Category: Archive

Mr Turnbull says the new plan will make every drop of water count. "The most important thing ... is to properly manage [storages] on a uniform basis," he said.

"Ensuring there is compliance, the water sharing plans across the basin so that they're consistent and that they are complied with, that we address over-allocation where it occurs.

"We pump this very large sum of money, there's nearly $6 billion is going to go into making our irrigation systems the most efficient in the world.

"If we want to maintain a big agricultural base in southern Australia, and do so in circumstances where we're going to have less rain and of course hotter temperatures so there will be even less runoff, in those circumstances you've got to use water as efficiently as you can, and this program will do that."




  

Alcoa, Rio Tinto show interest: US aluminium giant Alcoa and Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto are also believed to have shown interest in the project.

Project would triple PNG capacity: The project would have the capacity to produce 1800 megawatts of electricity in a country with a current installed capacity of just 55OMW.

30-year old plan: Plans for damming the Purari have been on the shelf for more than 30 years, but local company PNG Sustainable Energy has dusted off a 1974 feasibility study and expects to complete an initial proposal for the project by the end of the second quarter.

Rusal smelters: Rusal, which is considering PNG as a site for a new aluminium smelter and whose Russian smelters are powered by hydro plants, met PNGSEL last week to discuss the project. The Russian smelter would account for the bulk of Purari’s generation, taking about 12,000-13,00OMW.

Who is behind PNGSEL: PNGSEL is a joint venture between Australian engineering consultants Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation and the PNG Sustainable Development Program, a development trust that owns 52 per cent of PNG Ok Tedi copper and gold mine. Chaired by Australian academic Ross Garnaut, the trust was created by BHP in 2002 to own and manage its stake in Ok Tedi after it severed ties with the mine to absolve itself of river pollution.

PNGSEL seeks partners before Govt application: Subject to feasibility, PNGSEL is now looking for joint-venture partners ahead of making any development application to the PNG Government.

Dam ready by 2012: The dam would take about four years to build and, allowing for approvals and finance raising, could be in operation by mid-2012.

The Australian, 23/1/2007, p.22

"Stand-off" over prices: Retail petrol prices were expected to fall further with the benchmark Singapore Mogas 95 price falling below 50¢ a litre, compared with close to 60¢ a litre before Christmas. Fuel consultancy Fueltrac’s general manager, Geoff Trotter, said oil companies and service service station operators had engaged in a "Mexican stand-off” with the ACCC over being the first to push retail petrol prices higher.

Increases half-hearted:“Thursday is normally the peak of the weekly pricing cycle in Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth and we haven’t had one this week," Trotter said. “We’ve had a couple of half-hearted attempts by Caltex and Shell to try to move the price up but they haven’t been supported by any of the other majors or independents.”

Impact of scrutiny: Trotter said the reason for the sharp decline over the past days was the scrutiny by the ACCC, his own monitoring firm and publicity in the media. “Nobody has got the stomach to take on this media storm at the moment," he said.

The Australian Financial Review, 19/1/2007, p.16

ACTEW offers to give away recycled water from Lower Molonglo Water Quality Control Centre during water restrictions

Suitable uses for recycled water:
• irrigating lawns and plants at parks, sports amenities, golf courses and public gardens;
• topping up public ponds and fountains;
• topping up water storage tanks (non-potable), dams and lakes;
• construction and related activities.

Unfit for residential use: Recycled water is unfit for human consumption and is not available for residential or private use. Customers are responsible for any costs related to delivery and storage of recycled water, and the minimum tanker size is 7.5 kilolitres. Supply and use is subject to strict terms and conditions.

Reference: For more information, or to register your interest in accessing recycled water, call ACTEW on 6248 3587 or visit http:/ http://www.actew.com.au.

The Canberra Times, 24/1/2007, p.13

Mr Walker said Friends of the Earth had been contacted by many people who
were outraged at the gall of the decision by Woolworths to donate a day’s
trading profits to the Country Women’s Association. "Of course this money
is a welcome contribution to rural communities, but we should not for a
minute overlook the ongoing complicity of such chains in both rural
poverty and environmental harm. This is pure spin on the supermarket’s
part. If Woolworths were serious about the lives and land of farmers, it
would change its corporate practices from top to bottom."
Mr Walker noted that Australian farmers are frequently paid less than the
cost of production for their goods. The demands and costs of supermarket
production mean that few have the time or money to care properly for their
land. Many are trapped in a cycle of debt, having invested large amounts
to comply with their contracts with supermarkets. Half of all farms rely
on off-farm incomes for household subsistence.
Mr Walker cited interviews with Australian farmers, who have reported that
their products are often returned because they don’t meet the excessively
high cosmetic standards of Australian supermarkets – standards that can
only be achieved by using pesticides, fertilisers and factory farming
methods. He noted that these same methods consume huge quantities of
water, considerably reduce biodiversity (in waterways as well as on the
land), and ultimately impact on productivity. "Salinity, poor soil and
OH&S hazards are just some of the costs to farmers of supermarket
production," he said.
In Australia and around the world, hundreds of small scale farmers leave
their industry every year, driven out by low prices and erratic sale
conditions directly attributable to the power of big supermarket chains. Here, farm numbers have fallen by 25% in 25 years.
Friends of the Earth has widely distributed a flyer challenging the power
of large supermarkets, and Mr Walker called on Australian shoppers to do
their best for farmers here and overseas by shopping at markets, farmers
markets, co-operatives and small retailers.

Mr Turnbull says water, which has been added to the Environment portfolio, is his number one priority.

"The biggest environmental challenge in Australia is a water scarcity," he said.

Mr Turnbull says fostering the development of clean coal technologies will also be a priority.

He says most of the world’s power stations will be fuelled by coal for the next few decades.

"That’s particularly true of the fastest-growing economy, China," he said.

"So cleaning up coal-fired power stations is not only in our own national interest, but in many respects, probably the most important thing we can offer to the rest of the world."

Northern Territory Environment Centre co-ordinator Peter Robertson says he thinks Mr Turnbull will do a better job as Environment Minister than his predecessor, Ian Campbell.

Senator Campbell has been dropped from his ministerial role.

Mr Robertson says Senator Campbell had a narrow-minded approach to environmental issues.

He says he expects Mr Turnbull to be more effective.

"We think that he’s got more of an open mind than Senator Campbell, his predecessor," he said.

"He seems to be aware that Australia is in fact confronting some extremely serious environmental problems, and we hope that he applies himself to climate change as much as he is currently applying himself to water and rivers."