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Destruction of Carbon bank, Reject Alice Uranium Licence, Water Reform

Tue, 2008-08-12 17:17 — Cyber Activist

Tuesday, 5 August 2008

Rudd must end destruction of Australia's biggest 'Green Carbon' banks, native forests - Greens

The Australian National University's report on the role of natural
forests as Australia's biggest carbon banks underscores the horror of logging in an age of climate change, Australian Greens Leader Bob Brown said today.

"Native forest logging is the Rudd government's biggest blind spot in tackling climate change. It is three times worse for climate change than previous assessments estimated (640 units of carbon, not 217) and in tall eucalypt forests like those of Victoria's central highlands or Tasmania's Styx, Weld and Florentine valleys, it is 10 times worse (over 2,000 units of carbon)," Senator Brown said.

"The Rudd government should be leading the charge in Copenhagen to ensure the green carbon in the natural forests of both developed and developing countries are recognised and protected."

The ANU report says logging 'is equal to 24 per cent of the 2005
Australian net greenhouse gas emissions across all sectors; which were 559 million tonnes of CO2 in that year'.

"That is more than the whole of the transport sector," Senator Brown said.

Senator Brown said that Prime Minister Rudd approving Gunns' pulp mill in Tasmania will be a culpable act, worse than approving a new
coal-fired power station.

"Ending logging costs nothing but a transition package for workers and has a huge bonus in protecting wild flora and fauna, as well as water storages. However, Mr Rudd has, quite perversely, already offered $100 million of taxpayers' money in transport infrastructure largely aimed to get Gunns' pulp mill up and going."

Senator Brown said that the blind spot on the destruction of
Australia's biggest carbon banks by the export woodchip industry was facilitated by the widespread placement of forestry aficionados in government agencies, including the Australian Greenhouse Office.

"The AGO's failure to produce this analysis years ago is deliberate
and inexcusable. It has undermined the Office's own mission," Senator Brown said.

NOTES

1. Native forests and other native vegetation store massive amounts of carbon. Logging carbon rich native forests greatly exacerbates global warming.

2. Protecting and restoring native forests and their stored carbon
is a central and positive part of the solution to the climate crisis
in Australia, as well as globally.

3. Emissions (not net emissions) from native forest logging and
clearing exceeded 90 Mt CO2 in 2006 (the most recent figures
available), compared with 80 Mt CO2 for transport.

4. All emission sources should be reduced, including from native
forest logging and clearing of native vegetation (not necessarily via
emissions trading). Currently native forest logging is ignored in the
proposed CPRS and there is no serious attention to reducing emissions from land clearing.

5. Emissions from native forest logging and clearing are largely
avoidable. The simplest way to deal with them is through regulation and a transition package to assist affected workers and industries.

6. The only aspect of 'forestry' proposed to be covered by
emissions trading is new plantations (planted from 1990), boosted by existing tax deductions. These compete with agriculture for land and water.

Report says native forests store 3 times as much carbon as previously thought (9 times as much in Tasmania's Styx Valley)

The report says native forests hold 9.3 billion tonnes of carbon (a
car emits 4 tonnes per year).
-------------------------------------------------
Monday, 4 August 2008

Greens call on major parties to reject Alice Springs uranium
exploration licence. The two major parties should reject the Cameco/Paladin application for a uranium exploration licence close to Alice Springs, Australian Greens Leader Bob Brown said today, following his visit to the Northern Territory.

"A uranium mine 21km from the CBD of Alice Springs is unthinkable," Senator Brown said.

"Labor and the Country Liberal parties should have already rejected the Cameco/Paladin application," Senator Brown said.

"The uranium exploration site covers the subterranean water source for Alice Springs and it is also in the path of seasonal dust storms. If it goes ahead it will create radioactive waste that will be toxic for thousands of years."

"Alice Springs is already a global attraction with it stunning natural
environment and rich cultural history. The approval of an exploration licence will threaten jobs in tourism and other local industries, aswell as damage Alice Springs' clean solar city image," Senator Brown said.

Senator says Environment Minister Peter Garrett should make clear he will stop the mine if Territory authorities give it the go ahead.

A short YouTube clip about the licence application, made by the NT
Greens, can be viewed at: http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=36vOfdA5cvQ

---------------------------------------------------

Monday 4 August 2008

Give it some teeth: Greens call for truly independent water authority

Greens Senator for South Australia Sarah Hanson-Young has said there must be a truly independent water authority for the Murray-Darling to have a chance at being restored.

"Under the current model, State Premiers can veto the decisions of this supposed 'authority'," said Senator Hanson-Young.

"Unless we have a genuinely independent national water authority, that actually has teeth to enforce its rulings, the river will die.

"The present situation is a mess of bureaucracy and buck-passing.

"Prime Minister Rudd must take leadership on the issue and facilitate a properly national approach to fixing this disaster."

The Greens are backing scientists' calls for new water to be released into the river system by October, in order to restore environmental flows to the parched waterway.

"The Murray needs a drink before Christmas," concluded Senator
Hanson-Young.

Senator Sarah Hanson-Young will be attending the rally at Goolwa next Sunday August 10 from 10.30am in support of the River Murray.
---------------------------------------
For further information please call Gemma Clark on 0427 604 760

Further information: Ebony Bennett 0409 164 603
Ebony Bennett
Media Adviser
Office of Greens Senator Bob Brown
Ph: (02) 6277 3170
Fax: (02) 6277 3185

Visit Bob's new myspace site at:
www.myspace.com/bobbrowngreens

Northern Territory Intervention

Thu, 2008-04-03 13:49 — Cyber Activist


http://www.listenupaustralia.org/

The Pledge to LISTENup!
http://www.listenupaustralia.org/the_pledge?page=7

We pledge to LISTENup! to Aboriginal and Islander Voice and support the Principles of:

Join the nuclear industry DOTS!!!!!!!

Thu, 2007-10-25 10:45 — Cyber Activist

by Dr. Alison Broinowski
(Published with permision from the Author for not-for-profit public awareness purposes)

"In late June and early July, just as the Howard Government was dispatching the army to Aboriginal communities to deal with sexual abuse, the U.S. military was involved for two weeks in northern Australia in the biggest ever joint exercise, Talisman Sabre.

Most Australians saw no connection.

Military training areas, uranium mines, sites for future nuclear waste dumps and now Aboriginal land seized by the Commonwealth are dots across the Australian map.

Several of them are connected by the Adelaide-Darwin railway. Having been many times promised, the $1.3 billion link from Alice Springs to Darwin was surprisingly found viable in 1999. By January, 2004, the train was running. The only tenderer, according to research at University of Technology Sydney, was the FreightLink consortium led by Halliburton (then headed by US vice-president Dick Cheney), with state, territory and federal contributions.

FreightLink owns the railway and can operate it for 50 years. It has contracted UK firm Serco, to staff and service the train.

Serco, which manages British nuclear power plants, gained a reputation in 2000 for sacking workers without AWAs at Australian naval bases in Jervis Bay.

In November, 2006, FreightLink was reported to be facing its third annual loss in a row. It tried to sell a majority stake in the railway for $360 million, without success. The owners promised to invest an additional $14 million over three years, presumably betting on the line's long-term profitability.

It must expect - or have been promised - the railway will serve the potentially lucrative nuclear and defence industries.

Between 2004 and 2006, the Australian and U.S. governments announced more collaboration between American forces and the ADF, including missile defence (Star Wars) training, and interoperability. Several defence facilities in northern Australia have been built or expanded:

at Bradshaw and Delamere in the Northern Territory, Shoalwater Bay in Queensland and Yampi Sound and Geraldton in Western Australia.

The railway passes near several bases, the biggest uranium deposits in the world and the mines at Olympic Dam (Roxby Downs), Beverley, Ranger and Honeymoon.

Freightlink's main business now is transporting iron ore, manganese and uranium to Darwin for export. In June, 2006, just before Prime Minster John Howard set up a nuclear power inquiry, businessmen Hugh Morgan, Robert Champion de Crespigny and Ron Walker registered Australian Nuclear Energy. It later emerged they had discussed with Mr Howard a plan to build a nuclear plant near Port Augusta.
----
(Learn more about Hugh:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Morgan_%28Australian_businessman%29
> snip from Wikipedia

>In June 2006, Hugh Morgan formed the company Australian Nuclear Energy with Fairfax chairman Ron Walker and fellow mining executive Robert Champion de Crespigny, planning to build nuclear power plants in Australia. Morgan has a 20% stake in the company.

Controversially, Prime Minister John Howard revealed that he had a discussion with Mr Walker about the company days before he announced an inquiry into nuclear power (the inquiry predicted that Australia could have 25 nuclear reactors producing a third of the country's electricity by 2050)

Formerly an outspoken opponent of Aboriginal Land Rights (Morgan claimed Native Title threatened Australia's sovereignty), Morgan has more recently spoken of reconciling mining with Aboriginal welfare. With newly introduced, less transparent conservation agreements under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act , Morgan has flagged how an internationally owned nuclear waste repository could now be built (such as the one recently announced on Aboriginal land).

see more about Ron and Robert
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Walker
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Champion_de_Crespigny
------
The railway would take uranium ore to Darwin for export, enrichment and fabrication, and bring it back to Port Augusta as nuclear fuel for the reactor. The spent fuel
would then go back by rail to Darwin for export, or return to the NT for disposal at a waste site.

The only "suitable" sites for disposal of nuclear waste under federal government control are in the NT. If the Commonwealth takes control of as many as 80 Aboriginal communities through five-year leases in the name of
protecting children, it will put vast land areas at the Federal Government's discretion.

The Government has begun to repeal parts of its 1999 legislation prohibiting nuclear activities.

But it is unlikely before the 2007 election to say where or how Australian nuclear waste will be stored.

The U.S., meanwhile, has more than 47,000 tonnes of high-level nuclear waste to get rid of, because its new site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, does not meet safety requirements.

The controlling American interest in the railway indicates Australia will store American waste too.

It takes more than the Ghan railway to connect the dots in an election year. A lot more is happening than Australians are being told.
---------
Dr Alison Broinowski is a former Australian diplomat
and is now a visiting fellow at the Australian National
University's Faculty of Asian Studies. Her latest book
is Allied and Addicted.

Submissions due Friday (tomorrow) on Feed-in Tariff for renewables

Thu, 2008-08-14 22:04 — Cyber Activist

Your chance to support Christine Milne's FIT Bill
Posted by: "Steve Meacher" via Climate Emergency Network
Date: Wed Aug 13, 2008 1:19 am

This Friday, August 15, is the deadline for submissions to the SenateInquiry into Christine Milne's Private Member's Bill for a nationalgross Feed-in Tariff for all renewable energy technologies.

http://greensblog.org/2008/06/20/help-me-make-a-renewable-feed-in-law- a-reality/

http://www.aph.gov.au/Senate/committee/eca_ctte/renewable_energy/ index.htm

Perhaps funding policy needs a bit of a "tweek"

Tue, 2008-08-05 18:05 — Cyber Activist

Perhaps funding policy needs a bit of a "tweek"
'500 apply for solar rebate per week' - http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/latest/4846677 [Full thread - Climate Change Action Group]

Public Forums

Sun, 2008-06-15 10:43 — Cyber Activist

Greenpeace and the Total Environment Centre would like to invite you to their exciting public forums, discussing how Australia can end its reliance on coal and shift to a renewable energy future.

Host: Greenpeace Australia Pacific

CANBERRA:
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
5:30pm - 7:00pm
Australian National University, Manning Clarke Centre, Theatre 6
Canberra, Australia

MELBOURNE:
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
6:00am - 8:00am
Swanston Room, Melbourne Town Hall, Swanston Street,
Melbourne, Australia

SYDNEY:
Thursday, June 26, 2008, 6:00am - 8:00am
Location: Moot Court, Law Faculty, UTS
(Access via Quay St Haymarket) City of Sydney, Australia

Phone: 0292630359 Email: sara...@greenpeace.org

Greenpeace has just released a ground breaking new energy scenario for Australia. The scenario has been modelled by Sven Teske from Greenpeace International and Dr. Hugh Saddler, Managing Director of Canberra-based company Energy Strategies and one of Australia's leading experts on energy and environmental policy. It provides a blueprint for an energy transition in Australia, and shows how we can achieve drastic cuts in emissions up to 2050 through a combination of aggressive energy efficiency measures and the acceleration of renewable energy.

Sven Teske is in Australia in June to launch the report and will speak at the forum alongside (in Sydney) Dr. Mark Diesendorf, from the Institute of Environmental Studies, UNSW, and Tim Ayres, NSW Assistant Secretary of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union.

All are welcome to attend, but please make sure you RSVP to sara...@greenpeace.org

Blog: Greenpeace, USA

Fri, 2008-03-28 18:26 — Cyber Activist

At Greenpeace USA:
Blog:
http://members.greenpeace.org/gpblog/
Forum:
http://members.greenpeace.org/phpBB2/
(free registration and validation required)

Collection posted to my blog from GCCA:

Join the nuclear industry dots
http://globalclimatechangeaction.org/AusUSA_NSP

Nuclear Waste Dump on Magnetic Island
http://globalclimatechangeaction.org/smokedetector

to Climate Change Skeptics
http://globalclimatechangeaction.org/2CCS

Smoke Detectors... nuclear waste dump on Magnetic Island?

Tue, 2008-03-18 15:44 — Cyber Activist

see Picnic Bay here:
http://www.magnetic-island.com.au/picnic-bay.html

Latest:
http://globalclimatechangeaction.org/sd2

Ministerial reply attached in PDF file

Cc Edi...@magnetictimes.com

Hon Stephen Robertson, MP
Member for Stretton
Minister for Health
Level 19, 147-149 Charlotte Street, BRISBANE QLD 4000
GPO Box 48, BRISBANE QLD 4001
Tel: (07) 3234 1191
Fax: (07) 3229 4731
E-mail: hea...@ministerial.qld.gov.au

Dear Mr Robertson

Greenpeace Submission

Sun, 2008-03-16 12:53 — Cyber Activist

FULL SUBMISSION AVAILABLE HERE:
http://www.stop-fueling-climate-change.org/docs/GPE388.1_FebReport_V5.pd...

SIGN GREENPEACE'S PETITION:
Sign Greenpeace's Petition:
http://www.stop-fueling-climate-change.org/?scr=em_O1

SUBMISSION SNIP:

"...To subsidise coal is to subsidise
climate change.

Coal is the most carbon intensive
of fossil fuels and its use is a
major contributor to greenhouse
gas emissions both in Australia
and overseas.

Yet the coal industry was given a total
of $308 million in rebates for fuel excise in
2005/6,4 an amount greater than
all federal funding for renewables.
Over the life of the Coalition
Government, these grants
contributed $1.9 billion to the coal
industry(5) at a time when their
profits grew hugely; rising from a
$5 billion pre-tax profit in 2004/5
to $10 billion in 2005/06.6

The coal industry can afford to
have this subsidy removed; the
climate cannot afford to have it
continue...."

Sign Greenpeace's Petition:
http://www.stop-fueling-climate-change.org/?scr=em_O1

Greenpeace Petition (closed)

Fri, 2008-03-14 11:30 — Cyber Activist

"Stop Fueling Climate Change"

(20,784 signatures - 11am, May 6,2008)

see the petition
Do more:
http://www.stop-fueling-climate-change.org/docs/SAG-Kits-1.pdf

Greenpeace thinks it’s time to give renewables a fair go!
So do we!

Greenpeace calls for a replacement of funding with OUR TAX DOLLARS from antiquated fossil fuels into a positive future, a future with clean energy investment!

......... petition now closed ... reaching its target

Letter to Kevin Rudd, on Climate Change Mitigation

Tue, 2008-03-04 15:59 — Cyber Activist

mailto:Kevin.Rudd.MP@aph.gov.au
Prime Minister of Australia

Wording suggestions for writing to your leader.

Sent March 2008.

Dear Mr Rudd

Welcome to the office of Prime Minister.

It is truly a wonderful thing to have a change of leadership, I thank my fellow Australians for finally voting out John Howard and breath a deep sigh of relief.

My Rudd, I have been gathering information on the issue of Global Warming/Climate Change with a dedicated global group of individuals for the last few years and for my own interest for at least 10 years. Our focus has not been on blaming, but on the best possible ways forwards to mitigate the worst effects of climate change and the immediate actions needed to be undertaken by individuals and governments.

Through our research, we have concluded that the nuclear power option would be highly deleterious in both the short and long term, not only to Australia, but to the entire planet.

It is my view, and the view of the other members of my group (numbering over 80) that Climate Change/Global Warming is the single most serious issue that our country (and our planet) currently faces.

As a father, I am sure you fear for the future of your children. As a mother of two, I know that I do.

As the newly elected leader of our great nation, I am sure you understand the great power that lies within your hands. You are the person who will be singly held completely and totally responsible, via the decisions you make, not only by your own children, but by the citizens of this nation and the planet. Your name will go down in history as the man who gave our children a chance for future, or a man who ignored the innumerable scientific warnings given to him.

Mr John Howard’s name has already been tarred with the latter. I am of the strong opinion that this is the main reason for his losing office.

Mr Rudd, our group formulated the wording of a petition to Government heads which exceeded its target of 1000 signatures just before the election. It can be found online here:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/global-petition-for-the-implementation-...
I draw your attention to the requests made in this petition. They are not unreasonable requests, they are not "un-do-able" for a man in your position.

Many other local groups of citizens who are also deeply concerned about climate change (numbering over 80 groups) from right across Australia have also formulated, agreed upon and endorsed the wording of a joint declaration towards actions which would help to mitigate the worst effects of climate change. This declaration can be located via my website here:
http://globalclimatechangeaction.org/JD
I draw your attention to the wording in this Joint Declaration and respectfully request your feedback on the above two documents.

Mr Rudd, this note is sent to ask you directly, will you please take immediate and urgent action to mitigate the worst effects of climate change? With the utmost respect, will you:

1. Urgently develop government owned geothermal plants for energy production, which is a PROVEN, clean and sustainable energy production method, for base load supply,
2. Provide increased subsidies for the local installation of solar and wind power generation, subsidies not only for property owners but for those who rent as well,
3. Encourage the greater use of public transport by ensuring that these services are reliable and as energy efficient as is currently possible?
4. Phase out coal as a base load power fuel for Australia?
5. Phase out coal exports and increase investment into the development of clean energy production technologies?
6. Phase out nuclear mining and nuclear exports. Ensure that our nation does not go down the nuclear power path, heed the wisdom in the warning given to us by Australian Aboriginal Elders “the poison, leave it”.

Mr Rudd, taking the 6 measures which have been outlined above cannot harm the future in any way. In fact, for you to immediately implement such positive measures will not only enhance and improve the lives of your current citizens, it will prove you to be worthy of the great honour which has been given to you by the Australian people, the greatest honour that can be given to any Australian, that of the office of Prime Minister.

The issue of climate change is one that affects us all and should therefore be openly and honestly discussed with your voters and the general public. To ensure that your office gets this letter I have also posted it to your feedback form on your website.

On behalf of the members of the Global Climate Change Action Group and the members of Climate Change Action Groups across Australia, I eagerly await your reply.

Yours sincerely
Anne Goddard
Founder
Global Climate Change Action
http://globalclimatechangeaction.org

Congratulations Australia

Tue, 2007-11-27 21:21 — Cyber Activist

Congratulations Australians!

Congratulations ALP!

Ratify Kyoto as promised and provide sustainable renewable energy supplies for your people Mr Rudd.

With your leadership, Australia can now truly become "the lucky country".

Joint Declaration (2)

Tue, 2007-11-27 21:13 — Cyber Activist

Update: Joint Declaration
note: click "read more" for list of endorsing groups.

To: Prime Minister Kevin Rudd MP
Kevi...@aph.gov.au
PO Box 6222
Kingston ACT 2604
Parliament House
Fax: (02) 6277 8495

26 November 2007

Dear Prime Minister Kevin Rudd

Congratulations on becoming the Prime Minister of Australia. We are very pleased that you will be making climate change a top priority of your first 100 days in office.

A joint declaration from the citizens’ Climate Action groups of Australia

We are writing to you as one voice from the abundant citizens’ climate change action groups that have formed across Australia.

More Sneaky Politics!

Wed, 2007-11-21 08:06 — Cyber Activist

by GLParramatta

The Climate Change Coalition is a new political party. Green Left Weekly’s Zane Alcorn spoke to CCC candidate Dr Karl Kruszelnicki, who is running for the Senate in New South Wales.
Read the full interview at:
http://www.greenleft.org.au/2007/732/37956

Reply - Via our Climate Change Action Group
By Greg Hopwood

RE Dr Karl Kruszelnicki from GLW link -
"I see geosequestration as a useful short-term thing. In 10 years we will probably still be burning coal so the question is whether we catch the emissions or just release them. But you can't keep doing that forever."

Both so called 'clean coal technology' [sic] and geosequestration aka 'carbon capture & storage' are fallacies.
Both are prohibitively expensive and neither actually achieves the desired results.
Both fables are just coal industry filibuster trying to avoid the inevitable.

Considering CCC has preferenced Pauline Hanson and Family First

Climate Parties Loosing Plot | Vote Climate

Mon, 2007-11-19 20:43 — Cyber Activist

Via Vote Climate:

http://voteclimate.org.au/FED07-Climateparties-loose-plot

Climate Change Coalition and Conservative for Climate and the Environment have made some interesting preference decisions in relation to their Senate Group Voting Tickets....

full story
http://voteclimate.org.au/FED07-Climateparties-loose-plot

Pro Nuclear Preference Deals

Wed, 2007-11-14 20:15 — Anonymous

Senate Preference arrangements in New South Wales, Western Australia & Victoria where a new Party the Conservatives For Climate & Environment that conceals its advocacy for the Nuclear industry behind rhetoric about Carbon Tax, are running a total of six Senate candidates (2 per state)

In NSW An elaborate preference deal appears to have been brokered that engages some strange bedfellows being in order of group:

Group C: Family First, Group D: Pauline's UAP, Group J: (Un-endorsed) Ian R Bryce, Group K: Hear Our Voice, Group L: Senator On Line, Of course N: Conservatives For Climate & Environment, Group Q: The Fishing Party, Group R: The Christian Democrats (Fred Nile Group), Group S: One Nation, Group T: The Non Custodial Parents Party.

There was a Daily Telegraph article that stated that the Australian Democrats (Group M) refused to be part of this axis & that the Climate Change Coalition (Group E) have made only a half hearted attempt to distance itself from this deal by relegating the Conservatives For Climate & Environment to the rear of its preferences.

In Victoria

In many instances the fix is less obvious due to many of the groups giving the occasional preference to red herrings (Parties with no involvement)

There seems to be only Nine Parties involved being:

Group B: One Nation, Group E: Senator On Line, Group K: Family First, Group L : Liberty & Democracy Party, Group M: Conservatives for Climate & Environment, Group N: DLP, Group P: (Un-endorsed) John Perkins, Group R: Non Custodial Parents Party & Group W: Carers

In WA

Again in some cases some of these parties have preferenced the occasional red herring but again strange allegiances emerge.

The Parties involved seem to be:

Group B: Christian Democratic Party, Group D: The Non Custodial Parents Party, Group G : The Australian Democrats, Group H: One Nation WA, Group I: Family First, Group J: Senator On Line, Group K: Carers Alliance, Group M: (Unendorsed) Wynne/ Fitzgerald , Group N: Climate Change Coalition , Group S: Conservatives For Climate & Environment, & Group T: The Liberty & Democracy Party

Conclusion

Parties have draw up their own Group Voting Preferences & are often unaware of allegiances between other parties when they choose their order of preference. You the voter can examine all the parties standing & with more data now available can individually choose better preferences than the Parties Group Voting Ticket by voting below the line in your order of preference.

Fully Preferential Voting gives voters a unique opportunity to register our disapproval by putting a candidate last or near to last

You Can view the Parties Senate Preference Details on the AEC website:

http://www.aec.gov.au/Elections/federal_elections/2007/candidates/gvt.ht...

And open the pdf for group voting tickets in each State

You can also search for different candidates websites to view their policies

With hope for peace in our future

Democracy's Defender

Greens - Renewable Energy - Helping farmers become power suppliers

Tue, 2007-11-13 13:28 — Cyber Activist

Greens - Renewable Energy - Helping farmers become power suppliers

Farming Renewable Energy: Helping farmers become power suppliers

Monday 12 November 2007

Australian Greens Leader, Senator Bob Brown, and Greens Climate and Energy Spokesperson, Senator Christine Milne, today announced a ground-breaking new policy to boost jobs and keep people on the land in regional Australia, as well as to reduce greenhouse emissions, by helping farmers become renewable energy generators.

"Climate change poses a tremendous threat to regional Australia. The Greens want to help regional communities to profit from becoming a key part of the solution," Senator Brown said.

"The Greens Farming Renewable Energy initiative will establish Renewable Energy Development Zones to encourage investment in regional energy infrastructure and boost jobs in regional Australia."

Senator Milne said "A tragedy is unfolding in rural and regional Australia and neither the Government nor the Opposition are providing more than bandaid solutions with drought-relief cheques and hand-outs for leaving the land.

"Instead of abandoning farmers and regional communities to a hotter and drier future, the Greens' policies will enable them to generate income from their land even in drought.

"This new approach also gives us the opportunity to develop a strategic plan for our energy future. We need to refurbish our grid to make the most of our best renewable energy resources, be they sun, wind, geothermal, water or biomass like woody weeds."
 [Climate Change Action Group]
more information: http://greens.org.au/senatormilne#post_1194823866

Joint Declaration

Mon, 2007-11-12 19:45 — Anonymous

In the past 24 months, citizens’ Climate Action groups have mushroomed all over the nation, from coast to coast. Now 60 Climate Action Groups with hundreds of members and thousands of supporters have endorsed a Joint Declaration...

Here it is:

To: Prime Minister John Howard MP
To: Leader of the Opposition Kevin Rudd MP

8 November 2007

Dear Mr. Howard and Mr. Rudd

A joint declaration from the citizens' Climate Action groups of Australia

We are writing to both of you as one voice from the abundant citizens' climate change action groups that have formed across Australia. The existence of our many groups is the result of mounting anxiety in the population about the lack of effective action delivered so far on reducing our nation's greenhouse gas emissions, and the disappointing policies on offer from both of your parties at this critical time.

Our members are drawn from the spectrum of this country's people, from urban, rural and regional areas. They include small and large business operators and directors, parents, students, grandparents, farmers, migrants, and public service and other employees. Diverse and often dissimilar, we all share a common wish to see far more effective measures undertaken by our leaders to avert the dangerous climate change that scientists across the
globe predict.
read more and see list of signators....

Single Issue Voting

Fri, 2007-11-09 08:17 — Cyber Activist

It is a great concern that in the last few federal elections we have seen political parties springing up on single issues.

These single issue political parties strip votes from existing parties which have well formulated (all encompassing) policies. To me, they are a political distraction and a delusion.

If you really wish to waste your vote then handing it one of them is the way to go.

Climate change is an issue that affects everything and everyone, it is not a "single issue".

ANSTO Action

Thu, 2007-11-08 10:46 — Cyber Activist

Protest Lucas Heights - Friday 11.30am
DUMP HOWARD NOT RADIOACTIVE WASTE

Friday 9th November, 11.30am under ANSTO sign!

Speakers include:
John Kaye - Greens Parliament Member
Uncle Dootch - Kurradji Tent Embassy
Jaimie Paterson - Greens candidate for Hughes, long-time involvement in anti-Lucas heights campaign
Darren Bloomfield - Sydney Aboriginal Tent Embassy

Dissenting Drummers Collective also!!

The International Atomic Energy Agency is in Sydney this week for its 'International Conference on Research Reactors: Safe Management and
Effective Utilization' (what a joke).

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