FLIP PRIOR,The West Australian September 16, 2010, 12:10 pm
Greens leader Bob Brown has thrown his full support behind campaigners trying to halt the compulsory acquisition of land at James Price Point for a $30 billion gas precinct.Senator Brown called on Premier Colin Barnett to reverse his decision and the venture partners to find an alternative site.
Kimberley representatives Joseph Roe, Neil McKenzie and Albert Wiggan met with Senator Brown in Canberra yesterday to express their anger over a "lack of information, consultation and representation" during discussions and to seek his support.
More footage from Sunday's Action.
Senator Brown said the group had struck him as "impressive, honest and devoted people" and questioned why alternative sites for the precinct were not being considered.
"What I would like to hear from Woodside and Shell and the others - why are none of the alternatives ok?" he said."I hope that the answer will be more than 'because the profits are bigger if this is built in the Kimberley' - I, and many other Australians, would want to hear a better answer than that."
After the meeting, all four men appeared on stage with WA musician and activist John Butler at a Canberra gig last night, to publically state their position.
Butler, who met his wife in Broome, again weighed into the debate, describing the Premier's actions as "archaic, draconian and disrespectful".
Describing himself as a concerned "citizen, father and tax payer", he said $1 from every ticket sold on his tour had been donated to Save the Kimberley and Mr Roe to help fund their future legal battles.
Building a gas precinct in the Kimberley was like sinking an oil rig in the Great Barrier Reef or mining at Ningaloo, he said.
"I am out spreading the word … what Broome has going for it is its land, its culture - not its minerals," he said. "It's one of the most enchanting places on the planet.
"People don't go up there to get jobs - they go there to soak up its culture and absolute beauty.
"I don't think the indigenous people should have to sell their land and their culture to get the basic amenities every Australian has a right to."
Butler said campaigners were not against the exploitation of Browse Basin gas - just not in the Kimberley.
"There's an industrial footprint in the Pilbara and in Darwin and it wouldn't take too much to pipe the gas there and not desecrate more land," he said.
"We do have a choice - a choice if we want to support greed and money over culture."
Mr Wiggan said the Kimberley contingent left the meeting feeling as if the Greens genuinely understood their plight.
"The Greens do feel very strongly about the importance of preserving the Kimberley and they will try everything within their capacity to support this cause," he said.
http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/wa/7957317/greens-campaign-against-gas-land-grab/
Photo Damian Kelly
ACTION OF THE DAY
A MAJOR national bank has been forced to remove more than 100 misleading out of order signs from its ATMs after being targeted by anti-coal activists.
A MAJOR national bank has been forced to remove more than 100 misleading out of order signs from its ATMs after being targeted by anti-coal activists.
A score of ANZ Banking Group machines sprawled across six capital cities were plastered with "out of order" signs on Sunday after campaigners launched their latest bid to draw attention to the bank's funding of the coal industry.
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broome advertiser september 16 2010.the broome chamber of commerce full page ad."important information about the james price point lng precinct."under q and a's,"how much land is required for the lng precinct?"answer"...2500 hectares of land....1000 ha...offshore marine facilities.the total area therefore covers 3500ha."now that everyone including proctor knows this is a lie,does the broome chamber of commerce have any plans to amend this false and misleading advert?or are the broome chamber of commerce going to embark further on a campaign of lies and half truths?how many of the chambers members are prepared to go along with proctors clearly racist policies?i have a feeling this will be coming back to haunt them all one day.what a terrible look for broome.
ReplyDeleteRe your map,20,000 hectares of land theft.If you think this is anywhere near the total land they will need for this monster,think again.There are a lot of services not included on the map which are essential for a project of this size.Vast lay down areas for a start.6000 workers would usually be housed in camps of 600 or so,meaning there would quite likely be 8 or 10 camps well spaced out around the area.The land set aside for light and heavy industry to support this huge project also seems much too small.There would also have to be a giant ramp to offload the modules from ships,these modules can weigh over 2000 tonnes.What is needed is an independent survey with realistic areas set aside for all the multitude of services this thing will need.The list goes on and on.We really need to get real here,and fast!
ReplyDeleteHas anyone heard where the quarry for all the stone is going to be?Or where all the sand will be mined from?Mining stone for concrete is relatively easy,but rocks for a breakwater need to be a certain weight,eg between 5 and 20 tonnes.To get say 1000 tonnes of suitable rock it may be that 3000 or 4000 tonnes of rock be blasted.Most of what is left will be discarded as it would be too large to put through a crushing plant.The sand would usually be mined from a river,the Fitzroy for example,near Willare.There is still an incredible amount of unanswered questions.Where is the sewerage to be treated?And the poisonous waste?Where are the industrial and domestic rubbish tips?The power stations?Will there be an airport?Will there be an extra wharf or supply base of any kind?We are without a doubt only starting to scratch the surface with this great big polluting monster.
ReplyDeletewhat about the de sal and waste water treatment plants?
ReplyDeleteGiven that Barnett is under siege on several fronts right now,would he dare suggest a dam on the Fitzroy to feed the thirsty towns gas,oil and iron ore are creating further south?Onslow and Karratha are way behind with infrastructure to support their exploding populations.No wonder Campbell is so worried about all the empty promises he has gotten from Barnett!Rush,rush,rush.
ReplyDeleteIt would seem from looking at the posted maps that this could well be a"foot in the door"type exercise.Once they have established this beach head it becomes a far easier game for them to play.From then on in all they have to do is claim,"we must have this",or "we must have that"."we cannot jeopardise a project of this magnatude over a few more hectares of land."etc.etc.The premier also stated that the buffer zones would be native vegetation,but said nothing about fire breaks,security fences etc.for all of the various service areas.There is also the distinct possibility of further big oil and gas finds by these and other companies requiring further expansion of processing facilities,support areas,new services,roads,and so forth.And of course all the other threatened heavy industry,smelters,explosives,petro chemical etc.which would require more wharfs,dredging,buffer zones and of course more support services.So once again we are looking at the elephants toe in the door.
ReplyDeletewhat about the ocean?dr.reid said on the goollari doco that he didn't believe the dredging would interfere with anything important.was he talking about the first 24 hours of dredging perhaps?surely he didn't mean the first 10 or 20 years.what about after 30 years of dredging in a 10 metre tidal zone?do any of these people have any idea of what they are talking about?this entire project has been marked so far by some of the most stupid statements ever made.mostly by barnett and the klc,who now find there is no money for them to say no,not from w.a. or the a.c.t.
ReplyDelete