WO R K I N G T O G E T H E R P R O T E C T I N G V I C T O R I A ’ S E N V I R O N M E N T
ISSUE 5 Z SPRING 2008
Turning up the Heat Why we’re raising the temperature on the State Government.
Saving the Murray River Red Gums People’s Action Plan Gears Up
THIS ISSUE Turning Up the Heat on the State Government
Green Action News Issue 5, Spring 2008 Design 2Fish Productions Print Print Bound Contributing writers Michele Burton, Daniel Clarke, Charlie Davie, Leonie Duncan, Zoe Gaylard, Vicki Kyriakakis, Juliet Le Feuvre, Victoria McKenzie-McHarg, Verity McLucas, Kelly O’Shanassy, Mark Wakeham Editor Vicki Kyriakakis (03) 9341 8125 editor@envict.org.au Membership enquiries Jennifer Jordan (03) 9341 8124 jennifer.jordan@envict.org.au Green Action News is an Environment Victoria publication. For more information, visit www.environmentvictoria.org.au Environment Victoria would like to thank Print Bound for its in-kind support.
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MECU Launches First Conservation Landbank
Eco-Wise Senior Passes It On
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Victoria’s Red Gums Hanging in the Balance
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Faces of the Yea River
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What’s Up with Waste
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Upcoming Events
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Step Out for the Walk Against Warming
Celebrating Hattah Lakes
State Government’s Climate Credentials Under Fire Larissa Brown: Young Environmentalist of the Year
Young Leader Steps in to Protect the Environment
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Letters to the Editor Winter 2008 a great edition, but more tips please! Congratulations on another great edition of Green Action News. What I liked: the page showing what affiliate groups are doing; the insert regarding the Biodiversity Paper submission; and the critique on the state and federal budgets. How can members do what is needed so that next year's budget has the right things in it? The many references to community-based programs were also good. I would like to know what messages and approaches have worked. I would like to convince my own relatives and friends to change their ways, but my attempts so far have only annoyed them. The People's Action Plan and Eddington Report articles were good. Are there URLs with helpful items for a submission? I would like to see more simple messages, hints and ideas about how we can change our own lives to be more green (priorities and measures might be useful). I'd also like to see more opportunities to give feedback to government and write submissions. — Peter Flanagan, Brunswick, Victoria
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Ed: We hear you loud and clear! So we’ve put together a list of resources that will help you talk about climate change to your family and friends (page 13). See also our article ‘Turning Up the Heat’ on the next page for a list of ways you can help us turn up the heat on the State Government and demand a better environmental performance from our state representatives. In the next few months they’ll be making some crucial decisions about the future of Victoria’s environment. We need your voice to help us get the best possible outcomes! (Also see page 8 for your chance to help us save the Murray River Red Gum forests). Thank you so much for your ongoing support. Send your letters to The Editor via email to: editor@envict.org.au or via post to: The Editor, Green Action News, PO Box 12575, A’Beckett Street, Victoria, 8006.
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future directions
TURNING UP
THE HEAT
W H Y W E ’ R E R A I S I N G T H E T E M P E R AT U R E O N T H E S TAT E G O V E R N M E N T > Kelly O’Shanassy, CEO
The challenges facing Victoria’s environment are heating up but the State Government’s recent environmental performance suggests it is not up to meeting them. Environment Victoria CEO Kelly O’Shanassy talks about the Brumby Government’s failure to deliver and our decision to turn up the heat. IN JULY THIS year, I wrote an opinion piece for The Age (29/7/2008) titled ‘Brumby’s Green Promise Belies a Litany of Failures’. The article outlined our view that the Brumby Government had failed the environment across a broad range of areas, including our campaign areas of climate change, river health, sustainable transport and biodiversity protection. Recent decisions, such as the funding of a new coal-fired power station for Victoria and the blockage of proposals to get more water into the Murray River, could prove disastrous for Victoria’s environment. This is made worse by the government’s continued preference for large, polluting projects (such as freeways, desalination plants and power stations) over sustainable, decentralised environmental solutions (such as energy and water efficiency, water recycling, public transport and effective solar feed-in laws). The result is a failure on the part of the State Government to rise to the modern challenges facing our environment. We outlined these concerns in recent meetings with Victorian ALP members of parliament and we’ve signalled our decision to ramp up our campaigns to
shape community opinion. With over two years until the next state election, we believe that the only way to achieve a change in direction is to mobilise community concern about the Brumby Government’s performance on the environment. We’ll be ramping up the pressure by expanding our on the ground work in parts of the state and campaigning for the adoption of environmental solutions. We’ll put our solutions on the table and we’ll welcome progressive environmental policy from any political party. If the State ALP turns around its environmental performance in the coming 12 months we will be the first to welcome that progress. But we will be talking with all political parties to emphasise that Victorians want good environmental policies. To meet the climate change and water crisis, tough decisions will need to be made. Decisions that may not be welcomed by everybody in the community. The environment, however, cannot be continually treated as the least important interest in decisionmaking or we will lose our battle against climate change and see more places like the Coorong lost to decades of inaction and neglect. Environment Victoria is drawing a line in the sand and we want the State Government, and all parties, to rise to the challenge.
To read Kelly’s Opinion Piece, visit http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/ brumbys-green-promise-belies-a-litany-offailures-20080728-3m89.html?page=-1. Contact Kelly O’Shanassy on (03) 9341 8119 or via email at kelly.oshanassy@envict.org.au for more information.
HELP US TURN UP THE DIAL! • The State Government has a chance to break with its recent poor performance in the coming months as it makes a series of crucial decisions for the future of Victoria’s environment. This includes a decision about protecting the Murray River Red Gum forests and wetlands (see our article on page 8), a decision on Melbourne’s transport future and whether to invest in more freeways or public transport, and the passing of legislation on the Solar Feed-In Tariff. Why not contact your local MP and let them know it’s time they stood up for the environment! You can find details of your local member at http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/handbook /menupage.cfm?menuId=1 • Join hundreds of concerned Victorians and donate to our People’s Action Plan Appeal. Your support will help us develop a comprehensive plan of action to urgently deal with climate change and take it straight to government, business and the community. You can fill in our donation form on page 15, or visit us at www.environmentvictoria.org.au and donate online. • Step Out for Walk Against Warming on November 15, 2008 and let the State and Federal Governments know that you’ll only accept real and urgent action to prevent runaway climate change. (See page 7 for more details).
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in the community
Young leader steps in to protect the environment > Charlie Davie, Multicultural Leaders in Sustainability, Project Manager
When Afghanistan-born Fatemeh Ali Hosseini first came to Australia from Iran with her brother and sister two years ago, she was just 19. But the now 21 year old, who arrived in Australia as a refugee, wasn’t sure what to expect when she started Environment Victoria’s Multicultural Leaders in Sustainability Program. “AT FIRST I didn’t know much about this program, but after a few weeks I realised how great it was. It has been so useful for me,” Fatemeh says about the program that she claims taught her to become a leader. “Through this program we decided to become leaders and speak in front of people. It was my first time doing this but now I know I can. We learnt that to be a leader you first need to be a leader for yourself, to know yourself, then you can be a leader for your community.” Environment Victoria’s Multicultural
Fatemeh has been inspired by Environment Victoria’s program to do more to achieve sustainability for her community. Leaders for Sustainability program gives young people from varied cultural backgrounds the skills and knowledge to educate their communities about environmental challenges and solutions. With the program’s guidance, Fatemeh has helped design and deliver a community project to educate peers in her community about climate change and household energy use. Her project team distributed 350 energy efficient
lights at her school and through the Asylum Seeker Centre in Dandenong. She has been inspired by the results. “I would like to continue to help with this work any way I can in the future. I am planning to write about environmental issues in our local community newsletter, which is in my own language.” Fatemeh enjoyed many parts of the program, but her favourite moments came while camping in the Strzelecki Ranges in the Gippsland area. “We saw a healthy river and the beautiful natural environment, which I had never seen before in Australia. It’s so important to protect this.” And she feels that it is crucial that other young people step up to take care of the environment. “It is so important to our lives now and to our future. What we do now will affect future generations. Can you imagine if we didn’t have any more water or energy?” “We all need to put our hands together and work together to save the environment for all people and for the future.” The Multicultural Leaders in Sustainability program is run in partnership with the Centre for Multicultural Youth.
Interested in our next Multicultural Leaders in Sustainability Program? You can find out more about by contacting Program Manager, Charlie Davie on (03) 9341 8108 or emailing charlie.davie@envict.org.au.
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MECU launches first conservation landbank > Zoe Gaylard, MECU
Environment Victoria’s vision is to mobilise 5 million people to take care of our environment. Here we look at an example of a business that we think is making a big difference for our environment and, we hope, leading the way for others to follow. VICTORIA’S LARGEST CREDIT union, mecu has set an industry first in conservation with a decision to direct a percentage of its profits each year to building and preserving Australian native forests. In what is believed to be a first in the world, for every new home construction financed by mecu, it will set aside an equivalent land area of native bushland into its Landbank thereby assisting to offset any
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associated loss of biodiversity. Properties allocated into the Landbank will be protected by a Trust for Nature Conservation Covenant against any future development. The initiative has been applauded by Landcare Australia and Trust for Nature who have partnered with mecu to develop the Landbank, describing it as an exciting model for business and organisations serious about their environmental impact and conservation.
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mecu’s first acquisition into the Landbank is a 201 hectare property in Victoria’s west Wimmera region called ‘Minimay’. Purchased from the Trust for Nature Revolving Fund, the property is in an area that is home to Victoria’s most endangered bird the Southeastern Red-tailed Black Cockatoo. Chief Executive Phyl Doughty said mecu’s vision is to develop the biodiversity of the property to support wildlife and build and protect the native bushland.
To find out more about mecu phone 132 888 or visit www.mecu.com.au.
sustainable living program
Eco-wise senior passes it on > Michele Burton, Sustainable Living Project Manager
Sandra Slatter has always been environmentally conscious. After living under self-imposed level 4 water restrictions for several years, she’s committed to doing her part for the environment. That’s how the grandmother of 11 came to hear about Environment Victoria’s Seniors Eco-Wise Train the Trainer program.
Help us the Help us spread spreadmessage the sustainability sustainability message further further We rely on your help to keep our programs and campaigns going. Become a Green Action Partner today and help us spread the sustainability message further. Simply fill in the form on page 15 of this edition of Green Action News or visit www.environmentvictoria.org.au and fill in our online form. For more information about becoming a Green Action Partner, contact Jennifer Jordan on (03) 9341 8126. Sandra Slatter (far right, second row) was inspired by her field trip visit to a local school. “[They’re] well prepared to take care of our fragile environment.” ENVIRONMENT VICTORIA’S ECO-WISE Train the Trainer program was launched in April this year in a bid to help seniors spread the sustainability message further. The recent program took ten seniors in the Bendigo region and trained them to become leaders in environmental sustainability. The goal was to create a group of confident leaders who could then run
Interested in our next Eco-Wise program? Environment Victoria’s Senior Eco-Wise Action program will commence working with seniors in both the Geelong and Surf Coast regions from September 10, 2008 onwards. This program helps seniors live more sustainably, save money off their bills and helps protect the environment all at the same time. There are still places available in both regions, but they’re filling up quickly! To book your place in the workshop series or to find out more, contact Katelyn Fryer on (03) 9341 8102 or by email at katelyn.fryer@envict.org.au.
their own environmental initiatives, whether this was helping a neighbour to do a home audit or running an environmental program with a local community group. As community developer for her local McIvor Neighbourhood House, Sandra was very attracted to the prospect. “We’ll be focusing on the environment over the next 12 months. So when I heard about the Train the Trainer initiative I realised it could provide me with some valuable information and insights into how to run an environmental program,” Sandra said. The program included field trips to help the leaders gain an understanding of sustainability in action. Sandra said her favourite field trips were the visits to a school that directly involves students in environmental activities and to a domestic waste recycling plant. “I found the school so inspiring. The kids were involved in so many things: in revegetation, from picking out seedlings to planting trees, caring for livestock and even building a wetland. I really liked the fact that the kids did
“I FOUND THE SCHOOL SO INSPIRING. THE KIDS WERE INVOLVED IN SO MANY THINGS”
the tour with us and were able to answer many of our often quite complex questions. It was an inspiration and really helped us seniors realise that some of our grandchildren’s generation are well prepared to take good care of our fragile environment.” Sandra is now using the links and contacts she made on the visits to work on her own environment programs. “It has been such a useful experience. I feel better able to help my community take environmental action and I found it fascinating to go on this journey with other seniors and to feel more connected to my community. It will be interesting when we all meet up again to find out what we’re all doing.”
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securing our climate
People’s action plan on climate change gears up > Vicki Kyriakakis, Communications Officer
Donations have been pouring in as Victorians get behind our campaign to develop a People’s Action Plan for Climate Change and take it straight to the halls of power. IN THE LAST edition of Green Action News, we appealed for donations to fund a People’s Action Plan to help slash our greenhouse pollution. The response so far has been extraordinary. From around the state, concerned Victorians have been getting behind our plan to help solve the climate crisis. We’re going to take our solutions straight to government and business and demand real action to secure the health of our climate. The plan will focus on the big issues such as highly polluting coal-fired power plants, rising transport emissions, waste emissions and major infrastructure decisions that impact our environment’s future. We’ll then promote your solutions throughout the state to key decision makers.
In the coming months we’ll be preparing a report which outlines how Victoria can achieve consistent falls in emissions by 2010 and at least halve emissions by 2020. The report will be prepared with the generous help of consultancy firm Nous and will outline the necessary policy measures to achieve these targets. It will also provide the basis for our Safe Climate Campaign for the coming years. We’ll then bring the report to you, the community, to seek endorsement for our vision and we’ll be asking the government, influential individuals and organisations to sign up to our Action Plan.
Thank you! We’d like to thank everyone who has donated to our People’s Action Plan
appeal. Your contributions, large and small, are already making a big difference. We had intended to thank all our major donors by name but there have been so many, that we just haven’t had time to ask for everyone’s permission. So consider this our official thank you! We couldn’t do it without you.
It’s not too late We’ve come a long way but we’re still short of our goal to raise $500,000 to create the People’s Action Plan on Climate Change. Help us take your action plan straight to where it can do the most good by donating to our People’s Action Plan appeal online at www.environmentvictoria.org.au or using the donation form on page 15. Donations are tax-deductible.
For more information on the People’s Action Plan on Climate Change, contact Campaigns Director, Mark Wakeham on (03) 9341 8127.
Last year the Walk Against Warming saw 50,000 people take to the streets of Melbourne to demand real action on climate change. Two weeks later we had a new federal government and a month after that, Australia finally signed the Kyoto Protocol. However with signs that the problem is worse than we thought, the case for immediate and urgent action is stronger than ever.
Step up the pressure at the Walk Against Warming! > Victoria McKenzie-McHarg, Climate Change Campaigner WITH THE ARCTIC summer ice melting fast, and predictions it could be gone within five years, there is no excuse for wasting time. Without immediate and deep emission reductions we risk our future, and the future of our children. Australians have a new federal government elected on a platform of climate change action. But we have not seen the immediate emissions reductions needed to help us avoid runaway climate change. Even the proposed Emissions Trading Scheme is full of loopholes and exemptions. For Victorian politicians, the threat of climate change is yet to sink in. A
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proposed new coal-fired power station supported by the Brumby Government shows that this government has not yet heeded the community’s call: WE WANT REAL ACTION NOW! This year the Walk Against Warming will be held at 1pm on Saturday, November 15 at Federation Square. We need you to get on board and help us make this year’s walk as big as possible to send a strong message to our governments. Book it into your diary today. Bring your children, your parents, your grandparents, friends, neighbours and colleagues. The whole community wants action now, and we
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need you to help bring them along on the day. We also need volunteers to help us publicise the event. If you have any spare time to help out or want to know more, please contact Victoria McKenzie-McHarg at victoria@envict.org.au or on (03) 9341 8112. Together we can make this year’s Walk Against Warming the best ever. WANT TO DO YOUR BIT FOR WALK AGAINST WARMING? Download our easy to use resources at www.environmentvictoria.org.au
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Future in the balance for Victoria’s Red Gums > Juliette Le Feuvre, Healthy Rivers Community Campaigner
The River Red Gum forests of northern Victoria and southern NSW are unique ecosystems found nowhere else in the world. Highly prized for their ecological, social, cultural and economic value, they are enjoyed and loved by thousands of people.
For many Australians, Victoria’s Murray River Red Gums hold special memories. Photo: Paul Sinclair
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UNFORTUNATELY THEY ARE also severely stressed by lack of water and underrepresented in national parks on both sides of the Murray. Over 75 per cent of the red gums are now in poor health or already dead and water bird populations are in freefall as individuals get too old to breed. Over the past three years, the Victorian Environment Assessment Council (VEAC) has conducted a rigorous investigation of the forests. The process has led them to make a number of excellent recommendations for their protection. VEAC has proposed the creation of five new national parks and the significant expansion of two existing ones. Together with expanded recreation reserves along the Murray River, this would protect 14 per cent of the original riverine forests and wetlands. Under VEAC’s proposals, the Barmah National Park and Nyah-Vinifera Park would be comanaged with the local indigenous people and several other areas would be managed with the assistance of Aboriginal Advisory Committees. The proposals allow for the phasing out of stock-grazing on public land and water frontages, and allow a restructure of the timber industry to accommodate the new national parks. The Council’s proposals have also addressed community concerns over access, camping, camp fires, domestic firewood collection and hunting. VEAC has highlighted the critical importance of regular flooding of the River Red Gum Forests, to keep the forests and wetlands alive. The reduced frequency of flooding is described as “the most urgent and serious environmental problem in the investigation area”. Environment Victoria is working to ensure that the Red Gum Forests are both protected as National Parks and also receive the water they need to survive. VEAC’s socio-economic analysis shows that the proposals would provide a net economic benefit of $37 million per annum to Victoria, with an additional $70 million if environmental water is provided to the area. The Victorian government promised at the last state election that it would adopt VEAC’s recommendations. Its response so far has been disappointing, with the appointment of yet another committee to consider the impact of the proposals. VEAC’s process has been rigorous and
CRISIS IN THE LOWER LAKES > Juliette Le Feuvre, Healthy Rivers Community Campaigner
Crisis is a word that can be overused, but in the case of Lakes Albert and Alexandrina at the mouth of the Murray, it is no exaggeration. IT HAS BEEN a long time in the making. Exacerbated by the current drought, the over-extraction of water throughout the Murray-Darling Basin has led to years of decline in the internationally recognised biodiversity hotspot. Water levels in the lakes are now at an unprecedented low level. Water is evaporating faster than the river can replace it and the lake bed, which was under water for millennia, has finally been exposed. What water remains is more saline than at any time since the lakes were formed but the most severe threat is from the newly exposed sulphate soils. Unless water levels are stabilised, the lakes will reach an irreversible tipping point and the entire system will become acidic and biologically dead. The two solutions on the table are to either find enough fresh water to raise and maintain lake levels and keep the ecosystems in their current states or, in a more alarming proposal, allow sea water in and turn the lakes into a degraded estuarine system.
The crisis can be solved. Environment Victoria strongly believes that responsibility must be shared by all upstream users and the need to act should be shared also. The State and Federal Governments have sat on their hands for too long while this crisis unfolds. In the short term Environment Victoria is calling for an urgent independent audit of water in both public and private dams in the Darling system, where heavy rain fell last summer, so that we can know whether a rescue package is possible. In the longer term Environment Victoria is asking governments to buy back water and possibly properties throughout the Basin to ensure water can reach its mouth. What we should not do is make a short term decision (such as building a weir that amputates the lower lakes from the system) that irretrievably degrades one of the jewels of the Murray-Darling Basin.
Stay Up-to-Date! We’ll keep you up-to-date on the latest news in the fight to save the Lower Lakes and let you know exactly how you can get involved. Visit www.environmentvictoria.org.au and sign up to our Healthy Rivers Bulletin for regular updates.
BECOME A YARRA RIVER CHAMPION Environment Victoria is getting set to recruit a small group of volunteers to become Yarra River champions and help us spread our ‘Go Yarra Flow’ campaign message. Our Yarra Champions will be briefed and trained, equipped with communications tools, and supported to run a short series of talks and other outreach activities with their various school, work, clubs and local communities. Help us to keep pressure on the Brumby Government to deliver the Yarra River it’s promised environmental flows by becoming a Yarra River champion today! To find out more, please contact Leonie Duncan, Healthy Rivers campaign on (03) 9341 8120 or email leonie.duncan@envict.org.au.
thorough, with over 9000 submissions considered. With the forests and wetlands in such serious decline, the time for consideration is over. The government should immediately accept the recommendations, proclaim the national parks and provide the forests with the water they so desperately need.
You can help us restore the balance! Urge Premier Brumby to immediately adopt VEAC’s recommendations. You can write a letter to Premier Brumby, c/- Office of the Premier, 1 Treasury Place, Melbourne, 3000 or use our handy online form at www.environmentvictoria.org.au. You can also make a submission to the draft Northern Region Sustainable Water Strategy, due to be released by the Department of Sustainability and the Environment in mid September, asking for implementation of VEAC’s environmental water recommendations. Check the Healthy Rivers pages on our website for more information.
Wayne Eggleton remembers the bees his father kept at Hattah Lakes in his digital short story, ‘Bites of Life’.
CELEBRATING HATTAH LAKES > Verity McLucas, Healthy Rivers and Vicki Kyriakakis, Communications Officer THE HATTAH LAKES Storylines project, delivered by Environment Victoria and funded by the Murray-Darling Basin Commission (MDBC), brought together 12 Victorians – teenagers, teachers, farmers and artists – for a four day digital storytelling workshop to explore and record the story of their personal connection to Hattah Lakes. Guided by documentary film-maker Malcolm McKinnon, workshop participants learned the basics of narration and multimedia production to create their own mini-movies, telling their story of why this iconic Murray River wetland in north-west Victoria holds significance for them. Speaking at the launch, participant Wayne Eggleton said that it had been a rare privilege to meet such a diverse group, linked by the common thread of Hattah Lakes. “From those visitors thousands of years ago, to the people that visited yesterday, this thread exists forming a continuous storyline,” he said to the 170 people that had gathered to watch the films. Mr Eggleton appealed to the leaders and government officials present to do their part to preserve it. “Please, as you make your decisions, be sure to read every chapter of the Hattah story, so that the thread that binds us all stays continuous and rich.”
Mr Eggleton’s digital story and those of the other Hattah Lakes Digital Storytelling participants are available online at www.environmentvictoria.org.au.
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environmental champions
Faces of the Yea River > Daniel Clarke, Media Officer
To the people that live along it, the Yea River has a character all of its own. But for the river, those people are fundamental to its survival. Here are just some of the many stories that link them.
Travis Kirkham,
Marion Bruere,
Student and Fisherman
Waterwatch Monitor
WHEN TRAVIS KIRKHAM’S Year 9 environment class was asked to produce a presentation on one of the world’s rivers, most students chose well-known waterways such as the Amazon or the Nile. But Travis turned his back on the obvious and popular choices, deciding instead to focus on the Murrindindi River: the Yea River’s main tributary and the one he can see and hear from his backdoor. It’s the modest little river he has grown up with and the bubbling, unassuming friend he spends every weekend sitting beside. “The river borders our property and I’m always down there on the weekends fishing for brown trout, rainbow trout, river blackfish and spiny freshwater crayfish,” Travis says. “I love being in the area and looking at the landscape. You’re not around people and cars all the time and it’s quiet. I would like to come back here in retirement.” At just 14, Travis is an astute observer of nature, noting sightings of platypus and tortoises. While professing not to be a ‘greenie’’ the Murrindindi farm boy has spent all his life with one eye on his backyard river, keenly studying the effects of environmental mistakes made by earlier generations. He has taken part in walks with the local Landcare group to decide on areas of the river to fence off from farms. “But I also do it to scope out the good fishing spots,” he laughs. Travis has helped build bat boxes for the Yea wetlands with other students from Yea High School and will help construct tables for the area later in the year. “We have to keep our rivers untouched if we want them for future generations to enjoy and for young people like me to be able to fish. We can learn to use water wiser so it remains healthy and clean.” “It’s great living here,” Travis says. After a short pause he adds: “I wouldn’t want to move to the city.”
MARION BRUERE IS living proof that the Yea River is alive and clean enough for an old-fashioned recreational pursuit. The resilient 78-year-old still braves the chilly waters at the back of her property during quiet dips with her neighbour. “We still get in there and swim in it and we’ve never come out with any serious illness,’’ Marion says defiantly. Marion is one member of Yea’s community who should know exactly how safe the river is. For the past 12 years she has acted as a committed Waterwatch monitor, regularly testing salinity and turbidity levels. “I do the testing more frequently than most because I just have to walk to the nearby bridge and drop the equipment in the water,” she says. “But I’ve got a friend next door who’s younger than me and I think after 12 years it’s a good time to pass the job over. She’ll bring a new enthusiasm to it.” Marion and husband Graham, who have been married 57 years, bought their quaint property on the little bend in the river in 1979. Since then they have consolidated the property next door, built a new house and turned the original run-down cottage into an arts studio. “Why did we choose it? Not because of the cottage but because of the river and the red gums. They reminded me of home because I grew up on the Edwards River in NSW. We’ll never move from here now, and I don’t think our boys will ever let it go either.” Marion worries for the health of the Yea, saying it needs to be cleared of debris and weeds that have built up because of the diminished rainfall. “There’s no doubting how much the town of Yea relies on the river.” Marion says her happiest moments are down on the banks of the Yea painting her watercolour landscapes. “I love how the river has different personalities in different spots. Being a painter and artist was one of the main reasons we came here. It’s a very special place.”
do you know someone who’s dedicated themselves to taking care of 10
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Russell Wealands, former Executive Officer of Goulburn Broken Catchment Authority
Leonard Sheahan, part owner of the Centre for Ecology and Spirituality THE THREE RESIDENTS of Glenburn’s Centre for Ecology and Spirituality might be Christian Brothers, but it is their sister who keeps the country paradise alive. The Centre – dedicated to the promotion of a sound spirituality that recognises the ecology of Creation – is nestled in the middle of a green 15acre property bordered by the quaint Katy Creek, a tributary of the Yea River. “We call Katy by her first name because we have personalised her,” resident Leonard Sheahan says. “We have a very close connection with her. We treat her like a sister and knowing she’s there is a great comfort.” And it is not only the three former teachers who have discovered the healing powers of Katy and her surrounds. “Our visitors go down to the creek for quiet time because our Centre is about reflecting on life, the holistic nature of life, and being able to rejuvenate yourself,” Leonard says. “There are spots along it that are little havens with some amazing plant life – you could be a million miles away.” “Our only concern is that Katy has stopped running twice in the past two years and she’s probably not as vibrant as she was eight years ago. I don’t think she has got quite as much flow or vitality as she used to. When Katy stops you can almost feel it. She’s very forlorn and she really dies. It has quite a significant impact on us.” The Christian Brothers bought the Glenburn property eight years ago after a six month search by Leonard, Trevor Parton and Ian Roberton. “We probably looked at 300 properties but we knew this was the spot as soon as we saw it.” Leonard says that having grown up on the land, the Centre was the perfect way to return to it. “For me the idea of the Centre came from the chance to understand the beauty and mystery of the world I see around me. Could I find it in suburban Melbourne? Well yes, but it’s much more enriching for me to be here and have my life nourished by being part of this whole magical, mystical community.”
THE TOWN OF Yea has affectionately named him ‘Mr Wetlands’, and not just because you can replace one letter of his last name to form the word. Russell Wealands resigned from the Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority (GBCMA) three years ago, but his involvement in the Yea River remains as strong as ever. “I spend a ridiculous amount of time working on the Yea River and its wetlands. I’m very lucky I have a supportive wife and family,” Russell says. Having moved to Yea nearly 13 years ago to take up the position of Executive Officer to the newly formed Upper Goulburn Waterways Authority (a predecessor to the GBCMA), Russell oversaw a raft of changes to the way waterways are managed. He initiated the removal of willow trees along the rivers, introduced waterway grants for farmers to fence off their properties, and implemented the controversial waterway charge. “That charge was initially taken very poorly. I had the pressure of talking to everybody in the catchment because they all objected,” he smiles. “I think in one day my assistant and I answered about 200 calls. In retrospect though it was the best environmental education campaign ever undertaken because we had an opportunity to speak with everyone, explain why those landholders should contribute to protecting and sustaining our rivers.” Almost immediately upon his arrival in Yea, Russell identified the potential of the unique wetlands on the floodplain near the town entrance. “I realised that this amazing environmental asset which had suffered from years of neglect was in fact a tremendous opportunity for Yea. I’m still leading the charge to establish a multi-functional environmental education centre to focus on sustainable water resources and the Murray Darling Basin. It will incorporate displays of our Aboriginal heritage and culture, commercial office spaces and a visitor information centre.” Now working as a community volunteer, it is obvious Russell places his faith in the cooperation of the local community to help turn the tide on the declining condition of the Yea River.
Environment Victoria’s Your River Project aims to capture the stories of the people who care for Victoria’s stressed rivers. For more on the Your River project, contact Leonie Duncan on (03) 9341 8120 or email leonie.duncan@envict.org.au.
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campaign updates The new coal-fired power station will drink 3 billion litres of water each year to cool down.
State Government’s climate credentials under fire > Vicki Kyriakakis, Communications Officer
Environment Victoria has launched a campaign against HRL’s proposed new coal-fired power station in a bid to prevent an additional 2.5 million tonnes of greenhouse gas from being spewed into Victoria’s atmosphere.
THE PRIVATELY-OWNED Australian company HRL has proposed to build the 400MW power station alongside the Loy Yang Power Station in the Latrobe Valley in a joint venture with Chinese Company Harbin Power Engineering. Taxpayers will be funding the polluting project, with the State Government signing over $50 million to the project and the Howard Government pledging an additional $100 million in March 2007 – a pledge that looks likely to be delivered by Prime Minister Rudd. Environment Victoria’s CEO, Kelly O’Shanassy, said the coal-fired power station was an environmental disaster in the face of dangerous climate change.
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“Scientists have repeatedly told us that we need to urgently reduce greenhouse emissions to have any chance of avoiding runaway climate change, yet the State Government is creating a massive increase in greenhouse emissions through this new power-station,” Kelly said. “They’ve professed to care about climate change but when push comes to shove they are signing away Victoria’s future to a new polluting coal-fired power station.” The plant will use new Integrated Drying Gasification and Combined Cycle (IDGCC) technology, which HRL claims will result in ‘clean coal’. The technology is not yet commercial and has only been tested on
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TAKE ACTION! Write a letter to your local MP calling on the government to follow New Zealand’s lead and put a moratorium on all new coal-fired power plants. Ask them to invest in the renewable energy industry instead. You can find out who your local MP is here: http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/hand book/menupage.cfm?menuId=1.
a pilot scale. Environment Victoria Campaigns Director, Mark Wakeham, said HRL’s use of the term ‘clean coal’ was misleading. “The technology doesn’t generate clean energy, it just produces power with similar emissions to a black-coal power plant, like those in NSW or Queensland.” Mark said. “There is also no suggestion that the project will replace more polluting generation. It will just create additional greenhouse gas for us to deal with.” The plant will also not use carbon capture and storage because, according to the Victorian Minister for Energy and Resources, Peter Batchelor, “no infrastructure currently exists to store
WHAT’S UP WITH WASTE? > Mark Wakeham, Campaigns Director
Melbourne City Councillor Fraser Brindley takes over Environment Victoria’s Smart Production and Consumption campaign as we work towards a green transformation of our economy. YOU MAY HAVE noticed that things have been a bit quiet on the waste front at Environment Victoria in the past couple of months. Partly due to some funding uncertainty for the campaign, we lost our Zero Waste campaigner Mark Doggett in May this year. The good news is that we’ve just received further funding for another 12 months for our waste campaign from Sustainability Victoria and have
appointed experienced campaigner Fraser Brindley to the job. Many of you will have seen or heard Fraser in the media given his high profile as a city councillor over the past six years. Fraser is finishing his term as a Councillor for the City of Melbourne in coming months and he’ll start work with us on a part-time basis in September before building up to four days a week post-November. We’re excited to have secured his strong campaigning experience and deep knowledge of waste issues. We’ve also decided to re-badge our waste work to ‘Smart Production and Consumption’. Our Smart Production and Consumption campaign reflects our desire to extend our focus beyond waste management and look at how we produce and consume goods and services intelligently and sustainably.
For many years Environment Victoria has been one of the few environment organisations in the waste debate. Now we hope to forge new ground by talking about the elephant in the room: consumption. We hope to link production, consumption and waste issues with the much higher profile areas of climate change and water use by looking at the embodied energy and water in goods and services. By taking on a broader approach to the campaign we are hoping to move beyond interminable debates about plastic bags (which we still need to win!) and start achieving a green transformation of our economy.
For more information on Environment Victoria’s Smart Production and Consumption campaign, contact Mark Wakeham on (03) 9341 8127 or mark.wakeham@envict.org.au.
TA L K I N G C L I M AT E C H A N G E Ever gotten stuck in a conversation with a climate change sceptic? Tired of hearing the same false arguments used again and again? Want more information to help you make heads and tails of it all? Here’s a list of great resources that can help you get across the issue of climate change quickly!
>> The science is overwhelming but there are solutions, and they begin at home! Read Environment Victoria’s submission to the State Government’s ‘A Climate of Opportunity’ Summit Paper for our vision for a safe climate future. You can find it at www.envict.org.au/ inform.php?menu=4&submenu=20&item=1885
>> Cut to the chase with a visit to Real Climate. Real Climate is a commentary site on climate science completely run by working climate scientists. They provide quick responses to developing stories and provide the context sometimes missing from mainstream commentary. It’s a must for those times when you find yourself confused by junk science or false argument. You can find it at www.realclimate.org.
>> The federal government has proposed an emissions trading scheme, but will it do the job? Read ‘Key Tests for an Australian Emissions Trading Scheme’ produced by Environment Victoria in conjunction with Greenpeace, the Climate Action Network Australia and the Total Environment Centre Inc. You can find it at www.envict.org.au/file/file/ETS%20Key%20Tests_4.pdf. You can also visit our new website on emissions trading at www.lowcarbonfuture.org.au.
>> The Environment News Blog, GristMill, is hosting a great series by Coby Beck on ‘How to Talk to a Climate Skeptic’. Coby responds to the most common sceptical arguments on global warming. You can find it at http://gristmill.grist.org/skeptics.
CO2 captured from power stations in the Latrobe Valley.” Kelly said Victorians had to ask themselves whether the Brumby government was capable of dealing with the issue of climate change. “Victorian families, businesses and industry should be outraged by this. An extra 2.5 million tonnes of CO2 each year means that the task of reducing emissions is that much harder for everyone else.” Kelly said that the project would also place more pressure on the Latrobe Valley’s already stressed rivers, with 3 billion litres of water taken from Gippsland Rivers to cool the plant each year. “The government’s own figures
show that we could save far more energy than this power station will provide through proper energy efficiency measures, yet we have seen very little investment in that area. This decision is making a mockery of the efforts of all Victorians to reduce emissions”.
There is a solution. Given the climate crisis, Environment Victoria is urging the State and Federal Governments to follow the lead of New Zealand and impose a moratorium on new coal-fired power stations. Rather than build more coal-fired power stations in Victoria or anywhere else in Australia, we need to consider which of
the oldest and dirtiest coal-fired power stations we can replace with genuine low and zero emission power stations in the next decade so that we can make deep cuts in our greenhouse pollution. Environment Victoria is also campaigning for the development of a ‘green industries’ strategy to identify target industries for establishment and development in Victoria. The strategy should also identify the necessary policy support and workforce skill-base to attract these industries to our state. Environment Victoria will also be writing to all major financial institutions in Australia and warning them against investing in HRL’s polluting project.
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awards and prizes
Environment Victoria’s board member named Young Environmentalist of the Year > Vicki Kyriakakis, Communications Officer
Environment Victoria Board Member Larissa Brown, won the inaugural Young Environmentalist of the Year Award at the national Banksia Environmental Awards in Melbourne recently.
WIN A COPY OF CRITICALLY-ACCLAIMED ‘BLUE COVENANT’ BY MAUDE BARLOW
Environment Victoria board member Larissa Brown receives her Young Environmentalist of the Year Award from Environment Minister Peter Garrett during the Banksia Awards. Photo: Banksia Foundation LARISSA, WHO FOUNDED the Centre for Sustainability Leadership in her bedroom at the age of 24, has been a member of Environment Victoria’s Board for the past year. The Centre she founded is now a registered not-forprofit group with more than 100 volunteers, a Melbourne office and a partnership with the United Nations. The centre runs the Future Sustainability Leaders program which takes a group of young Victorians who demonstrate potential and mentors them to lead efforts to create a more sustainable world. Together, the program’s participants and volunteer mentors analyse the root causes of pressing sustainability challenges and explore lateral solutions. Guest lecturers share the secrets of their success, and students harness these insights to create and manage innovative projects for cultural and behavioural change. Environment Minister Peter Garrett presented Larissa with the award,
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saying that her achievements show her great potential as an environmental leader. “As an environmental leader whose generation is next in line in taking up the fight against climate change, Larissa’s leadership and dedication to our environment sets a great example and bodes well for the future of our country,” he said. Mr Garrett said that the fight for the environment was the greatest challenge that this and subsequent generations would face. Larissa has worked as a research scientist at the Australian National University, studying the extinction event of Australia’s megafauna, helped save a forest by creating an ecotourism lodge in Costa Rica, and rehabilitated endangered primates and big cats in Bolivia. The Banksia Awards are hosted by the Banksia Environmental Foundation and are regarded as the most prestigious awards program of their kind in Australia.
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SCIENTISTS CALL THEM “hot stains” – the parts of the earth running out of clean, drinkable water. They now include northern China, large areas of Asia and Africa, the Middle East, Australia, the Midwestern United States, and sections of South America and Mexico. How did the world’s most vital natural resource become so imperilled? And what must we do to pull back from the brink? Blue Covenant addresses an environmental crisis that – together with global warming – poses one of the gravest threats to our survival. World-renowned activist and author Maude Barlow has been at the forefront of international water politics, and in this timely and important book, she discusses the state of the world’s water, how water companies are reaping vast profits from declining supplies, and how ordinary people from around the world have banded together to reclaim the public’s right to clean water.
COMPETITION
To commemorate Maude Barlow’s participation in Melbourne Writer’s Week, we’re giving away a copy of Blue Covenant. Simply answer the following question: What does Environment Victoria believe Premier Brumby should urgently do to save our precious Red Gum Forests and wetlands? Send your answer to: The Editor, Green Action News at editor@envict.org.au or phone us on (03) 9341 8125 with your answer to go into a draw to win. Please include your name, address and phone number with your answer so that we can get back in contact with you. The winner will be notified by mail and announced in the Summer edition of Green Action News.
upcoming events
Put it in your diary! ENVIRONMENT VICTORIA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING September 24, 2008, 6.00pm to 8.00pm Meeting Room, rear ground floor, 60 Leicester Street, Carlton Featuring tales of Victoria’s biodiversity as told by our affiliate members. Refreshments and nibbles provided. RSVP essential. To book your place, phone Helen Vine on (03) 9341 8101 or email helen.vine@envict.org.au by Thursday, September 18, 2008.
FESTIVAL OF THE WHEEL October 25 – 26, 2008 Castlemaine, Victoria Join the Mount Alexander Sustainability Group Inc for a weekend of cycling fun. The weekend will include rides of up to 90 km, steam train rides, screening of Cycling’s Big Night Out at Theatre Royal, duathlons and a family day spectacular at the Botanical Gardens. Visit www.masg.org.au or phone (03) 5472 3094.
WALK AGAINST WARMING November 15, 2008 at 1.00pm Federation Square, Melbourne Last year, record numbers of Victorians joined Environment Victoria in the world’s biggest climate change rally. This year, the stakes are higher. Step out for Australia’s community day of action on climate change and join us as we walk in support of real and immediate action to secure our climate. For more information, contact Victoria McKenzie-McHarg on (03) 9341 8112 or email victoria@envict.org.au.
YES! I WANT TO SUPPORT Environment Victoria to develop the PEOPLE’S ACTION PLAN and help slash greenhouse pollution. (All donations are tax deductible).
$40 $100 $200 $500 $1000 My own amount $ ___________ Please find enclosed a: Cheque or Money Order (payable to Environment Victoria INC.) Or please debit this card: Amex Mastercard Visa Cardholder’s name: _____________________________________________ Expiry date: __ __ / __ __ Signature: _________________________________ Card number: | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | – | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | – | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | – | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | PLEASE ALSO COMPLETE PERSONAL DETAILS FORM BELOW.
BECOME A GREEN ACTION PARTNER NOW! Environment Victoria relies on your support. By becoming a Green Action Partner and making an automatic monthly contribution, you will be choosing one of the most effective ways to contribute to a healthier environment. Become a Green Action Partner online at www.environmentvictoria.org.au or complete the form below. YES, SIGN ME UP! I would like to donate $ __________ (min $15) per month until further notice and help Environment Victoria take care of our environment. Please charge my credit card as above or charge the following card: Amex Mastercard Visa
Cardholder’s name: _____________________________________________ Expiry date: __ __ / __ __ Signature: _________________________________ Card number: | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | – | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | – | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | – | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ | _ _ |
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Please send all future correspondence by email Help us to help you by telling us a little bit more about yourself. (All information will be kept strictly confidential). Date of Birth D____/ M____/ Y_____ Occupation: _______________________ ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES YOU CARE MOST ABOUT
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notice this
You’ve cared about the environment all your life.
Environment Victoria. Working Together Protecting Victoria’s Environment.
WHO’S WHO AT ENVIRONMENT VICTORIA Chief Executive Officer Kelly O’Shanassy Campaigns Director Mark Wakeham
OPERATIONS Organisational Services Manager Ivan Kolker Administration Helen Vine Communications Officer Vicki Kyriakakis Media Officer Daniel Clarke Fundraising Manager Jennifer Jordan Finance Officer Despina Giannakis
Protect the things that are important to you with a bequest to Environment Victoria. By leaving a gift to Environment Victoria in your will, you can make sure that Victoria’s natural environment is protected well beyond your lifetime and that your voice is heard on the issues most important to you. Your precious gift will help Environment Victoria protect our natural world on your behalf and take a strong stance on behalf of the environment. For more information on how you can leave a bequest to Environment Victoria, please contact Kelly O’Shanassy on (03) 9341 8119 or visit us at www.environmentvictoria.org.au
SUSTAINABLE LIVING PROGRAM Director Annette Salkeld Senior Project Manager Murray Irwin Project Manager Michelle Burton Project Manager Katelyn Fryer Multicultural Leaders Program Manager Charlie Davie Community Liaison Officer Kim Truong
HEALTHY RIVERS Healthy Rivers Campaigner Leonie Duncan Community Campaigner Juliet Le Feuvre SAFE CLIMATE Climate Change Campaigner Victoria McKenzie-McHarg SMART PRODUCTION & CONSUMPTION Fraser Brindley
GET READY FOR THIS YEAR’S DAY OF CLIMATE CHANGE ACTION with a Walk Against Warming T-Shirt. Yours for just $30! Available in adults and kids sizes through Environment Victoria. Contact us on (03) 9341 8100 to order yours today. All proceeds go to help support our Safe Climate Campaign.
SAVING THE ENVIRONMENT NEVER FELT SO GOOD… We couldn’t do it without them: the passionate and dedicated people who make up Environment Victoria’s volunteers. Whether it’s helping us with a mail out, getting involved in community education or jumping feet first into our campaigns to combat climate change, save our rivers, reduce waste, and protect our biodiversity, our volunteers are at the forefront of taking care of Victoria’s environment. HELP US MAKE A DIFFERENCE. Become an Environment Victoria volunteer today. For more information, contact volunteer coordinator Katelyn Fryer on (03) 9341 8102 or email katelyn.fryer@envict.org.au. Or register online at www.environmentvictoria.org.au
BOARD President Russell Fisher Vice-President Sue Noy Dr Sarah Bekessy Doug Gimesy Lee Godden Pam Keating Larissa Brown Jo Tenner
REGULAR VOLUNTEERS Peter Flanagan Janet Gellie Colleen Guggisberg Ian Hazewinkel Pauline Ng Keshni Prasad Marion Silver Les Smith Tamara Sysak Thi Truong
CONTACT US PHONE (03) 9341 8100 FAX (03) 9341 8199 EMAIL admin@envict.org.au. PO Box 12575 A’Beckett Street, Victoria, 8006 www.environmentvictoria.org.au