Geraldton to only catch end of tonight's lunar eclipse

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Geraldton Astronomy Group have clarified that Geraldton will only catch the end of tonight's lunar eclipse. 

Post by Geraldton Astronomy Group (INC).

In a Facebook post to Everything Geraldton the local group stated, "No we will not to be able to see the lunar eclipse in totality here in Geraldton on Wednesday. Totality will be happening during Moonrise so we will only to be able to see the end of the eclipse low on the horizon."

Tonight's lunar eclipse is the second and last one for 2014. It will be visible throughout most of Australia.

20 Million Trees first grants round opens in Durack

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The Australian Government is inviting communities in Durack to get involved in the 20 Million Trees Programme with the first competitive grants round open for applications.

“The 20 Million Trees Programme was a key election commitment and is a vital part of the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme,” Melissa Price, Federal Member for Durack said.

“The Australian Government is investing $50 million over the next four years to re-establish Australia’s green corridors and urban forests through the 20 Million Trees Programme.

“It’s an important part of the Government’s total investment in natural resource management which amounts to over $2 billion over the next four years.”

20 Million Trees projects can be carried out in either urban or regional Australia, on public and private land, where there will be a community and environmental benefit to Durack communities, which extend from the Kimberley and throughout the northern half of the Wheatbelt.

Ms Price is asking communities, groups and individuals in Durack to apply for grants between $20,000 and $100,000 to help set up their own 20 Million Trees project. Grants are also open to schools, local councils, conservation groups and landholders.

 “Funding can be used to re-establish native vegetation, and create greener spaces to improve the liveability of local communities while increasing and improving habitat to support our threatened species”, said Ms Price said.

Applications for projects are open and will close on 30 October 2014.

Project guidelines for the competitive grants round provide individuals and organisations with the information they need to apply for funding to start a tree planting project in their community.

More information about the 20 Million Trees Programme is available at www.nrm.gov.au/20-million-trees.

The Oil and Gas industry hated this advertisement in the Guardian

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On the 11th of July, Frack Free Geraldton ran this ad (it didn't have the big red x of course) in the Geraldton Guardian. Frack Free Geraldton are associated with the Conservation Council of WA (CCWA). 

10 days later, the Chief Operating Officer of the WA region of the Australian Pertroleum Production and Exploration Association Limited (APPEA) had a letter published in the Guardian. 

He essentially refuted the claims of the ad. 

Then on 29 July 2014, APPEA wrote to the owners of the Geraldton Guardian, West Australian Newspapers Ltd (SevenWest), formally complaining about the ad. 

The CCWA responded, basically declaring the complaint by Michael Bradley and the APPEA vexatious and motivated by a desire to suppress the true nature of the gas fracking industry.

SevenWest ruled in favour of the Oil and Gas industry in many of the points.

Click here to get the PDF of their ruling.

1. The APPEA claims that shale fracking is not the “process of extracting gas”. It says that hydraulic fracking is a technology used to enhance the flow of gas from a well once the drilling is completed and the rig is removed from the scene.

Totally different.

SevenWest actually ruled in favour of the advertisers CCWA in this point, stating that 

"While technically shale fracking is not a “process of extraction” but a method to enhance the extraction of gas, the ordinary reasonable reader will not be led into error by this description. The description is used generally to describe the process in an ordinary or garden variety way."

CCWA said that the APPEA doesn't own the word fracking, nor does it get to decide whether it's a noun, adjective or verb. "Fracking" is an umbrella term just like "mining" is an umbrella term used to describe many different processes that result in the extraction of minerals. 

2. APPEA contends that “toxic chemicals” are not used “to crack deep rocks”. It's the pressure that cracks the rock. 

Totally different.

But SevenWest says that's beside the point. 

Toxic Chemicals are used in the process.

But we only use a little bit of toxic chemicals!

SevenWest says because the ad says "toxic chemicals" are used, along with a drink bottle of water that has mostly turned black, you the reader will be mislead to think that ONLY toxic chemicals are used. But only .05% to .5% of the fluid pumped into the ground is toxic. 

Hope that helps you sleep at night. 

So SevenWest says the statement "toxic chemicals" is an exaggeration. 

CCWA says that as the total volume of water is so large (10-25 million litres per well) even if the toxic chemicals constitute as little as 0.05%, that's 50,000 to 125,000 litres of toxic chemicals being pumped into the earth to kill bacteria, break down minerals and initiate fissures. Per well.

The WA Health Department in their preliminary submission to the WA Inquiry on Unconventional Gas found 195 "chemicals of concern". Some are known as suspected carcinogens, others have been shown to have developmental or reproductive toxicity. Many of the chemicals have NO SAFE LEVEL OF ORAL INTAKE and many have been banned completely overseas. 

But does that image really imply that ONLY toxic chemicals are used?

The image in the ad shows a drink bottle with a syringe. The drinking container is approx 1.5 litres. 

The syringe with the black fluid has a capacity of 30mL.

The point of the image seems to be that it only takes a small amount of poison in your drinking water to render the entire amount non-potable. 

What about this image?

The APPEA has this picture of a lush green field and a big healthy tree at the top of their website, implying that using gas mining or gas usage as an energy source would be associated with such an image. While burning gas might create less CO2 than burning other non-renewable resources, this image implies things that could also be challenged.

The claims of gas being cleaner are being refuted by recent studies. While it may be cleaner to burn, the methane released into the atmosphere during the extraction process is worse the CO2 and many now believe that overall, gas is worse than coal. 

This study from Cornell University shows that when viewed on a 20 year time horizon after emission, the greenhouse gas footprint of shale gas is considerably greater than that for coal or diesel oil, when the full effects of the methane emissions are considered. 

Click here to view study.

3. Frack Free Geraldton says that fracking can “turn our water into a dangerous chemical cocktail”.

The Oil and Gas Industry says using toxic chemicals in shale fracking will not turn our water into a dangerous chemical cocktail.

Frack Free Geraldton and the CCWA didn't say that it will, just that it can. 

And the APPEA didn't say that it can't, just that it won't.

A paragraph in the SevenWest report quoted CSIRO saying the risks of water contamination are low, in most cases.

However, the CSIRO website adds that the risks are low WHEN MANAGED PROPERLY.

This is a self evident statement however, as any contamination that has occurred can obviously be chalked up in hindsight to poor management. 

What the APPEA and the Oil and Gas Industry in general haven't convinced the world of is that "this time" they'll manage it properly. 

In addition to this...

SevenWest state in their report:

"That illustration (the water bottle) would appear to reflect a substantial contamination of the water by the black “toxic chemical” fluid. In the order of 70% of the water appears to be substantially “contaminated” by the black fluid."

But again, they seemed to have missed the entire point of the image. 70% of the water isn't poisoned. ALL OF IT IS. 

And it only took 30mL to do it. 

Moreover, CCWA say that the APPEA's claims of water never being contaminated by fracking are based entirely on a narrow interpretation of the term "fracking". They say there is extensive documented evidence of fracking well failure and subsequent leakage (of gas and fracking chemicals) into ground water. 

SevenWest concluded this point by stating:

CCWA have not produced any evidence that hydraulic fracking fluid has in the course of any hydraulic shale gas fracking process permeated a fresh water aquifer. Its contentions are against the scientific literature. The advertisement is misleading in this regard.

But by SevenWest's own acceptance of the term "fracking" applying to the entire process of gas extraction, the CCWA HAS produced evidence that fresh water has been polluted. 

In fact, they linked to a very thorough study that you can read here:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264817214000609

Here's a taste:

"poor well integrity is a far more likely cause of elevated concentrations of thermogenic methane in shallow groundwater and water supplies than pathways induced solely by hydraulic fracturing. Examples of leaks in shale gas wells have been reported and fines imposed."

In other words, the upward propagation of hydraulic fractures may not be the direct cause of the contaminations of fresh water aquifers, but other parts of the overall gas extraction process have demonstrably contaminated drinking water numerous times in the past.

Why SevenWest chose to semantically interpret "fracking" in this case, but accept that it applies broadly to the entire process in point 1, is unclear. 

4. “Research in the US has found that 6% of fracking wells leak into ground water in the first year”

CCWA has admitted that this statement is not materially correct.

And the APPEA are chalking this one up as a win. 

But, they should have read the response from CCWA. 

“We have reviewed the report and agree with Appea to the extent that Professor Ingraffea’s findings related to well barrier or casing integrity failure which does not necessarily mean that leakage into groundwater has occurred in all cases. On further consideration, a more accurate statement would perhaps be that “6% of fracking wells leak into groundwater, surface water, soil or air in the first year”

So instead the ad should have read:

6% of fracking wells leak into groundwater, surface water, soil or air in the first year. 

It's not likely to make the public fond of fracking, to know that risks apply to groundwater, surface water, the soil and the air we breathe. 

The CCWA states that the claims by the APPEA that fracking has not caused contamination of aquifers are misleading and rely on a narrow definition of fracking designed to exclude well casing failure, surface spills, wastewater re-injection, and other common causes of groundwater contamination due to the fracking processes.

But SevenWest still ruled that the original statement is "misleading and deceptive".

7. Once our water is contaminated, it will be forever

APPEA challenged this, saying someone probably would be able to clean up our drinking water if a fracking company accidentally poisoned it. 

But the CCWA said that there are no regulatory requirements in WA for contaminated groundwater to be returned to its original state. They also assert that remediation measures do not actually exist for all of the chemicals which could pollute our ground water. 

The CCWA also assert that while it may be possible for remediation of contaminated groundwater, it's not possible to bring it back to its original unaltered state, even if it is technically drinkable again. 

The APPEA provided SevenWest with some links to publications of how to clean up contaminated ground water, which record that to a greater or lesser degree, and depending upon the particular circumstances, remedial steps can be taken to resolve or alleviate water contamination.

So to a "greater or lesser" degree, if your drinking water gets poisoned, it's technically possible, depending on the circumstances, maybe, to possibly make it usable again, even though there's no legal requirement to do so, and the companies who do engage in fracking have made no commitment to do so.

Comforting. 

The short TV advertisement from Clean Water Healthy Land about the risk of gas fracking that the Geraldton Guardian ad was based on. 

Bad news if you were hoping to see fewer derelict buildings in town

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You may recall the CGG council implemented a strategy not too long ago to entice owners of vacant and run down property in the CBD to put a tenant in or develop. They doubled the rates for unoccupied buildings. 

But the rate payers were unsurprisingly not happy about paying the extra amount, and insteas of refurbing their run down eyesores, challenged the decision. 

Now the State Administrative Tribunal has ruled against the CGG, meaning the council may even have to pay these investment groups back some of the rate money they've paid. 

(From the SAT website: The Tribunal is the primary place for the review of decisions made by Government agencies, public officials and local governments. It also makes a wide variety of original decisions.)

Humpback Whale washes up on Kalbarri beach

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This was posted to Instagram yesterday by Kerby Brown:

Had an early solo surf out the point this morn... It felt a bit eerie for some reason and I actually thought I saw a solid shark but thought nothing of it. Little did I know this poor dead whale was washed up just a bit further up the beach. Apparently there have been heaps of big tiger sharks hanging around all morning and you can see a bunch of sharks lurking in front of the whale. They are trying to remove the whale just now.

 

Read more about the incident at The West: https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa/a/25053561/whale-washes-up-at-kalbarri/

Pic: Steven Eley

Pic: Bianca-jade Shaw

Walkaway farmer vs politicians who don't believe in climate change

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“No-one can tell me that global warming is not happening.”
— Bruce Garratt, Walkaway Farmer

Bruce Garratt owns the property that those majestic wind turbines inhabit that you see when driving past walkaway. 

ABC's 7.30 recently did a report on the proposed changes to Australia's renewable energy target. 

Current legislation mandates that by 2020, 20% of our energy must come from renewable sources like wind and solar. 

But that target is now under review, with some politicians claiming climate change isn't real, and there should be no target at all. 

Click here to watch the seven minute video.

Storm hits Geraldton

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There was a weather warning in place for Geraldton last night and this morning as a storm hit the Midwest and surrounding areas.

From 1.55 pm yesterday, September 7, the Bureau of Meteorology advised a passage of a strong cold front from Sunday evening was  expected to cause widespread damaging winds to 100 kilometres per hour that could result in damage to homes and property.

We had reports of some damage in local homes, power was out is some homes, traffic lights are out in the Geraldton CBD and some fences were blown down.

ABC’s gardening presenter helping local community design sustainable landscapes

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Award winning ABC local radio and TV gardening presenter Chris Ferreira recently presented Heavenly Hectares Property Planning Course in Geraldton to local life-style block owners and hobby farmers. This popular short-course helped participants design productive and sustainable blocks.

Mr Ferreira said, “In over 20 years of teaching I have never got tired of seeing the enthusiasm and excitement participants have for wanting to transform their properties to make them more sustainable, safe and productive. It is a real pleasure and it leaves me with the overwhelming sense that our land is in good hands”.

Partnering with NACC, Mr Ferreira’s presentation was tailored to help local blockers understand the landscape a whole lot better so that they can make the right decisions and gain the most from the rural experience.

According to Mr Ferreira, “for the trained eye the landscape is literally bursting with clues on what are the strengths, weaknesses and other characteristics of your land, what productive potential it has, what may be wrong with it and what will be needed to make it work effectively. All of which starts with being able to read your landscape.”

Mr Ferreira’s ‘whopper tips’ on how to read and manage your landscape include:

  • For land with rocks near surface – it means sloppy ground prone to erosion that can be difficult and expensive to work, and hard to make a go of grazing and cropping, but it may be ok for returning to bush or perhaps selected tree crops such as bush foods and nut tree crops.
  • For hard, uneven ground – it is an indication of heavy clay that is prone to waterlogging, so draining and choice of crops, seeding, fertiliser and weed control are usually needed.
  • Bare sandy soils – it means the land has been overgrazed and has low fertility level, often drought prone, water repellent and prone to erosion.
  • Pricky weeds – indicates nasty mismanagement of the land. They will usually mean the soil is degraded, so some serious charity work will be needed to bring this place back to black.
  • Dying trees can be symptomatic of a whole range of problems including waterlogging, salinity, overgrazing or dieback disease, drought stress, climate change – all suggesting that the land has been worked hard and that some careful management and repair work will be needed. 

Beach wrack causing smell

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If you've noticed that our beaches have been a bit smelly lately, this is why.

The usual blankets of seaweed and seagrass are again covering our local beaches in abundance.

This mix of seaweed and seagrass, (collectively known as beach wrack) creates smells that can be considered a nuisance by some beach goers.

The Northern Agricultural Catchments Council (NACC),  says beach wrack plays a vital role in our coastal ecosystem by recycling nutrients back into food chains that include popular recreational fish species such as herring. Wrack also helps protect beaches from erosion by stopping waves washing sand away and assisting the formation of protective dunes.

Incredible footage of a humpback whale being disentangled

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A whale disentanglement team from the Department of Parks and Wildlife has successfully disentangled a humpback whale north-west of Geraldton Western Australia with assistance from the Department of Fisheries and Kalbarri Volunteer Sea Rescue.

Footage provided by Department of Parks and Wildlife and Ryan Scott

(Video does go silent half way through.)

Dongara Port Denison wins tidy town award

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Congrats to our friends in Dongara Port Denison who today won the Midwest-Gascoyne tidy town award for Natural Environment Conservation. Pic via Shire of Irwin Facebook page.

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Humpback whale in danger spotted entangled in rope off Horrocks

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01eec10693d9896b4d757174d0f20dd9_XL The Department of Parks and Wildlife is urging boaters and beach visitors near Horrocks north of Geraldton to be on the lookout for an entangled humpback whale.

The whale was first sighted north of Kalbarri on Sunday and again late yesterday by a beach fisherman off Lucky Bay. It has since been re-sighted by Parks and Wildlife staff 10km off Horrocks.

Geraldton district manager Rory Chapple said it has a rope entangled around its tail flukes and is towing two large orange buoys.

“It is currently travelling slowly in a southerly direction due to the gear it is carrying and appears to be malnourished,” he said.

“We encourage boaties to report any sightings to the department and refrain from approaching the whale or attempting to free it. A disentanglement team from Parks and Wildlife is in transit to the area and will undertake disentanglement of the ropes if feasible.”

People who see an entangled or beached whale should keep a safe distance from the animals and contact the department’s Wildcare Helpline on 9474 9055.

Source: http://www.dpaw.wa.gov.au/news/media-statements/item/884-entangled-whale-tracked-off-geraldton-coast

Water Minister visits Geraldton to discuss odour complaints

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Water Minister Mia Davies visited Geraldton on Monday to discuss odour complaints coming from the Utakarra Waste Water Pumping Station. Residents have been complaining for months about the odour and after the Minister's visit yesterday, Geraldton MLA Ian Blayney said the Water Corporation are hopeful that the odour issues can be addressed by October and other issues fully resolved by mid-February, 2015.

Minister Davies was accompanied to the site by senior staff of the Water Corporation and spent Monday afternoon inspecting the site and being briefed on the continuing work being undertaken to resolve the odour issues that have been a concern for local residents.

The Minister met with the City of Greater Geraldton CEO, Ken Diehm and Mayor Ian Carpenter to discuss the new biological odour scrubbers that will be fitted in October and the installation of the new pumps in February.

A meeting was also held with local residents who expressed their concerns and the impact that the continuing problems at the Waste Water Pumping Station was having on their day to day lives.

“A reference group has been formed. This group will receive regular briefings on progress, which I will be happy to facilitate," Mr Blayney said.

Geraldton aims to plant one million trees

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The Goodness Festival’s reach is far and wide and the Million Trees project has jumped on board to celebrate all that is good about greening our planet, well, Greater Geraldton at least.

To plant a million trees was the number one community aspiration from World Cafes held by the City of Greater Geraldton in 2010, and the momentum continues apace with more than 130,100 trees planted and accounted for to date.

A mammoth effort has been put in by Midwest Ports who have recently planted 1600 along Marine Terrace near the wharf.

City Coordinator Community Engagement, Janell Kopplhuber, said the City has been helping the community keep count of trees being planted in the city region through an online registration form.

“The City has created a registration form on our website so that anyone who has planted a tree can register it towards the million,” she said.

“We know lots of people plant trees and shrubs all the time, we just haven’t been told about them yet.”

The Million Trees project will have a presence at the Goodness Festival Expo on Saturday August 23, at the Queen Elizabeth II Seniors and Community Centre in Geraldton, where people can register to get involved as every tree planted counts towards the target and can be registered on the ‘make your tree count’ page on the City’s website.

The community has embraced this project and many successful corporate and community planting days have resulted in some interesting statistics and support, including more than 350 people and 900 volunteer hours committed to the goal.

Ms Kopplhuber said volunteers have been across the board from industry, corporate organisations, community and school students.

“It has been a fantastic effort and some of the students were at many of the community tree planting days,” she said.

“The City does revegetation work each year and this year alone volunteers have helped us to plant a total of 4,508 seedling stems along the Chapman River Wildlife Corridor.”

The average amount of seedlings planted per hour was five – fertilised, tree-guarded and watered, all contributing to the tally.

“Volunteers spent an amazing 9000 hours planting seedlings this year and if we were to calculate the value of these hours it amounts to almost $180,000 worth of volunteer time,” said Ms Kopplhuber.

Ms Kopplhuber encourages everyone who plants a seedling, bush or tree to add it to the Million Trees counter and register their interest in attending future volunteer tree plantings by visiting the City’s website or Million Trees Facebook.

More information on the Goodness Sustainability and Innovation Festival which runs from August 15-31 can be found at www.goodness.org.au

Central Greenough declared gasfield free

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Central Greenough has become the first community in WA to declare itself Gasfield Free in a clear statement to mining companies that fracking and other forms of unconventional gas extraction are not welcome in the area.
Spokesperson for Frack Free Geraldton Jo Franklin, said the declaration followed months of community consultation and doorknocking.
“We knocked on every door in Central Greenough to ask the residents if they would like to declare their road gasfield free. The result was an overwhelming yes with more than 96 per cent of people saying they supported the concept of becoming a Gasfield Free Community,” Ms Franklin said.
“Gasfield Free Communities began in northern NSW two years ago and have since spread virally around the nation with more than 3 million hectares of agricultural land already declared Gasfield Free in NSW alone.
“A Gasfield Free Community declaration means that gas companies do not have a social licence to operate in the area. Communities  around Australia are declaring themselves No Go Zones for gas drilling and exploration.
“Fracking is not safe and is not welcome. Communities like central Greenough are coming together to say “we will protect our land, our water and our future” by locking the gate to frackers and other gas miners.
“What we are witnessing is a mass social movement of ordinary people who are willing to stand up for their rights and the protection of their livelihoods and that of their grandchildren against the invasive march of the gas companies.
“Central Greenough is just the first of many communities in WA who are likely to declare their communities and their precious water resources off limits to fracking.”

Enjoy a guided wildlife walk

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CRF_3-Guided-walk-17.08.14 Chapman River Friends present guided walks in the Chapman River regional Park.

Walks are adjusted to suit participants and last approx 1.5 hours.

CHILDREN WELCOME!

Meeting places are:

  • SPALDING PARK - is the playground area off Chapman Road between the roundabout and the bridge, where the entry sign says "CHAPMAN RIVER REGIONAL PARK".
  • FAIRFAX ROAD CARPARK - is in the suburb of Moresby: heading north on North Coast Highway turn R at the roundabout into Chapman Valley Road, then R at Sutcliffe Rd South, R at Longva and R at Fairfax Road.

SAVE THE DATES AND NEW TIME! Tuesday 19th @ 3.30pm Spalding Park Sunday 24th @ 3pm Fairfax Road Carpark Tuesday 26th @ 3.30pm Spalding Park Sunday 31st @ 3pm Spalding Park Wear - bush gear: closed shoes, hats, sunscreen and BYO water bottle.

More information contact Jenna on 0417960737 or visit www.facebook.com/pages/Chapman-River-Friends/1403433019914085

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Minister for Water to visit Geraldton after smell complaints

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photo Minister for Water, Mia Davies MLA, will visit Geraldton and witness first-hand complaints arising from the Waste Water Pumping Station in Utakarra.

The suburb has been experiencing what some have described as a "foul stench" lingering in the area due to the waste water pumping station. Some residents in Wonthella have also complained of the smell.

Minister Davies has indicated her intention to visit Geraldton and the Utakarra Pumping Station on Monday, August 25 to evaluate the issues affecting residents – most significantly the noxious odours emitted from the Pumping station - and the Water Corporation’s response to the matter.

Geraldton MLA Ian Blayney has welcomed the decision by the Minister and said he was pleased that the Minister is responding to his representation of his constituents concerns in relation to the issue.

 

Public submission invited on draft Public Open Space Strategy

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POS strategy

The City has developed a draft Public Open Space Strategy (POS) for the Greater Geraldton urban area, Walkaway and Mullewa and the draft is now open for public comment.

The draft strategy is available for inspection during office hours at the Civic Centre, 63 Cathedral Avenue, Geraldton, Mullewa District Office, corner Padbury and Thomas Streets, Mullewa or an electronic version can be downloaded from the City’s website at www.cgg.wa.gov.au/services/town- planning/public-consultations.

The draft strategy will provide an overarching framework and strategic direction for the future planning and improvement of public open space over the next 20 years and beyond.

The public is invited to send submissions on the Strategy to council@cgg.wa.gov.au. The public submission period closes on September 26 2014.