Dam plan ditched afer endangered frog found
Dam plan ditched after endangered frog found
LOUISE HALL, STATE POLITICS
June 4, 2010 – 1:23PM
A secret plan to avoid Federal Government scrutiny of the controversial Tillegra Dam was abandoned after lawyers warned it could backfire due to the discovery of an endangered species of frog.
The Environment Minister, Peter Garrett, has the power to axe the $477 million project under Commonwealth environmental protection and biodiversity conservation laws, even if the project gains state planning approval.
A confidential memo written by the law firm Blake Dawson says Hunter Water Corporation could attempt to persuade Mr Garrett that the area to be inundated by the dam was not of national environmental significance.
Nasa analysis showing record global warming undermines the sceptics
Nasa analysis showing record global warming undermines the sceptics
The global temperature has risen to a record for a 12-month period, according to Nasa.
The analysis undermines the case made by climate sceptics, who have used the slight cooling trend in recent years to argue that man-made emissions are not causing global warming.
The average surface temperature for the year to the end of April was about 0.65 of a degree Celsius (1.17 degree Fahrenheit) higher than the 1951 to 1980 average, according to Nasa’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies. That makes it a fraction warmer than the previous peak detected by Nasa in 2005.
The Nasa study said: “We conclude that there has been no reduction in the global warming trend of 0.15-0.20°C/decade that began in the late 1970s.”
Population to hit 35 million by 2056
Population to hit 35 million by 2056 AAP June 4, 2010, 12:43 pm AAP © Enlarge photo The populations of Queensland and Western Australia are expected to more than double within the next 50 years. As the great population debate rages, the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics Yearbook shows the nation’s population is expected Continue Reading →
Another minister quits NSW Government
Another minister quits NSW Government Updated 18 minutes ago Ian Macdonald has been under pressure over a recent trip to Dubai. (AAP Image: Paul Miller) Related Story: NSW minister quits, Keneally faces another reshuffle Related Story: Minister quits over gay sex club visit Related Story: MP stands down amid corruption inquiry A second New South Continue Reading →
Five big hurdles to clear before election
Five big hurdles to clear before election
- From: The Australian
- June 04, 2010
- 110 comments
THERE are only two sitting weeks of parliament before the long winter break and, perhaps, they will be the last sitting weeks of the first Rudd government because there is the distinct possibility of an election being called before parliament resumes on August 24.
Even if parliament briefly resumes before an election is called for October, the tone will be set in those two final weeks of June for the “election season”, as Kevin Rudd calls it.
According to Labor’s plans at the beginning of the parliamentary year, climate change would provide a threat for an early double-dissolution election and would split the opposition regardless of whether the threat was carried out; the takeover of public hospitals would dominate the debate after the budget; and the government’s economic credentials would be extended beyond its success in combating the global financial crisis by laying out long-term tax reforms.
Resignation of MP Graham West
Media Release >From Sylvia Hale, Greens MP and spokesperson for Juvenile Justice 4 June 2010 – For immediate use Minister’s resignation symptomatic of Government’s ethical failure The Greens have described the sudden resignation of Juvenile JusticeMinister Graham West as a symptom of the ethical vacuum that exists inthe Government’s ranks, now manifested in its refusal Continue Reading →