Prawn farms fined and managers gaoled

The NSW North Coast is sometimes called the Northern Rivers or Many Rivers region with good reason. Most of its local government areas contain major river systems and those on the coast also feature estuaries. The largest of these estuaries is on the Clarence River with the small towns of Yamba and Iluka on its banks .

Local economies depend on these coastal estuaries which support both professional and recreational fishers and contribute to tourism, so it is particularly chilling to read a media release such as this from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry:

DAFF10/001D31 March 2010
Three prawn farm operators from Australia’s east coast have been sentenced to up to four years in jail after being found guilty of illegally importing feed products.
The two prawn aquaculture companies involved have also been fined a total of $80,000 by the Brisbane District Court over the illegal importation.
Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) officers from the Federal Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) uncovered the breach during an investigation in 2006 called ‘Operation Penaeus’.
Deputy Secretary, Biosecurity Services Group Rona Mellor said prawn feed which is imported without proper quarantine checks could pose a biosecurity risk to Australian seafood industries, through the introduction of exotic prawn diseases or pests.
“The sentences handed down by the Brisbane District Court send a strong message to anyone considering illegally importing products into Australia,” Ms Mellor said.
The Mission Beach farm manager and company director of Fortune Enterprises Australia Pty Ltd, Fang Che Yang, and the Yamba farm manager of Fortune Enterprises Australia Pty Ltd, Chung Yan Lee, both pleaded guilty to aiding in the commission of an aggravated illegal importation offence contrary to section 67 (3) of the Quarantine Act 1908.
Mr Yang and Mr Lee were each sentenced to three years jail and could be released after a period of six months on entering into $1000 good behaviour bond for a further period of two years.
The Proserpine farm manager of Hamilton Prawn Farm Pty Ltd and company director Hsien Chin Tsai pleaded guilty to aiding in the illegal importation and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Mr Tsai was sentenced to three years jail on the illegal importation charge and a further year on the charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice. Mr Tsai may be released after a period of nine months on entering into $1000 good behaviour bond for a further period of two years.
The companies, Fortune Enterprises Australia and Hamilton Prawn Farm Pty Ltd both entered guilty pleas to aggravated illegal importation charges and were fined $40,000 each.

Woolgoolga Curryfest: a celebration of community, culture & cuisine. Saturday 17 April 2010

Woolgoolga Curryfest is a celebration of Community, Culture and Cuisine.
A wonderful day of food, music and dance in one of NSW's best beachside villages.

Woolgoolga has the largest regional Sikh/Punjabi population in Australia and it is the site of the first Sikh temple built in this country. Our Festival will celebrate the cohesiveness and harmony between the Sikh culture and the wider community.
The curry theme links our major ethnic group, the Sikh Indians as well as representations from many other groups from Germany, Thailand, Holland, England, and Scotland.
Finals for the FutureStar Competition held on the day.

Saturday the 17th April 2010 is the date for this year's festival.
Entry Fee: $2
Curryfest events and festivities will be held at the scenic Woolgoolga Beach Reserve which adjoins Woolgoolga main beach and has un-interrupted views of the local coastline and Solitary Islands group. The area is fully grassed and some shaded areas are available.

Further details PH:02 6642 9700 or go to http://www.curryfest.com.au/

And these are some of the bureaucrats that the Australian Health Minister expects to have access to a national personal health infomation data base

Fifty-two per cent of the agencies

we assessed using capability models had not established

effective controls to manage IT risks, information security

and business continuity. Thirty-one per cent of agencies had

not established effective change controls and 33 per cent

had not established effective controls for management of

physical security [Information Systems Audit Report, March 2010]

On 26 March 2010 Computer World reported on Part Two of a West Australia Government Information Systems Audit Report covering 56 government agencies including the WA Health Department:

Ineffective security measures in Western Australian government agencies are failing to protect sensitive staff and taxpayer information, according to an official security audit....

The audit report found that Royal Perth Hospital and the Department of Commerce do not keep accurate records of laptops. It claimed that Perth hospital "could not provide any assurance on the number of its laptops, where they are or who had them" and possessed two conflicting record lists with a disparity of 277 devices....

"All seven agencies lacked comprehensive management, technical and physical controls over their laptops and portable storage devices to minimise the risk of them being lost or stolen and of sensitive information being accessed," the report states.

Six of the seven agencies failed auditor expectations by not enforcing access controls for laptops or portable devices that would help prevent sensitive data leaving the organisation. The WA Police received praise for encrypting all outgoing sensitive information.

The auditor found critical software vulnerablilities across each of the seven agencies due to a lack of patching. WorkCover was the only agency to enable laptop firewalls to protect computers from introducing potential infections from insecure networks into the corporate environment.

The second part of the report, tabled by acting auditor general Glen Clarke, blasted the agencies for poor application and general computer controls.

Out of the 52 agencies investigated, two had stored unsecured credit card data — one via a network "accessible by any user" and the other within an application — in direct violation of the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard.

Auditors were able to access sensitive information through "highly privileged" accounts that were accessed by simple password guessing. One agency allowed users to access accounts with a single character password that did not expire.

Thousands of sensitive records were cracked with the same basic password guessing in "several agencies".

Auditors were able to manipulate staff and contractor paychecks stored on freely accessible folders before they were processed.

Another unnamed agency sent out names and addresses of clients to external contractors, and many were found to lack basic account access controls that stop users from accessing inappropriate sensitive data, or even creating administration accounts without approval.

Boot passwords were scarcely employed by the agencies, leaving laptop hard disks vulnerable to hacking. Contractor service level agreements were found to be not enforced by another agency.

Weak access controls were found in 41 per cent of agencies, followed by poor network security in 23 per cent, polices and procedures, password control, and physical security.

Support our local products: Federal's Green Cauldron Coffee

From the Green Cauldron Coffee website:

Green Cauldron Coffee started with one big idea—to produce the world's finest specialty coffee. Our journey began in 2007 with the purchase of Federal Estate in the rolling hinterland of Byron Bay. Having recognised the inherent quality of our regional bean we set about reviving the plantation by removing noxious weeds, improving soil health as well as installing onsite infrastructure such as a new processing facility and state of the art recycling systems. After a meticulous restoration we were able to harvest and process our 2008 crop onsite making Green Cauldron Coffee's Federal Estate one of the largest and most technologically advanced producers in New South Wales.....

Coffee from our region benefits from conditions similar to those of traditional growing regions however unlike our equatorial counter parts Australia has a distinct natural advantage of being free from any of the major coffee pestilence or disease. Also in contrast with these traditional producers is Australia's strict industrial regulation which provides fair rates of pay and ensures workplace health and safety. The dual effect is a greener, more sustainable and fairer approach to farming.

This coffee may be purchased online here.

Federal NSW originally named Jasper is in the Byron hinterland.

Abbott's 2020 predictions......

In Chapter 7 of his 2009 book Battlelines Australian Opposition Leader Tony Abbott predicts that by 2020:

A) Australia will still have one of the world's strongest economies....

B) our partnership with America will still be the foundation of our security....

C) We will still be a 'crowned republic'.....

D) We will be more cosmopolitan than ever but perhaps less multicultural....

E) Some progress will have been made towards 'closing the gap' between Aboriginal and other Australians' standards of living.....

F) Families won't break up anymore often....

G) there will have been bigger fires, more extensive floods, more ferocious storms because records are always being broken....

H) sea levels will be much the same, desert boundaries will not have changed much, and technology, rather than economic self-denial, will be starting to cut down atmospheric pollution.

Thankfully, Abbott doesn't predict that he'll be leading a Coalition government in Canberra at the start of that decade.

Obama resigns overnight!

from White Rabbit Cult

David and Goliath. Yamba versus McDonald's

On Tuesday 30 March 2010 a community meeting was called at Yamba to discuss opposition to multinational McDonald's move to establish a 24 hour drive-through food franchise in that coastal town.

The meeting was well attended and the crowd spilled out of the space and onto the street.

Yamba Chamber of Commerce, Valley Watch and Coast Care all spoke out against the McDonald's development application, as did local residents and some small business owners.

A number of Clarence Valley shire councillors attended the meeting and it was obvious that they had already started to receive emails lobbying against the fast food giant's plans.

The meeting convenor invited anyone who supported having a McDonald's in Yamba to the microphone to put forward their views. No-one came forward.

Some background:

The NSW Food Authority keeps what is popularly known as a name and shame file.

In 2009 no Yamba restaurant, cafe or small take-away food business was listed on this file.
However the multinational fast food company McDonald's was mentioned six times.Three times under management by franchise operators and another three times under its own Australian management.

Penalties were issued for Mcdonald's at Armidale, Lithgow, Penrith, Randwick (twice) and Ultimo.

Examples of official findings regarding these outlets:

• Fail to take all practicable measures to eradicate and prevent the harbourage of pests - live cockroaches observed on the premises
  
• Fail to maintain the food premises to the required standard of cleanliness
  
• Fail to take all practicable measures to eradicate and prevent the harbourage of pests - live cockroaches observed in the food preparation area
  
• Fail to take all practicable measures to eradicate and prevent the harbourage of pests - Customer complaint of fly found in burger. Several flies found in food preparation area

While elsewhere in Australia in April 2009 at 3am; McFilthy - you want gastro with that?

Graphic from NO to McDonalds in YAMBA at Facebook

Third world medicine on the NSW North Coast?

Premier Keneally needs to shift her focus from early electioneering and seriously address funding and service delivery failures in NSW North Coast public hospitals.

This report in The Northern Star last week is yet another pitiful example of how this region is being short-changed by the Keneally Government's management of NSW Health:

AN ELDERLY man suffering from asbestosis had to call Triple-0 from his hospital bed in Lismore Base to get help from a nurse.
Eighty-seven-year old World War II veteran Kevin Park called the emergency number after night shift failed to hear the brass bell he was given as a replacement to the electronic call system at the hospital, which is still not operational.
Yesterday a still angry Mr Park said after ringing the bell for 45 minutes, 'desperate times demanded desperate action'.
"This is like the Third World. We are being treated like dogs."
Patients in Lismore Base's surgical ward were issued with brass bells four weeks ago after both the emergency and nurse call systems failed.
North Coast Area Health last night offered the air force veteran from Iluka an apology 'for any distress that may have been caused to Mr Park and his family'.

The Hamburgler fights back against Yamba?

Yamba went public in the media last week about its opposition to the McDonald's Restaurants move to establish one of its fast food outlets in Treelands Drive.

A Facebook page was also created called NO to McDonalds in Yamba.

Shortly thereafter another Facebook page sprang up, YES to McDonalds in Yamba (snapshot above). This page looks suspiciously like it was created by the multinational food franchise, its publicists or a company employee or two - perhaps even their family members.

It has all the hallmarks; links to the official company website and multiple promos for McDonald's goods and activities.

However, like the Hamburgler, the page hides behind a mask and doesn't openly declare its creator's identity.

Update:

Just after the above post was published the YES to McDonalds in Yamba page posted this:

Noticed something so fun today, some people think this site (page) has been setup by McDonald's Australia......

I am a local who has lived in Townsend, Yamba and Maclean for plenty of years. I have family up and down the Clarence Valley and my Parents have been local residents for 13+ years.

So NO this isn't a corporate site. It's a personal FAN site which is pointing out all the POSITIVES!

The jury's still out on this claim.

Whaling: Japan doesn't have an exclusive right to claim cultural connection in southern waters

The Government of Japan and Japanese whalers have repeatedly made extravagant claims that they have the right to kill whales for their meat based on what is called a cultural tradition of eating whale meat.

Here in Australia a vital part of our society, tribal groups and traditional land owners on the coast, arguably have older and probably stronger cultural ties to whales.

Whale Dreaming © Y. Bundle 2007 This work arose from a dream Yaraan received. It is about the Whale Dreaming songline connected to Keerray Woorroong Country along the coast near Warrnambool. In her dream the Old People told Yaraan the story of the Southern Right Whale and their journey to our waters to give birth to their young. They told her the secret of the whales and the knowledge they bring. This work tells their story.

On gurrawul, the whale, according to the Yuin people of south eastern Australia:

MAX DULUMUNMUN HARRISON: We have our three markings which are so important - spiritual, physical and mental. That they must have the markings to participate in this particular kind of whale dreaming ceremony. The whales were elders once that walked the land and the whales then got permission to go out into gadu, the ocean, to look after the food and the medicines that are all out there in the ocean, because they're the fellas then, that we must respect. And, of course, every time that a whales beaches itself, to come in, it's regurgitating the law. And that is so important. If the law is not regurgitated, then our mob will roam this country aimlessly without culture. And for the eastern seaboard people, that's something I am trying to keep alive so that they can stand up and talk about culture. So that they can participate in a simple ceremony of respecting the whale that's out there in gadu, the ocean.

Federal Election 2010: so you like the idea of local hospital boards?

The Federal Coalition and their leader, Tony Abbott, may not have revealed much in the way of a national health policy for Australia to date, but the mantra they are all chanting as they move about electorates is local hospital boards.

So how does Opposition Leader Abbott see these boards functioning in a health system he describes (in his latest book Battlelines) as not needing "fundamental restructuring or gargantuan amounts of additional funding"?

Well, he sees these "hospital boards with clout" - apparently run by medical professionals, probably unqualified but prominent local business people and some community representatives - having an ability to vary public hospital staff wages in a two-tiered system if necessary (with newer staff being paid less as a budget-saving measure) and an ability "to contract out hospital management to a private operator" as another budget measure.

Possibilities which would more than likely horrify communities on the North Coast and in other NSW rural and regional areas.

Elsewhere Abbott claims; Boards would appoint hospital CEOs and, with the CEO, manage hospital budgets. Government would appoint boards and set hospitals’ funding levels but wouldn’t be able to cut funding when hospitals raise money from private patients or fundraising.

All in all, this sounds like a recipe for health service delivery disaster in the public sector.

Gawd 'elp us! Maccas wants to invade Yamba

It's bad enough that Yamba is going through a bit of a bad patch which sees a clutch of small businesses up for sale. Now those mum and dad operated food outlets in its second shopping precinct are under threat, as that giant plastic food producer McDonald's has lodged a development application with Clarence Valley Council.

If the bush telegraph holds true, many Yamba-ites are not amused. I can't wait to hear from Maud!

"McDonald's Australia Limited lodged a development application (DA) with Clarence Valley Council this week for a 112-seat outlet, complete with drive-through, playground and McCafe, to be built on the Treelands Drive Cinema site.

The development, which received strong opposition from the Yamba Chamber of Commerce, would require the demolition of the current temporary cinema shed and the removal of some trees. An extension of the Coldstream Street cinemas was approved by council last week.

A 10-metre high, 3.6 metre wide giant M sign is also proposed for the new Maccas site, which will also provide 32 car parking spaces with access from Treelands Drive.

Yamba Chamber of Commerce president Daniel Reeves said he was 'completely against' a McDonald's coming to Yamba and he believed most of the chamber's membership would feel the same way because of the increased competition and the loss of the small town culture.

"I don't think it's the right time for Yamba to have a Maccas – I can't see a market in their demographic," Mr Reeves said.

"We seem to have a different culture in Yamba – not so much a chain culture, with a couple of exceptions ... it's about protecting the businesses we've got.

"Change such as this, it changes the economic status – if a place is big enough to have a maccas it loses that small town feel." {From The Daily Examiner on 24th March 2010}

McDonald's in Yamba..........
Allowing a McDonald's in Yamba would be a huge mistake for the town voted Best Town in Australia in 2009 - we need to protect the culture of Yamba that brings us so many tourists - a small, slow-paced, beachside town with an amazing coastline, great people and excellent dining options.
Yes, a McDonald's would provide a few jobs for young locals but also be aware that McDonald's restaurants generally use no local produce such as meat, bread, fruit or vegetables.
No local companies will provide any of the packaging, cardboard or paper used.
Also the restaurant will create a mass of rubbish - I can guarantee we will soon be seeing the golden arches floating in and on our beautiful beaches.
Also with the premises intending on being open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, this will provide another hot spot for antisocial behaviour.
If you feel strongly about fighting this proposal of a McDonald's in Yamba, then you must act now and submit an objection to council before it is too late. We must make a stand .

NAME, ADDRESS SUPPLIED, Yamba. {The Daily Examiner letter to editor on 26th} March 2010}

Online poll in The Daily Examiner on the day article was published.

Remember this? "On March 31st 1999 the Court of Appeal added to those damning findings. Lord Justices Pill, May and Keane ruled that it was fair comment to say that McDonald's employees worldwide "do badly in terms of pay and conditions", and true that "if one eats enough McDonald's food, one's diet may well become high in fat etc., with the very real risk of heart disease." {McSpotlight press release on 6th May 2004}

Graphic found at Google Images

Competitor Number 41 please return to the finish line - your party needs you!

Abbott's posed pre-race photograph

Australian Leader of the Opposition and self-styled fitness template, Tony Abbott, was competitor Number 41 in a field of 1,529 to 1,540 others entered in the Ironman Australia Triathlon on Sunday 28 March 2010 at Port Macquarie.

Fifty-three year old Abbott ranked 1,425 (div.pos. 120) in the 2.4 mile swim, 1213 (div. pos. 91) in the 112 mile bike ride and, 1170 (div. pos. 83) in the 26.2 mile run leg of the triathlon - subject to adjustment.

Despite his obvious enthusiasm for the chase perhaps he really should stick with his day job. Because it really was a chase - he was still manfully pedalling through the last stages of the bike leg while the front runners were three-quarters of the way through the final run stage of the event and his own run was still dragging on long after the leading pack had passed the finish line.

It may seem a hard position to take when viewing an event with a big field over a long course, one which saw some participants fail to finish the run before the triathlon results were called.

However this is a middle-aged politician with a history of using his bare chest and crotch physical fitness to pimp for votes and, much older men on the NSW North Coast competing for pleasure in similar events in the past managed to officially finish with very respectable times under their belts.

After all, when it comes down to the crunch, most people want to see economic, environmental and social policy rather than hairy pecs in an election year.

Here is Tony's official race record.