Friends of the Earth Adelaide

“Visit your MP training” at the Conservation Council

robyn July 10, 2016

VISIT YOUR LOCAL POLITICIANS TO SPEAK WITH THEM IN PERSON ABOUT NUCLEAR WASTE DUMPS – THIS ACTION HAS THE GREATEST IMPACT OF ALL!

The action with the greatest impact is contacting your local MP to arrange an in-person meeting to share your concerns. You could also phone them or write them a hard copy letter to send in the mail. You can find your local MP contact details here. If you’re not sure which state electorate you are in, you can find out here.
We know some people are a bit shy about speaking to their MP. To make it easier, the Conservation Council can help. We are happy to talk through points to discuss with your local rep, invite you to come in and make the call from our phones or join us for one of our ‘Talking to your politicians about nuclear waste’ sessions:
There are 2 stand-alone sessions, they are on:

Monday 25 July: 6pm-8pm RSVP here

Tuesday 23 August 6pm-8pm RSVP here

Please RSVP to book your place.

A big thankyou to the Conservation Council of SA

Clean Futures, FoE, Nuclear

anti-nuclear, clean futures collective

Help protect SA’s Limestone Coast from gas fracking

robyn July 10, 2016

Please help protect the Limestone Coast from gas fracking by signing the petition letter to the Premier.

https://www.communityrun.org/petitions/protect-the-limestone-coast-from-invasive-mining-and-gasfields?source=facebook-share-button&time=1465768092

Dear Premier,

The South East of South Australia (Limestone Coast) is known for its world famous clean and green produce, including wine, beef, lamb, vegetables, fruit, and crops. Tourism plays an important role, with the UNESCO listed Naracoorte Caves Park, RAMSAR listed Bool Lagoon and Piccaninnie Ponds, the wine trails, beautiful coastal towns, the Blue Lake and other spectacular areas.

The South East makes up 2.2% of the state and contains over 40% of the state’s prime agricultural land. Over $1 billion in food, wine and fibre is produced annually. With significant exports, it is of paramount importance that our ‘clean and green’ image is not compromised by proposed unconventional/conventional gas and mineral mining, which threatens our groundwater, agricultural land productivity and tourism.

We live in the driest state in the driest inhabited continent in the world. The Government released a document “Conserving Nature 2012 – 2020”. ‘Drought conditions are likely to increase in frequency across many parts of South Australia, as a consequence of climate change, particularly in agricultural areas’… Our water is already under severe stress as prolonged dry periods persist in Southern Australia. Our industries and communities are reliant on underground water.

Fracking for shale and tight gas is an extremely water-intensive practice. It requires vast amounts of water and large amounts of chemicals in each fracking operation. Disposal of wastewater from shale and tight gas operations is a serious problem. Shale and tight gas operations can have severe consequences for human and animal health.

The South East’s thin layer of prime agricultural land sits over limestone, which is porous and brittle. The limestone is prone to subsidence and is exacerbated by mining, drilling and fracking. Decline in water levels (such as use for fracking and mining) increase the risk of seawater intrusion.… Read more >>

Clean Futures, Environmental Law, Mining, Old_Notes

clean futures collective, community, Mining

Apply for a chance to view the nuclear “Citizen’s Jury”

robyn June 17, 2016

The Nuclear Royal Commission has moved on to the so-called “community consultation” phase where 50 people have been chosen out of RSVPs from 25,000 invitations. See the link below inviting people to apply for the chance to view one of its sessions:

http://yoursay.sa.gov.au/citizens_jury_interest_forms/new

From their website:

“Citizens’ Jury Viewing

Want to know what happens inside a Citizens’ Jury? Now is your chance. Register below to be an “Observer” for the nuclear Citizens’ Jury. There are a number of sessions in which 10 randomly selected South Australians will be able to sit in and watch proceedings, hear what the Jury hears and observe how democracy works in this important discussion.

While sessions will be broadcast publicly via media organisations and live streaming on the YourSAy website, at any time the jury reserves the right to deliberate privately and can ask for the jury room to be cleared.

Please note that photographers will be present to take photographs and capture film at this event. This material will be published in both printed and electronic (including Internet-based) media used by the South Australian Government to promote the consultation process on the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Royal Commission report. In some cases, the media in which this material is published may be administered by a third party.

Step 1

Register your interest below. Please provide your name and telephone number and select a session that you would like to attend – please nominate a date and a morning or afternoon session. More than one box can be ticked.

Step 2

Registration for the first two days of the Citizens’ Jury (Saturday 25 June and Sunday 26 June) will close at 5pm Wednesday 22 June, 2016. Registrations for the last two days (Saturday 9 July and Sunday 10 July) will close at 5pm on Wednesday 6th July.… Read more >>

Nuclear, Old_Notes, Publications

TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) trade election scorecard media release

robyn June 17, 2016

Friends of the Earth Adelaide welcome the initiative shown by FOE Melbourne with their ranking of parties and candidates on trade related issues, especially the Trans Pacific Partnership.

Media release June 17, 2016

Parties and candidates rated on trade issues

Today the TPP Unions and Community Roundtable Coalition, of which Friends of the Earth is a founding member, has released a Federal Election 2016 TPP Scorecard ranking all currently elected parties’ and independents’ stance on the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP).

In order to accurately score the parties and politicians on their commitment to disabling the TPP, the Roundtable asked two questions:

If elected, will you:
1: Vote against the enabling legislation for the Trans-Pacific Partnership?
2: Introduce or support legislation to ban ISDS in all trade agreements?

So far the TPP Union and Community Roundtable has received responses from the ALP, the Greens, the Nick Xenophon Team, Glenn Lazarus and Andrew Wilkie. As evidenced by their ticks on the scorecards, the Greens, Xenophon, Lazarus and Wilkie all responded with an unambiguous “Yes” to both questions.

However, the response from the ALP demonstrated an alarming vagueness, stating that Under Australia’s treaty-making arrangements the Parliament must examine trade agreements. The review of the TPP by the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties (JSCOT) was not concluded at the time Mr Turnbull caused the dissolution of the Parliament. The TPP will be examined by JSCOT in the next Parliament whoever forms government – that’s how our treaty system works; and that A Shorten Labor Government will not agree to Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provisions in new trade agreements. A Labor Government will seek to remove these provisions from existing trade agreements and work to ensure ISDS provisions do not prevent governments from pursuing legitimate public policy goals.

Friends of the Earth TPP and trade spokesperson Kat Moore said “time and again, the major parties have bluffed their way through questions regarding the TPP, committing to nothing, whilst meanwhile our sovereignty is being eroded, and our environment, health, jobs and basic freedoms put at risk.… Read more >>

Environmental Law, FoE, Media releases, Old_Notes, Publications

food sovereignty, Sustainability

The Lizard Bites Back protest festival info night Tue 21 June

robyn June 15, 2016

The Lizard Bites Back protest festival info night
Adelaide Bike Kitchen
22 Gibson St Bowden
Tuesday 21 June
6-8pm

The lizard bites back protest festival will take place at the gates of the Olympic Dam uranium mine from the 1st – 3rd of July this year.

Join us at the Adelaide Bike Kitchen on Tuesday 21st for an informal discussion about the event, including what to expect, why we are going, logistics, legals and anything else people want to discuss. Feel free to forward any questions to us before the info session.

This will also be a great opportunity to organise car poolingface to face, so if you are looking for passengers, or you need a lift, come along and we can connect drivers with passengers.

The lizard bites back follows on from the lizard’s revenge in July 2012, which saw approximately 500 people converge near the gates of the mine for five days of workshops, actions and music.

With SA currently facing two nuclear waste dump proposals, and BHP Billiton projected to start a heap leach trial by the end of the year as part of an alternative expansion plan, this is an important time to mobilise and send the message that there is strong community opposition to any expansion of the nuclear fuel cycle in SA.

In July we will re-focus on the source of the problem, highlighting an absurd global situation where we keep mining a mineral we have no idea how to dispose of safely, whilst proposals are again being made to force nuclear waste dumps on communities that do not want them.

The Lizard Bites Back will be held on Kokatha country.

Facebook event page

Mining, Nuclear, Old_Notes, Publications

*events*, anti-nuclear, BHP Billiton; Olympic Dam, community, Mining