Windsor confirms he's an environmental & economic eejit

Does a pollie come any greedier or dumber than this?
Did he not take any notice of evidence given at the 2007 Australian Senate inquiry which looked at the Clarence River?
Has he not noticed that the Snowy River is seriously f**ked?
This is the Member for New England and chair of the latest parliamentary water inquiry, Tony Windsor, yesterday:
FEDERAL independent Member for New England Tony Windsor says diverting water from the Clarence River is an option to revive the Murray Darling basin.
Mr Windsor, whose electorate shares a border with Page, said diversion of east coast rivers, including the Clarence, would be looked at by a parliamentary inquiry, of which he was a member, into the impact of Murray Darling Basin Plan.
“Diverting water into the Murray Darling system to avert the effects of climate change is a possibility,” he said.
“But where it comes from is an issue I don't want to get into debate about right now. There are a lot of options out there to be looked at yet.”
Mr Windsor, who previously flagged the idea of diverting the Clarence in 2007, said sending water west was possible.
“It's technically possible to bring eastern flowing water to the west as we have done with the snowy mountains scheme,” he said.

Saffin tells Parliament 'Not a drop' from the Clarence River

Bravo to Federal Labor’s Janelle Saffin who really is in tune with her electorate in this 18 October 2010 media release.

Saffin tells Parliament -- ‘Not a drop’

PAGE MP Janelle Saffin made it clear on the first day of the Parliamentary session that she would be vigilant on protecting the Clarence River against water raiders.

Ms Saffin today told Parliament that a lot of people are talking about wanting to get their hands on water from the Clarence River.

But she said the message from the local community in response to those looking at river diversion under the Murray-Darling Basin plan is this – “Not a drop”.

“Engineering-wise, we can do anything -- we can do marvels -- but in terms of the environment and also the viability of the Clarence, it would be a disaster.

“The catchment area of the Clarence River falls within 100 kilometres of the New South Wales coastal strip.

“Our industries are fishing -- we have a huge commercial fishing industry -- and agriculture, and the economy is heavily underpinned by that commercial fishing.

“There is also forestry and tourism. It is all worth a lot to us.

“This debate is one of those debates that come up ever now and then.”

Ms Saffin said that right across her electorate thousands of cars display the ‘not a drop’ bumper stickers, part of a Daily Examiner campaign against Coalition water policy in 2007.

Following her statement in the House, Ms Saffin said she did not want to alarm people but she wanted to be up front on the first sitting day on this important issue.

“I also want to thank the local people who sent me good information on the issue this morning,” Ms Saffin said.

“The idea of diverting the Clarence River inland won’t stand up to closer public scrutiny.”

Leave river to flow free says local media

From the pen of David Bancroft, The Daily Examiner Editor, 18 October 2010

Click on image to enlarge

Huh, kids today!

taylorrtay

Oh dear, my mother has a Twitter account now... that's the moment when you know this social network is heading downhill #sorrymum via Chromed Bird

What is in Armidale's drinking water?

Authorities must undertake an immediate audit of Armidale city's water supply. I'm not referring to its quantity, but rather its quality.

An Armidale resident has a letter to the editor in today's Daily Examiner that provides abundant evidence that a brain-destroying contaminant is in the drinking water in at least one Armidale home.

Click on letter to enlarge. 

Here's The Daily Examiner editor's response:

  

One of Stephen Heaney's strongest claims is that the fishing industry would benefit if fresh water was prevented from entering the river by being diverted elsewhere. That would be news to the fishing industry. For years the industry has fought tooth and nail to prevent diversion, recognising that natural river flows are essential to the health and therefore the viability of the fishing industry. It recognises that floods and freshes can cause disruption but, like farmers, understand their value to the productive capacity of the valley.

Also from the editor: 

We must fight any proposals to divert the Clarence.

Is anyone out there?

Looks suspiciously like everyone along the Murray-Darling rivers is having too much fun burning books and loudly swearing for the benefit of cameras to actually go online and give an opinion.

Last time I clicked onto the Murray Darling Basin Authority Basin Plan online forum page there were only a handful of comments and this was one example:

tony grose

17-10-2010 1:05 PM

Pipe Line Out of left feild here but would it be viable to build a pipe line to feed water into the basin. We seem to be able to spend millions and millions of dollars on reports and the likes why dont we just bite the bullet and start a massive task like this. The government wants to stimulate the economy emagine how much work this would create. I see that the swiss have just completed the longest tunnel under the elpes and it has taken 14 years for just that part of it, that to me is long term vision. We have a massive water source in the north and north west so maybe we need to try and tap into that and then all Australians will benefit. Tony

Abbott gave a reshuffle party and nobody came

Surely this14 September 2010 media release would have to heralded one of the quietest reshuffles in Coalition history:

The reshaped Coalition frontbench that I announce today is a strong and experienced team that will hold a weak Government to account. The new Shadow Ministry is a team with deep connections to the community, ensuring that we will continue to put forward practical policies that help Australian families get ahead.

There was little mention of this change to Opposition Leader Tony Abbott's team of shadow spokespeople, but quite a few media observations on his attempt to censor video and photographs (below) and his ill-advised interview with Alan Jones.

Leaving one thankful that this man is not the Australian Prime Minister.

Yaegl family on ABC's Message Stick

Last week Bloodline Series on ABC TV's Message Stick featured The Randall-Parker Family from the Clarence River area in northern NSW. The "stars' of the program were Reverend Lenore Parker, a Deacon of the Anglican Church, and her daughters Frances Belle, Susan and Catherine.

Message Stick presenter Miriam Corowa opened with:

Yet, like other Yaegl people, they draw their strength from those generations that have walked before them. I hope you enjoy Bloodlines.

The program was terrific. It provided a wonderful opportunity for viewers to gain a better understanding of how Yaegl people draw their strength from the generations that have walked before them.

Lenore and her daughters paid tribute to the pivotal role of their mother and grandmother, respectively.

Lenore Parker:

I'm a Yaegl woman, born in this beautiful part of Australia, the north-east coast of Australia, in Yaegl country, and I'm the eldest daughter of the marriage of Wallace and Jesse. And...I have nine other brothers and sisters from that union.

Frances Belle Parker:
My nan ... had a big presence, but she was so gentle, like one of the most gentle people that you could ever meet.... even now, when she's not here, her spirit always is.

Frances Belle

Susan Parker:

Nan just had the most gentle nature...she'd always make time for you ...she was happiest when she was with her family.

Susan

Catherine

Lenore with her sister Judy after Lenore's ordination

Credits: Words and images from ABC TV's Message Stick

MDBA understatement of the year!

Even a bad situation can elicit a laugh or two as Mike Taylor demonstrates with this classic understatement reported by Aunty ABC last week:"But Victorian farmers in Shepparton believe diverting water from the Clarence is still an option. "I think the Murray Darling Basin Commission has done a marvellous job of identifying the needs of the environment. I was just wondering if you could give it a little bit of attention to the needs of irrigators by redirecting some of the big flows of water that run straight into the sea every year like on the Clarence River in NSW and redirect them through a tunnel and through to the darling river and supply a new stream of income water to the whole pool in the environment rather than cutting back all the time. We need more water and there's thousands and thousands of gigalitres of water that just run straight into the sea in this country." Murray Darling Basin Authority Chair Mike Taylor told the Shepparton meeting this week, it's not on the agenda."First of all I'm going to do two things here. I'm going to explain what our brief is which is to deal with the water that's in the Murray Darling Basin so we don't actually get to look at those alternatives. The second bit I am going to say though about taking water from the Clarence, having talked to many people who operate on the Clarence, they're not actually keen on diverting the water across the Great Dividing Range."
Too bluidy right we're not keen!