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| Matt Golding |
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| Tom Red |
Saturday 7 August 2021
Friday 6 August 2021
Grafton Base Hospital expects that its surgical unit will be operating at full capacity again after work on the unit is completed by October 2021
Daily Telegraph, 2 August 2021:
…..General Manager Clarence Health Service Dan Madden said that on February 19, issues were detected with the steam sterilisers used in the Grafton Base Hospital surgical department.
“Staff identified the affected equipment as part of their usual checking process, rejected them for use, and ceased using the sterilising machines immediately,” he said.
“Technicians began working immediately to examine and repair the machines, including replacing some components…..
However, at the end of April, the health service confirmed the fixes were not working, and approximately 20 per cent of surgery at the hospital had been affected.
“Additional surgical instruments are being sourced to supplement the supply at GBH, and extra capacity is being added at the Lismore Base
Hospital sterilising department to provide support, but some surgical cases are being rescheduled,” NNSWLHD CEO Wayne Johns said.
“We are working with surgeons and waitlist staff to minimise delays and are taking clinical conditions into account when rescheduling cases,” he said.
In May, more community reports of cancelled operations emerged. Claims that items sent away for sterilisation were returning wet, or unclean, led the health service to reveal $1m would be spent on new equipment.
“Two new sterilisers are expected within weeks after safely clearing quarantine, with other equipment on order from Italy,” Mr Jones said
“We wish to assure the community that no affected instruments have been used in any surgical procedures.”
Acting NNSWLHD CEO Lynne Weir said that supply chain issues as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic had delayed the arrival of necessary equipment to upgrade the existing surgical unit inside the hospital.
“These issues are now resolved and it is anticipated work on the surgical unit will be completed by October,” she said.
“Capital works will involve the removal of old equipment, reconfiguration of the internal space and replacement of equipment including a new reverse osmosis water treatment unit to mitigate against any issues with on-site water filtration systems which supply the sterilising equipment.”
NSW Premier walks back plan to have high schools schools re-open for limited face to face learning on 16 August 2021 in Greater Sydney
The Guardian, 4 August 2021:
The New South Wales government’s plans to have year 12 back to face-to-face teaching by 16 August appear to be in tatters, amid rising Covid case numbers among younger people and resistance from all parts of the school system.
The government is now urgently working on an alternative plan that is likely to involve different approaches for different parts of the greater Sydney region.
For many students the Higher School Certificate trial exams are likely to take place online with priority for returning to school being given to students who need to complete major works or undertake oral assessments.
The premier, Gladys Berejiklian, flagged the rethink at her daily press conference on Wednesday.
“Our commitment, and the outcome remains, that every year 12 student who is a candidate for the HSC, we’ll make sure they get their qualification. We announced that from 16 August there will be some opportunity for some level of face-to-face but we will have more to say about that,” she said......
There have been discussions about possibly using rapid antigen testing at schools, however this option may not be viable as it requires medically trained staff to administer the tests.
The focus is now on trying to facilitate the HSC exams taking place in October, but some level of face-to-face teaching could occur in areas with few cases.
“There is a requirement for public exams to be sat in October, which obviously will take place. Between now and then we need to provide certainty as to what level of face-to-face will exist from 16 August,” the premier said.
Berejiklian said the approach “would not be uniform” and that those who needed face-to-face contact with teachers would be given priority.
A week ago the premier said that year 12 would return to face-to-face learning from 16 August, announcing an urgent vaccination drive for almost 21,000 year 12 students in the eight hotspot local government areas.
Beginning Monday, the NSW government plans to bus 3,000 students to Qudos Bank Arena for Pfizer shots. Year 12 students who live in the eight hotspot LGAs as well as students who attend schools in the eight LGAs will be eligible. This will include schools like The Kings School and other private schools that draw from across Sydney .
About 40,000 Pfizer vaccine doses, which have been approved for children as young as 12, have been redirected from rural NSW and are due to be administered at Homebush.
In regional NSW, where there is no lockdown, schools have remained open with masks recommended for all students in year 7 and above and for all staff.
The plan to reopen in Sydney has been met with deep concern from both the union representing public sector teachers, the NSW Teachers’ Federation, independent schools and Catholic schools.
The NSW Teachers’ Federation president, Angelo Gavrielatos, described the move as “premature”.....
The issue of returning year 12 to school – and the health advice around it – is set to be aired next week when a parliamentary committee calls evidence from the Department of Education and NSW Health.
Read the full article here.
Thursday 5 August 2021
North East Forest Alliance (NEFA) is heading to the Federal Court to challenge the New South Wales North East Regional Forest Agreement
"The North East Forest Alliance was formed in 1989 as an alliance of groups and individuals from throughout north-east NSW, with the principal aims of protecting rainforest, oldgrowth, wilderness and threatened species. NEFA has pursued these goals through forest blockades, rallies, court cases, submissions, lobbying, and protracted negotiations" [https://www.nefa.org.au/about_nefa]
On 30 July 2021 the North East Forest Alliance (NEFA) lodged its latest case in the Federal Court against the Commonwealth and NSW Governments.
If you live anywhere on the NSW North Coast, want to preserve our unique, biodiverse forests for future generations and are considering making a donation, go to:
https://chuffed.org/project/nefa-is-taking-government-to-court.
NSW Forest Logging Agreement Faces Legal Challenge over Climate, Biodiversity
In a legal first, Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) is heading to the Federal Court to challenge a New South Wales Regional Forest Agreement (RFA).
The North East RFA covers logging in the coastal area between Sydney and the Queensland border. It exempts logging in native forests from federal biodiversity law.
Originally signed between the Commonwealth and New South Wales in 2000, it was renewed in 2018 for another 20 years with rolling extensions that could continue indefinitely.
In the summer of 2019-20, devastating bushfires ripped through native forests in the RFA region, including areas of the World Heritage-listed Gondwana Rainforests of Australia.
On behalf of client the North East Forest Alliance (NEFA), EDO will argue that when the North East RFA was renewed, the Commonwealth did not have regard to endangered species, the state of old growth forests or the impacts of climate change, as the EDO will argue it was required to do.
NEFA is asking the Federal Court to declare that the North East RFA does not validly exempt native forest logging from federal biodiversity assessment and approval requirements (EPBC Act).
NEFA is acting to protect native forests, which provide critical habitat for vulnerable and endangered species such as koalas and greater gliders and to ensure that the laws that regulate logging in these forests are up-to-date and fit for purpose. It is the first legal challenge to an RFA in New South Wales.
Senior Solicitor Emily Long has carriage of this case under the supervision of Andrew Kwan.
EDO is grateful for the assistance of Jeremy Kirk SC and James Johnson and Claire Roberts of counsel who are briefed to appear in this matter.
EDO Chief Executive Officer David Morris said:
“We are challenging the Federal Government over its failure to assess how another 20-plus years of logging, against a background of a changing climate, will impact our forest ecosystems, endangered species and old growth forests.
“The Commonwealth didn’t want to incur the costs of conducting a proper assessment, waving through a 20-year extension of native forest logging without proper scrutiny.
“Under the current system, if a population of koalas is being threatened by a new development, the project needs to be assessed at the Federal level. But if the same population of koalas is being threatened by a logging project, it’s been rubber stamped on the basis of 20-year-old environmental assessments.
“We have known for years that as the climate changes, fires will follow. And yet the North East RFA was renewed without an assessment of how climate change will impact the health and resilience of our native forest ecosystems. Less than 12 months later, fires began ravaging native forests across the region.
“This RFA is a powerful instrument that allows the forestry industry to bypass Federal biodiversity assessments. To be robust, these agreements must be founded on the latest scientific knowledge on climate and the state of our forest ecosystems.”
20-year Extension of Native Forest Logging
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| Myrtle State Forest Courtesy of NEFA |
Regional Forest Agreements are signed between the Commonwealth and the states, allowing forestry operations to be exempt from assessment and approval under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC ACT).
There are ten RFAs in force around Australia. The North East RFA is one of three in New South Wales, the others are the Eden RFA and Southern RFA.
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Image: NSW Environment Protection Authority |
The North East RFA encompasses a huge area spanning from NSW’s Central Coast to Queensland’s Gold Coast. It encompasses critically endangered ecosystems such as Central Hunter Valley eucalypt forest, New England Peppermint Grassy Woodlands, as well as Lowland and Littoral rainforests.
The ecosystems under the agreement include vital habitat for vulnerable and endangered species such as the grey-headed flying fox, the greater glider, the spot-tailed quoll.
In order for an RFA to exempt native forest logging from the usual federal biodiversity assessment and approval requirements, when the Commonwealth enters into an RFA it is legally required to have regard to assessments of environmental values – including endangered species and old growth – and the principles of ecologically sustainable management. EDO will argue for NEFA that when the North East RFA was renewed in 2018, the Commonwealth was required to, but did not assess climate change, endangered species or old growth forests.
In the subsequent 2019-20 bushfire season, the Black Summer bushfires devastated these ecosystems and the species that call them home, changing native forests in these regions beyond recognition.
According to the Natural Resources Commission 2020 report, 2019-2020 Bushfires: Extent of impact on old growth forest2, 28% of the Upper North East section of the North East RFA was fire affected, with over 65% of the forest canopy in that area being either totally or partially burnt. 23% of the Lower North East section of the North East RFA was fire affected, with 52% of the forest canopy in that area being either totally or partially burnt.
On behalf of NEFA, EDO will argue that the lack of crucial assessments before the 2018 renewal means the decision to extend the North East RFA was not made in accordance with the relevant legislation. As a consequence, the Federal Court should find the North East RFA does not lawfully exempt logging in the north east RFA region from federal biodiversity assessment and approval requirements.
Wednesday 4 August 2021
The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity report on the National Plan to transition Australia’s COVID response - full text
"On 2nd July 2021, National Cabinet agreed to formulate a National Plan to transition Australia’s COVID response. The plan consists of four phases defined by achievement of vaccination thresholds broadly expressed as a percentage of the eligible population (aged 16+ years)."
This is the report on that plan by the The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity:
Doherty Modelling Report for Australian National Cabinet 30 July 2021 by clarencegirl on Scribd
https://www.scribd.com/document/518563585/Doherty-Modelling-Report-for-Australian-National-Cabinet-30-July-2021Telstra announced 15,000 public phones will be free to make calls within Australia to fixed phones and mobiles
Telstra Exchange, Telstra News, 3 August 2021:
I know payphones are also a lifeline for thousands of vulnerable Australians – the homeless, the isolated, those escaping domestic violence – and often provide their only link to critical support services and those that care about them.
Last year alone Australians made 11 million calls on payphones, including more than 230,000 calls to vital services like Triple Zero, so there’s no doubt payphones are already often the lifeline that’s there when it’s needed most.
Telstra’s purpose is to build a connected future so everyone can thrive. To deliver on this ambition we want to contribute to a better, more caring and more inclusive Australia, an Australia where people can reach out for help if and when they need to, or just connect if they feel like it.
The payphone network that we’ve been maintaining since the 1880s is a key part of that, and I’m delighted it’s now free for everyone to make calls anywhere in Australia.
Andrew Penn
CEO Telstra
Tuesday 3 August 2021
Is Byron Bay the target of another television production company?
This television production company, the aptly named Cavalier, is apparently happy to inflate property prices in an area already plagued with a lack of affordable housing.
Echo NetDaily, 28 July 2021:
Plans by reality television TV show, The Block (Nine), to base an upcoming series on Sunrise Boulevard in Sunrise, Byron Bay, has upset an elderly neighbour.
Resident, Dorothy May, says she was offered well above market value for her home, but refused to sell.
Dorothy is 74, and a cancer patient in palliative care.
She told The Echo she was asked to sell by agents representing the company, but has refused.
She says her house is located in the middle of five homes that are pegged for the TV show, and is located on a busy road behind SAE.
‘All are under negotiation with offers of $500,000 over market value’.,,,
She also said it is ‘Morally wrong that a reality TV show can come and do this to a community’.
Dorothy says she is concerned that her amenity will be adversely impacted while five homes around her are partly or mostly demolished, and rebuilt, with a constant stream of filming and tradespeople.
‘I was told there was a distinct possibility for these new homes being built as two storey’, she said.
If that happens, she fears it will block her solar access.
‘I was also told, if the production and DAs were approved, they would work throughout the night, providing there were no power tools used’.
Schedule
She says she was told, ‘Demolition would start in February, they would start filming in April and go through till September with an auction possibly in October’…...
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