Author Archive for diane

19 August 2010: Vigils against Desal

Published
on August 18, 2010
. 0 Comments

Vigils For the Gulfs Against the Desal

Live along the Gulfs? Concerned about the environment?

The Save Our Gulfs Embassy invites you to join their vigils, just 30 minutes each week..

  • We are taking action Against the Desal by coming out
  • We are watching
  • We are learning
  • We are joining others
  • We are sending a message to the government that some things are not negotiable

We want a different model for growth for the future, for the sake of living biodiversities, for future generations.

Vigils are happening weekly at

  • Normanville, Fri 5–5.30pm, at the Jetty
  • Moana–Seaford, Sun 11–11.30am, Nashwauk Cr/The Esplanade
  • Hallett Cove, Sun 12.30–1.00pm, Heron Way, café formerly SLSC

Vigils are about to start at

  • Myponga Beach
  • Semaphore
  • Norwood–Magill, Osmond Tce
  • Blackwood

Look for the Blue/green flags.

Bring your guitars, songs, drums, memories, stories of the gulfs, fishing, skin diving, snorkelling, knowledge of the gulfs’ marine bioversity, birds

This is our part of the planet. This is our watch. The time is NOW.

Wrong decisions can be reversed. New things can be learned. Different economies can be developed. Everything we need we have.

We choose not to live with regret by not paying attention.

Ruth Trigg

Save Our Gulfs Embassy

0437 456 489

ruth.trigg@westnet.com.au

18 August 2010: WET Reports

Published
on August 18, 2010
. 0 Comments

The Master Chef Election
‘You can chose the garnish,’ says Professor Diane Bell of the Water Election Team, ‘but substance, that’s a bit harder. The voters are hungry for policies that will redress the dire situation of the River Murray-Darling and tired of being fobbed off with tidbits.’

The Coalition, six Democrats, Family First, The Greens, Socialist Alliance and one Independent responded to the specific questions. The ALP provided policy statements but did not answer the specific questions. press-release-questionnaire

12 August 2010: Future of the Murray-Darling

Published
on August 15, 2010
. 0 Comments

The Australian Conservation Foundation created an open forum in Adelaide tonight where scientists met politicians and debated river issues in the upcoming Aug 21 federal election.

Array

Array


* Don Henry, CEO of ACF put the bigger picture of the Murray-Darling Basin
* Dr. Mike Geddes focused on the health of rivers and wetlands and made a plea for an end of system flow.
* Prof Diane Bell spoke of the stories - Indigenous, ecological and technological - that frame our understandings of Water as a commodity and the River as a living system. She juxtaposed a ‘rights in water’ approach to a ‘responsibility for the river’ approach.

10 August 2010: WET Questionnaire

Published
on August 10, 2010
. 0 Comments

The Water Election Team (WET) is concerned that water policies are not a major campaign focus in this election. They are asking all candidates to take the WET questionnaire.

Australia, the driest continent, is crying out for coherent, integrated and sustainable policies to ensure our unique environment will be here for future generations. Without a healthy environment our economies and our communities are imperilled. All things are connected. Ecologists know this. Indigenous people know this. We all know this. We need strong committed leadership.

If elected, what will you do?

Problem one: Plans for a 500, 000 population increase in the 2030 Vision Plan for SA are decoupled from water. Fresh water is a limited resource. Mining development will further deplete water resources. Desalination plants present another set of problems (see below Problem three).

PLEASE ANSWER YES (Y) OR NO (N) AFTER EACH QUESTION
1. Do you support the 500, 000 population growth target?
2. Do you support the recycling and reuse of storm water for human consumption?
3. Do you support the recycling and reuse of effluent for non-human needs?
4. Should new developments such as mining, housing and tourism be required to be self-sufficient in terms of provision of water in ways that do not further deplete existing water uses?

Problem two: The current catastrophe is the result of decades of mismanagement; a failure to work with the irregular flow patterns of the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB); government inaction on reports; advisory boards with limited powers re decision-making; a lack of open, transparent and respectful consultation; a lack of accountability; the privileging of certain economic needs over those of the health of the MDB; a curtailment of open multi-disciplinary research in favour of focused modeling informed by specific technical fields of expertise.

5. Would you ensure that decision-making is open and transparent?
6. Would you release expert reports to the public in a timely fashion?
7. Would you support Freedom of Information procedures that increased access and accountability of government decision-making processes?
8. Will you ensure that community consultation is inclusive, open, transparent and respectful?
9. Will you support funding for the Environment Defenders’ Office to work on water related matters?
10. Will you support the full and independent monitoring of water quality by the Environment Protection Authority, particularly the polluting effects of the desalination process on the gulfs
11. Will you ensure that all monitoring results (including community observations) are publicly available?
12. Will you require a full and public declaration of potential conflicts of interest by all government advisors?

Problem three: What price do we place on the health of our gulfs? Spencer Gulf and the Gulf St Vincent constitute a unique environment with a variety of species that exceeds that of the Great Barrier Reef. ‘Development’ along the gulfs and desalination plants in particular pose a dramatic threat to these environments. Sea grass meadows are diminishing, erosion is increasing, hyper-saline brine and chemical discharges have the potential to pollute the gulf waters and there are concerns regarding the rigour and scope of monitoring. Our unique gulfs need to be protected and restored.

13. Would you stop construction of the Port Stanvac desalination plant?
14. Would you allow construction of a desalination plant anywhere on the gulfs?
15. Would your policies support the reduction of storm water discharge into the gulfs?
16. Would your policies protect the gulf species and their habitats?
17. Would you support a marine park to encompass the entire Spencer Gulf and Gulf St Vincent?

Problem four: The Murray-Darling Basin is a living system but we are treating it as if it were ‘The Magic Pudding’. More water is being extracted than is sustainable. In 1981, the Murray Mouth closed for the first time in millennia. That should have been our signal that the system was over-allocated, but we kept taking more. With the legal separation of rights in water from rights in lands, water has become a commodity that can be traded on the market. The increase in large corporate ownership, including Managed Investment Schemes (MIS) has seen huge increases in the area of land irrigated and in the volume of water extracted. It has also contributed the demise of the family farm.

18. Do you support access to clean water as a universal Human Right?
19. Would your policies give priority to the needs of the river as a living system?
20. Would your policies ensure sufficient allocations to flush the river to the sea?
21. Should water be traded across water districts and state boundaries?
22. Do you support the privatisation of water?
23. Do your policies distinguish between the needs of family farms and Managed Investment Schemes?
24. Would you require Managed Investment Schemes to be environmentally accountable?
25. Would you support the immediate removal of tax incentives for Managed Investment Schemes?
26. Are you concerned about international ownership of Murray-Darling Basin water?
27. Do your policies support local foods and goods that are produced under environmentally sustainable conditions over cheaper imported goods?

Problem five: The first object of the Water Act 2007 is to enable the ‘Commonwealth, in conjunction with the Basin States, to manage the Basin water resources in the national interest’. The Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA), established by this Act, commenced operation in December 2008 and is responsible for preparing a Basin Plan that will set Sustainable Diversion Limits (SDL) and ensure there is sufficient water for ‘critical human needs’.

28. Are you prepared to promote and support the provisions of the Water Act 2007 that will restore the system to health?
29. Should the MDBA Plan/Guidelines be released now?
30. Do you support a full audit of all water resources in the MDB: private, public, ground, surface, run off and across all jurisdictions?
31. Do you support the Water (Crisis Powers and Floodwater Diversion) Bill 2010 to enable the MDBA to manage all water resources of the Basin as a single system during periods of extreme crisis?
32. Would you ensure that Sustainable Diversion Limits (SDL) are developed in conjunction with an Environmental Watering Plan (EWP) in the Basin Plan?
33. Would your policies ensure that the Basin Plan not only set Sustainable Diversion Limits (SDL) but also returned the use of Basin water resources to long-term sustainable limits?
34. Would you develop an integrated plan for communities and local economies to adjust to the changes caused by reduced allocations and river flows?

Problem six: The Coorong, Lake Alexandrina, Lake Albert and Murray Mouth region is internationally recognised as one of Australia’s most important wetlands. The Ramsar Convention defines the core concept of ‘wise use of wetlands’ as ‘the maintenance of their ecological character, achieved through the implementation of ecosystem approaches, within the context of sustainable development’. Bilateral agreements, like the China-Australia Migratory Bird Agreement (CAMBA) and Japan-Australia Migratory Bird Agreement (JAMBA) are for the Protection of Migratory Birds in Danger of Extinction, and their Environment. The ecological character of these Ramsar wetlands is significantly degraded. Many species are threatened.

35. Would you work to achieve the Ramsar Convention standard of ‘conservation and wise use’ of these icon wetland sites?
36. Would you move to place any of these threatened wetlands on the Montreux Record?
37. Would you work to uphold obligations under international conventions like JAMBA and CAMBA?

Problem seven: The Murray-Darling Basin is at Code Catastrophic. The Coorong is many times saltier than the Dead Sea. The banks of the River Murray are slumping. The relationship between ground and surface water is poorly understood. Recent rains and environmental allocations have averted disaster but strong actions are needed and needed now. Policies that disconnect the river, lakes, tributaries and wetlands are undermining the resilience of the eco-system and possibilities for recovery.

38. Do you support the construction of a weir across the River Murray below Wellington?
39. Would your water policies support the immediate removal of the bund between Lakes Albert and Alexandrina?
40. Would your water policies support the immediate removal of existing regulators at Clayton Bay and across the Currency Creek?
41. Do you support opening the barrages and flooding Lakes Alexandrina and Albert with seawater?
42. Do you support policies that will restore the Coorong to health?
43. Would your policies ensure the return to environmentally sustainable levels of extraction for water resources that are over-allocated or overused?

4 August 2010: Mt Barker Urban Growth DPA

Published
on August 5, 2010
. 0 Comments

Mount Barker Urban Growth Development Plan Amendment (DPA)

The 30-Year Plan for Greater Adelaide identifies land at Mount Barker and Nairne as part of Adelaide’s urban land supply for the next 15-years. As part of consultation on the Mount Barker Urban Growth DPA, the Development Policy Advisory Committee considers the feedback via submissions and then prepares a report to the Minister for Urban Development and Planning. The Minister then makes a decision about the DPA.

A number of the submissions, due today, were critical of the ‘consultation’ process and the plan to build over prime agricultural land, a scarce commodity. They noted the inadequacy of infrastructure at Mt Barker and the lack of water to support the proposed 30,000 new residents.

Mt Barker resident, Carol Bailey, a passionate advocate for sustainable communities, detailed her qualms about the DPA at the launch of the Save our Gulfs Embassy at Semaphore on July 31 and the implications for the already stressed River Murray.

Water Apps Inc submission

3 August 2010: Clayton’s environmental water

Published
on August 5, 2010
. 0 Comments

The SA Government is requesting the the federal government reconsider the matter of the so-called “Flow Regulators in the Goolwa Channel and tributaries” and vary the existing decision so they can pump ‘environmental water’ from Lake Alexandrina to the “Goolwa Lake’.  They cite EPBC 2009/4833 as the federal decision they wish to vary.

The Request does not specify amounts of water to be pumped or provide a schedule for pumping but rather asserts there will be no impact on Lake Alexandrina. The Request has enraged locals who challenge the basis of the request and the claims being made for the ‘flow regulators’.

‘It is difficult to know where to begin with a critique,’ said Professor Bell who listed the following flaws in the SA Govt proposal in her submission.

* The Request is not consistent with s. 78 of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

* Contrary to the Request, the action was declared a ‘Controlled Action’ by the decision of the federal minister on December 18, 2010 (EPBC 2009/5227).

* The Request claims there has been a substantial change of circumstance that could not have been foreseen in the original Referral. [It has rained and flood waters have made it to Lake Alexandrina.]

* The Request asserts but does not provide rigorous science support, that the regulators have improved conditions in the Goolwa Lake. Look at the graphs in the submission of John Yelland, graphs from the SA Govt own website, which prove that salinity levels have increased in the so-called ‘ecological refuge’.

* The Request constitutes piecemeal planning and should not be considered in isolation of other planned actions. It should be part of the impending EIS under Referral EPBC 2009/5227.

In the meantime the rain continues. Lake Alexandrina is refreshed. The salinity in the ‘ecological refuge’ created by the construction of the dam/regulator at Clayton Bay soars. Why this Request now? Why was no-one warned the Request was being made? ‘We learned of it 5 days into the 10 days period allowed for public comment and had to put all else on hold to get our submissions to Canberra,’ said Bell.

31 July 2010: Semaphore solidarity for Embassy

Published
on August 1, 2010
. 0 Comments

On the streets at Semaphore was the place to be on Saturday to see the solidarity of action groups who are campaigning for water related issues as they launched the new Save our Gulfs Embassy.

Array


Ruth Trigg and Corrie Vanderhoek had teamed up with John Williams of the Semaphore Information and Eco Centre. Diane Bell of the Fresh Water Embassy was there to connect their work on the River Murray, Lakes Alexandrina and Albert and Coorong with that of those campaigning to Save the Gulfs - Gulf St Vincent and Spencer Gulf. It was windy but Diane Bell reminded them that the staff of the Fresh Water Embassy had endured 8 weeks of blustering winds, rain and cold at Clayton Bay in 2009- so no grumbling!
Carol Bailey from Mt Barker linked the concerns of the Coalition of Sustainable Communities with the water warriors. And the Dudleys were there with their new songs - Desalination is not our Salvation and Salt on the Water.

Array

Array


The Embassy received delegations from the Mayor of Port Adelaide Enfield, Mr Gary Johansen

Array

and prominent coastal and water environmental groups:
Save Our Gulf Coalition (SOGC)

Array


The Water Action Coalition (WAC)

Array


Friends of Gulf St Vincent (FOGSV), Western Adelaide Coastal Residents Association (WACRA)

Array


Diane spoke to the theme of ‘All Things are Connected’ ATAC, pronounced ‘attack’.
* connecting the two embassies
* connecting the estuarine ecology of the Gulfs and the Murray Mouth
* connecting strategies and hot spots
Premier Rann and Senator Wong appeared as pollies on a stick to make the announcements that the proposed weir at Wellington and opening the barrages to the sea would not proceed.

Array

Array


Diane encouraged the Save our Gulf Embassy to persist and to claim success in their campaigns as she was doing for that of the Fresh Water Embassy.

31 July 2010: Save our Gulfs Embassy Launch

Published
on July 29, 2010
. 0 Comments

Water stories: Take it with a pinch of salt*

But I thought the desalination plant would take the pressure off the River Murray.
But I thought that Lakes Alexandrina and Albert were always salt.
But I thought the rain/currents washed the salt out to sea.
Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!

Thirsty for some common sense on how to live in our land of drought and flooding rains? Wondering what a sustainable Australia might look like?

Join us on Saturday July 31 at 11 am, at 64a Semaphore Rd, Semaphore, when the “Save our Gulfs” campaigners and the “Save the River Murray” campaigners connect their stories with other “water warriors”.

Help us make history as we establish the “Save our Gulfs Embassy”.

River advocate, Professor Diane Bell will bring greetings and support from the Fresh Water Embassy. ‘It is becoming a familiar pattern,’ says Bell. ‘We are told there is solid science to support management and development strategies such as the construction of dams/weirs/bunds/desalination plants, but when we seek independent review of the materials we are denied access to key reports, monitoring is inadequate and the goal posts keep moving.’

‘The River Murray is at Code Catastrophic but it can be saved. Our actions have held off the construction of weir across the River Murray below Wellington and our sustained critique of the construction of so-called regulators has challenged the ‘science’ on which the decision purport to be based.’

‘I see strong parallels with the desalination plant,’ says Bell. ‘It is true that a considerable financial investment has been made in the plant, but what is the Gulf worth? Are we prepared to sacrifice this ecological hot spot? Are we ready to kill the Gulfs with hyper saline discharges and chemical wastes? Or, are we prepared to learn from the mistakes made by other desalination plants?’

It is not too late. There are alternatives.

For the past four years the River, Lakes and Coorong Action Group (inc.) has been commenting, critiquing and correcting the pronouncements of the state and federal government on matters concerning their management strategies for the Murray-Darling River Basin. We have argued that it is over-allocation, not drought that is killing the system. We have advocated for fresh water flows down the River Murray to flush the accumulated salts and nutrients to sea. We have explained that rivers die from the bottom up. A healthy river is a pre-condition to healthy communities and healthy economies.

‘Now it is time to join forces with those working for healthy gulfs,’ says Bell. ‘It is time to show how our those issues are connected. It is time to look at the ‘big picture’ and to take action together.’

* Latin cum grano salis, literally with a grain of salt, figuratively with some doubt

29 July 2010: Meeting with the Minister

Published
on July 29, 2010
. 0 Comments

Saving our Rivers and Gulfs: Water Actions

Meeting with the Minister for the Environment and Conservation, Minister for the River Murray and Minister for Water, July 28, 2010

Storm water, desalination plants, Environmental Impact Statements, privatisation and community engagement with the Murray-Darling Basin Plan were all on the agenda at the July 28 meeting of local environmental groups with Minister Paul Caica in Adelaide.

‘We were delighted when the Minister visited the Fresh Water Embassy at Clayton Bay on June 17,’ said Professor Diane Bell. ‘We hoped then that we were entering a new phase in bringing our concerns to government and we are further encouraged by this meeting.’

Corrie Vanderhoek of the Save our Gulf Coalition, John Caldecott of the Water Action Coalition and Diane Bell from the Fresh Water Embassy spent an hour in dialogue with the Minister and three of his advisors.

‘The biodiversity of the Gulfs of St Vincent and Spencer Gulf is not widely known, said Corrie Vanderhoek. ‘We were able to present the Minister with briefing documents regarding environmental threats posed by the desalination plant at Port Stanvac.’ For more on the Save our Gulfs campaigns go to portwalkabout.com

“When will South Australia’s minimum entitlement of 1850 Gl be established?” asked John Caldecott who presented a critique of the problems raised by privatisation of water. For more on the work of the Water Action Coalition (WAC) go to http://civictrust.net.au/page19.htm

‘The Minister is setting a cracking pace in advocating for the special needs of South Australians with reference to the Murray-Darling Basin Plan; saving the threatened congolli; planning how his new supra-Department of Environment and Natural Resources will manage its duties and addressing the issues we are raising,’ said Bell.

‘Our concerns were wide ranging, the discussion intense and robust. There are matters on which we agree to disagree,’ said Bell. ‘We are seeking access to reports and we are seeking answers to a number of complex questions. We expect to have an indication within 1-2 weeks of which matters can be addressed quickly and a schedule for dealing with the others.’

6 July 2010: Who speaks for the environment?

Published
on July 29, 2010
. 0 Comments

As of 1 July 2010, the Lower Lakes and Coorong Recovery became part of the new Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). The new department has three goals:
* to build sustainable communities;
* to steward our natural resources;
* and to provide public places for community benefit.

What happened to the environment?
1. As of July 1, the Department of Environment and Heritage (DEH) became DENR - http://www.environment.sa.gov.au/

DENR encompasses the old DEH and Natural Resource Management staff and State Flora staff from DWLBC - thus integrating the government’s natural resource management services into a single department.

So who speaks for the environment?
DENR says: “Our business is the sustainability of South Australia. Our challenge is to work with the Government and the community to respond to environmental challenges such as climate change and to find a way of life that is both prosperous and economically and environmentally sustainable.”

So it appears DENR has to balance economic and environmental factors.

Who then advocates for the environment?

DENR says “We collect and provide information and knowledge about the state’s environment. We manage the state’s public land including national parks, marine parks, botanic gardens and the coastline. We also advise on environmental policy.”

To advise is not to advocate or defend or protect. In whose interests is advice offered?

With whom does DENR work? “DENR is part of the Environment and Conservation Portfolio and reports to the Minister for Environment and Conservation. We deliver the Government’s environment policies directly and through partnerships. These are with other government agencies, including the Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation, the Environment Protection Authority, Zero Waste SA, Natural Resources Management Boards, and Primary Industries and Resources SA, as well as & a wide range of non-government environment organisations, industry bodies and the community.”

“Our work is determined by our obligation to achieve related targets in South Australia’s Strategic Plan to administer legislation dedicated to our Minister and to respond to the needs of South Australians.”
So who speaks for the environment?

2. As of July 1, 2010, a new Department for Water, led by Scott Ashby as Chief Executive, took on some of the work of the old Department of Water, Land, and Biodiversity Conservation, DWLBC. See http://www.waterforgood.sa.gov.au/

DW says, “Water is fundamental to our health, our way of life and our environment. The new Department will ensure that there are always sufficient and sustainable water resources in South Australia for our health, our economy, our environment and our lifestyle.”

Who speaks for the environment?

DW says, “To ensure our water future to 2050 and beyond, we are putting South Australia’s water security plan, Water for Good, into action.

Released in June 2009, Water for Good outlines 94 actions to make sure our water supplies are secure, safe, diverse, reliable and able to sustain a growing population and a growing economy in a changing climate.”

Who speaks for the environment?