to an off-shore host in order that the information contained within it can remain in the public domain.

“The Minerals Council is abusing legal process to ensure that its public-relations spin is unquestioned and that community criticism of its methods or message is quashed as quickly as possible” said Ned Haughton, the site’s graphical designer.

Mr. Phillips continued, "We have issued a counter-notice rejecting the Minerals Council's spurious claims. The Minerals Council now has ten days in which to take the matter further."

“The Minerals Council say they want a “balanced debate” on the impacts of coal mining on local, regional, and global environments – we welcome that wholeheartedly. Their rhetoric however, is sharply at odds with their attempts to silence legitimate criticism from community groups.”

For more information:

Ned Haughton on 0417 484 735
Steve Phillips on 0437 275 119.

Background:
* On February 19th this year, the NSW Minerals Council (NSWMC) launched an expensive public relations campaign with the slogan “Life: Brought to you by mining.” The campaign includes billboards, television, and newspaper advertisements, and the website www.nswmining.com.au

* Shortly after the launch of the NSWMC website, Rising Tide Newcastle (RTN)set up a satirical and critical website at www.miningnsw.com.au. This website was a mirror image of the NSWMC website, except that the text was different, describing the negative social and environmental effects of the mining industry.

* The hosts of the RTN website were contacted by NSWMC lawyers within 24 hours of the launch of the site. The NSWMC lawyers abused a clause of the Commonwealth Copyright Regulations to forced the website hosts to remove the site. RTN created the original website as a satirical imitation of the NSWMC site, with rewritten commentary. While this was most probably legal under the Copyright Act's Fair Dealing clause as a parody, the hosts were legally required to remove the site pending a response to the Minerals Council's claim of copyright infringement, which did not specify the articles of alleged copyright.

* RTN then completely re-made the site, with original layout and images that were either original or used with permission, in order to remove all possibility of copyright infringement. The NSWMC lawyers nevertheless contacted the new website hosts within 24 hours, with a similar claim letter, and again had the site removed under Regulation 20J of the Copyright Regulations.

* While the site had not contravened any copyright laws, as the lawyers for the NSWMC may well have known, the host was again legally obliged to remove the site.

* RTN have submitted a counter-notice, rejecting the allegations of the NSWMC. The NSWMC now have a 10 period in which they can take the matter further, which would require taking RTN to court over the incident.

* In the meantime, the RTN website has been relaunched with an offshore host. International copyright law does not have the same automatic take-down clause of Australian copyright law.

SOURCES:
melbourne.indymedia.org/news...
Parody Site: miningnsw.com.au
risingtide.org.au
Sydney Indymedia - Climate Mining

WA government let Woodside's bulldozers destroy Burrup rock art

February 28, 2007: Bulldozers turned loose on the Burrup rock art - The Western Australian Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Michelle Roberts, has given her approval for energy giant WOODSIDE to clear a large expanse of land on the Burrup Peninsula, in the WA's north-west, as part of its massive Pluto gas development. Mrs Roberts says the project is too significant to be abandoned. But critics of the plan to detroy some of the 30,000 year-old rock art say Minister Roberts is "bloody-minded" and "Orwellian" in her refusal to discuss the simple alternative of relocating the site, not the rock art...
"The Western Australian Government is treating Aboriginal heritage with contempt," says WA Greens Senator Rachael Siewert. "Traditional Owners opposed development in this area... the Aboriginal Cultural Materials Committee opposed development in this area," said Senator Siewert. "But through sheer bloody-mindedness and refusal to consider alternate locations, Woodside has been given approvals to destroy the area."

Mrs Roberts approval ignores calls for the project to be moved to protect its ancient rock art, with Federal Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull refusing to safeguard the site by giving it a national heritage listing. Roberts' approval will almost certainly cause even more damage to the already descrated Burrup Peninsula rock art province. It seems WOODSIDE and the WA Government are acting against the wishes of hindreds of thousands of people across the planet, as well as the site`s Aboriginal custodians and the scientific community.

"It is ironic that Woodside will have to 'provide a comprehensive cultural management plan' for the areas that have been spared from the bulldozers," said Senator Siewert. "This kind of Orwellian language would not be necessary if the Government was properly upholding its responsibilities to look after cultural heritage."

Indigenous Affairs Minister Michelle Roberts gave Woodside the green light to develop Site B on its $10 billion Pluto gas project on the Burrup Peninsula, arguing the dollar value of the controversial development was too great to ignore - despite the potential solution of shifting the site.

But Mrs Roberts claims there were no economically viable alternative sites to Pluto site B. The project is still awaiting further environmental approvals and a final investment decision by Woodside is not expected until the middle of the year, but its LNG exports are set to start in 2010.

According to The West Australian Newspaper, Woodside welcomed Mrs Roberts’ decision but said it was one of several approvals it required for the project to proceed. Liberal MP Colin Barnett — who has been campaigning to move the project to a cleared, adjacent site leased by the North-West Shelf Venture Partners — said he was disappointed with the decision. Mr Barnett said Woodside could face legal ramifications because Pluto had not been subject to a State agreement.

The Burrup Peninsula is the world's largest outdoor rock engraving site, containing rock art of world importance possibly dating back to 30,000 years ago, including possibly the first ever representation of the human face in history.

Pictures of rock art removal on the Burrup peninsula show hundreds of boulders lying in piles amid red dust and rubble, after being bulldozed in recent weeks to make way for Woodside Petroleum's Pluto gas processing plant. The secretly taken photographs show the extent of removal of rocks containing ancient Aboriginal carvings dating back as far as 10-20,000 years. Scraped and smashed rocks, with carvings visible on some surfaces, lie in piles several metres high.

The National Trust of Australia, says the government has effectively sanctioned the continued destruction of one of the world's great rock art galleries. "It's an absolute disgrace and there will be outrage internationally," state National Trust executive director Tom Perrigo said, describing the government as having
"utter contempt for this national treasure."

Senator Siewart says: "This is a unique place that meets the criteria for heritage listing. He is making Australia an international laughing stock. Following delays by both WA and Federal for heratige listing, Site A of the Woodside development has been bulldozed, resulting in the removal of hundreds of pieces of rock art and loss of their cultural value."

No moves had been made by the Commonwealth or State governments to discuss the possible co-location of the Woodside development.

"I ask once again - why hasn't the Commonwealth used its influence to try and facilitate such discussions? Mr Turnbull is failing Australia's heritage, and one can only presume the reason for delay is to let development proceed without heritage listing," Senator Siewert said.

Friends of Burrup Rock Art convenor Robin Chapple said the federal and West Australian governments should halt further clearing and direct Woodside to relocate its Pluto plant to a cleared site owned by the North West Shelf joint venturers. "Otherwise we'll end up as international pariahs viewed in the same light as the Taliban when they blew up the Bamiyan statues," he said.

Burrup rock art vigils held in recent weeks in several countries, including at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, have intensified international coverage of the Burrup's fate. More vigils are planned at the mouth of France's rock art-decorated Lascaux Caves, in Rio de Janeiro and in Canberra.

SOURCES:
ABC News
The West
standupfortheburrup.com
Media Release
The Australian
burrup.org.au/

Japan abandons whale-hunting season in Southern Ocean

FEBRUARY 28, 2007: "No More Whales Will Die This Season"

Following direct action by Sea Shepherd and Greenpeace in Australia's Southern Ocean, Japan is set to abandon whale hunting in the Antarctic for this season after its main whaling ship was crippled by a fire two weeks ago.

"Finally, the burnt-out hulk of the whale killing floating factory called the Nisshin Maru is limping out of the Antarctic treaty zone, the stench of rotten whale meat lingering in its wake. The whale-killing fleet is now slowly heading north to Japan..."
No more Southern Ocean whales will die from grenade-tipped harpoons this season, and the threat to the Antarctic enviromment by the fire-damaged Nisshin Maru has now been averted.

The Nisshin Maru, the 8,000 tonne factory whaling vessel has been stranded in since the fire, which killed a crewman. The Japanese fleet sailed out of Antarctic waters on Wednesday.

"We acknowledge your grief at the loss of your crew member," Greenpeace told the crew of the Nisshin Maru in a radio message. "But this must be the last time your Government sends you to the Southern Ocean to hunt whales and threaten the Antarctic environment. For the sake of the environment, the whales and your crew – never again!"

Japan's whale hunt, which Tokyo says is conducted for research purposes, had aimed to catch more than 900 whales. The hunt has come under growing pressure from environmental groups, who say it is cruel and violates a 1986 global ban on commercial whaling. The meat ends up in restaurants and on supermarket shelves.

The fire aboard the Nisshin Maru had also sparked concern that oil or chemicals could spill into the Southern Ocean, close to the world's biggest Adelie penguin breeding colony. Japan, which claims whaling is a cherished cultural tradition, has expressed increasing frustration with the International Whaling Commission in recent years.

Earlier this month Tokyo hosted a special meeting of the commission aimed at shifting its focus to whale management and away from the moratorium, but almost half the member countries boycotted the event.

So, the 2006/2007 campaign is now officially over. The efforts of Sea Shepherd have highlighted the ongoing illegal activities of the Japanese whaling fleet.

Japanese whalers were killing highly endangered whales in an international whale sanctuary in violation of the global moratorium on commercial whaling. Japan is engaged in numerous international crimes and they must be opposed and they must be shut down.

This year, call it fate, call it karma, or call it the will of God, but whatever it is, the results have been wonderful for the whales.

seashepherd.org/whales
greenpeace.org/oceandefenders
Death Star Returns to the Land of the Rising Sun