NOTICE: SEISMIC SURVEY UNDERWAY SUNDAY 15/4/18 NEWCASTLE AREA
Update On Baleen 2D HR Seismic Survey
No Gas Drilling Off Newcastle Petition
Mona Vale Beach Clean Up
Sunday, April 29 at 10 AM - 12:30 PMHosted by Northern Beaches Clean Up Crew
At Mona Vale Beach
Come and join us for our first clean up in Mona Vale. We'll meet at the area between toilet block and cafe as it’s in the middle of area to target. Some can head north through the basin and others south around cafe/ clubhouse and lawn area or down onto main beach.
We have gloves, bags and buckets. We'll clean up this area to try and catch all the litter before it enters the ocean. We're trying to remove as much plastic, cigarette butts and rubbish as possible.
We're a friendly group of people and everyone is welcome to this family friendly event. It's a nice community - make some new friends and do a good deed for the planet at the same time. Message us here if you are lost.
Sunday, April 29 at 10 AM - 12:30 PM
Hosted by Northern Beaches Clean Up Crew
At Mona Vale Beach
Come and join us for our first clean up in Mona Vale. We'll meet at the area between toilet block and cafe as it’s in the middle of area to target. Some can head north through the basin and others south around cafe/ clubhouse and lawn area or down onto main beach.
We have gloves, bags and buckets. We'll clean up this area to try and catch all the litter before it enters the ocean. We're trying to remove as much plastic, cigarette butts and rubbish as possible.
We're a friendly group of people and everyone is welcome to this family friendly event. It's a nice community - make some new friends and do a good deed for the planet at the same time.
Message us here if you are lost.
Community Members Sought For NPWS Regional Advisory Committees
Fox Baiting Here - Notice To Pet Owners
Queenslanders Lose Out As Linc Energy Found Guilty Of Major Environmental Harm
Birdlife Australia - Act For Birds: Town Hall Meeting, Sydney
Date: Friday 11 May, 2018Join BirdLife in Sydney this May to hear about how nature laws are failing our birds and what we can do to help them.
BirdLife Australia is calling for stronger nature laws that genuinely protect our wonderful birds and their precious habitats. Our Act for Birds campaign is live, our report just launched, and across the environmental movement as a whole we're starting to see the extinction crisis getting the national media attention it deserves.
But our real power to secure stronger nature laws – and better outcomes for birds - lies in the stories and voices of local bird-lovers from around the country. So BirdLife will be hosting 8 town hall meetings across the country!
This series of town hall meetings will bring together people who care about birds and nature to share knowledge and take action. Attendees will get the chance to improve their understanding of this national issue, why it’s important and how it relates to you. We'll talk through exactly how the current system of nature laws is fundamentally broken and offer practical ways to take action about the local issues that matter to you.
This will be a great opportunity for passionate nature lovers (like you!) to connect with one another, come up with ideas of your own, and take action together for the places and birds you love!
Tea, coffee and snacks provided.
Date: Friday 11 May, 2018
Join BirdLife in Sydney this May to hear about how nature laws are failing our birds and what we can do to help them.
BirdLife Australia is calling for stronger nature laws that genuinely protect our wonderful birds and their precious habitats.
Our Act for Birds campaign is live, our report just launched, and across the environmental movement as a whole we're starting to see the extinction crisis getting the national media attention it deserves.
But our real power to secure stronger nature laws – and better outcomes for birds - lies in the stories and voices of local bird-lovers from around the country. So BirdLife will be hosting 8 town hall meetings across the country!
This series of town hall meetings will bring together people who care about birds and nature to share knowledge and take action. Attendees will get the chance to improve their understanding of this national issue, why it’s important and how it relates to you. We'll talk through exactly how the current system of nature laws is fundamentally broken and offer practical ways to take action about the local issues that matter to you.
This will be a great opportunity for passionate nature lovers (like you!) to connect with one another, come up with ideas of your own, and take action together for the places and birds you love!
Tea, coffee and snacks provided.
Please Help: Contribute To Significant Trees Register For Our Area
Significant trees listings wanted
Avalon Preservation AssociationThe next step in the Avalon Preservation Association's Avalon Cultural Audit is to identify and list significant trees in the area.
Roger Sayers has nominated the Spotted Gums in the reserve opposite Careel Bay Wharf.
Please help us by contributing your pick of significant trees in the area so we can map them and enter into our database.
You can either post a picture/s on the APA Facebook page and identify location of tree/s and species type if known or email us with same at secretary@avalonpreservationassociation.org.au
Our new Avalon Preservation Association Noticeboard is finally installed on corner of Belle Property Building near Herforts Chemist Old Barrenjoey Rd Avalon Beach. Many thanks to Mark Griffin Belle Property for use of wall and Robert Adema for installation.
Significant trees listings wanted
Avalon Preservation Association
The next step in the Avalon Preservation Association's Avalon Cultural Audit is to identify and list significant trees in the area.
Roger Sayers has nominated the Spotted Gums in the reserve opposite Careel Bay Wharf.
Please help us by contributing your pick of significant trees in the area so we can map them and enter into our database.
You can either post a picture/s on the APA Facebook page and identify location of tree/s and species type if known or email us with same at secretary@avalonpreservationassociation.org.au
Our new Avalon Preservation Association Noticeboard is finally installed on corner of Belle Property Building near Herforts Chemist Old Barrenjoey Rd Avalon Beach. Many thanks to Mark Griffin Belle Property for use of wall and Robert Adema for installation.
Friends Of Narrabeen Lagoon Catchment Activities
Bush Regeneration - Narrabeen Lagoon Catchment
This is a wonderful way to become connected to nature and contribute to the health of the environment. Over the weeks and months you can see positive changes as you give native species a better chance to thrive. Wildlife appreciate the improvement in their habitat.
Belrose area - Thursday mornings Belrose area - Weekend mornings by arrangementContact: Phone or text Conny Harris on 0432 643 295
Wheeler Creek - Wednesday mornings 9-11amContact: Phone or text Judith Bennett on 0402 974 105Or email: Friends of Narrabeen Lagoon Catchment : email@narrabeenlagoon.org.au
Upper Deep Creek Catchment walk
Sat 28/4/18 Start 10am at Terrey Hills and allow 3 hours and bring a screwdriver for some voluntary weeding near the end of the track. See and identify spectacular Sydney sandstone flora in “autumn” blossom. Carpool required. Bookings essential: Conny Harris 0432 643 295
Narrabeen Lagoon Catchment transverse Sat 19/5/18 Start 9am - finish 1.30pm.This walk is a hidden gem. Also lovely scenic views and sometimes rare fauna. Plant ID as we go and a brief lunch break BYO. Carpool back.Bookings essential: Conny Harris 0432 643 295
Cromer to Oxford Falls
Sun 10/6/18 Start 10am from Cromer Rd, allow 4 hrs and bring lunch to see great carvings near Red Hill, fantastic views over Narrabeen Lagoon and as typical for this catchment very different vegetation communities. Plant ID as we go. We will walk down to Oxford Falls and carpool back. Bookings needed: Conny Harris 0432 643 295
Bush Regeneration - Narrabeen Lagoon Catchment
This is a wonderful way to become connected to nature and contribute to the health of the environment. Over the weeks and months you can see positive changes as you give native species a better chance to thrive. Wildlife appreciate the improvement in their habitat.
Belrose area - Thursday mornings
Belrose area - Weekend mornings by arrangement
Contact: Phone or text Conny Harris on 0432 643 295
Wheeler Creek - Wednesday mornings 9-11am
Contact: Phone or text Judith Bennett on 0402 974 105
Or email: Friends of Narrabeen Lagoon Catchment : email@narrabeenlagoon.org.au
Upper Deep Creek Catchment walk
Sat 28/4/18
Start 10am at Terrey Hills and allow 3 hours and bring a screwdriver for some voluntary weeding near the end of the track.
See and identify spectacular Sydney sandstone flora in “autumn” blossom. Carpool required. Bookings essential: Conny Harris 0432 643 295
Narrabeen Lagoon Catchment transverse
Sat 19/5/18
Start 9am - finish 1.30pm.
This walk is a hidden gem. Also lovely scenic views and sometimes rare fauna. Plant ID as we go and a brief lunch break BYO. Carpool back.
Bookings essential: Conny Harris 0432 643 295
Cromer to Oxford Falls
Sun 10/6/18
Start 10am from Cromer Rd, allow 4 hrs and bring lunch to see great carvings near Red Hill, fantastic views over Narrabeen Lagoon and as typical for this catchment very different vegetation communities. Plant ID as we go. We will walk down to Oxford Falls and carpool back. Bookings needed: Conny Harris 0432 643 295
Looking For Nippers For Beach Environment Film
Council are seeking local Nippers to be part of a short film to help educate the community on the impact of rubbish on our beach environment. Filming is due to take place in June.
Children will be supervised and provided refreshments between shoots.
Contact their Waste teamWasteEducation@northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au or call 0438 649 528 for more information.
Photo by A J Guesdon, 2015
Council are seeking local Nippers to be part of a short film to help educate the community on the impact of rubbish on our beach environment. Filming is due to take place in June.
Children will be supervised and provided refreshments between shoots.
Contact their Waste teamWasteEducation@northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au
or call 0438 649 528 for more information.
Photo by A J Guesdon, 2015
Plans Finalised For Australia's Marine Parks
The Federal Government Is Pushing Ahead With “The Largest Protected Area Downgrading In The World”
Monitoring Reef Health In The Coral Sea
Tree-Mendous: Sydney To Get 5 Million New Trees As Part Of $290 Million Package
Hotter, Longer, More Frequent - Marine Heatwaves On The Rise
April 11, 2018: by Alvin Stone, University of New South WalesMarine heatwaves have increased over the past century as a direct result of warming oceans, with significant impacts on biodiversity, fisheries, tourism and aquaculture.
Brain coral under a hot sun. Image: Daniel Hjalmarsson Unsplash
An international study by researchers from the newly launched ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes and the Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies reveals that marine heatwaves have increased globally over the past century in number, length and intensity as a direct result of warming oceans.
The results are published in the journal Nature Communications.
From 1925-2016, the frequency of marine heatwaves increased on average by 34% and the length of each heatwave increased by 17%. Together this led to a 54% increase in the number of marine heatwave days every year.
“Our research also found that from 1982 there was a noticeable acceleration of the trend in marine heatwaves,” says lead author and Associate Investigator from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science, Dr Eric Oliver, who is now based in Dalhousie University, Canada.
“While some of us may enjoy the warmer waters when we go swimming, these heatwaves have significant impacts on ecosystems, biodiversity, fisheries, tourism and aquaculture. There are often profound economic consequences that go hand in hand with these events.”
Some recent examples show just how significant marine heatwave events can be.- In 2011, Western Australia saw a marine heatwave that shifted ecosystems from being dominated by kelp to being dominated by seaweed. That shift remained even after water temperatures returned to normal.
- In 2012, a marine heatwave in the Gulf of Maine led to an increase in lobsters but a crash in prices that seriously hurt the industry’s profits.
- Persistent warm water in the north Pacific from 2014-2016 led to fishery closures, mass strandings of marine mammals and harmful algal blooms along coastlines. That heatwave even changed large-scale weather patterns in the Pacific Northwest.
- More recently still, Tasmania’s intense marine heatwave in 2016 led to disease outbreaks and slowing in growth rates across aquaculture industries. (Record-breaking marine heatwave cooks Tasmania's fisheries - ARC)
The researchers used a variety of observational datasets to reveal the trend of increasing marine heatwaves, combining satellite data with a range century long datasets taken from ships and various land based measuring stations. They then removed the influences of natural variability caused by the El Nino Southern Oscillation, the Pacific Decadal Oscillation and the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation to find the underlying trend.
“There was a clear relationship between the rise in global average sea-surface temperatures and the increase in marine heatwaves, much the same as we see increases in extreme heat events related to the increase in global average temperatures,” says co-author and UNSW scientist, Dr Lisa Alexander, a chief investigator with the UNSW-based Centre for Climate Extremes.
“With more than 90% of the heat from human caused global warming going into our oceans, it is likely marine heatwaves will continue to increase. The next key stage for our research is to quantify exactly how much they may change.
“The results of these projections are likely to have significant implications for how our environment and economies adapt to this changing world," she says.
Eric C. J. Oliver, Markus G. Donat, Michael T. Burrows, Pippa J. Moore, Dan A. Smale, Lisa V. Alexander, Jessica A. Benthuysen, Ming Feng, Alex Sen Gupta, Alistair J. Hobday, Neil J. Holbrook, Sarah E. Perkins-Kirkpatrick, Hillary A. Scannell, Sandra C. Straub, Thomas Wernberg. Longer and more frequent marine heatwaves over the past century. Nature Communications, 2018; 9 (1) DOI:10.1038/s41467-018-03732-9
Eric C. J. Oliver, Jessica A. Benthuysen, Nathaniel L. Bindoff, Alistair J. Hobday, Neil J. Holbrook, Craig N. Mundy, Sarah E. Perkins-Kirkpatrick. The unprecedented 2015/16 Tasman Sea marine heatwave. Nature Communications, 2017; 8: 16101 DOI:10.1038/ncomms16101
April 11, 2018: by Alvin Stone, University of New South Wales
Marine heatwaves have increased over the past century as a direct result of warming oceans, with significant impacts on biodiversity, fisheries, tourism and aquaculture.
Brain coral under a hot sun. Image: Daniel Hjalmarsson Unsplash
An international study by researchers from the newly launched ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes and the Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies reveals that marine heatwaves have increased globally over the past century in number, length and intensity as a direct result of warming oceans.
The results are published in the journal Nature Communications.
From 1925-2016, the frequency of marine heatwaves increased on average by 34% and the length of each heatwave increased by 17%. Together this led to a 54% increase in the number of marine heatwave days every year.
“Our research also found that from 1982 there was a noticeable acceleration of the trend in marine heatwaves,” says lead author and Associate Investigator from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science, Dr Eric Oliver, who is now based in Dalhousie University, Canada.
“While some of us may enjoy the warmer waters when we go swimming, these heatwaves have significant impacts on ecosystems, biodiversity, fisheries, tourism and aquaculture. There are often profound economic consequences that go hand in hand with these events.”
Some recent examples show just how significant marine heatwave events can be.
- In 2011, Western Australia saw a marine heatwave that shifted ecosystems from being dominated by kelp to being dominated by seaweed. That shift remained even after water temperatures returned to normal.
- In 2012, a marine heatwave in the Gulf of Maine led to an increase in lobsters but a crash in prices that seriously hurt the industry’s profits.
- Persistent warm water in the north Pacific from 2014-2016 led to fishery closures, mass strandings of marine mammals and harmful algal blooms along coastlines. That heatwave even changed large-scale weather patterns in the Pacific Northwest.
- More recently still, Tasmania’s intense marine heatwave in 2016 led to disease outbreaks and slowing in growth rates across aquaculture industries. (Record-breaking marine heatwave cooks Tasmania's fisheries - ARC)
The researchers used a variety of observational datasets to reveal the trend of increasing marine heatwaves, combining satellite data with a range century long datasets taken from ships and various land based measuring stations. They then removed the influences of natural variability caused by the El Nino Southern Oscillation, the Pacific Decadal Oscillation and the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation to find the underlying trend.
“There was a clear relationship between the rise in global average sea-surface temperatures and the increase in marine heatwaves, much the same as we see increases in extreme heat events related to the increase in global average temperatures,” says co-author and UNSW scientist, Dr Lisa Alexander, a chief investigator with the UNSW-based Centre for Climate Extremes.
“With more than 90% of the heat from human caused global warming going into our oceans, it is likely marine heatwaves will continue to increase. The next key stage for our research is to quantify exactly how much they may change.
“The results of these projections are likely to have significant implications for how our environment and economies adapt to this changing world," she says.
Eric C. J. Oliver, Markus G. Donat, Michael T. Burrows, Pippa J. Moore, Dan A. Smale, Lisa V. Alexander, Jessica A. Benthuysen, Ming Feng, Alex Sen Gupta, Alistair J. Hobday, Neil J. Holbrook, Sarah E. Perkins-Kirkpatrick, Hillary A. Scannell, Sandra C. Straub, Thomas Wernberg. Longer and more frequent marine heatwaves over the past century. Nature Communications, 2018; 9 (1) DOI:10.1038/s41467-018-03732-9
Eric C. J. Oliver, Jessica A. Benthuysen, Nathaniel L. Bindoff, Alistair J. Hobday, Neil J. Holbrook, Craig N. Mundy, Sarah E. Perkins-Kirkpatrick. The unprecedented 2015/16 Tasman Sea marine heatwave. Nature Communications, 2017; 8: 16101 DOI:10.1038/ncomms16101
Planning For The Future With Climate Change – We Owe This To You
April 12th, 2018RT HON JACINDA ARDERN, Prime Minister of New zealandTena koutou katoaI want you for a moment to think about what you will be doing in 2048. Hopefully you will of course have graduated. You may well have a mortgage. A partner. Kids. If my attempts to predict the future as a teenager was anything to go by, you will also travel on a hover board.
But what will our world be like? Our environment, and New Zealand’s place in the world?
The idea of having to think about the what ifs 30 or even 40 years before it happens is an overwhelming prospect. But the truth is, we have to.
I know that decisions we make today have a long lasting impact. But the temptation in politics for too long, has been to do everything in three year cycles. Not too think too far ahead least you have to make hard decisions. But if there is one issue that proves we just can’t operate like that anymore, its climate change.
And that is why I am here. As young people I know that you have a good grasp of the important issues of the day. You have been a part of some of the most significant. But climate change is not just another movement that is increasingly being led by you, it is one that will also cost you unless we take action.
There is another reason we are here today. I have always been a big believer of evidence informed policy making. I had to remind myself of that the first time I ever spoke about climate change 10 years ago at a public meeting, and was booed very loudly by a group that included my grandmother.
Evidence matters. Science matters. And that is why I want to acknowledge the Climate Change experts and researchers here at Victoria University who have done such excellent work to raise the profile of the problem. Your own campaigns over the last few years helped inform us and keep action on climate change on the agenda. Professors James Renwick and Tim Naish are just a few of your great spokespeople, thank you to you and your teams.
But while you do the work, it is ultimately us as politicians who have the chance to make that work a reality. And I can think of no better place start doing that, than right here in New Zealand.
When I spoke with Al Gore a few months ago I said that New Zealand’s role in climate change is anchored in who we are as a nation – we were the first to give women the vote, we were around the table when we established the United Nations, we were at the forefront of the anti-nuclear movement and this feels like the next stage for New Zealand to make a stand on an issue.
We are anchored in the Pacific – surrounding us are nations, including ourselves, who will be dramatically impacted by climate change. You can’t avoid seeing the impact around us, especially in the Pacific as warmer sea temperatures contribute to more storms, as we see more droughts and fires, and more extreme weather in general. That’s just the obvious impact of climate change. There’s also sea level rise, ocean acidification, the movement of mosquito borne diseases like zika and dengue.
Tens of thousands of New Zealanders and Pacific peoples live on the coastline and will be affected by rising sea levels. That means people may need people to move their homes, breaking up communities and causing stress and hardship. , Underground infrastructure and fresh water sources could be inundated with sea water, and crops that have previously been a staple will change or even disappear. For the pacific, this is not just a hypothetical, it is real.
On my recent visit to Samoa and Tonga I saw the damage to homes. It was devastating and wide spread. And it wasn’t just homes that were effected. Schools, parliament buildings, businesses and infrastructure like power lines that were taken out by coconut trees. Families struggling to fix their homes were sending children to school where they had to learn in tents supplied by UNICEF. The damage from these storms is immense and the reconstruction period is long and hard.
I have said in the past that I believe we have a duty to our pacific neighbours to raise the need for mitigation and adaptation in the face of these challenges. Increasingly though I have come to see that we are the pacific. When we raise these issues, and when we act on them, it will be as much about Tokelau as it is about us.
And action is taking place already. And not just by us.
Around the world we see oil companies investing billions of dollars in clean energy. Companies are investing in charging stations for electric vehicles. Oil companies themselves are looking to the future and that includes renewables. We all know we are going to have to do things differently.
Norwegian-based Energy Company Statoil has developed its own climate road map in support of the Paris Climate Agreement. It includes by 2020 putting 25 percent of its research funding into developing new energy and energy efficiency solutions, and making decisions that support a low carbon future.
You might have seen in the news over the weekend that oil giant Shell issued a report in 1988 predicting climate change and noting that with fossil fuel combustion being a major source of CO2 in the atmosphere, a forward looking approach by the energy industry was needed. They followed that up some 30 years later by this week saying they strongly support the Paris Agreement and the need for society to transition to a lower carbon future, while also extending the economic and social benefits of energy to everyone. To quote shell "successfully navigating this dual challenge requires sound government policy and cultural change to drive low-carbon choices for businesses and consumers. It requires cooperation between all segments of society."
I completely agree.
And that is why I am here with our partners, New Zealand First and our Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones, and the Green Party and our Climate Change Minister James Shaw, along with Energy and Resources Minister Megan Woods.
They are here because we together made it a priority as a Coalition Government to make a fresh start in tackling this problem.In striking a balance I would like to acknowledge the manner in which New Zealand First and the Green Party were able to join Labour in finding a pathway that both protects existing permit holders while signalling our shift towards a just transition in the sector.
We have a Minister for Climate Change, James Shaw, who represents us internationally, as well as leading the agenda at home. Just a few weeks ago he spoke to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Working Group on Land, being held in Christchurch. There were 120 scientists and experts, from 59 countries there.
I’m sure he was proud to be able to tell them that we have committed to the goal of becoming a net zero emission economy by 2050, with an interim step of making our electricity system 100 percent renewable by 2035. They’re ambitious goals we should all be proud of.And we have to be ambitious about what we can do to make a difference. Because in this enourmous challenge we are facing, also lies opportunity for us. If we create a plan.
And this government has a plan.
Firstly, sustainable, low emission food production promises to be a valuable opportunity if we can get it right.
We are also encouraging and incentivising innovation and investment to deliver a clean, green carbon neutral New Zealand – and the Green Investment Fund will support this. It aims to stimulate up to $1 billion of new investment in low carbon industries by 2020, kick-started by a Government investment of $100 million.
As part of our regional development work and under the leadership of Minister Shane Jones, we have started a programme to plant 1 billion trees in the next 10 years. This will contribute to reducing CO2 emissions, both through C02 absorption and by reducing erosion.
We are setting up an Independent Climate Commission of experts who will develop carbon budgets right through to 2050. That means they’ll set the amount of carbon we can afford to put into the atmosphere each year to get us to carbon neutrality, while ensuring we have enough energy available to run our economy and country.
We also have to make sure that we are focused on just transitions – that in areas where fossil fuels have played a major role, we don’t switch off the tap overnight, that we make decisions 30 years in advance and invest in those regions. We have asked MBIE to start work co-ordinating this activity.
But just transitions have to start somewhere. And unless we start thinking about the when and the how now, we run the risk of local communities experiencing a jarring shock just because we didn’t think beyond short electoral cycles.
And that is why we have to consider the future of oil and gas exploration in New Zealand. Not for tomorrow, but for 30 or 40 years time.The need to transition to a low carbon economy is understood and agreed on by both sides of parliament as well as widely supported by this industry.
So it comes as no surprise that we have been considering what to do about the future of oil and gas exploration. We have previously talked about the ‘block offer’ where areas of land and sea are offered to companies for oil and gas exploration.In considering this we have been clear about two things:- We need to give certainty.
- We need a plan.
Certainty means being clear that we need to honour existing permits. And as a government, we are committed to that. In honouring these permits, we protect current jobs and businesses and provide time to work on change for the future together.
New Zealand First accentuated its support for protecting the rights of existing permit holders and this we agreed to, to ensure certainty for all those in the industry currently holding exploration and mining permits.
There are currently exploration permits that cover an area roughly the size of the North Island, and a number of mining permits. These all have a long shelf life, and a long lead time. Nothing will end tomorrow.
But certainty is also about setting our expectations for the future. And that is what we have done today.
Today we announced that onshore block offers will now be limited to acreage in the Taranaki region.
We have also announced that we will no longer be granting any new offshore oil and gas exploration permits.
This is another step on our transition away from fossil fuels and towards a carbon neutral economy.
Some will say that is not enough to prevent climate change. Of course that’s true. But as you know now, this is not the only thing this Government is doing to address climate change. The Block Offer is only one part of our plan. Climate Change Minister James Shaw may tell you more after this speech.
And this announcement is also only the beginning of our work on Just transitions. While I am reassuring people today that we are not going to rip their jobs from under them, nor leave communities to cope with change on their own, we also need to talk to them face to face about the 30 year plan.
We’ve seen before the enormous social damage done in the 1980s due to rapid, uncaring change. I’m a child of the 80’s – I grew up at a time when this country was going through incredibly difficult economic change in a very short period. People lost jobs suddenly, communities were gutted, families were displaced. I saw plenty of evidence of that growing up in Murupara and Morrinsville.
We will not let that happen here. I want to thank New Zealand first. Supporting our regions and ensuring we have a plan for the longer term, and honour our existing commitments has been a key point of advocacy for them. And last week Shane Jones started that by investing $20 million in the Taranaki region as we work towards the future.
This Government has set ambitious targets for our country – hitting these targets will have huge benefits for everyone. We protect our environment, have a healthier environment, create new jobs in new industries and can live up to our reputation as a leader on the world stage.
We have been a world leader on critical issues to humanity by being nuclear free, the first to support women’s’ vote and now we could be a world leading in becoming carbon neutral.
We owe this to future generations – but ultimately, we owe it to you.
[speech given at Victoria University, Wellington]
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern at Victoria University of Wellington, photo by Victoria University of Wellington
April 12th, 2018
RT HON JACINDA ARDERN, Prime Minister of New zealand
Tena koutou katoa
I want you for a moment to think about what you will be doing in 2048. Hopefully you will of course have graduated. You may well have a mortgage. A partner. Kids. If my attempts to predict the future as a teenager was anything to go by, you will also travel on a hover board.
But what will our world be like? Our environment, and New Zealand’s place in the world?
The idea of having to think about the what ifs 30 or even 40 years before it happens is an overwhelming prospect. But the truth is, we have to.
I know that decisions we make today have a long lasting impact. But the temptation in politics for too long, has been to do everything in three year cycles. Not too think too far ahead least you have to make hard decisions. But if there is one issue that proves we just can’t operate like that anymore, its climate change.
And that is why I am here. As young people I know that you have a good grasp of the important issues of the day. You have been a part of some of the most significant. But climate change is not just another movement that is increasingly being led by you, it is one that will also cost you unless we take action.
There is another reason we are here today. I have always been a big believer of evidence informed policy making. I had to remind myself of that the first time I ever spoke about climate change 10 years ago at a public meeting, and was booed very loudly by a group that included my grandmother.
Evidence matters. Science matters. And that is why I want to acknowledge the Climate Change experts and researchers here at Victoria University who have done such excellent work to raise the profile of the problem. Your own campaigns over the last few years helped inform us and keep action on climate change on the agenda. Professors James Renwick and Tim Naish are just a few of your great spokespeople, thank you to you and your teams.
But while you do the work, it is ultimately us as politicians who have the chance to make that work a reality. And I can think of no better place start doing that, than right here in New Zealand.
When I spoke with Al Gore a few months ago I said that New Zealand’s role in climate change is anchored in who we are as a nation – we were the first to give women the vote, we were around the table when we established the United Nations, we were at the forefront of the anti-nuclear movement and this feels like the next stage for New Zealand to make a stand on an issue.
We are anchored in the Pacific – surrounding us are nations, including ourselves, who will be dramatically impacted by climate change. You can’t avoid seeing the impact around us, especially in the Pacific as warmer sea temperatures contribute to more storms, as we see more droughts and fires, and more extreme weather in general. That’s just the obvious impact of climate change. There’s also sea level rise, ocean acidification, the movement of mosquito borne diseases like zika and dengue.
Tens of thousands of New Zealanders and Pacific peoples live on the coastline and will be affected by rising sea levels. That means people may need people to move their homes, breaking up communities and causing stress and hardship. , Underground infrastructure and fresh water sources could be inundated with sea water, and crops that have previously been a staple will change or even disappear. For the pacific, this is not just a hypothetical, it is real.
On my recent visit to Samoa and Tonga I saw the damage to homes. It was devastating and wide spread. And it wasn’t just homes that were effected. Schools, parliament buildings, businesses and infrastructure like power lines that were taken out by coconut trees. Families struggling to fix their homes were sending children to school where they had to learn in tents supplied by UNICEF. The damage from these storms is immense and the reconstruction period is long and hard.
I have said in the past that I believe we have a duty to our pacific neighbours to raise the need for mitigation and adaptation in the face of these challenges. Increasingly though I have come to see that we are the pacific. When we raise these issues, and when we act on them, it will be as much about Tokelau as it is about us.
And action is taking place already. And not just by us.
Around the world we see oil companies investing billions of dollars in clean energy. Companies are investing in charging stations for electric vehicles. Oil companies themselves are looking to the future and that includes renewables. We all know we are going to have to do things differently.
Norwegian-based Energy Company Statoil has developed its own climate road map in support of the Paris Climate Agreement. It includes by 2020 putting 25 percent of its research funding into developing new energy and energy efficiency solutions, and making decisions that support a low carbon future.
You might have seen in the news over the weekend that oil giant Shell issued a report in 1988 predicting climate change and noting that with fossil fuel combustion being a major source of CO2 in the atmosphere, a forward looking approach by the energy industry was needed. They followed that up some 30 years later by this week saying they strongly support the Paris Agreement and the need for society to transition to a lower carbon future, while also extending the economic and social benefits of energy to everyone. To quote shell "successfully navigating this dual challenge requires sound government policy and cultural change to drive low-carbon choices for businesses and consumers. It requires cooperation between all segments of society."
I completely agree.
And that is why I am here with our partners, New Zealand First and our Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones, and the Green Party and our Climate Change Minister James Shaw, along with Energy and Resources Minister Megan Woods.
They are here because we together made it a priority as a Coalition Government to make a fresh start in tackling this problem.
In striking a balance I would like to acknowledge the manner in which New Zealand First and the Green Party were able to join Labour in finding a pathway that both protects existing permit holders while signalling our shift towards a just transition in the sector.
We have a Minister for Climate Change, James Shaw, who represents us internationally, as well as leading the agenda at home. Just a few weeks ago he spoke to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Working Group on Land, being held in Christchurch. There were 120 scientists and experts, from 59 countries there.
I’m sure he was proud to be able to tell them that we have committed to the goal of becoming a net zero emission economy by 2050, with an interim step of making our electricity system 100 percent renewable by 2035. They’re ambitious goals we should all be proud of.
And we have to be ambitious about what we can do to make a difference. Because in this enourmous challenge we are facing, also lies opportunity for us. If we create a plan.
And this government has a plan.
Firstly, sustainable, low emission food production promises to be a valuable opportunity if we can get it right.
We are also encouraging and incentivising innovation and investment to deliver a clean, green carbon neutral New Zealand – and the Green Investment Fund will support this. It aims to stimulate up to $1 billion of new investment in low carbon industries by 2020, kick-started by a Government investment of $100 million.
As part of our regional development work and under the leadership of Minister Shane Jones, we have started a programme to plant 1 billion trees in the next 10 years. This will contribute to reducing CO2 emissions, both through C02 absorption and by reducing erosion.
We are setting up an Independent Climate Commission of experts who will develop carbon budgets right through to 2050. That means they’ll set the amount of carbon we can afford to put into the atmosphere each year to get us to carbon neutrality, while ensuring we have enough energy available to run our economy and country.
We also have to make sure that we are focused on just transitions – that in areas where fossil fuels have played a major role, we don’t switch off the tap overnight, that we make decisions 30 years in advance and invest in those regions. We have asked MBIE to start work co-ordinating this activity.
But just transitions have to start somewhere. And unless we start thinking about the when and the how now, we run the risk of local communities experiencing a jarring shock just because we didn’t think beyond short electoral cycles.
And that is why we have to consider the future of oil and gas exploration in New Zealand. Not for tomorrow, but for 30 or 40 years time.
The need to transition to a low carbon economy is understood and agreed on by both sides of parliament as well as widely supported by this industry.
So it comes as no surprise that we have been considering what to do about the future of oil and gas exploration. We have previously talked about the ‘block offer’ where areas of land and sea are offered to companies for oil and gas exploration.
In considering this we have been clear about two things:
- We need to give certainty.
- We need a plan.
Certainty means being clear that we need to honour existing permits. And as a government, we are committed to that. In honouring these permits, we protect current jobs and businesses and provide time to work on change for the future together.
New Zealand First accentuated its support for protecting the rights of existing permit holders and this we agreed to, to ensure certainty for all those in the industry currently holding exploration and mining permits.
There are currently exploration permits that cover an area roughly the size of the North Island, and a number of mining permits. These all have a long shelf life, and a long lead time. Nothing will end tomorrow.
But certainty is also about setting our expectations for the future. And that is what we have done today.
Today we announced that onshore block offers will now be limited to acreage in the Taranaki region.
We have also announced that we will no longer be granting any new offshore oil and gas exploration permits.
This is another step on our transition away from fossil fuels and towards a carbon neutral economy.
Some will say that is not enough to prevent climate change. Of course that’s true. But as you know now, this is not the only thing this Government is doing to address climate change. The Block Offer is only one part of our plan. Climate Change Minister James Shaw may tell you more after this speech.
And this announcement is also only the beginning of our work on Just transitions. While I am reassuring people today that we are not going to rip their jobs from under them, nor leave communities to cope with change on their own, we also need to talk to them face to face about the 30 year plan.
We’ve seen before the enormous social damage done in the 1980s due to rapid, uncaring change. I’m a child of the 80’s – I grew up at a time when this country was going through incredibly difficult economic change in a very short period. People lost jobs suddenly, communities were gutted, families were displaced. I saw plenty of evidence of that growing up in Murupara and Morrinsville.
We will not let that happen here. I want to thank New Zealand first. Supporting our regions and ensuring we have a plan for the longer term, and honour our existing commitments has been a key point of advocacy for them. And last week Shane Jones started that by investing $20 million in the Taranaki region as we work towards the future.
This Government has set ambitious targets for our country – hitting these targets will have huge benefits for everyone. We protect our environment, have a healthier environment, create new jobs in new industries and can live up to our reputation as a leader on the world stage.
We have been a world leader on critical issues to humanity by being nuclear free, the first to support women’s’ vote and now we could be a world leading in becoming carbon neutral.
We owe this to future generations – but ultimately, we owe it to you.
[speech given at Victoria University, Wellington]
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern at Victoria University of Wellington, photo by Victoria University of Wellington
An Historic Day For Action On Climate Change
April 12th, 2018HON JAMES SHAW, Climate change Minister, Government of New ZealandTena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa.
This is an historic day.
Today ends all new oil and gas exploration in the waters around Aotearoa New Zealand.
What a win.
It’s a win for the Green Party and a win for all of us who care about the environment and the impacts of climate change.
Today will go down in history as the moment New Zealand said fossil fuels are not our future.
Today we have drawn that line in the sand.
As I have said many times, the world cannot burn most of the fossil fuel reserves that have already been discovered without causing catastrophic global warming.
Anyone who wants to take real action on climate change, but still wants to keep looking for new coal or oil, simply isn’t serious.Today’s decision shows this Government is serious.
As the Green Party has been saying since we formed 20 years ago, ENVIRONMENTAL SUCCESS is ECONOMIC SUCCESS.Business now understands that.More and more farmers now understand that.
Our well-being and the well-being of our planet demand that we move to cleaner, low-emission ways of doing business and living our lives.That doesn’t mean shuffling off into a cave with a candle.
It means embracing smart science, smart technology, and smart use of people and resources that can deliver cleaner, low-emission returns.More oil exploration can’t do that.
But the expertise that’s been built up in that industry can be turned to more environmentally sustainable and economically sustainable enterprise.
The Prime Minister talked about applying skills from the oil industry to mining silica to use in solar panels.
Here’s something else.This country needs some pretty big infrastructure upgrades – to ensure safe drinking water systems and storm water systems and sewerage systems.
That’s work that needs expertise in drilling, pipe construction and reticulation, and that’s expertise that exists in the oil industry.Countries who’ve signed up to the Paris Agreement have committed to mobilize at least $1 TRILLION in Green Investment by 2030.Business consultancy, PwC, says New Zealand’s share of the global clean energy market could be worth up to $22 BILLION a year, if we implement clean energy policies to encourage it – like we did today.
This University and others in New Zealand get it.
Just go to Victoria University’s Faculty of Engineering home page.
What are two of the newest courses offered for study?
Bachelors degrees in SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS.
Our job, as a Government, is to provide the leadership and the plan to help ensure New Zealand is part of the world’s green, sustainable economy.
Decisions, like the one announced by the Prime Minister today demonstrate that leadership.
Establishing a Zero Carbon Act, and an independent Climate Change Commission demonstrates that leadership.
Our commitment to 100 percent renewable electricity generation by 2035 demonstrates that leadership.
And our goal for New Zealand to be a net zero emissions economy by 2050 demonstrates that leadership.
CONCLUSIONThere will be those who’ll criticize today’s decision.
My question to them is – what’s your solution?
Because sticking to business-as-usual in oil exploration will leave people like you - studying here - with bigger, more difficult, more costly problems to solve later.
Leaving decisions - like the one announced today - for future generations to make only delays and limits the options and opportunities that can come from a managed transition to a new low-emissions economy.
Clinging to old forms of energy that have helped put us on a collision course with climate change is not sensible, nor is it responsible leadership.[speech given at Victoria University, Wellington]
The Hon. James shaw at Victoria University of Wellington, photo by Victoria University of Wellington
April 12th, 2018
HON JAMES SHAW, Climate change Minister, Government of New Zealand
Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa.
This is an historic day.
Today ends all new oil and gas exploration in the waters around Aotearoa New Zealand.
What a win.
It’s a win for the Green Party and a win for all of us who care about the environment and the impacts of climate change.
Today will go down in history as the moment New Zealand said fossil fuels are not our future.
Today we have drawn that line in the sand.
As I have said many times, the world cannot burn most of the fossil fuel reserves that have already been discovered without causing catastrophic global warming.
Anyone who wants to take real action on climate change, but still wants to keep looking for new coal or oil, simply isn’t serious.
Today’s decision shows this Government is serious.
As the Green Party has been saying since we formed 20 years ago, ENVIRONMENTAL SUCCESS is ECONOMIC SUCCESS.
Business now understands that.
More and more farmers now understand that.
Our well-being and the well-being of our planet demand that we move to cleaner, low-emission ways of doing business and living our lives.
That doesn’t mean shuffling off into a cave with a candle.
It means embracing smart science, smart technology, and smart use of people and resources that can deliver cleaner, low-emission returns.
More oil exploration can’t do that.
But the expertise that’s been built up in that industry can be turned to more environmentally sustainable and economically sustainable enterprise.
The Prime Minister talked about applying skills from the oil industry to mining silica to use in solar panels.
Here’s something else.
This country needs some pretty big infrastructure upgrades – to ensure safe drinking water systems and storm water systems and sewerage systems.
That’s work that needs expertise in drilling, pipe construction and reticulation, and that’s expertise that exists in the oil industry.
Countries who’ve signed up to the Paris Agreement have committed to mobilize at least $1 TRILLION in Green Investment by 2030.
Business consultancy, PwC, says New Zealand’s share of the global clean energy market could be worth up to $22 BILLION a year, if we implement clean energy policies to encourage it – like we did today.
This University and others in New Zealand get it.
Just go to Victoria University’s Faculty of Engineering home page.
What are two of the newest courses offered for study?
Bachelors degrees in SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS.
Our job, as a Government, is to provide the leadership and the plan to help ensure New Zealand is part of the world’s green, sustainable economy.
Decisions, like the one announced by the Prime Minister today demonstrate that leadership.
Establishing a Zero Carbon Act, and an independent Climate Change Commission demonstrates that leadership.
Our commitment to 100 percent renewable electricity generation by 2035 demonstrates that leadership.
And our goal for New Zealand to be a net zero emissions economy by 2050 demonstrates that leadership.
CONCLUSION
There will be those who’ll criticize today’s decision.
My question to them is – what’s your solution?
Because sticking to business-as-usual in oil exploration will leave people like you - studying here - with bigger, more difficult, more costly problems to solve later.
Leaving decisions - like the one announced today - for future generations to make only delays and limits the options and opportunities that can come from a managed transition to a new low-emissions economy.
Clinging to old forms of energy that have helped put us on a collision course with climate change is not sensible, nor is it responsible leadership.
[speech given at Victoria University, Wellington]
The Hon. James shaw at Victoria University of Wellington, photo by Victoria University of Wellington
Welcome End To New Offers For Offshore Oil Exploration
Nanoscale Coating Enables Solar Cells To Absorb 20 Percent More Sunlight
April 14, 2018: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)Trapping light with an optical version of a whispering gallery, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a nanoscale coating for solar cells that enables them to absorb about 20 percent more sunlight than uncoated devices. The coating, applied with a technique that could be incorporated into manufacturing, opens a new path for developing low-cost, high-efficiency solar cells with abundant, renewable and environmentally friendly materials.
The coating consists of thousands of tiny glass beads, only about one-hundredth the width of a human hair. When sunlight hits the coating, the light waves are steered around the nanoscale bead, similar to the way sound waves travel around a curved wall such as the dome in St. Paul's Cathedral in London. At such curved structures, known as acoustic whispering galleries, a person standing near one part of the wall easily hears a faint sound originating at any other part of the wall.
Whispering galleries for light were developed about a decade ago, but researchers have only recently explored their use in solar-cell coatings. In the experimental set up devised by a team including Dongheon Ha of NIST and the University of Maryland's NanoCenter, the light captured by the nanoresonator coating eventually leaks out and is absorbed by an underlying solar cell made of gallium arsenide.
Using a laser as a light source to excite individual nanoresonators in the coating, the team found that the coated solar cells absorbed, on average, 20 percent more visible light than bare cells. The measurements also revealed that the coated cells produced about 20 percent more current.
The study is the first to demonstrate the efficiency of the coatings using precision nanoscale measurements, said Ha. "Although calculations had suggested the coatings would enhance the solar cells, we could not prove this was the case until we had developed the nanoscale measurement technologies that were needed," he noted.
This work was described in a recent issue of Nanotechnology by Ha, collaborator Yohan Yoon of NIST and Maryland's NanoCenter, and NIST physicist Nikolai Zhitenev.
The team also devised a rapid, less-costly method of applying the nanoresonator coating. Researchers had previously coated semiconductor material by dipping it in a tub of the nanoresonator solution. The dipping method takes time and coats both sides of the semiconductor even though only one side requires the treatment.
In the team's method, droplets of the nanoresonator solution are placed on just one side of the solar cell. A wire-wound metal rod is then pulled across the cell, spreading out the solution and forming a coating made of closely packed nanoresonators. This is the first time that researchers have applied the rod method, used for more than a century to coat material in a factory setting, to a gallium arsenide solar cell.
"This is an inexpensive process and is compatible with mass production," said Ha.
Dongheon Ha, Yohan Yoon, Nikolai B Zhitenev. Nanoscale imaging of photocurrent enhancement by resonator array photovoltaic coatings. Nanotechnology, 2018; 29 (14): 145401 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6528/aaab0c
Caption: This is illustration shows the nanoresonator coating, consisting of thousands of tiny glass beads, deposited on solar cells. The coating enhances both the absorption of sunlight and the amount of current produced by the solar cells. Credit: K. Dill, D. Ha, G. Holland/NIST
April 14, 2018: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
Trapping light with an optical version of a whispering gallery, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a nanoscale coating for solar cells that enables them to absorb about 20 percent more sunlight than uncoated devices. The coating, applied with a technique that could be incorporated into manufacturing, opens a new path for developing low-cost, high-efficiency solar cells with abundant, renewable and environmentally friendly materials.
The coating consists of thousands of tiny glass beads, only about one-hundredth the width of a human hair. When sunlight hits the coating, the light waves are steered around the nanoscale bead, similar to the way sound waves travel around a curved wall such as the dome in St. Paul's Cathedral in London. At such curved structures, known as acoustic whispering galleries, a person standing near one part of the wall easily hears a faint sound originating at any other part of the wall.
Whispering galleries for light were developed about a decade ago, but researchers have only recently explored their use in solar-cell coatings. In the experimental set up devised by a team including Dongheon Ha of NIST and the University of Maryland's NanoCenter, the light captured by the nanoresonator coating eventually leaks out and is absorbed by an underlying solar cell made of gallium arsenide.
Using a laser as a light source to excite individual nanoresonators in the coating, the team found that the coated solar cells absorbed, on average, 20 percent more visible light than bare cells. The measurements also revealed that the coated cells produced about 20 percent more current.
The study is the first to demonstrate the efficiency of the coatings using precision nanoscale measurements, said Ha. "Although calculations had suggested the coatings would enhance the solar cells, we could not prove this was the case until we had developed the nanoscale measurement technologies that were needed," he noted.
This work was described in a recent issue of Nanotechnology by Ha, collaborator Yohan Yoon of NIST and Maryland's NanoCenter, and NIST physicist Nikolai Zhitenev.
The team also devised a rapid, less-costly method of applying the nanoresonator coating. Researchers had previously coated semiconductor material by dipping it in a tub of the nanoresonator solution. The dipping method takes time and coats both sides of the semiconductor even though only one side requires the treatment.
In the team's method, droplets of the nanoresonator solution are placed on just one side of the solar cell. A wire-wound metal rod is then pulled across the cell, spreading out the solution and forming a coating made of closely packed nanoresonators. This is the first time that researchers have applied the rod method, used for more than a century to coat material in a factory setting, to a gallium arsenide solar cell.
"This is an inexpensive process and is compatible with mass production," said Ha.
Dongheon Ha, Yohan Yoon, Nikolai B Zhitenev. Nanoscale imaging of photocurrent enhancement by resonator array photovoltaic coatings. Nanotechnology, 2018; 29 (14): 145401 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6528/aaab0c
Caption: This is illustration shows the nanoresonator coating, consisting of thousands of tiny glass beads, deposited on solar cells. The coating enhances both the absorption of sunlight and the amount of current produced by the solar cells. Credit: K. Dill, D. Ha, G. Holland/NIST
Dubbo Businesswoman Wins 2018 Rural Women's Award
2018 NSW-ACT AgriFutures Rural Women's Award Finalists
Jillian Kilby, Dubbo
Finalist of the 2018 NSW-ACT AgriFutures Rural Women's AwardJillian approaches life optimistically, with the logical thinking of a civil engineer, the roll-up-your-sleeves attitude of a farmer’s daughter from Coonamble, and an altruistic passion for change.
Her company, The Infrastructure Collaborative, has served the infrastructure needs of 50 Local Governments in Regional NSW since 2009 when it was established from a 50,000 acre property west of Walgett. Now based in Dubbo, Jillian serves clients in Australia and the United States, where she is able to cross-pollinate learnings from a diverse set of work assignments.
Jillian enjoys taking a Design Thinking approach learned at Stanford University to solve problems and shift infrastructure projects from Government planning shelves to be shovel ready. When working on roads, Jillian refocuses infrastructure conversations around productivity for agriculture and mining, safety for school buses and access for tourism. Most importantly, she thrives when facilitating in an environment where there has traditionally been a lack of collaboration.
Jillian’s project is to improve the commercial success of start-ups by increasing the capability, capacity and confidence of regional business owners. Her bursary would go towards developing the business concept and include conducting a Regional Start-ups Insight Study. The project lives within a bigger eco system to develop more effective space and services for new and growing business owners within Dubbo and the wider catchment.
Holding a Bachelor of Civil Engineering from the University of Sydney, a Master of Business Administration and Master of Public Policy from the University of Stanford, Jillian joins the rural Women’s Award Alumni ready to learn, give back, and meet new people as part of this experience.
Ginny Stevens, Mangoplah
Finalist of the 2018 NSW-ACT AgriFutures Rural Women's AwardGinny lives with her husband Andy and twins Henry and Isabella in Mangoplah in the Riverina. Having grown up on the family farm in Tasmania she has always been passionate about agriculture and staying active.
Initially, Ginny’s interest with wellbeing was sparked during her year working as a jillaroo on a cattle station in the Northern Territory, where she learnt some lifelong lessons about team work, resilience and buoyancy. Then during her agribusiness banking career she became even more concerned with the growing level of mental illness and suicide in rural communities.
As a result Ginny was inspired to develop a proactive program, Active Farmers, to bring together farmers and rural communities to help improve the physical and mental health of participants and to build community resilience.
In 2015 Ginny she established the ‘Active Farmers’ program in her home town of Mangoplah and in 2017 made the brave decision to leave her Agribusiness banking career to expand the ‘Active Farmers’ network.
Active Farmers is currently available in 20 communities across regional areas of Eastern Australia with interest from an additional 60 groups.
Through exercise and interaction, Ginny says the participants become more aware of their health and they also develop a greater sense of community.
Ginny would use the Award bursary to expand the service to three additional small farming communities with little or no access to health care providers, and to create a series of case studies which will inspire other communities to join this fast growing network and take their health seriously.
Her vision is to ensure that more people understand the strong connection between being physically fit and well connected within their community to being mentally strong. She believes that healthier and happier and more productive community members will mean stronger, more productive Primary Industries.
Shanna Whan, Narrabri
Finalist of the 2018 NSW-ACT AgriFutures Rural Women's AwardNarrabri-based Shanna Whan is a self-employed health ambassador who divides her time between travelling in her freelance photography role and working to tackle the complex issue of alcohol abuse in rural Australia.
Shanna’s own health battle to be alcohol-free has inspired her to bring an honest and well overdue conversation about modern day addiction out into the open to help to reduce the numbers of high-risk, high-functioning community members slipping through the cracks in rural and remote Australia.
Since graduating as a health coach, Shanna is tackling head-on the fierce stigmas that remain around everyday alcohol abuse and what she’s coined ‘casual alcoholism’. Her raw authenticity in sharing her lived experience with humour and candour is giving the rural health sector and communities unprecedented insight into the issue.
There are many barriers to people seeking help with alcoholism and Shanna hopes to address these through an online platform that enables rural people to ‘virtually’ gather, chat, learn and share.
Members will have access to webinars, live support meetings, blogs and facts and links to alcohol-related therapies, experts, recovery groups and treatment centres.
Through integrating a holistic health and wellness approach, Shanna aims to provide community members who are battling with alcohol addiction a safe environment to access the support and information they need to change their lives.
Olympia Yarger, Fyshwick ACT
Finalist of the 2018 NSW-ACT AgriFutures Rural Women's AwardOlympia Yarger is passionate about rural and regional communities. As the Founder and CEO of Goterra, an insect farm based in Canberra, she is committed to playing a vital role in changing the landscape of Livestock feed and redefining how we look at sustainable waste management solutions.
During her career Olympia has worked across many different agricultural industries and her roots are firmly in farming. After 14 years in America with her U.S Marine husband, she returned to Australia in 2014 with plans to pursue her farming interests.
Realising that the farming landscape had changed significantly, and the opportunity for purchasing and effectively running a small to medium sustainable enterprise was not available, Olympia researched alternate farming options which eventually led her to insect farming.
In 2016 she realised a need to unlock access to and leverage the current food and agricultural waste in rural and regional Australia and set about to address this gap by designing a modular mobile system that processes food waste onsite.
Olympia’s business processed 20 tonne of food and agriculture waste in 2017 and this year (2018) that figure will increase to over 200 tonne – turning those wastes into an alternative livestock feed compound for primary producers and human food products, like protein bars, crackers and cakes.
With the breadth and range of the insect protein industry only just starting to emerge Olympia is committed to developing the processes and industry standards necessary to bring sustainable insect protein feeds to the Australian market.
If she were to win the Award Olympia would use the Award bursary to educate people on the opportunities available to establish regionally based insect farms by developing an online education series and creating a digital handbook of best practice to grow the industry.
Jillian Kilby, Dubbo
Finalist of the 2018 NSW-ACT AgriFutures Rural Women's AwardJillian approaches life optimistically, with the logical thinking of a civil engineer, the roll-up-your-sleeves attitude of a farmer’s daughter from Coonamble, and an altruistic passion for change.
Her company, The Infrastructure Collaborative, has served the infrastructure needs of 50 Local Governments in Regional NSW since 2009 when it was established from a 50,000 acre property west of Walgett. Now based in Dubbo, Jillian serves clients in Australia and the United States, where she is able to cross-pollinate learnings from a diverse set of work assignments.
Jillian enjoys taking a Design Thinking approach learned at Stanford University to solve problems and shift infrastructure projects from Government planning shelves to be shovel ready. When working on roads, Jillian refocuses infrastructure conversations around productivity for agriculture and mining, safety for school buses and access for tourism. Most importantly, she thrives when facilitating in an environment where there has traditionally been a lack of collaboration.
Jillian’s project is to improve the commercial success of start-ups by increasing the capability, capacity and confidence of regional business owners. Her bursary would go towards developing the business concept and include conducting a Regional Start-ups Insight Study. The project lives within a bigger eco system to develop more effective space and services for new and growing business owners within Dubbo and the wider catchment.
Holding a Bachelor of Civil Engineering from the University of Sydney, a Master of Business Administration and Master of Public Policy from the University of Stanford, Jillian joins the rural Women’s Award Alumni ready to learn, give back, and meet new people as part of this experience.
Ginny Stevens, Mangoplah
Finalist of the 2018 NSW-ACT AgriFutures Rural Women's AwardGinny lives with her husband Andy and twins Henry and Isabella in Mangoplah in the Riverina. Having grown up on the family farm in Tasmania she has always been passionate about agriculture and staying active.
Initially, Ginny’s interest with wellbeing was sparked during her year working as a jillaroo on a cattle station in the Northern Territory, where she learnt some lifelong lessons about team work, resilience and buoyancy. Then during her agribusiness banking career she became even more concerned with the growing level of mental illness and suicide in rural communities.
As a result Ginny was inspired to develop a proactive program, Active Farmers, to bring together farmers and rural communities to help improve the physical and mental health of participants and to build community resilience.
In 2015 Ginny she established the ‘Active Farmers’ program in her home town of Mangoplah and in 2017 made the brave decision to leave her Agribusiness banking career to expand the ‘Active Farmers’ network.
Active Farmers is currently available in 20 communities across regional areas of Eastern Australia with interest from an additional 60 groups.
Through exercise and interaction, Ginny says the participants become more aware of their health and they also develop a greater sense of community.
Ginny would use the Award bursary to expand the service to three additional small farming communities with little or no access to health care providers, and to create a series of case studies which will inspire other communities to join this fast growing network and take their health seriously.
Her vision is to ensure that more people understand the strong connection between being physically fit and well connected within their community to being mentally strong. She believes that healthier and happier and more productive community members will mean stronger, more productive Primary Industries.
Shanna Whan, Narrabri
Finalist of the 2018 NSW-ACT AgriFutures Rural Women's AwardNarrabri-based Shanna Whan is a self-employed health ambassador who divides her time between travelling in her freelance photography role and working to tackle the complex issue of alcohol abuse in rural Australia.
Shanna’s own health battle to be alcohol-free has inspired her to bring an honest and well overdue conversation about modern day addiction out into the open to help to reduce the numbers of high-risk, high-functioning community members slipping through the cracks in rural and remote Australia.
Since graduating as a health coach, Shanna is tackling head-on the fierce stigmas that remain around everyday alcohol abuse and what she’s coined ‘casual alcoholism’. Her raw authenticity in sharing her lived experience with humour and candour is giving the rural health sector and communities unprecedented insight into the issue.
There are many barriers to people seeking help with alcoholism and Shanna hopes to address these through an online platform that enables rural people to ‘virtually’ gather, chat, learn and share.
Members will have access to webinars, live support meetings, blogs and facts and links to alcohol-related therapies, experts, recovery groups and treatment centres.
Through integrating a holistic health and wellness approach, Shanna aims to provide community members who are battling with alcohol addiction a safe environment to access the support and information they need to change their lives.
Olympia Yarger, Fyshwick ACT
Finalist of the 2018 NSW-ACT AgriFutures Rural Women's AwardOlympia Yarger is passionate about rural and regional communities. As the Founder and CEO of Goterra, an insect farm based in Canberra, she is committed to playing a vital role in changing the landscape of Livestock feed and redefining how we look at sustainable waste management solutions.
During her career Olympia has worked across many different agricultural industries and her roots are firmly in farming. After 14 years in America with her U.S Marine husband, she returned to Australia in 2014 with plans to pursue her farming interests.
Realising that the farming landscape had changed significantly, and the opportunity for purchasing and effectively running a small to medium sustainable enterprise was not available, Olympia researched alternate farming options which eventually led her to insect farming.
In 2016 she realised a need to unlock access to and leverage the current food and agricultural waste in rural and regional Australia and set about to address this gap by designing a modular mobile system that processes food waste onsite.
Olympia’s business processed 20 tonne of food and agriculture waste in 2017 and this year (2018) that figure will increase to over 200 tonne – turning those wastes into an alternative livestock feed compound for primary producers and human food products, like protein bars, crackers and cakes.
With the breadth and range of the insect protein industry only just starting to emerge Olympia is committed to developing the processes and industry standards necessary to bring sustainable insect protein feeds to the Australian market.
If she were to win the Award Olympia would use the Award bursary to educate people on the opportunities available to establish regionally based insect farms by developing an online education series and creating a digital handbook of best practice to grow the industry.
Extensive Seagrass Meadows Discovered In Indian Ocean Through Satellite Tracking Of Green Turtles
April 11, 2018: Swansea University and Deakin University.Research led by Swansea University's Bioscience department has discovered for the first time extensive deep-water seagrass meadows in the middle of the vast Indian Ocean through satellite tracking the movement of green sea turtles.
A new study by Swansea University and Deakin University academics, published in the recent Marine Pollution Bulletin, reported how the monitoring of the turtles -- which forage on seagrasses -- tracked the species to the Great Chagos Bank, the world's largest contiguous atoll structure in the Western Indian Ocean.
This is a green turtle with seagrass in the Caribbean. Credit: Swansea University
This area lies in the heart of one of the world's largest Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and the study involved the use of in-situ SCUBA and baited video surveys to investigate the day-time sites occupied by the turtles, resulting in the discovery of extensive monospecific seagrass meadows of Thalassondendron ciliatum.
These habitats are critically important for storing huge amounts of carbon in their sediments and for supporting fish populations.
At three sites that extended over 128?km of the Great Chagos Bank, there was a high seagrass cover (average of 74%) at depths to 29 metres.
The mean species richness of fish in the seagrass meadows was 11 species per site, with a mean average of 8-14 species across the aforementioned three sites.
Results showed a high fish abundance as well as a large predatory shark recorded at all sites and given that the Great Chagos Bank extends over approximately 12,500?km and many other large deep submerged banks exist across the world's oceans, the results suggest that deep-water seagrass may be far more abundant than previously suspected.
Reports of seagrass meadows at these depths with high fish diversity, dominated by large top predators, are relatively limited.
Dr Nicole Esteban, a Research Fellow at Swansea University's Biosciences department, said: "Our study demonstrates how tracking marine megafauna can play a useful role to help identify previously unknown seagrass habitat.
"We hope to identify further areas of critical seagrass habitat in the Indian Ocean with forthcoming turtle satellite tracking research."
Dr Richard Unsworth, from Swansea University's Biosciences department, said: "Seagrasses struggle to live in deep waters due to their need for high light, but in these crystal clear waters of Chagos these habitats are booming.
"Given how these habitats are threatened around the world it's great to come across a pristine example of what seagrass meadows should look like."
This research was led by the Bioscience department at Swansea University, alongside the involvement of researchers at Deakin University.
N. Esteban, R.K.F. Unsworth, J.B.Q. Gourlay, G.C. Hays. The discovery of deep-water seagrass meadows in a pristine Indian Ocean wilderness revealed by tracking green turtles. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 2018; DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.03.018
April 11, 2018: Swansea University and Deakin University.
Research led by Swansea University's Bioscience department has discovered for the first time extensive deep-water seagrass meadows in the middle of the vast Indian Ocean through satellite tracking the movement of green sea turtles.
A new study by Swansea University and Deakin University academics, published in the recent Marine Pollution Bulletin, reported how the monitoring of the turtles -- which forage on seagrasses -- tracked the species to the Great Chagos Bank, the world's largest contiguous atoll structure in the Western Indian Ocean.
This is a green turtle with seagrass in the Caribbean. Credit: Swansea University
This area lies in the heart of one of the world's largest Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and the study involved the use of in-situ SCUBA and baited video surveys to investigate the day-time sites occupied by the turtles, resulting in the discovery of extensive monospecific seagrass meadows of Thalassondendron ciliatum.
These habitats are critically important for storing huge amounts of carbon in their sediments and for supporting fish populations.
At three sites that extended over 128?km of the Great Chagos Bank, there was a high seagrass cover (average of 74%) at depths to 29 metres.
The mean species richness of fish in the seagrass meadows was 11 species per site, with a mean average of 8-14 species across the aforementioned three sites.
Results showed a high fish abundance as well as a large predatory shark recorded at all sites and given that the Great Chagos Bank extends over approximately 12,500?km and many other large deep submerged banks exist across the world's oceans, the results suggest that deep-water seagrass may be far more abundant than previously suspected.
Reports of seagrass meadows at these depths with high fish diversity, dominated by large top predators, are relatively limited.
Dr Nicole Esteban, a Research Fellow at Swansea University's Biosciences department, said: "Our study demonstrates how tracking marine megafauna can play a useful role to help identify previously unknown seagrass habitat.
"We hope to identify further areas of critical seagrass habitat in the Indian Ocean with forthcoming turtle satellite tracking research."
Dr Richard Unsworth, from Swansea University's Biosciences department, said: "Seagrasses struggle to live in deep waters due to their need for high light, but in these crystal clear waters of Chagos these habitats are booming.
"Given how these habitats are threatened around the world it's great to come across a pristine example of what seagrass meadows should look like."
This research was led by the Bioscience department at Swansea University, alongside the involvement of researchers at Deakin University.
N. Esteban, R.K.F. Unsworth, J.B.Q. Gourlay, G.C. Hays. The discovery of deep-water seagrass meadows in a pristine Indian Ocean wilderness revealed by tracking green turtles. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 2018; DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.03.018
New Study Reveals That The Centre Of The World’s Marine Biodiversity Is In Danger
April 12, 2018: Swansea University
Research led by Swansea University’s Bioscience department have found that the world’s centre of biodiversity is under widespread threat of losing a key marine resource.
Writing about the findings in the recent Science of the Total Environment journal, researchers examined the risks to seagrass meadows throughout the vast Indonesian archipelago that makes up a key part of the famed Coral Triangle – a marine area located in the western Pacific Ocean.
This area is widely known as the centre of the world’s biodiversity and the meadows are the ‘Prairies of the Sea’. They are highly productive shallow water marine and coastal habitats comprised of marine plants, and these threatened areas provide important food and shelter for animals in the sea.
The research led by Dr Richard Unsworth indicates that up to 90% of the seagrass meadows that they examined in Indonesia have been extensively damaged and degraded over the past five years.
Seagrass meadows in the vast Indonesian archipelago. Credit: Dr. Richard Unsworth
In the findings, researchers also discuss solutions to the problems these productive ecosystems face, including the importance of community-led conservation action. In the study they also discuss examples where seagrass conservation has been.
For example, in a series of small islands in Eastern Indonesia, seagrasses were threatened by sediment and nutrient run-off from the land due to the degradation of riverbanks. As a result, replanting of riparian vegetation along the rivers as an incentive scheme with local farmers has reduced the flow of these pollutants into the sea.
Seagrass meadows in the vast Indonesian archipelago
Dr Richard Unsworth, from Swansea University’s Biosciences department, led the study and said:
"Our research is for the first time recording how an area of the world so critically important for its biodiversity is rapidly losing a key marine resource.
"This loss of seagrass is a terrible problem as the habitats in Indonesia have a major significance for daily food supply and general livelihoods. Without seagrass as a fishery habitat many people in Indonesia would not be able to feed their families on a daily basis."
Dr Leanne Cullen-Unsworth from Cardiff University added:
"The ecological value of seagrass meadows is irrefutable, yet the loss of these systems in Indonesia is accelerating. Seagrass meadows in Indonesia are mostly ignored in the conservation arena.
"As a result, they’re often not monitored, poorly researched and largely and unmanaged, leading to a tragedy of the seagrass commons."
Professor Rohani Ambo-Rappe of Hasanuddin University, Indonesia, a collaborator on the research, stated:
"Declining seagrass health is the result of shifting environmental conditions due largely to coastal development, land reclamation, and deforestation, as well as seaweed farming, overfishing and garbage dumping.
"The poor state of Indonesia’s seagrasses will compromise their resilience to climate change and result in a loss of their ability to lock away carbon dioxide and provide important fisheries habitats."
Richard K.F. Unsworth, Rohani Ambo-Rappe, Benjamin L. Jones, Yayu A. La Nafie, A. Irawan, Udhi E. Hernawan, Abigail M. Moore, Leanne C. Cullen-Unsworth. Indonesia's globally significant seagrass meadows are under widespread threat. Science of The Total Environment, 2018; 634: 279 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.03.315
April 12, 2018: Swansea University
Research led by Swansea University’s Bioscience department have found that the world’s centre of biodiversity is under widespread threat of losing a key marine resource.
Writing about the findings in the recent Science of the Total Environment journal, researchers examined the risks to seagrass meadows throughout the vast Indonesian archipelago that makes up a key part of the famed Coral Triangle – a marine area located in the western Pacific Ocean.
This area is widely known as the centre of the world’s biodiversity and the meadows are the ‘Prairies of the Sea’. They are highly productive shallow water marine and coastal habitats comprised of marine plants, and these threatened areas provide important food and shelter for animals in the sea.
The research led by Dr Richard Unsworth indicates that up to 90% of the seagrass meadows that they examined in Indonesia have been extensively damaged and degraded over the past five years.
Seagrass meadows in the vast Indonesian archipelago. Credit: Dr. Richard Unsworth
In the findings, researchers also discuss solutions to the problems these productive ecosystems face, including the importance of community-led conservation action. In the study they also discuss examples where seagrass conservation has been.
For example, in a series of small islands in Eastern Indonesia, seagrasses were threatened by sediment and nutrient run-off from the land due to the degradation of riverbanks. As a result, replanting of riparian vegetation along the rivers as an incentive scheme with local farmers has reduced the flow of these pollutants into the sea.
Seagrass meadows in the vast Indonesian archipelago
Dr Richard Unsworth, from Swansea University’s Biosciences department, led the study and said:
"Our research is for the first time recording how an area of the world so critically important for its biodiversity is rapidly losing a key marine resource.
"This loss of seagrass is a terrible problem as the habitats in Indonesia have a major significance for daily food supply and general livelihoods. Without seagrass as a fishery habitat many people in Indonesia would not be able to feed their families on a daily basis."
Dr Leanne Cullen-Unsworth from Cardiff University added:
"The ecological value of seagrass meadows is irrefutable, yet the loss of these systems in Indonesia is accelerating. Seagrass meadows in Indonesia are mostly ignored in the conservation arena.
"As a result, they’re often not monitored, poorly researched and largely and unmanaged, leading to a tragedy of the seagrass commons."
Professor Rohani Ambo-Rappe of Hasanuddin University, Indonesia, a collaborator on the research, stated:
"Declining seagrass health is the result of shifting environmental conditions due largely to coastal development, land reclamation, and deforestation, as well as seaweed farming, overfishing and garbage dumping.
"The poor state of Indonesia’s seagrasses will compromise their resilience to climate change and result in a loss of their ability to lock away carbon dioxide and provide important fisheries habitats."
Richard K.F. Unsworth, Rohani Ambo-Rappe, Benjamin L. Jones, Yayu A. La Nafie, A. Irawan, Udhi E. Hernawan, Abigail M. Moore, Leanne C. Cullen-Unsworth. Indonesia's globally significant seagrass meadows are under widespread threat. Science of The Total Environment, 2018; 634: 279 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.03.315
Victoria Researchers Study Deep-Water Communities In Fiordland
PITTWATER YHA OFFERS FREE BEDS FOR GREEN HEARTS
Pittwater YHA opens its doors to green-hearted and green-thumbed guests who'll save the gorgeous Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park from imminent asparagus fern invasion. Yes, seriously.
WHAT IS IT?
Bush Regeneration sees eco-conscious, kind hearted humans restore and rehabilitate the gorgeous, sprawling Aussie bush from its weed-infested, degraded state into a healthy, thriving plant community, which will prosper and delight forevermore. Far from just weed removal; Regenerators focus on habitat, drainage, weed sources and establishing native communities. These are big words which probably don’t make much sense – but we have an interactive learning opportunity for you!
WHERE IS IT?
Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, Sydney’s protected north coast, is home to rock engravings, red ochre rock paintings, the fuzziest wildlife you ever did see and the most breathtaking views a Sydneysider or visitor could comprehend; and is currently under threat from invasive asparagus fern; which needs removing. Who knew your Auntie’s fave veggie could be so aggressive?
ALRIGHT - SIGN ME UP!
The blissed-out, babbling-brooked, spectacular-viewed, fresh-aired oasis that is our Pittwater YHA, alongside the Northern Beaches Council, are offering you fine green-thumbed and hearted folk the opportunity to volunteer alongside professional Regenerators for a weekend of Pittwater Restoration from May 11 – 13, 2018. Spend two mornings of tending to the gorgeous surrounds and you’ll be rewarded with two nights’ accommodation, two days of meals (morning teas, BBQ lunches and evening dinners) and kayak use throughout your stay. Plus, you’ll be chuffed with yourself for doing your bit for the planet and our futures.
Along with your towels, two sheets, a pillowcase and, sturdy shoes, sunscreen and your breakfasts; you’ll need a $20 contribution for the weekend. For all the T&Cs; head to Pittwater YHA, shoot them an email or give them a ring on (02 9999-5748) – the only thing those guys love more than a regenerated bushland is chatting to ladies and gentleman who are keen on the idea!
Pittwater YHA opens its doors to green-hearted and green-thumbed guests who'll save the gorgeous Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park from imminent asparagus fern invasion. Yes, seriously.
WHAT IS IT?
Bush Regeneration sees eco-conscious, kind hearted humans restore and rehabilitate the gorgeous, sprawling Aussie bush from its weed-infested, degraded state into a healthy, thriving plant community, which will prosper and delight forevermore. Far from just weed removal; Regenerators focus on habitat, drainage, weed sources and establishing native communities. These are big words which probably don’t make much sense – but we have an interactive learning opportunity for you!
WHERE IS IT?
Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, Sydney’s protected north coast, is home to rock engravings, red ochre rock paintings, the fuzziest wildlife you ever did see and the most breathtaking views a Sydneysider or visitor could comprehend; and is currently under threat from invasive asparagus fern; which needs removing. Who knew your Auntie’s fave veggie could be so aggressive?
ALRIGHT - SIGN ME UP!
The blissed-out, babbling-brooked, spectacular-viewed, fresh-aired oasis that is our Pittwater YHA, alongside the Northern Beaches Council, are offering you fine green-thumbed and hearted folk the opportunity to volunteer alongside professional Regenerators for a weekend of Pittwater Restoration from May 11 – 13, 2018. Spend two mornings of tending to the gorgeous surrounds and you’ll be rewarded with two nights’ accommodation, two days of meals (morning teas, BBQ lunches and evening dinners) and kayak use throughout your stay. Plus, you’ll be chuffed with yourself for doing your bit for the planet and our futures.
Along with your towels, two sheets, a pillowcase and, sturdy shoes, sunscreen and your breakfasts; you’ll need a $20 contribution for the weekend. For all the T&Cs; head to Pittwater YHA, shoot them an email or give them a ring on (02 9999-5748) – the only thing those guys love more than a regenerated bushland is chatting to ladies and gentleman who are keen on the idea!
Aboriginal Community Members Sought For NPWS Regional Advisory Committees
Reward For Rainbows In Snowy Mountains And Oberon
April 10th 2018: NSW DPIIf snagging a feisty Rainbow Trout isn’t exciting enough, keen recreational anglers can now add further enjoyment to their fishing experience by receiving a reward for catching a tagged fish.
The Department of Primary Industries (DPI) has released 900 tagged yearling Rainbow Trout into Khancoban Pondage this month in the Snowy Mountains and will release a further 1000 tagged yearling Rainbow Trout into Oberon Dam in May.
DPI Senior Fisheries Manager Cameron Westaway said anglers who get their hands on a tagged fish should report their capture to DPI and will receive a trout lure in return.
“Recreational fishers who land one of these Rainbow Trout are asked to record their capture by phone or on the web,” Mr Westaway said.“This will let DPI Fisheries know survival and growth rates of the fish, allowing us to determine a size class of stocked fish that can avoid Redfin predation and improve stocking practices in the future.”
The trout, which were produced at DPI’s Gaden Trout Hatchery and the Dutton Trout Hatchery, average 25cm in length.
“Each fish has been released with a yellow external tag attached to them. Khancoban Pondage and Oberon Dam are renowned for great fishing and these fish will further boost recreational fishing opportunities in the area,” Mr Westaway said.
Fisheries experts at DPI believe the larger trout will do better in the presence of Redfin, which have had negative effect on both Khancoban and Oberon since they were illegally introduced.
“DPI is developing longer term stocking strategies for waters with Redfin. By stocking larger trout, they are too big for Redfin to prey on and will provide anglers with excellent catches,” Mr Westaway said.
Tagged fish recaptures can be recorded online. Recreational fishers are reminded that they are required to carry a NSW current recreational fishing fee receipt at all times while fishing.
Recreational fishers are encouraged to use the NSW Recreational Fishing Guide. Printed copies are available from DPI FisheriesOffices and most tackle shops.
Check out the FishSmart app, providing recreational fishers 24/7 smartphone access to essential information they need to know to fish in NSW.
One of the 900 tagged Rainbow Trout released in Khancoban Pondage by the DPI - NSW DPI photo
April 10th 2018: NSW DPI
If snagging a feisty Rainbow Trout isn’t exciting enough, keen recreational anglers can now add further enjoyment to their fishing experience by receiving a reward for catching a tagged fish.
The Department of Primary Industries (DPI) has released 900 tagged yearling Rainbow Trout into Khancoban Pondage this month in the Snowy Mountains and will release a further 1000 tagged yearling Rainbow Trout into Oberon Dam in May.
DPI Senior Fisheries Manager Cameron Westaway said anglers who get their hands on a tagged fish should report their capture to DPI and will receive a trout lure in return.
“Recreational fishers who land one of these Rainbow Trout are asked to record their capture by phone or on the web,” Mr Westaway said.
“This will let DPI Fisheries know survival and growth rates of the fish, allowing us to determine a size class of stocked fish that can avoid Redfin predation and improve stocking practices in the future.”
The trout, which were produced at DPI’s Gaden Trout Hatchery and the Dutton Trout Hatchery, average 25cm in length.
“Each fish has been released with a yellow external tag attached to them. Khancoban Pondage and Oberon Dam are renowned for great fishing and these fish will further boost recreational fishing opportunities in the area,” Mr Westaway said.
Fisheries experts at DPI believe the larger trout will do better in the presence of Redfin, which have had negative effect on both Khancoban and Oberon since they were illegally introduced.
“DPI is developing longer term stocking strategies for waters with Redfin. By stocking larger trout, they are too big for Redfin to prey on and will provide anglers with excellent catches,” Mr Westaway said.
Tagged fish recaptures can be recorded online. Recreational fishers are reminded that they are required to carry a NSW current recreational fishing fee receipt at all times while fishing.
Recreational fishers are encouraged to use the NSW Recreational Fishing Guide. Printed copies are available from DPI FisheriesOffices and most tackle shops.
Check out the FishSmart app, providing recreational fishers 24/7 smartphone access to essential information they need to know to fish in NSW.
One of the 900 tagged Rainbow Trout released in Khancoban Pondage by the DPI - NSW DPI photo
Councils Encouraged To Apply For Funds As New NSW Coastal Legislation Commences
Low-Interest Loans For Drought-Affected Farmers: NSW
Connecting Fish, Rivers And People: World Fish Migration Day 2018
Draft Plans Of Management For NSW Reserves, State And National Parks: Have Your Say
Hundreds Of Scholarships To Improve Community Mental Health Care
April 10th, 2018: Minister for Mental Health Tanya Davies
Frontline staff caring for people in the community who live with severe mental illness will receive specialised training to improve the care experience for consumers and their families.
Minister for Mental Health Tanya Davies today announced the NSW Government will invest $800,000 over the next two years in a new scholarship program for staff who work for non- government organisations (NGOs).
“Our NGO networks play a crucial part in helping people who live with mental illness experience a better quality of life by offering specialised assistance,” Mrs Davies said.
“Expanding the availability of community-based supports is part of the NSW Government’s commitment to our 10 year reform of mental health care, and a skilled workforce is essential to delivering this.”
The Mental Health NGO Workforce Scholarship program will fund up to 300 scholarships to enable NGO staff to study either a Certificate IV in Mental Health or a Diploma in Mental Health.
“NGOs in regional, rural and remote parts of NSW will be targeted to ensure staff everywhere across the State have access to mental health training,” Mrs Davies said.
The announcement was made at the 2018 Patient Experience Symposium in Sydney today, reinforcing the importance of partnerships in delivering patient-centred care across the NSW health system.
Further information on the scholarship application process will be available to participating NGOs in the coming months.
Professional Learning Program 2018: Office Of The Children’s ESafety Commissioner
Safety and Respect Online
This program includes three hours of professional learning through live webinar participation and the completion of a quiz.All teachers, and related staff, who complete the program will receive a summative infographic containing key learnings and a participation certificate.
To participate in Safety and Respect Online, register to attend each of the webinar topics during 2018 listed below.
After participating in all three webinars, you will be able to access a 30 minute quiz to complete the three hours of activity.
Please note that certificates of partial completion will not be provided, for example to teachers who have only participated in one of the three webinars, but personal records may be used to support the PD with any teacher association.
Professional Learning Program: Course Contents
Respect and Online Relationships
By the end of the module teachers will be able to:
- discuss and identify relationships and behaviours that may lead to harm
- identify teaching strategies and policies to encourage respectful online relationships, including:
- personal and social capacity building and
- techniques to assist in managing emotions and building an understanding of online resilience.
2018 dates;
3rd May 2018 - 8.00pm
14th June 2018 - 7.00pm
16th June 2018 - 10.00pm
23rd August 2018 - 8.00pm
6th September 2018 - 7.00pm
17th September 2018 - 10.00pm
Preventing and Managing Cyberbullying
By the end of the module teachers will be able to:
- understand the challenges of cyberbullying in the classroom
- identify a range of evidence-based strategies for preventing and dealing with cyberbullying issues when they occur, including:
- strategies for encouraging helpful bystander behaviour
- the process for reporting issues to the Office of the eSafety Commissioner.
2018 dates;
1st May 2018 - 7.00pm
12th June 2018 - 10.00pm
26th June 2018 - 8.00pm
21st August 2018 - 7.00pm
4th September 2018 - 10.00pm
17th September 2018 - 8.00pm
Developing Lifelong Online Safety Practices
By the end of the module teachers will be able to:
- identify common risks when participating in online environments
- identify teaching strategies to encourage students to develop a personal approach to online safety, including:
- managing device and personal security settings
- managing serious breaches of privacy or security online
2018 dates;
3rd May 2018 - 10.00pm
14th June 201 8- 8.00pm
26th June 2018 - 7.00pm
23rd August 2018 - 10.00pm
4th September 2018 - 8.00pm
17th September 2018 - 7.00pm
Why The Tasmanian Devil Might Be More Susceptible To Transmissible Cancers
April 9th, 2018
Cancers that can jump from one animal to another of the same species are rare, but the endangered Tasmanian devil is doubly unlucky: in the last few decades, two transmissible cancers affecting them have been identified. A comparison of these two cancers, published April 9 in the journal Cancer Cell, suggests that they are similar in origin, leading researchers at the University of Cambridge to believe that devils simply may be at greater risk for these kinds of diseases. The researchers also identified drugs that are effective against the cancers and could potentially be used in the fight to save the devils from extinction.
Tasmanian devils, while relatively docile with humans, are known for biting each other on the face as they fight over mates and food. This is the route by which both cancers, which cause similar facial tumors before metastasizing, spread from devil to devil. But even though the cancers manifest similarly, they originated in two different individuals, probably years apart.
There are only eight known naturally occurring transmissible cancers: one in dogs, two in Tasmanian devils, and five in various species of marine bivalves, so to see two such cancers appear in such a short time in a single species was quite surprising. "When the first one was discovered, we thought that transmissible cancers were extremely rare and that Tasmanian devils were just really unlucky to get this cancer," says senior researcher Elizabeth Murchison, a geneticist at the University of Cambridge who grew up in Tasmania. "But the emergence of the second one made us wonder whether Tasmanian devils might be particularly at risk for developing this kind of disease."
It was also possible some sort of environmental or anthropogenic change affecting the devils might have made the emergence of these cancers more likely. To evaluate these hypotheses, the researchers conducted genetic and functional comparisons of the two devil cancers.
They were unable to identify genomic markers of any viruses or external carcinogens, like UV light, that might have caused the cancers, although the researchers readily point out that there could be something they didn't test for or look for that does play a role. What they did find, however, was that the two cancers, despite originating in different individuals, had similar mutational processes and similar tissues of origin, and responded to similar drugs. "It really pointed to some kind of problem that the devils have with this kind of cell's regulation, which probably gives them a greater risk of developing this type of disease," Murchison says.
And it might all come back to that biting behavior. The effective drugs that the researchers identified when they compared the cancers inhibit pathways normally involved in healing, suggesting that wound repair pathways might somehow be involved in the origin of the cancers. So the devils' frequent facial injuries could actually play a role in causing the cancer to arise, as well as providing a route by which the diseases can jump from host to host.
Humans may have played a role, too. "When white people first settled in Tasmania, they'd hear these screams at night. And they thought there must be a devilish creature out there," says first author Maximilian Stammnitz. The settlers persecuted the devils, and the subsequent decline in their population probably further decreased the already low genetic diversity of the species. This is important, he says, because transmissible cancers need to escape the new host's immune system, just as any other foreign tissue transplant would in order to take hold. "Their immune systems may be less poised to detect foreign tumor cell grafts, compared to other species that have more genetic diversity." Furthermore, the changes to the landscape that have resulted from European settlement in Tasmania may have indirectly altered devil population dynamics and migration patterns, possibly creating conditions conducive for transmissible cancer emergence and spread.
The effects of these cancers have been devastating, wiping out 90% of the devils in some parts of Tasmania and threatening the survival of the species. "As scavengers, they're an important placeholder in the ecosystem of the island. They're sort of the ecological clean-up service, so their absence is visible in the landscape," Stammnitz says. While conservation efforts are already underway, the researchers are optimistic that, with further research and testing, the drugs their comparison has identified -- which are currently used for precision cancer therapy in humans -- could provide another option for helping the devils.
This research also has broader implications for our understanding of transmissible cancers. "Just in the last couple of years, we've gone from knowing of two transmissible cancers -- the dogs and the devils -- to eight. It's hinting at the possibility that perhaps transmissible cancers were not so well recognized before, and maybe they're more common than we previously thought," says Murchison.
Maximilian R. Stammnitz, Tim H.H. Coorens, Kevin C. Gori, Dane Hayes, Beiyuan Fu, Jinhong Wang, Daniel E. Martin-Herranz, Ludmil B. Alexandrov, Adrian Baez-Ortega, Syd Barthorpe, Alexandra Beck, Francesca Giordano, Graeme W. Knowles, Young Mi Kwon, George Hall, Stacey Price, Ruth J. Pye, Jose M.C. Tubio, Hannah V.T. Siddle, Sukhwinder Singh Sohal, Gregory M. Woods, Ultan McDermott, Fengtang Yang, Mathew J. Garnett, Zemin Ning, Elizabeth P. Murchison. The Origins and Vulnerabilities of Two Transmissible Cancers in Tasmanian Devils. Cancer Cell, 2018; 33 (4): 607 DOI: 10.1016/j.ccell.2018.03.013
Tasmanian devil examination in the field. Credit: Maximilian Stammnitz
Conflict In Outer Space Will Happen, Legal Experts Warn
April 10, 2018: UNSW CANBERRA
Space and military law experts from around the world have joined forces to understand how our Earth-bound laws will be applied in times of armed conflict in outer space.
Some of the best legal and policy minds at the University of Adelaide, UNSW Canberra, University of Exeter, and University of Nebraska College of Law will draft The Woomera Manual on the International Law of Military Space Operations.
The Woomera Manual will become the definitive document on military and security law as it applies to space. The project will be completed in 2020 and will draw on the knowledge of dozens of legal and space operations experts from around the world.
The founding leaders of the Woomera Manual are: Professor Melissa de Zwart and Professor Dale Stephens (Adelaide), Professor Rob McLaughlin (UNSW Canberra), Professor Michael Schmitt (Exeter), and Professor Jack Beard (Nebraska Law).
"Conflict in outer space is not a case of 'if' but 'when'. However, the legal regime that governs the use of force and actual armed conflict in outer space is currently very unclear, which is why the Woomera Manual is needed," says founding partner Professor Melissa de Zwart, Dean of the Adelaide Law School, University of Adelaide.
"The few international Treaties that deal with outer space provide very little regulation of modern space activities, including both military and commercial uses of space. Therefore, we need to cast our gaze more widely in our approach to determining what laws are applicable in space," she says.
Rob McLaughlin, Professor of Military and Security Law at UNSW Canberra, says: "Space is a key enabler for communications, surveillance, early warning, navigation systems and is a critical security and conflict domain.
"Such extensive use of space by military forces has produced a growing awareness that space-based assets are becoming particularly vulnerable to adverse actions by potential competitors," Professor McLaughlin says.
The US Secretary of the Air Force, Heather Wilson, declared last year that the US must start to prepare for the possibility of armed conflict in outer space. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump also has recently made a call for a dedicated US military space force.
"We can no longer afford to ignore the legal implications of the military use of space," says Michael Schmitt, Professor of Public International Law at Exeter Law School, University of Exeter.
"The four universities who form the founding partnership of the Woomera Manual project are committed to developing an agreed understanding, and then subsequent articulation, of how international law more generally applies to regulate military space activities in a time of rising tension and even outright armed conflict," he says.
Jack Beard, Associate Professor with the University of Nebraska College of Law, says: "The Woomera Manual will be drafted in the full tradition of other manuals that have been developed by legal and policy experts over the last 20 years, including the San Remo Manual on Naval Warfare, the Harvard Manual on Air and Missile Warfare, and the Tallinn Manuals (1.0 and 2.0) dealing with laws applicable to cyber operations and warfare.
"Such manuals have proven to have a significant impact in their respective fields, and we envisage that the Woomera Manual will have the same impact for the military uses of space," Professor Beard says.
Why "Woomera"?
The Woomera Manual is named after the Woomera township in South Australia, which has a long association with both Australian and multi-national military space operations. In 1967, Woomera was the site from which Australia successfully launched its first satellite, becoming only the fourth nation in the world to do so. In Australian Indigenous culture, a "woomera" is a traditional spear-throwing device. The name "woomera" originates from the Dharug language of the Eora people.
Most Primitive Kangaroo Ancestor Rediscovered After 30 Years In Obscurity
April 11, 2018: Uppsala University
A handful of tiny teeth have led scientists to identify the most distant ancestor of today's kangaroos. The fossils were found in the desert heart of Australia, and then hidden away, and almost forgotten in a museum collection for over three decades. The findings are published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.
Kangaroos are icons of Australia's unique living fauna. However, their earliest ancestry is shrouded in mystery. At the beginning of the 1980's, a few enigmatic molar teeth were excavated by palaeontologists hunting for fossils around a dry salt lake in northern South Australia. The rare specimens were recognised as an ancient kangaroo ancestor, but had to wait for over 30 years before modern computer-based analyses could confirm the significance of the discovery.
Originally dubbed Palaeopotorous priscus, Latin for '[very] ancient', 'ancient rat-kangaroo', by the now eminent Australian palaeontologists Prof. Tim Flannery (University of Melbourne) and Dr Tom Rich (Museums Victoria), the importance of these remains was suggested in their first unveiling to science.
"The teeth of Palaeopotorous were initially described in 1986. Even then they were stated as representing possibly the most primitive relative of the entire modern kangaroo radiation. Yet, nobody ever evaluated this claim, and despite being occasionally mentioned in the scientific literature, they were never again examined in detail," said Dr Wendy den Boer, who studied the fossils as part of her recently awarded PhD from Uppsala University in Sweden.
"The name Palaeopotorous was established using a single molar tooth, although, eleven other anatomically very similar teeth were recovered during the expedition. None of these fossils were found in association, so it is still unclear whether we are dealing with one, or more species," said Dr Benjamin Kear, Dr den Boer's PhD supervisor and co-author on the published article. "This uncertainly means that we have had to use a complex series of analyses to assess its morphological similarity and evolutionary relationships relative to other members of the kangaroo family tree."
"Our results showed that Palaeopotorous was most similar to living rat-kangaroos, as well as some other extinct kangaroo relatives. Using information from fossils, and the DNA of living species, we were able to further determine that at around 24 million years old, Palaeopotorous is not just primitive, but likely represents the most distant forerunner of all known kangaroos, rat-kangaroos and their more ancient ancestors," said Dr den Boer.
"Palaeopotorous was about the size of a small rabbit, and probably did not hop, but would have bounded on all four legs. Nevertheless, a few bones found at the same site in central Australia indicate that the earliest kangaroos already possessed some key adaptations for hopping gaits," said Dr Kear.
Palaeopotorous lived at a time when central Australia was much wetter than it is today. Its fossils were buried in clay deposits left by a river, but these earliest kangaroo ancestors would have foraged amongst vegetation growing nearby and along the banks. The teeth of Palaeopotorous were washed into the river after death, along with the remains of many other ancient marsupials.
Wendy den Boer, Benjamin P. Kear. Is the fossil rat-kangaroo Palaeopotorous priscus the most basally branching stem macropodiform? Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 2018; e1428196 DOI: 10.1080/02724634.2017.1428196
A handful of tiny teeth have led scientists to identify the most distant ancestor of today's kangaroos. The fossils were found in the desert heart of Australia, and then hidden away, and almost forgotten in a museum collection for over three decades. Credit: Wendy den Boer