SA’s stunning renewable energy transition

November 11, 2019

South Australia now ranks number two in the world – behind Denmark – in total share of electricity generated from”variable” sources – i.e. wind and solar.

What makes South Australia’s achievement all the more remarkable is that South Australia is located at the end of a “skinny” grid, has a “peaky” load that averages around 1,500MW, but can go to more than 3,000MW in the summer heat, and to as low as 500MW in mild and sunny spring days, and it has little connection to other markets, unlike Denmark and most other regions.

See “South Australia’s stunning renewable energy transition, and what comes next”  at reneweconomy.com.au for the full story.

Clean Futures, Old_Notes

new battery technology

November 11, 2019

A new battery technology that could significantly reduce the price of electric cars and home battery systems has taken a major step towards commercialisation.

The patented design uses non-toxic zinc and manganese, two metals that are abundant in Australia, and incombustible aqueous electrolyte to produce a battery with a high-energy density.

The researchers estimate the cost of this new electrolytic Zn–Mn battery to be less than US$ 10 per kWh compared with US$ 300 per kWh for current Li-ion batteries, US$72 per kWh for Ni–Fe batteries and US$ 48 per kWh for Lead–acid batteries.

See “Uni of Adelaide battery technology could slash electric vehicle cost” at reneweconomy.com.au

Clean Futures, Old_Notes

Agroecology recognized as the solution

November 11, 2019

Agroecology recognized as the transformative solution for a food system in crisis by experts at UN

07 November, 2019

Civil society representatives from around the world successfully put agroecology on the agenda of the United Nations Committee on World Food Security, as the truly innovative pathway to resolving environmental, hunger, health and inequality crises, and ensuring the right to food.

This year’s Committee on World Food Security (CFS), 14-18 October in Rome, was held in the context of deepening crises. World hunger and malnutrition are on the rise. Since 2015, the number of people without access to sufficient, nutritious food has been increasing. Over 800 million people — that’s one in every nine of us on Earth — experienced severe levels of food insecurity in 2018. Alongside this, malnutrition due to obesity is soaring, now at over two billion people. At the same time, the industrial food system is now recognized as a leading contributor to the multiple crises facing humanity.

The CFS is the foremost inclusive, intergovernmental and international political platform on food security and nutrition, with a vision to foster the right to adequate food for all. Since 2009, the Civil Society and Indigenous Peoples’ Mechanism (CSM) organizes the participation of civil society representatives – namely smallholder farmers, pastoralists, fisherfolks, indigenous peoples, agricultural and food workers, landless, women, youth, consumers, urban food insecure and NGOs. It is the largest international space of civil society organisations working to eradicate food insecurity and malnutrition.

“Here people from the global South, from the grassroots, come together with allies like Friends of the Earth International and La Via Campesina, to transform our messages into a political dimension, which we can take to negotiations with member governments.”

Bertrand Sansonnens, Pro Natura-Friends of the Earth Switzerland

“There are two words that people must always respect to be a good advocate within civil society: inclusiveness and solidarity. You cannot get that alone.”

Musa F Sow, West African peasants and producers network (ROPPA)

Civil society side event at the Committee on World Food Security

Agroecology on the agenda

For several years the CSM has been demanding that governments gathered in Rome discuss policy recommendations to promote agroecology.

It marks a huge achievement for civil society — led by small scale food producers that have been practicing agroecology for decades, even centuries — that governments agreed to a year of negotiations to set out policy recommendations on agroecology. This is in the face of huge opposition and counter lobbying from agribusiness-led governments.

It was also a significant success that a landmark report by experts advising the CFS, on “Agroecological approaches and other innovations for sustainable agriculture and food systems that enhance food security and nutrition”, clearly differentiated between agroecology and sustainable intensification approaches.

“The High Level Panel of Experts report demonstrates that agroecology is the only transformational option to address all the structural changes needed in our food system in a systemic and integrated way. It shows that Sustainable Intensification and Climate Smart Agriculture can only provide one dimensional solutions via incremental change.”

Ali Aii Shatou, Indigenous Peoples of Africa Coordinating Committee (IPACC)

“It is heartening that there was broad acceptance for the report which reflects our vision of agroecology as system change, especially in the face of huge opposition from powerful governments such as the USA, Australia and Canada. This is the result of people building our political power and joint vision over several years – which itself is also a success of the food sovereignty movement.”

Kirtana Chandrasekaran, Friends of the Earth International food sovereignty program coordinator (more…)

Clean Futures, Food, Old_Notes

Olympic Dam Alert: BHP propose a major new Evaporation Pond 6

October 29, 2019

from David Noonan:
Olympic Dam Alert: BHP propose a major new Evaporation Pond 6 for radioactive acid liquor wastes that will continue deaths of hundreds of birds each year

The federal government are inviting comments on BHP’s “Olympic Dam Evaporation Pond 6” EPBC Act Referral 2019/8526  (scroll down to Date of Notice 21/10/2019).

Public submissions are only open until cob Monday 4th Nov 2019, see info on how to do so at end of this e-mail.

Please consider making a brief submission, key Recommendations are provided below, along with a Background Briefing Paper and a feature press article “BHP vs Birds”.

For info see “Migratory Birds at Risk of Mortality if BHP Continues Use of Evaporation Ponds” a 3 page Briefing written by David Noonan for the ACF, Friends of the Earth and Conservation SA (30 June 2019)

see “BIRDS VS BHP: Evaporation ponds at BHP’s Olympic Dam mine are killing hundreds of birds” article in The Advertiser 10 July 2019

Hundreds of birds are dying each year after mistaking Olympic Dam’s evaporation ponds for wetlands. Environment campaigners want the miner to stop using them… 

A set of Key Recommendations on these issues to please make to the federal government: 

  1. The federal government must subject BHP’s Olympic Dam Evaporation Pond 6 Referral to a public environmental impact assessment process

The federal government must not just approve this major new Olympic Dam Evaporation Pond 6 on the basis of limited non-independent BHP referral documents. Federal responsibilities to protect Matters of National Environmental Significance require the rigor and transparency of a public environmental impact assessment process. BHP can-not be allowed to be the sole arbiter over continued and unnecessary deaths of hundreds of birds each year on Olympic Dam acid liquor evaporation ponds.

  1. BHP must stop the use of Evaporation Ponds in order to reduce mortality to protected Bird Species

The federal government should not approve or allow BHP’s proposed major new Evaporation Pond 6, which will contribute to the deaths of hundreds of birds at Olympic Dam.

The federal government should place Conditions to require that BHP: “must not construct Evaporation Ponds for the purpose of the expanded mine”; and to: “phase out the use of Evaporation ponds as soon as practical”.

This is consistent with the federal EPBC Act Assessment and Decision in Fauna Approval Conditions 18-21 (EPBC 2005/2270, Oct 2011) to protect Matters of National Environmental Significance in Listed Bird Species and the 21 Listed Migratory Bird Species found in the area, from mortality at Olympic Dam. These conditions must now be applied uniformly across the entire Olympic Dam operation.

The federal government must require BHP to prevent and limit impacts and mortality on Listed Bird Species protected under both the federal EPBC Act and the SA National Parks and Wildlife Act.

  1. BHP Olympic Dam operations should be assessed in its entirety with the full range of project impacts subject to public consultation

Given that copper-uranium mining at Olympic Dam is a controlled “nuclear action” and Matter of National Environmental Significance (NES) under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act), the integrity of environmental protection requires that the entire Olympic Dam operation be subject to impact assessment so that regulatory conditions can be applied “to consider impacts on the whole environment”.

This is consistent with a key Recommendation by the federal Depart of Environment (“Olympic Dam expansion assessment report EPBC 2005/2270”, Sept 2011, 7. Existing operation, p.62):

“… it is recommended that conditions be applied to the existing operation so that the entire Olympic Dam operation (existing and expanded) is regulated by a single approval under the EPBC Act”.

At a minimum, BHP’s Oct 2019 Olympic Dam Evaporation Pond 6 referral must now trigger a public environmental impact assessment which includes assessment of impacts of the associated “BHP Olympic Dam EPBC Referral 2019/8465 Tailings Storage Facility 6” (to be larger in area than the CBD of Adelaide AND to be up to 30 metres high at the centre of the tailings pile, around the height of a 10 story building) – that BHP applied for in June 2019 and on which the federal Environment Minister is yet to make a decision.

BHP should not be allowed to ‘game’ the EPBC Act Referral system with multiple partial and limited referrals to try and avoid the scope of a warranted comprehensive public assessment of cumulative environmental impacts.

Submit your comments by cob Monday 4th Nov 2019:

Please send your comments on this BHP EPBC Olympic Dam Referral and quote the EPBC Act reference number2019/8526 and the full title of the referral:

“BHP BILLITON OLYMPIC DAM CORPORATION PTY LTD/Mining/Roxby Downs/South Australia/Olympic Dam Evaporation Pond 6”

To Email: epbc.comments@environment.gov.au

Referrals Gateway
Assessment & Governance Branch
Department of the Environment and Energy

If you require further information contact the federal government Referrals Gateway on 02 6274 2496 or email epbc.referrals@environment.gov.au

See info on ‘How to make a submission’ at:

http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/public-notices/assessment-help#referrals

And scroll down to: Invitations for public comment, Referrals.

Nuclear, Old_Notes