Stop the gasfields action: Sunday the 30th July 2017

from 12 o’clock to 1pm (arrive from 11.30am)
Venue: Parliament House

Support the people in the South East of South Australia and particularly,
Penola. Beach Energy has announced state-owned forestry land, 8 kms south
of Penola, as the site of the controversial Haselgrove 3 gas well.

This well on public land must be stopped. The drilling site is near the
boundary of the Coonawarra wine district and the new $80 million Union
Dairy Company processing plant.

We are calling on the SA government to stop the gas field exploration in the
SE of South Australia and to save our state for jobs in farming, tourism and
the wine industry. No food, no future. We say no to gas fields.

To see the effects of unconventional gas mining on land and people watch
Fractured Country an unconventional invasion. It is very worth watching and
only takes 40 mins (be informed while sipping a cup of coffee or tea with
friends)

No Dumps Election Strategy Meeting – Wed 26th July FoE

State Election Strategy Meeting – No Nuclear Waste Dump on Adnyamathanha Yarta

FoE Members & interested allies are invited to come to the community room at Christie Walk on Wednesday 26th July at 5pm to discuss strategy in the lead up to the next State election.

The Second Citizen’s Jury into the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Royal Commission’s Report demonstrated there is widespread support for Indigenous sovereignty and against the expansion of permissions at state level for activities relating to nuclear industry activity in South Australia.

“We won that battle but the fight isn’t over yet.” The Federal Government is targeting three sites in SA to become the national nuclear waste dump. These plans have been on foot for quite sometime. In 2004, South Australians won a 6-year fight against the same proposal. This produced the SA Nuclear Waste Storage (Prohibition) Act 2000 (SA) which aims to “protect the health, safety and welfare of the people of South Australia and to protect the environment in which they live by prohibiting the establishment of certain nuclear waste storage facilities in this State.”

The current Federal Government has demonstrated that they are not interested in community consultation, and we need to get current & aspiring state politicians to understand that this is a critical issue for all people in South Australia. The nuclear industry is not winding-down and in the last few days[*], it has been announced that we have commenced exports of uranium to India. Although the agreement to supply uranium was signed in 2014, it was first reported in the media about twelve months later. We need to continue to be pro-active in our opposition to all things nuclear, and ensure that waste storage never gets a foot in the door.

[*] http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-19/australia-quietly-makes-first-uranium-shipment-to-india/8722108

 

Clausewitz

`In war, everything is simple, and everything simple is hard.’ This strategy gem from the Prussian staff officer and military thinker embodies his principle of decision making under pressure called `friction.’ The coinage reflected his fascination with contemporary 19th century physics, part and parcel of his attempt to discuss Napoleonic era military experience at the highest Hegelian dialectical philosophical level. Strategic principles are transferable from war to politics. So next time you are frustrated in a meeting with friends and comrades, heave a sigh and reflect that friction is a normal part of arriving at consensus.

Aboriginal inhabitants in Kakadu at least 70,000 years ago

A groundbreaking archaeological discovery in Australia’s north has extended the known length of time Aboriginal people have inhabited the continent to at least 65,000 years.
The findings on about 11,000 artefacts from Kakadu national park, published on Thursday in the journal Nature, prove Indigenous people have been in Australia for far longer than the much-contested estimates of between 47,000 and 60,000 years, the researchers said.

Some of the artefacts were potentially as old as 80,000 years.
The new research upends decades-old estimates about the human colonisation of the continent, their interaction with megafauna, and the dispersal of modern humans from Africa and across south Asia.

more details in the Guardian

Illegal and potentially toxic nanoparticles found in baby formula

JUL 02, 2017 Media Release

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Independent testing commissioned by Friends of the Earth has found nanoparticles in popular Australian infant formula products that are both illegal in Australia and potentially dangerous. Three of the seven samples tested contained nano-hydroxyapatite particles. Nano-hydroxyapatite has been found to cause cell death in the liver and kidneys of rats and is prohibited from use in infant formula in Australia in any form.

Friends of the Earth are calling for an immediate recall of all affected brands – and for our food regulator – Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) – to immediately commission testing of all infant formula to ascertain what other brands contain hydroxyapatite or other unapproved and potentially harmful nanoparticles.

Two of these samples, Nestlé NAN H.A. Gold 1 and Nature’s Way Kids Smart 1, were found to contain a needle like form of hydroxyapatite. The European Commission’s Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) has concluded that this form of nano-hydroxyapatite should not be permitted in oral products such as toothpaste and mouthwash because of its potential toxicity.

If it’s dangerous in toothpaste, it should certainly not be in infant formula.

Babies are particularly vulnerable to food safety risks since their immune systems are still developing. Often infant formula is the only food an infant receives. FSANZ needs to immediately recall these products.

TAKE ACTION: DEMAND AN URGENT RECALL!

Altogether 5 of the 7 samples were found to contain nanoparticles that are not approved for use in infant formula, and breach the Food Regulation Ministerial Council’s policy for ensuring the safety of infant formula. Furthermore, the test results confirm that the nano-hydroxyapatite was added to the formula intentionally.

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Friends of the Earth is not only concerned about the presence of nano-hydroxyapatite and nano-calcite in baby formula, but also about the performance of our food regulator FSANZ.

When testing commissioned by Friends of the Earth US last year revealed the presence of nano-hydroxyapatite, nano titanium and nano silica in infant formula, FoE Australia raised concerns that these products could be imported into Australia. In response FSANZ accused FoE of “causing unnecessary concern amongst caregivers” and yet did nothing to ensure that these ingredients are not being used in infant formula in Australia.

Simply claiming that everything is fine without testing, surveillance or monitoring is not good enough.

Two years ago we commissioned testing on food and found every sample contained significant levels of nanomaterials. This included foods most often eaten by children. FSANZ responded by doing nothing, claiming the foods were safe without even undertaking any testing.

It is clear that there is a systemic problem with FSANZ. The agency is deeply compromised by its close relations with big food multinationals. It consistently refuses to regulate, ignores legitimate health concerns and won’t act for the public good except in the most extreme cases. The agency needs to be fully investigated and overhauled.

TAKE ACTION: DEMAND AN URGENT RECALL!

Read our briefing on the test results.

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