Live streaming Tony

With apologies to @JustinLee76 and Cat watching the Federal Council meeting. LIVE: http://bit.ly/iAKSeR @LiberalAus #55fc #auspol for the liberty taken.

Don't zap the Zac!

It's not just charities which depend on the five cent coin. A lot of self-funded retirees and pensioners know that they will be on the losing end if Swan and Combet give in to the Royal Australian Mint.
Many remember that everyone lost out after 1990, when the abolition of the one and two cent coins saw pricing slyly creep upwards.
You know that low income earners will again be losers not winners when the Australian Vending Association is boldly coming out in favour of eliminating this coin and the Australian Retail Association straddles the fence while its executive director Russel Zimmerman happily opines that; "it was likely the price of such products would be put up to the nearest 10 cent value, making smaller items more expensive for consumers".
Suck it up you Canberra fellas and keep the zac.

LIVE EXPORT: The problem doesn't just belong to Government or Parliament - it belongs to YOU too

This is the Australian Senate Rural Affairs and Transport—References Committee composition:

Members
Senator Heffernan (Chair), Senator Sterle (Deputy Chair) and Senators O'Brien, McGauran, Milne and Nash

Substitute member
Senator Siewert to replace Senator Milne for the committee's inquiry into operational issues in export grain networks
Senator Siewert to replace Senator Milne for the committee's inquiry into live export markets

Participating members
Senators Abetz, Adams, Back, Barnett, Bernardi, Bilyk, Birmingham, Bishop, Boswell, Boyce, Brandis, Bob Brown, Carol Brown, Bushby, Cameron, Cash, Colbeck, Coonan, Cormann, Crossin, Eggleston, Faulkner, Ferguson, Fierravanti-Wells, Fielding, Fifield, Fisher, Forshaw, Furner, Hanson-Young, Heffernan, Humphries, Hurley, Hutchins, Johnston, Joyce, Kroger, Ludlam, Macdonald, McEwen, Marshall, Mason, Milne, Minchin, Moore, Parry, Payne, Polley, Pratt, Ronaldson, Ryan, Scullion, Siewert, Stephens, Troeth, Trood, Williams, Wortley and Xenophon

This is one of four inquiries the RAAT committee senators are conducting:

Improvements in animal welfare for Australian live exports.

The Inquiry is taking submissions until 15 July 2011.

This is senators’ problem:

THE Australian meat industry was warned of gross animal welfare abuses in Indonesian abattoirs long before shocking footage of the inhumane treatment of Australian cattle surfaced last month.

Meat and Livestock Australia and LiveCorp have repeatedly claimed that both bodies were unaware of the extent of animal welfare problems in Indonesia before the airing of a Four Corners program on May 30.

How much they knew is now the subject of a Senate inquiry.

Yet a report, commissioned by MLA and LiveCorp and handed to the bodies early last year, extensively documents every aspect of the abuse revealed last month.

The report makes repeated references to the shortcomings of the Australian-made restraining boxes, warns about the non-compliance with World Organisation for Animal Health standards, and says only four abattoirs in Indonesia had stun guns.

Most damning are accounts of slaughtering fully conscious animals, which suffered protracted, agonising deaths.

''At an abattoir in Sumatra the neck was struck with a knife using a hard impact to sever the skin above the larynx and then up to 18 cuts were made to severe the neck and both arteries,'' the report says.

''Bleeding was impaired in 10 per cent of cattle … possibly resulting in extended consciousness … In some instances where stunning was not used, the delay between restraint and slaughter was significant.''

On the performance of the restraining box, ''finding better methods of restraint with higher animal welfare outcomes is essential'', the report concludes. The ''mark 2'' box, designed to solve the problems, makes the plight of the animals even worse, the report says, to the point of being ''not acceptable''.

Thrashing, prostrate animals bashed their heads on the box's concrete plinth an average of 3.5 times before death. The report says: ''Where the severity of the fall was severe and head slapping occurred, significant animal welfare issues were identified that should be addressed.''

The halal practice of dousing the thrashing animal with water requires ''revision'', as ''disturbed behaviour … was particularly apparent when buckets of water were thrown over the animal before slaughter''……

[The Sydney Morning Herald 25 June 2011]

It is your problem also. Get involved.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) response 24 June 2011

UPDATE:

From the Macedon Ranges Weekly 22 June 2011:

LARGE cattle could suffer protracted deaths from throat cutting in Australian abattoirs, a government report investigating animal welfare issues surrounding ritual slaughter has found.
Animal welfare groups, Greens, independent MPS and some Labor backbenchers have criticised the absence of mandatory stunning in the proposal the Australian Government has taken to Indonesia to reopen the live cattle export trade. Yet government-approved slaughter without stunning continues daily in Australian abattoirs.
The 2008 report, commissioned by the Primary Industries standing committee and written by the Department of Agriculture's animal welfare branch, recommended that the practice of allowing traditional Halal and Kosher slaughter, which requires the throat of a beast to be slit while it is still sentient, be discontinued for large animals such as fully grown cattle because research showed it could take more than two minutes for such animals to lose consciousness.
However, state and federal governments have failed to adopt the report's recommendations that a size limit be set on animals fit for slaughter without stunning and that alternative methods - which would render an animal unconscious before having its throat cut but still be acceptable to specific religious practices - should be investigated.
In 2009, a concerned member of the public, Harry Roden, from Newtown, wrote to the then minister for agriculture, Tony Burke, requesting the practice cease on grounds of cruelty.
Mr Roden received a response from Allen Grant, the executive manager of the department's Agricultural Productivity Division.
The letter, obtained by the Herald, dismissed Mr Roden's concerns and stated that ''the slaughter of livestock without stunning is a longstanding practice to meet the stated requirements of particular religious groups. Australia's management and control of this practice is consistent with the World Organisation for Animal Health's animal welfare guidelines.''
The Herald asked the Department of Agriculture for a list of the abattoirs granted exemptions of the stun-before-slaughter rule but it refused, saying that most approved arrangements were held by state and territory regulators. South Australia has nine and Victoria three abattoirs that were government-approved for ritual slaughter.

* Photographs sourced from Google Images

Ginge goes all political....

"If cannibals cooked a politician they'd have to use a crock pot" ran the graffiti scrawl in the Ginger Meggs comic on 21st June 2011.
Rather appropriate given the edifying performances being flounced across the national stage by Canberra 'stars' this month.

Note to The Egg Timer editor - you're at least two weeks behind Ginger Meggs online.

Wild Cattle Creek: China encourages mining in Clarence River catchment in order to conserve its own national resources?

China Shandong Jinshunda Group Co Ltd as principal shareholder and new 'owner' of Anchor Resources Ltd (through its wholly-owned Australian subsidiary Sunstar Capital Pty Ltd) has been reported as having signalled its intention to mine for antimony in the Nymboida River sub-catchment of the larger Clarence River catchment.

The Australian Government’s National Pollutant Inventory recognises Antimony compounds show toxic properties similar to those of arsenic and sets its safe upper level in water at a maximum of 0.003 mg/L (i.e. 0.000003 g/L) in fresh water and 500 micrograms/L (i.e. 0.0005 g/L) in sea water.

The four mining projects this Chinese-owned mining corporation identifies in the Northern Rivers region are within an estimated 100 kms of Coffs Harbour and, post-takeover, the project at Wild Cattle Creek is 100% owned by Anchor Resources and its majority shareholder Shandong Jinshunda.

This mining group expects that mining processes at Wild Cattle Creek will produce mercury and arsenic as by-products, according to its own scoping study. This same study indicates mineral deposit potential in excess of 2 million tonnes.

Any accidental or adverse weather related catastrophic release of these toxic substances into the Clarence river systems could have longterm consequences for riverine ecosystems, public health and the local commercial fishing industry which supports an estimated 199 jobs and generates in the vicinity of $19.9 million annually.

On 23 June 2011 The Daily Examiner reported:

Coffs Harbour's Greens councillor Mark Graham will table a notice of motion at today's council meeting calling for the prohibition of all antimony mining in the Nymboida River catchment, a move that is supported by Clarence Valley Mayor Richie Williamson.
Cr Williamson said alarm bells should be ringing as the proposed location of the mine was in an extremely environmentally sensitive area of high rainfall.
“With that environmental sensitivity comes a great deal of responsibility that the proposal meets the strictest environmental guidelines,” he said.
He said the council would keep a very close eye on any developments involving the proposed mine.
“We have invested greatly in the water which we drink and in the catchment,” he said.
“We have worked closely with landholders and farmers along the riparian zone of the Nymboida River and its tributaries to ensure water quality has always been improved.”
Similar to arsenic in its effects on human health, antimony is a toxic element.
Use of the element is limited due to its toxicity, with the growth in micro-electronics seeing demand for antimony rapidly increasing. This demand has seen the price of antimony skyrocket by 300% in the past two years.

The Shandong Jinshunda Group is reputed to have no antimony mining experience and the Chinese Government’s Ministry of Land and Resources suspended (apparently for the third time since 1999) antimony exploration and mining applications until mid-2011, in an action designed to prevent over-exploitation and protect existing resources within its own national borders and possibly to address longstanding pollution concerns.

On 24 April 2011 China Daily reported China will not grant any new licences for prospecting or mining antimony until after 30 June 2012.

The Coffs Harbour City Council Ordinary Monthly Meeting 23 June 2011 NOTICE OF MOTION:

NOM11/14 PROHIBITING ANTIMONY EXPLORATION AND MINING AND PROTECTING
WATER QUALITY IN THE HEADWATERS OF THE REGIONAL WATER SUPPLY
(NYMBOIDA CATCHMENT)
Purpose:
Councillor Mark Graham has given notice of his intention to move:
Recommendation:
That Council:
1. Strongly oppose all exploration for, and mining of, Antimony within the catchment of the Nymboida River because of the unacceptable risks to the Regional Water Supply posed by these activities;
2. Inform all relevant authorities of this opposition including directly contacting relevant Ministers, Directors General and agencies with responsibilities for approval and regulation of such activities;
3. Seek the prohibition of all Antimony exploration and mining activities within the Nymboida
Catchment to protect the Regional Water Supply from contamination;
4. Inform residents of the City of the unacceptable risks to drinking water quality posed by Antimony mining in the Nymboida Catchment;
5. Approach Clarence Valley Council to seek a partnership for protecting the Regional Water Supply from Antimony contamination.
Rationale:The majority of the municipal water supply for Coffs Harbour is provided by Shannon Creek Dam, part of the Regional Water Supply Strategy shared with Clarence Valley Council. This 30,000 megalitre dam is located southwest of Grafton. It is an off-river storage reservoir gravity-fed by pipes directly from the Nymboida River. The Nymboida River has its headwaters across 1700 square km of the Dorrigo Plateau, an area renowned as the highest rainfall catchment in NSW.
Anchor Resources Ltd owns the Wild Cattle Creek/Bielsdown project within the headwaters of the Nymboida River, describing it as “an advanced Antimony project”. The company released a scoping study early in 2011 indicating that “positive financial returns are achievable from the project”. Anchor Resources Ltd is currently recommending that shareholders accept a takeover offer from the Chinese minerals company, China Shandong Jinshunda Co Ltd (Jinshunda).
Antimony is a “strategic mineral resource” used for a range of high-tech products such as polymers, fire retardants and electronics. Chinese national interests control over 90% of global supply of Antimony and they are seeking global dominance of all such strategic resources.
Antimony and many of its compounds are toxic; the effects of antimony poisoning are similar to arsenic poisoning. In small doses, antimony causes headaches, dizziness and depression. Larger doses damage the kidneys and the liver, causing violent and frequent vomiting and will lead to death within a few days; otherwise skin contact causes dermatitis. Major Antimony contamination is known from over 50km of the headwaters of the Macleay River to the east of Armidale, emanating from the Hillgrove and Bakers Creek Antimony and Gold mines.
Furthermore Urunga Lagoon immediately south of Coffs Harbour Local Government Area is heavily contaminated with Antimony as a result of a processing plant established there in the 1960s. Both areas have proven impossible to remediate and are gazetted as Contaminated Sites.
The proposal by Anchor Resources Ltd to undertake Antimony mining activities within the headwaters of the Nymboida River is of immense concern, particularly when considering that this catchment provides drinking and potable water for in excess of 100000 residents between Yamba and Sawtell. Of further concern is the extremely high rainfall in the Wild Cattle Creek sub-catchment, some years exceeding 3m of rainfall per annum. It is impossible to prevent migration of toxic minerals from mines established in such high rainfall areas, as evidenced by the high levels of contamination known from the Upper Macleay River, downstream of the Hillgrove Mine.
All efforts must be expended to protect the source of the Regional Water Supply from Antimony contamination, as clean water is the most critical resource for all life. A partnership should be established with Clarence Valley Council as a matter of urgency to prevent contamination of the Regional Water Supply with toxic Antimony.
Staff Comment:
The Executive Manager Coffs Water has compiled information regarding this issue and would be able to provide this to Council at a briefing.

It is understood that Coffs Harbour City Cr. Bill Palmer moved and Cr. John Arkan seconded a motion to defer consideration of Cr. Graham’s motion pending a briefing for councillors.

Local government and residents in the Dorrigo, Coffs Habour and Clarence Valley areas need to be proactive in their response to this proposal and those who are concerned at the prospect of mining within this environmentally sensitive catchment can contact China Shandong Jinshunda Group Co Ltd Chairman of the Board, Wang Gan, at sdjinshunda@sdjinshunda.cn and the NSW Minister for Mining and Agriculture Chris Hartcher at office@hartcher.minister.nsw.gov.au, as well as their own councils and state/federal members of parliament.

Media Release 24 February 2011 Wild Cattle Creek Scoping Study Outcomes.

Every old stunt is new again according to Joe Hockey

Not content with sqeezing the lemon analogy dry, the Liberal Party is now trotting out carboard figures again in an 'inspired' display of its lack of imagination.

Here's the 2008 premiere in the Australian Parliament and Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey's latest effort at recycling via yfrog: