| E-Bulletin - 25/06/2010 |
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Sunshine Coast Environment Council E-Bulletin - 25th June 2010
Events and Happenings
Dear All Hope you are all staying warm, yet still enjoying those beautiful sunny days. SCEC AGMNext week we have our very important 30th Annual General Meeting on Thursday 1st July from 4pm till 6pm at the SCEC office. This will be a great opportunity to catch up on another big year for SCEC and for us to gratefully acknowledge your wonderful work and support. Dr Sonia Marshall, previously a campaigner with SCEC and now the Coordinator of the Sunshine Coast Institute of TAFE Sustainability Interpretive Centre and USC Lecturer will be an engaging and informative guest speaker who is sure to stimulate some interesting conversation. Refreshments and the company of those you may not have seen in a while will make for an enjoyable and momentous occasion. We hope to see you all there! Kindly advise your attendance and if a member group with voting rights, please nominate a proxy if you are unable to attend. I cannot finish without a special mention to all those who have returned their raffle tickets and monies. This is one of the few fundraisers for SCEC, contributing to our efforts in protecting our magnificent Sunshine Coast region. Kindly return all raffle books no later than 15 July. Of course this raffle would not be possible without the commitment and organisational skills of Helen Hutchison who is looking for some help to sell tickets at Yandina and Eumundi markets, please contact her if you wish to help on: (P) 07 5441 5175 (M) 0413 568 404 or Thank you Helen, you are doing a great job. Enjoy your weekend. Kind Regards
CURRENT CAMPAIGNSGENERAL/ENVIRONMENT STOP PRESS - Historic Day in Australian Politics  Glossie’s Awards - Saturday 26th June Sunshine Coast Council Glossies Awards - Saturday, 26th June at 6:30 for a 7:00pm start at the Events Centre Caloundra. Come and celebrate the Sunshine Coast environmental innovation and achievements. Bookings essential 07 5491 4242 ZERO Carbon Australia 2020 Stationary Energy Plan The Zero Carbon Australia 2020 Stationary Energy Plan was launched in Canberra this week by Coalition Senator Judith Troeth, independent Senator Nick Xenophon and Greens Senator Christine Milne and will be formally available in mid July. This report provides a detailed and pragmatic blueprint for transitioning the Australian stationary energy sector to 100 per cent renewable energy within a decade. Click Here to read the synopsis of the report. Sunshine Coast – One of Australia’s Sustainable Cities The Sunshine Coast was recently ranked as No 2 on the Australian Conservation Foundation’s 2010 Sustainable Cities Index. The Index provides a snapshot of each city and considers 15 indicators which are independently assessed to compile the overall list. Click Here to read the report. Tasmanian Government to Ban Canal Estates The Tasmanian Government is to ban canal estate developments. It follows the Tasmanian Planning Commission's rejection of Walker Corporation's proposed $300 million Ralphs Bay development east of Hobart. The Commission has found the canal estate development is unsustainable. It says the Ralphs Bay community would have benefited economically but its final report confirmed draft report findings that the environment would have been significantly compromised. Click Here for the full article New Cert III in Eco – Tourism course starting at TAFE Monday, 12th July for 15 weeks at Noosa Campus SIT 30107. Eco-Tourism reflects both the aims of modern conservation: management of resources and protection of the environment. Modern Eco-Tourism strives to be sustainable, so that the activities that are taking place can continue to do so. Click Here to Download Flyer. The next TAFE Dual Diploma in Sustainability will commence in July. Within this dual diploma you’ll learn how to: apply the concepts of sustainability to a major challenge; develop and implement a program to support behavioural change and sustainable practices; develop a business plan for responsive and sustainable businesses; and analyse the long-term outcomes of sustainable production and consumption. Click Here for Further Information. BIODIVERSITY North Straddie mining ban?? (CourierMail Article) Please participate in this very important campaign Under the Government’s recent announcement 30 mining leases on Nth Stradbroke will be phased out by 2027. Whist this is great news, one lease – at the giant Enterprise mine – will be renewed because its application was lodged before the new policy announcement. Friends of Stradbroke Island president Sue Ellen Carew welcomed the Government's announcement but she said the Enterprise mine should be closed too, "If this lease is renewed, it means the public, the environmental movement and the indigenous community have been conned," she said. What you can do!
Recent advice was that expired leases would not be renewed. Now there seems to be a different story. A point which could be made in letters is that recovery of the already mined areas could depend upon there being no more mining and that it is essential to save the pristine areas that are destined to be mined. Another 17 years of trashing the Island ie until 2027 (coinciding with when Unimin says that 'Enterprise' will run out of minerals) will devalue the National Park and in the process deter tourists who are supposed to provide the alternative economy. They will be interested in seeing intact landscapes on ancient dunes, not artificially re-constructed landforms. Enough damage has been done already. New Plan to Save the Chimpanzee from Extinction Humankind's closest relative, the chimpanzee, is classified as Endangered by the IUCN Red List. A new 10-year-plan with East and Central African hopes to ensure the chimpanzee's (Pan troglodytes) survival. The plan, which focuses on one subspecies of four, the eastern chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii), pushes for the conservation of 16 core areas that would protect 96 percent of the eastern chimpanzee population. Click Here for Full Article. MARINE Coal Export Risk to Marine Parks and Coastal Zones Queensland Conservation Council Please sign this Petition (Queensland residents only): Coal export risk to marine parks and coastal zones – strategic risk assessment under the EPBC Act 1999. Please sign this e-petition and distribute as widely as possible. In the aftermath of the Shen Neng 1 grounding. We are calling for compulsory pilotage, safe and monitored passage away from environmentally significant areas, full cost recovery for accidents and strategic risk management review for central QLD as a result of the increase in shipping due to increased fossil fuel exports. This petition is in reference to the strategic review. Click Here to Sign Petition. International Whaling Commission Rejects Commercial Whaling Bid Negotiations on the future of commercial whaling have collapsed, with pro and anti-whaling nations unable to break a decades-long deadlock. The IWC conference in Morocco failed to overturn a 24-year ban on commercial whaling. As Australia has been the most vocal oponent, Environment Minister Peter Garrett hailed the decision as a victory. However whaling nations will continue using loopholes in the moratorium to set their own quotas, killing whales for so-called scientific research. Click Here for ABC News Story.
EVENTS and HAPPENINGS If you would like your event to be included here, details will need to be with us at least 3 weeks prior to the event so that they can be included (small files please – many flyer files are too large to be included. If a link to a website is available, let us know). Sunshine Coast Glossies Awards - Events Centre Caloundra Sunshine Coast Council Glossies Awards. Saturday 26th June at 6:30 for a 7:00pm start at the Events Centre Caloundra. Come and celebrate the Sunshine Coast sustainability innovation and achievements. Bookings essential 07 5491 4242 Climate Adaptation Futures Conference - Gold Coast Click Here for Further Information. Healthy Cities Conference - Brisbane Click Here for more information. Yandina Community Garden Workshop 10am-12Noon Seedsavers Workshop by Elizabeth Fekonia FREE Bookings essential : 07 5446 7373 or email: If you’re not doing the workshop come at 12.00 noon for a social gathering and a look around the gardens. Doug will light up the cob oven so bring your lunch and cook/burn it! Nambour Transition Town Meeting
For further information call: James Macdonald – Buchanan 07 5472 7869 or 0411 827 133 In our ongoing commitment to our valued members, we are undertaking the first phase of a reinvigorated membership engagement program with member groups. Trevor Lloyd, who has done invaluable work with Healthy Waterways and other significant programs, will be visiting groups on our behalf in the near future. Don’t forget, if any of your contact details change please notify us and please forward this newsletter onto anyone you think may be interested . . . . SUNSHINE COAST ENVIRONMENT COUNCIL
3 Porters Lane, Nambour QLD 4560. PO Box 269 Disclaimer: |
