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  • Wong says water fund won’t wash

    Senator Wong told those she met yesterday her task was to find long-term solutions for the Murray-Darling Basin.

    She said her visit five days after the Bali greenhouse conference showed the priority she gave to hearing from the people who were directly affected.

    "I wanted to not just speak to the scientists and experts, but hear from the people," she said.

    The low-interest loan scheme for irrigators to buy water from upstream farmers was championed by South Australian Premier Mike Rann. He told the Howard government it needed to free up $250million immediately for the scheme.

    "We’re willing to consider any proposals put to us, but we need to ensure we take an approach that can be delivered nationally and we obviously want to make sure we don’t do anything that’s simply going to increase the price of water," Senator Wong said.

    Mr Whetstone said irrigators sought to make the new Climate Change Minister aware of the strain the drought had placed on growers, families and communities.

    "Really, we’re under siege at the moment with allocations that are not sustainable," Mr Whetstone said.

    "We’re trying to highlight with the minister to let permanent plantings die is not only a huge loss to the economy, but it’s a huge loss to communities and to the specialist industries that we support."

  • Korean Oil Spill damages China’s coast

    The crew of the 147,000-tonne Hebei Spirit stopped the leaking on 8 December, and pumped the remaining oil out of the last of three containers holed by a barge in a collision.

    Major disaster: But with over 10,000 tonnes of crude oil spilled into the Yellow Sea and now polluting a long stretch of coastline, valuable sea farms were threatened, wrote Hyung Jin-Kim in The Daily telgraph (9/12/2007, p.4). A state of disaster has been declared in the region, where beaches and farms dependent on the sea have been badly affected around Taean, 120 kilometres southwest of Seoul. Over 6,600 people, backed by 90 boats and six planes, fought to remove oil drifting at sea or washing on to beaches. Lee Bong-Gil, who headed the Korea Coast Guard’s maritime pollution bureau, told Yonhap news agency: "The large size of the spill has made containment difficult but there will be no significant expansion of the oil considering the tide, wind and their speeds."

    Seafood industry and birds at risk: Officials reported the oil slick washing onto beaches in Taean was already 17km long and 10m wide. He said that while there was no official damage report available yet, there were 445 sea farms in the area for oyster, abalone, clam and other seafood. The tanker was berthed 8km off Mallipo when it was struck. This stretch of coastline was one of Asia’s largest wetland areas, providing important habitat for migrating birds.

    The Daily Telegraph, 9/12/2007, p. 4

  • Tasmanian Irrigators granted water

    Business viability threatened: Although the amount of water that could be taken into farm dams had been allowed to be maximised, this amount had been limited due to low inflows over the 2007 winter/spring period. If nothing was done, the viability of farm businesses in the River Clyde Valley would be threatened. This was the second successive year of drought in the Valley, and the release of a limited amount of irrigation water would provide certainty for farmers to maintain fodder and poppy crops over the coming months.

    Previous exemption: The Commonwealth Minister had previously exempted (7 November 2007), under section 158 of the EPBC Act, the release of water from Lake Crescent for critical human and stock needs (total volume up to 2,000 megalitres) from the usual requirements of assessment and approval under the Act. If approved, the referred action to release 3,300 megalitres of water from Lake Crescent for irrigation purposes would be managed concurrently with the release of water for critical human and stock needs.

    Reference: Australian Government Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999; Release of water from Lake Crescent, Tasmania for the purpose of irrigation. Referring party: Hon David Llewellyn MHA, Minister for Primary Industries and Water. First Floor, Franklin Square Offices HOBART TAS 7000
    (03) 6233 6454, david.llewellyn@parliament.tas.gov.au.

    Erisk Net, 13/12/2007

  • Murray Darling Commission wants free trade

    Developing and implementing open, barrier-free markets for water trading in the southern connected Murray-Darling Basin, consistent with the National Water Initiative, was a key task.

    Trade principles: "Building upon the success of the MDBC pilot interstate water trading project, which commenced in 1998, state jurisdictions have been committed to expanding interstate entitlement trade and have spent considerable time and resources in developing the necessary principles to enable trade to be fully realised," according to the Murray-Darling Basin Commission Annual Report 2006-2007 (29/9/2007). "Since 1 July 2006, interstate water trade has been implemented in accordance with Schedule E as follows:

       

    • allocation trade between New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, and entitlement exchange rate trade between Victoria and South Australia;

       

    • Ministerial Council determined in May 2007 that tagged transfers will commence 1 July 2007 while allowing exchange rate trade to continue;

       

    • tagged transfer protocols were approved by the Commission in April 2007 to enable implementation of tagged entitlement transfers.

    Legal basis for trade: "The protocols included tagging entitlements for extraction in another state, and adjusting valley accounts and state transfer accounts. The revised Schedule E to the Murray-Darling Basin Agreement and its supporting protocols provides for expanded interstate water trade with a strong legal basis in which transfers can be consistently implemented across the jurisdictions. The Commission approved a Schedule E protocol in December 2006, Processing interstate transfers of water allocations (temporary transfers), to ensure that interstate temporary transfers were processed in a consistent manner and that state accounts are reconcilable. During 2006/07 the Commission considered and approved amendments to the following Schedule E exchange rate entitlement protocols: calculating Cap adjustments, processing interstate exchange rate transfers, and restricting transfers between trading zones," the report added.

    Reference: Murray-Darling Basin Commission Annual Report 2006-2007.

    Erisk Net, 29/09/2007

  • NSW opposes power sell off

    Source: ABC  

    A survey conducted for Unions New South Wales shows 85 per cent of people in the state are opposed to the privatisation of the electricity sector.

    Unions NSW secretary John Robertson says the survey found 96 per cent of the 1,011 respondents feared the State Government’s plan would push electricity costs higher, while 85 per cent were concerned jobs would go.

    The results have been released as the union movement prepares to launch a campaign against the Government’s plan to sell off the electricity retailers and lease the state’s power generators.

    Mr Robertson says delegates from across the state will meet in Sydney today to formally reject the plan.

    "I’m confident we’ll be able to run a very effective campaign that puts pressure on the Government to think again," he said.

    But Energy Minister Ian Macdonald is urging the unions to remain calm about the issue.

    "I hope that over the next six weeks or so, we can have a further dialogue with the unions and other stakeholders that is free from over-the-top reactions," he said.

    The unions are worried power prices will rise and jobs will be sent overseas if the sector is privatised.

    Premier Morris Iemma says he is not concerned by the unions’ action.

    "They are entitled to raise their issues and their questions, and the Government responds," he said.

  • Canadian Traditional Owners Generating Power

    Darryl Peters, chief of the Douglas First Nation in the Harrison Lake region, spoke at the conference, concerning his peoples’ relationship with Cloudworks Energy, a Vancouver-based run-of-river hydro company. The firm first approached the area’s indigenous communities in 1999, and started learning what ‘consultation’ really meant.

    "Just because we’ve met, doesn’t mean its consultation. We need to reach an understanding of who you are," said Chief Peters. Regular discussions with the community Elders is of primary importance in First Nations negotiation.

    The partnership that resulted from all of those discussions today includes the construction and operation of six run-of-river hydro systems in the Harrison Lake area.

    In the past, even though the Douglas communities had a major electrical transmission line running right by their territory, the people had to rely on diesel generators for electricity. That’s not the case anymore. "We can now flip the switch and feel secure in the knowledge that we have reliable electricity," says Peters. "Our territory has never had this kind of opportunity to be connected."

    Being part owners of that power makes it all the better. The six projects generate a total of 150 megawatts (MW) from all six creek projects.

    Judith Sayers of the Hupacasath First Nation also spoke at the IPP conference, first following the important protocol of verbally acknowledging the different Nations that traditionally occupied the Vancouver area. She shed some light on another important project for the First Nations.

    China Creek is a shared-ownership project; the Hupacasath own 72.5%, and the remaining shares are divided between the power developer Synex Energy, the neighboring municipality of Port Alberni, and another First Nation. Accessing capital for the project was initially very difficult, but through a combination of pooled resources, a credit union loan, and capacity-building grants, the project was able to move forward. Receiving a BC Hydro purchase agreement cemented the deal. Power began flowing to the grid in December 2005.

    China Creek has become the case study for First Nations renewable power development. Other indigenous groups, universities, government, industry, media and international visitors have viewed the project as an example of aboriginal economic development. The Hupacasath now have an additional contract with BC Hydro for the 6.5-MW Corrigan Creek project, which is scheduled to go online in 2009.

    "These projects are not only bringing revenue, but pride, capacity, and hope, to a community that had absolutely nothing 10 years ago," says Chief Sayers.

    A similar comment reflects the position of the Klahoose First Nation on the Sunshine Coast. Recently, construction began on a 196-MW run-of-river power project, owned and developed by Plutonic Power Corp.

    Klahoose First Nation Chief Ken Brown said, "We’ve spent the last twenty years managing poverty, and because of this power project, we’re going to spend the next twenty managing opportunity."

    The project’s powerhouse, transmission lines, and penstock are located on Klahoose traditional territory, and they have agreements in place to receive royalties, training and employment from the project.

    Exceptions to stories like these still exist, such as the ongoing battle between Dutch-Shell and the Tahltan First Nations in the province’s Northwest region. Shell is making little progress in their attempt to extract coalbed-methane, due in part to their strong-arm approach towards local communities.

    A meaningful long term relationship and respect for natural resources are keys to successful developments on First Nations’ land. And just as in any business arrangement, trust is vital.

    Darryl Peters sums up the frame of reference within which to relate to the First Nations philosophy.

    "There is a strong feeling to the land that we live in, and the overall sustenance that we have is very important. If a proposal is going to have an impact on the land, then you have to come to some sort of resolve in the forefront," Peters said. "Otherwise you’ll encounter the many stumbling blocks that may come down the road."

    Randyn Seibold is a student, freelance writer and renewable energy entrepreneur. Living on British Columbia’s West Coast for the last 15 years, he is an active member of the BC Sustainable Energy Association, and has worked for four years as an electrical apprentice. Renewable Recruits is a proprietorship focused on informing students about renewable energy training opportunities, and recruiting qualified people to RE developments in Western Canada.