5 September 2008 - Federal
Environment Minister Peter Garrett today
joined WWF Threatened Species Network program
manager Kat Miller to urge Australians
to use National Threatened Species Day,
Sunday September 7, to learn more about
our threatened species and how they can
be protected.
"This year's theme
'Threatened today, extinct tomorrow' underlines
how important it is to conserve our native
birds and animals and their habitat before
it's too late," Mr Garrett said.
"Introduced species,
environmental degradation and habitat destruction
through land clearing and development all
pose a significant threat to native wildlife.
But by working together we can make a difference."
Mr Garrett said through
the Rudd Government's $2.25 billion Caring
for our Country initiative, including $180
million for the National Reserve System,
the Government was investing in biodiversity
conservation in partnership with natural
resource management groups, landowners and
the wider community.
"Decisions like
the one earlier this year to ban the Savannah
cat from importation also make a real difference
to the chances our native birds and animals
have for survival, particularly as they
are forced to adapt to a changing climate."
Ms Miller said that
without urgent action, Australia was at
risk of losing more of the 346 animal and
1249 plant species already listed as threatened
under federal environmental legislation.
"Australia has
the worst record of mammal extinction in
the world. Incredibly, half the mammals
that have become extinct globally in the
last 200 years have been Australian species.
We cannot afford to let more of our unique
plants and animals disappear forever,"
she said.
Mr Garrett used the
day to announce the recipients of this year's
Threatened Species Network Community Grants
Program.
"This is the eleventh
year the grants program has been run and
this year $500,000 from the Australian Government's
Caring for Our Country initiative will go
towards 25 projects around Australia,"
he said.
"More than 40 nationally
threatened plants, animals and ecological
communities will benefit from this funding,
including the southern bell frog, Carnaby's
black-cockatoo, the bridled nail-tailed
wallaby and several Tasmanian orchid species."
National Threatened
Species Day has been held every 7 September
since 1996, to commemorate the death of
the last Tasmanian tiger in captivity in
1936.
Ms Miller said people
could do their bit by joining a conservation
or community group and assisting with nature
conservation activities such as tree planting
and revegetation schemes.
"They can also
ensure they keep domestic animals inside
at night so they don't escape and become
feral predators," she said.
There are fact sheets
available on eight species and ecological
communities chosen for the focus of this
year's National Threatened Species Day.
These provide information about how people
can get involved. Visit www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened
or www.wwf.org.au/tsn
For a full list of this
year's grant recipients and their projects,
visit www.wwf.org.au/tsn
All Threatened Species
Network Community Grants projects are funded
by the Australian Government's Caring for
our Country initiative.
For the list of grants
recipients, visit www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/ts-day/projects2008.html
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Arts Minister appoints
first CEO of National Film and Sound Archive
5 September 2008 - Arts
Minister Peter Garrett today announced the
appointment of Dr Darryl McIntyre as the
first Chief Executive Officer of the National
Film and Sound Archive in Canberra, completing
the final phase in the establishment of
the Archive as an independent statutory
authority.
“I'm pleased to announce
the appointment of Dr Darryl McIntyre as
inaugural CEO of the newly independent National
Film and Sound Archive.”
A highly experienced
and skilled arts administrator, it is anticipated
Dr McIntyre will commence in this newly
established position in late November 2008,
for a five-year term.
“I am delighted that
Dr McIntyre will be at the helm of the National
Film and Sound Archive as his skills and
experience will provide high-calibre leadership
and governance at a critical time in the
Archive's history,” Mr Garrett said.
“Establishing the National
Film and Sound Archive as an independent
statutory authority was a key election commitment
of the Government, and this world class
appointment highlights the enhanced role
the Government expects it to play as a national
collecting institution.
“With Dr McIntyre heading
the Archive, I am confident this important
national cultural institution will build
on its well-earned reputation for excellence
in preservation techniques and that it will
continue to expand public access to its
precious and exciting collection of film
and sound material.”
Since 2003, Dr McIntyre
has been the Group Director of Public Programs
at the Museum of London in the United Kingdom,
where he is responsible for curatorial,
exhibitions and design, audience development,
education, governance, ICT and the office
of the London Museums hub.
Before his move to the
UK he was the General Manager of Public
Programs at the National Museum of Australia
in Canberra, where he was responsible for
the day-to-day development, delivery and
management of education and general public
and outreach programs. Dr McIntyre worked
in a variety of roles at the National Museum
between 1994 and 2003, and prior to that
held management positions in the Australian
Government departments responsible for the
arts.
For more information
on the National Film and Sound Archive,
visit www.nfsa.gov.au.
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$50 million for new
water research alliance
4 September 2008 - Minister
for Climate Change and Water, Senator Penny
Wong, today launched a joint initiative
between the Bureau of Meteorology and CSIRO
that will be the largest water information
research project in the southern hemisphere.
The Water Information
Research and Development Alliance (WIRADA)
is a five-year, $50 million research partnership
between Bureau of Meteorology (the Bureau)
and CSIRO. It aims to provide a state-of-the-art,
national database on Australia's water resources.
Under the Rudd Government's
Water for the Future program, the Bureau
has the role of reporting on the availability,
condition and use of water resources across
Australia.
Through the new WIRADA
initiative, CSIRO will perform research
specifically for the Bureau that will be
integrated into the way its water monitoring,
analysis and prediction systems are developed.
"Water for the
Future has four key priorities: tackling
climate change, using water wisely, supporting
healthy rivers, and securing water supplies,"
Senator Wong said.
"WIRADA will help
us develop more robust monitoring and prediction
tools to help the Bureau deliver on its
new water information responsibilities."
Senator Carr said the WIRADA initiative
would have benefits for both CSIRO and the
Bureau, along with the nation as a whole.
"Access to reliable
water reporting and assessment at the national
level will be a first for Australia, as
water resource information is currently
spread across hundreds of water agencies
and organisations in all states and territories,"
Senator Carr said.
WIRADA will assist the
Bureau to deliver on new water information
responsibilities, including:
Storing and managing
all of Australia's water data;
Reporting on the status of Australia's water
resources, patterns of water use and forecast
future water availability;
Maintaining a comprehensive set of water
accounts for the nation;
Setting national standards for water use
metering and hydrologic measurements;
Influencing and supporting state-based investments
in water monitoring and water use
metering programmes; and
Procuring special data sets to enhance our
understanding of Australia's water resources.
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Government to Contribute
$1 Million to National 'Riverprize'
1 September 2008 - The
Australian Government will provide $1 million
over the next five years to sponsor the
National Riverprize that celebrates outstanding
achievements in river and catchment management.
Speaking at the Riversymposium
Conference in Brisbane today, Minister for
Climate Change and Water, Senator Penny
Wong, said the prize would be used to promote
best practice in catchment management.
"The Rudd Government
supports innovation in the water sector
and is pleased to be a sponsor of the Riverprize,
a great initiative of the International
Riverfoundation," Senator Wong said.
"Since it was first
awarded in 2001, the National Riverprize
has celebrated outstanding achievements
in Australian river and catchment management.
"Yet there is still
much to learn and improve in the management
of our very sensitive water catchments,
particularly in the context of drought and
climate change."
Senator Wong said the
prize would help winners spread their knowledge
and experience to benefit the nation.
The National Riverprize
is aimed specifically at Australian catchment
and river management groups and showcases
leadership and expertise in best-practice
river management.
To win, recipients will
have demonstrated evidence of excellence
in program delivery, inclusiveness, public
accountability and innovation.
Further information
about the National Riverprize is available
from the International Riverfoundation's
website at www.riverfoundation.org.au
+ More
Minister says no to
Shoalwater Bay rail and port
5 September 2008 - Environment
Minister Peter Garrett has acted to preserve
the unique biodiversity values at Shoalwater
Bay north of Rockhampton in Queensland,
rejecting a proposal by Waratah Coal Inc.
to establish a rail line and coal port in
the Shoalwater Bay Training Area.
The Minister has found
the proposal to be "clearly unacceptable"
under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity
Conservation Act 1999.
"This proposal
would have clearly unacceptable impacts
on the internationally recognised Shoalwater
and Corio Bay Ramsar wetlands and the high
wilderness value of Shoalwater which is
acknowledged in its Commonwealth Heritage
listing," Mr Garrett said.
"The impacts of
the rail line and port facility are simply
too great to effectively mitigate, and would
destroy the ecological integrity of the
area. They are impacts that cannot be reduced
with offsets or managed through approval
conditions.
"Destruction of
fragile wilderness areas cannot be reversed.
As Minister for the Environment I am required
by law to protect the environment from actions
on Commonwealth land.
"I have carefully
considered the advice from my department
on the broader proposal and agree that the
plan to run a rail line through Shoalwater
and build a coal port in the location proposed
is clearly unacceptable.
"I wish to make
it abundantly clear that I have rejected
this proposal because of the impacts the
route of the rail line and the location
of the coal port would have on the environment."
The Minister said that
in lodging its referral proposal, Waratah
Coal was advised that it should consider
the environmental risks associated with
locating the proposed port within the Shoalwater
Bay Military Training Area given the recommendations
of the 1994 Commonwealth Commission of Inquiry
into Shoalwater Bay.
"This decision
does not prevent an alternative proposal
being lodged that does not have unacceptable
impacts on Ramsar and heritage values, for
consideration under the Act. I would encourage
Waratah Coal to consider alternative sites
for the port," Mr Garrett said.
Waratah Coal Inc referred
the proposal to the Department of the Environment,
Water, Heritage and the Arts on the 30th
July this year. The referral process determines
whether a proposal needs to be assessed
under the EPBC Act and if so the level of
assessment required or, as in this case,
whether the action is clearly unacceptable.
This is the third time
a proposal has been deemed clearly unacceptable
under section 74B of the EPBC Act.
