Submission: Moreland Nature Plan needs to recognise existential threat to biodiversity
Kangaroos in Northern Memorial Park
Moreland Council has had a commitment to developing a biodiversity Strategy since at least 2004, but this strategy has been consistently overlooked. We have a Climate Emergency. But we also have an ecological and biodiversity emergency. Both crises are related and need to be addressed together.
Moreland acknowledged we have a climate emergency. Now we need the proposed Nature Plan, which we have waited 16 years for, to reflect the global science on the existential threats to ecosystems and biodiversity. This is important even in highly built up areas such as Moreland, which still harbours over 900 sepecies, at least 36 of them being threatened species.
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Submission: Australia’s Technology Roadmap not enough to address the Climate Emergency
Climate Action Moreland submission on the Draft Australia Technology Roadmap. This is the document that Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor has been pushing. The document itself provides a survey of different technologies that can be used in address climate change. But it is insufficient. The decision processes that approve expansion of emissions (such as in new coal mines or gas extraction), or maintain present high pollution levels in existing sectorial processes needs also to be considered. Strategic Technology Roadmap is only one tool that should be used to driving climate action ambition to tackle the climate crisis. We have a climate emergency.
Moreland Council adopts coal filter as part of social sustainability criteria in procurement policy
Moreland Council adopts filter for new coal as part of Procurement Policy
Success tonight on StopAdani. Moreland Council, in its annual review of Council Procurement Policy, passed an amendment to the Council Officer resolution as a part of the social sustainability criteria.
The amendment put forward by Cr Sue Bolton adds:
“Excluding from future contracts, tenders or business dealings any companies involved in developing new coal mines.”
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Brunswick MP opposes Victorian Labor Government vote to lift gas ban
Dr Tim Read and Dr Samantha Ratanam – Don’t mention the Climate Emergency
We saw the real vandals in Victorian state parliament on June 3, 2020 in worsening the climate crisis – members of the Labor Party, Liberal Party and Nationals who all voted to lift the moratorium on onshore gas exploration and extraction. They all justified their actions saying gas is a transition fuel, but due to the underestimation of fugiture emissions and methane’s much greater global warming potential over 20 year time frame, it is far worse than coal. The Labor Party have no plans to transition residential, commercial or industrial customers away from gas.
“At some point opening up fossil fuel reserves so we can pump more carbon into the atmosphere will start to look like vandalism, and I believe we have reached that point now.” said Dr Tim Read, the Greens MP for Brunswick.
” And if it feels like vandalism now, what will it feel like in a decade when global heating is worse, when we have seen more climate change here and around the world and the damage it has caused?”
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Study finds 445 smoke related deaths from Australia’s climate fuelled Bushfire season
Bushfire smoke in Sydney, 18 December 2019
On January 1st 2020 Economics Professor John Quiggin estimated there would be hundreds, if not thousands, of deaths attributed to the deadly bushfire smoke that affected up to 80 per cent of Australia’s population, including in major capital cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra, during the climate fuelled 2019-2020 bushfire season.
A study published in the Medical Journal of Australia in March 2020 estimated the excess health burden during 19 weeks continuous fire activity in the states most severely affected by bushfire smoke. It found that at least 445 deaths could be attriibuted to the bushfire smoke and the PM2.5 air pollution particulates, and over 4,000 hospitalisations.
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Heat-related deaths under-estimated as temperatures and extreme heat events increase
Moreland’s social heat vulnerability
Researchers at the Australian National University say that heat related deaths have been greatly underestimated. In the 11 years between January 2006 and October 2017 an estimated 36,765 deaths in Australia can be attributed to heat-related causes.
As we know climate change is increasing average temperatures and the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events in Australia.
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Pandemic disruption should cause us to reassess aviation policies and airport expansion
Virgin Airlines goes into volubntary administration due to Pandemic
The Management of Virgin Airlines has put the company into administration, due to the impact of the pandemic in reducing need for essential travel, and the huge debt the airline has accumulated. Most Virgin planes are presently sitting at airports, huge stranded assets.
Labort MP for Wills, Peter Khalil, has said in a Facebook Post Labor has been calling on the Morrison Government to Save Virgin. But is this the wisest move given the future for passenger aviation demand in a pandemic with no assurances of a vaccine available and the level of greenhouse gas emissions and climate impact by aviation?
Virgin Airlines is presently owned by Etihad Airways (20.94%), Singapore Airlines (20.09%), Nanshan Group (19.98%), HNA Group (19.82%), Virgin Group (10.42%). Bailing out Virgin is bailing out foreign corporations, some of these owned by other nations.
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5 Principles for a Just Covid Response and a #JustRecovery
Climate Action Moreland has joined a global call on response to addressing the Covid-19 pandemic, and also called on the Prime Minister, Premiers and Chief Ministers for no evictions.
We ask that all governments, and the MPs and Councillors that represent our community, use these principles as the basis for decisions they make in coming months as the crisis unfolds.
The Choices we make today will shape our society, economy, health and climate for decades to come. Climate justice also requires socisl justice and health justice.
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Brunswick Climate Fair postponed due to CoronaVirus
Wilson Street, Brunswick – Climate Fair location
Climate Fair event on Saturday postponed due to rapid escalation of the Coronavirus CorVid-19 public health response.
Climate organisations in Moreland have been working to organise a climate fair to be held at Wilson Avenue in Brunswick on Saturday 14 March, with the assistance and co-operation of state Greens MP Tim Read.
With the cancellation of the Grand Prix in Melbourne this weekend, it is clear that major gatherings of people poses a major public health commumnity transmission risk. Social distancing needs to be employed to reduce level of virus transmission.
Slowing down community transmission of this virus is important to ensure the public health system has the resources to repond adequately to the level of demand required.
Dr Tim Read, the local state MP for Brunswick, put out a statement saying “It now seems the wrong time to bring people together for any non-essential reason.”
“While the Fair would likely be safer than a tram or a classroom, Perceptions matter in campaigning.”
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Inquiry on achieving 100 percent renewables passed by Victorian State Parliament
The Victorian Parliament on Wednesday supported a Greens motion in the Legislative Council, looking at pathways for Victoria to be powered by 100 per cent clean energy, including the economic and employment benefits of such an energy transition.
Victoria currently has a 50 per cent renewables target by 2030. Coal currently provides 70 per cent of the state’s electricity.
The Inquiry won’t start until later in 2020 or early 2021, highlighted Samantha Ratnam in breaking the news in a Facebook post.
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