Big Scrub Environment Centre e-journal - Edition 8
Hi there and welcome to this edition of the Big Scrub Environment Centre e-journal.
For more information, please email us, or view our web site at www.bigscrub.org.au
To contribute to the next edition, subscribe or unsubscribe, please see the end of this journal for details. Hope you enjoy this edition!
This edition:
BSEC AGM
FRIENDS OF THE KOALA CALLS FOR LOCAL KOALA STUDIES
CLIMATE CHANGE, DESPAIR & EMPOWERMENT PRESENTATIONS
CHEMICAL CLEANOUT TIME AGAIN
EARTH DAY NETWORK
**BSEC AGM
Notice to all Members, Past Members and Members of the Public
The Big Scrub Environment Centre Annual General Meeting is to be held at the Lismore Workers Club 6:30pm Thursday 15th March, 2007. All Welcome!
The Big Scrub Environment Centre has had a colourful history raising the general awareness of environmental issues amongst the population of the region and has successfully supported many initiatives to conserve forest and environmental habitats and ecosystems.
The BSEC currently maintains a cyber-presence and is looking for people to come on board to promote positive initiatives that can help address climate change and environmental responsibility at a personal and regional level.
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**FRIENDS OF THE KOALA CALLS FOR LOCAL KOALA STUDIES
Friends of the Koala believes the Far North Coast Regional Strategy's expectation of 60,400 people moving into the Region over the next 25 years will impact on many of the Region's koala populations.
Whilst the Strategy's emphasis on environmental protection and settlement patterns which utilize the existing network of urban centres, towns and villages is welcomed, significant gaps in koala mapping throughout the Region were identified during the public consultation period.
Friends of the Koala worked hard for koala habitat being recognized as an environmental asset deserving of improved protection and enhancement. As with so much in the Strategy there is no detail as to how this will occur.
With 8000 additional houses planned for Lismore, 3000 for Kyogle, nearly 10,000 in Richmond Valley and the expansion of the hinterland's villages, all North Coast Councils need, as a matter of urgency, to be obtaining scientific evidence of the status and movements of their koala populations. A lot more ecological, landscape-type studies are needed of where the koalas are, where they're going and how they're doing if the species' survival is to be managed.
Friends of the Koala is also concerned about the Strategy's retention of the contentious 'sustainability criteria' which if met will enable developers to plead a special case for rezonings outside those areas earmarked for development by the Strategy.
The Northern Rivers' koala populations are of state and national significance.
The koala is listed as 'vulnerable' under NSW's Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995. Although not listed under Federal legislation, the Threatened Species Scientific Committee recognizes that some local koala populations have undergone significant declines in numbers over recent years and where this is the case local koala habitats must become the focus of protection, restoration and rehabilitation work.
Notwithstanding, the long-awaited state-wide Recovery Plan for the Koala (the draft was put on exhibition for public comment in early 2003) has still not been released by Minister Debus.
The Biodiversity Management Plan for the Northern Rivers Catchment Management Authority which will soon be conducted by DEC has been commissioned to assist the CMA in determining priorities for investment for the life of its 10-year Catchment Action Plan. The community consultation process is still under development and Friends of the Koala is preparing for its participation.
Friends of the Koala actively promotes habitat restoration in the Northern Rivers Region. The Nursery attached to the Koala Care Centre in East Lismore provides koala food trees to landholders.
For more information visit www.friendsofthekoala.org
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"CLIMATE CHANGE, DESPAIR & EMPOWERMENT" PRESENTATIONS
The Rainforest Information Centre has a number of climate change educational events coming up in the next few weeks. Ruth Rosenhek and John Seed will be offering a multi-media presentation titled "Climate Change, Despair & Empowerment" on the North Coast from Feb 20-24. This looks at what keeps us from feeling empowered to engage in an effective manner in these vast issues threatening our world and why its important for people everywhere to get together with their local communities to study the issues and act.
Murwillumbah February 21 Auditorium 7.30 (Ruth)
Kyogle February 21 Memorial Hall 7.30 (John)
contact: pdaley33@gmail.com
Byron Bay February 22 Community Centre 7.30 (Ruth)
Ballina February 22 6.00 The Richmond Room
Mullumbimby February 23, 7.00 Pioneer Hall, Gordon Street (Ruth)
contact: gayle94adrian@linknet.com.au
Nimbin February 23 Nimbin Hall, 7.30 (John)
contact: johnseed1@ozemail.com.au
Uki February 24 Hall 7.30 (Ruth) - contact: channelfree@hotmail.com
Lismore Feb 24 Red Dove 7.30 (Uniting Church hall, Keen St nr cnr Woodlark) (John)
contact: johnseed1@ozemail.com.au
If you can help network these events and would like flyers to post to any noticeboards, please let us know and we'll send them to you - for more information: www.climate.net.au
for the Earth
Ruth & John
**CHEMICAL CLEANOUT TIME AGAIN
Ballina, Byron, Clarence Valley, Richmond Valley and Tweed Councils and the North East Waste Forum are giving residents a chance to clean out their household chemical clutter and dispose of it properly.
The collection days will be held during March and April. A specialist chemical collector will be on hand to take away your unwanted household chemicals and dispose of them in a safe and environmentally friendly manner, avoiding any potential polluting of our environment.
Residents can dispose of paint and paint-related products; pesticides, herbicides and poisons; solvents and household cleaners; pool chemicals; acids and alkalis and hobby chemicals. Only household quantities (up to 20 litres) will be accepted. And residents are reminded to transport chemicals carefully and avoid mixing or spilling chemicals.
Help council remove chemicals from the environment and join the chemical cleanout. The service is free of charge to residents of the councils listed above.
For information on dates and venues and to check those chemicals that will be accepted go to www.northeastwasteforum.org.au or call the clean out hotline on 1800 502 300.
**EARTH DAY NETWORK
Earth Day Network is in the second year of its Climate Solutions Campaign, and we're seeing dramatic changes. In America, Congress is finally paying attention to this universally and extremely important issue thanks to all our grassroots activity. Internationally, the momentum continues to soar as more and more of us plan our climate change-themed Earth Day events.
If you're not already a part of this worldwide movement, we urge you to join millions of other people on Earth Day in a global rally for a climate-safe future. If you believe we need to confront climate change, please lend your support on Earth Day, 22 April, 2007 by getting your organization to join thousands of others in planning a Climate Solutions
Earth Day event, and registering your event on our website for free. You've already joined Earth Day Network, so please take the next step by showing the world on 22 April that you're part of the Climate Solutions
Campaign.
Many of your peers have already registered their events by submitting them to our website here:
www.earthday.net/_groups/Login.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2f_groups%2f_gros%2fdefault.aspx
To cite some impressive examples:
ÿ Worldwide: Groups like ENO in Finland, Cooperation and Development in Tajikistan, Ceda Trust in India, and Eco 4 The World in Singapore will be planting thousands upon thousands of trees to offset greenhouse gas emissions.
ÿ Brunei: Students at the Universiti Brunei Darussalam will unveil a series of documentary films they are producing on the climate solutions they themselves are implementing.
ÿ Peru: Earth Day Peru and its supporters will march on Congress to deliver 50,000 signatures in favor of clean energy, while the Associacion Ecologica Vidas Verdes will teach school children throughout the country about climate change.
In addition to these great initiatives, there are many other things you can do to raise awareness of climate change. Consider these actions your communities can take together.
DISCLAIMER: The Big Scrub Environment Centre and its officers accept no responsibility or liability for claims or statements made within articles published in this e-journal. The purpose of this e-journal is to provide a forum within which debate and discourse may occur. Articles published here represent the views and opinions of their authors and do not necessarily represent the views of The Big Scrub Environment Centre.
Donations:
The Big Scrub Environment Centre would like to offer this as a free service to all interested parties, but we would like to call for offers of financial support from subscribers, in order to keep our organisation running. Suggested donations are on a sliding scale from $5-$10 (waged or unwaged) on an annual basis, or any other amount that generous benefactors would like to offer!!
To make a donation:
Send a cheque, cash or postal order with your name and contact details to:
PO Box 816, Lismore 2480, NSW Australia
OR
Direct or electronic deposit into the BSEC bank account. Please include your name, email address and the type of deposit i.e. 'Membership' or 'Donation'.
Bank Details: Summerland Credit Union - BSB no: 802 222 - Account no: 50001
Donations over $2 are tax deductible.
To receive a receipt, please include your name on the deposit slip and e-mail us your name and address details.
To subscribe: Anyone wishing to subscribe to future editions of this ejournal, please send an email to info@bigscrub.org.au and type in the email <subject> line 'subscribe bsec ejournal'.
To unsubscribe: If you would like to unsubscribe, please send an email to info@bigscrub.org.au and type in the email <subject> line 'unsubscribe bsec ejournal'.
Ejournal Contributors:
This will be a monthly journal. If you would like to contribute relevant
environmental articles, please attach your word rtf, txt or doc files to an
email and send them to: info@bigscrub.org.au
and type in the email <subject> line 'bsec ejournal article'.
Article Length Guidelines:
Please keep submitted articles to a 400 word maximum - If you have a longer article, you can also submit this, along with a 400 word summary of your story. We will provide the longer article as a linked download from the BSEC website. Please note: long articles will be edited, so you may wish to provide an edited version yourself!
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The Big Scrub Environment Centre
www.bigscrub.org.au
email: info@bigscrub.org.au
Postal: PO Box 816
Lismore 2480