Jennifer Marohasy

a forum for the discussion of issues concerning the natural environment

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Liberalism after the [Australian] Howard Government

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The latest IPA Review is now out and many of the articles from this issue are part of a feature ‘What next: Liberalism after the Howard Governmet’ and can be downloaded from the IPA’s website.

The feature includes a longish piece by me entitled ‘John Howard, Environmentalist’.

I beginning by suggesting that the story of John Howard the environmentalist is a story of deference to professed expertise and include reference to his various ‘achievements’ in this area including the banning of broad-scale tree clearing in western Queensland, the banning of fishing over large areas of the Great Barrier Reef, the EPBC legislation, and the $10 billion national water plan. This plan included the buy back of many more gigalitres than ever proposed by the then Labor opposition.

I conclude by suggesting that John Howard will, nevertheless, probably be remembered as simply the Prime Minister who refused to ratify Kyoto and ‘save the world from global warming’. I suggest part of his government’s problem was that they never had their own plan or ideas for the environment.

Before commenting you may want to read the piece at http://ipa.org.au/publications/publisting_detail.asp?pubid=731

Sending Warships May Breach Antarctic Treaty: A Note from Ann Novek

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Dear Jennifer,

Greenpeace, Sea Shepherd and many Australians have urged the new Rudd government to send the Navy to the country’s self proclaimed Antarctic territory , which is not recognised by other nations and which include a Whale Sanctuary to stop Japanese whaling.

The Austraslian Prime Minister will decide this week, whether to send the Navy and the long range aircraft or not to gather evidence for a case in the International Court of Justice in the Hague.

Japan’s Fisheries Agency is confident of a victory with the Minister stating in an ABC radio interview : “We will not tolerate any moves to obstruct our research whaling program, which is approved under an international treaty. In light of these treaties, denying international whaling authorised by the international community is unacceptable.”

Australian international law specialist, Don Rothwell warned that naval patrols would breach the 1959 Antarctic Treaty, which deemed Antarctica to be a demilitarised zone, and possibly spark an international incident.

Greenpeace urges Forum Island Country governments party to CITES to make a formal protest about Japan’s killing of humpbacks under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) claiming “The Japanese government is breaching this international treaty on trade in endangered species with their plans to import humpback whale meat into Japan.”

According to the same report in www.scoop.co.nz, “The CITES Secretariat has the power to pressure Japan to not kill any humpbacks through issuing a written caution to Japan; sending public notification through the Secretariat to all Parties of the issue; notifying Japan that it is in non-compliance and request a compliance action plan, and finally recommend a suspension of trade with Japan in CITES listed species.”

Cheers,
Ann
In Sweden

UN Climate Change Conference Ends

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Rachmat Witoelar, Indonesia’s Environment Minister, closed the United Nation’s Climate Change Conference in Bali yesterday with comment that,

“We have a Roadmap!

I am delighted to say that we have finally achieved the breakthrough the world has been waiting for: the Bali Roadmap!

Distinguished delegates,

The decisions we have taken in Bali together create the world’s road map to a secure climate future. The governments assembled here have responded decisively in the face of new scientific evidence and significant advances in our thinking to collectively envision, and chart, a new climate-secure course for humanity.

The Bali Roadmap consists of a number of forward-looking decisions adopted today. These decisions represent various tracks that are essential to reaching a secure climate future.

At this meeting we have launched a new negotiation process, designed to tackle climate change, with the aim of completing this by 2009.

We have also addressed the AWG negotiations, setting a 2009 deadline, firmly launched the Adaptation Fund, and defined the scope and content of the Art. 9 review of the Kyoto Protocol – all of these on the Kyoto track. Similarly we have charted a course forward on reducing emissions from deforestation and on technology transfer, including an exciting new strategic programme.”

For information on these initiatives and the rest of the speech by Mr Witoelar, please click here: http://unfccc.int/meetings/cop_13/items/4049.php

Happy Christmas

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Paul has gone off to his wife’s Christmas party for the weekend, the infamous TV soapy ‘Neighbors’ has finished for the year in Australia, and I’ve started receiving e-cards including this one from Haldun:

“As the year 007 is coming to an end, I wish you and all your bloggers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Thanks for managing such an informative and enjoyable blog.”

And John wrote: “I took the trouble of running a ruler over your Blog. The good people at “The Blog Readability Test”, reckons your J.M.Blog is high school reading level. Not bad, not bad at all, for a blog that is scientific but also PR, I reckon that’s a pretty good score. Here’s the link, http://www.criticsrant.com/bb/reading_level.aspx

So, perhaps its time to relax a bit, enjoy this Christmas period and say thank you for reading and contributing to this little blog spot over the last year.

Burleigh Jan07 020 (copy).jpg
My mother, and a regular reader of this blog, sitting on the beach at Burleigh Heads in January 2007. This is where my family will be heading again for some of this Christmas period.

(And keep checking in to the blog, we aren’t going away.)

How Many Scientists Really Subscribe to the IPCC Climate Crisis?

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“It’s an assertion repeated by politicians and climate campaigners the world over – ‘2,500 scientists of the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) agree that humans are causing a climate crisis’.

“But it’s not true. And, for the first time ever, the public can now see the extent to which they have been misled. As lies go, it’s a whopper. Here’s the real situation…

Read more here: http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/968

Something for the Weekend

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I’m off to Reading in Berkshire for my wife’s employer’s annual Christmas party – so much to my wife’s delight, I’ll be well over 100 miles away from my laptop for most of the weekend. Meanwhile, here are a few bits and bobs:

Magma May Be Melting Greenland Ice

SAN FRANCISCO—Global warming may not be the only thing melting Greenland. Scientists have found at least one natural magma hotspot under the Arctic island that could be pitching in.

Carbon cost of Christmas dinner (yawn!)

A carbon footprint equivalent to 6,000 car journeys around the world will be produced by the UK tucking into Christmas dinner, researchers say (yawn again!)

And a yawn for Oz:

Xmas trees ‘not immune to climate change’

The survey of 1000 Australians revealed more than half would take environmental concerns into account when choosing presents for their loved ones.

Do the Rich Owe the Poor Climate Change Reparations?

In one scenario, Americans would pay the equivalent of a $780 per person luxury tax annually, which amounts to sending $212 billion per year in climate reparations to poor countries to aid their development and help them adapt to climate change. In this scenario, the total climate reparations that the rich must transfer annually is over $600 billion. This contrasts with a new report commissioned by the U.N. Development Program that only demands $86 billion per year to avoid “adaptation apartheid.”

Max Mayfield: ‘No One Forced Me to Say Anything’

Former Hurricane Center Director Contradicts Democrats’ Political Pressure Claims

The former director of the National Hurricane Center says political pressure did not cause him to change his congressional testimony to downplay the link between global warming and hurricanes, contradicting the findings of a Democratic led investigation released Monday.

“I can truthfully say that no one told me at any time what to say in regard to possible impacts of climate change on tropical cyclones,” said Max Mayfield in an e-mail to ABC News. This design characterizes the state’s jobs, like controller or guarantor of advanced personalities (or not one or the other), obligations in getting sorted out information, applications, framework, and the basic standards and working techniques for the computerized character environment as a unified personality the executives foundation. Moreover, new technologies and innovations can help establishments curb the use of a fake id. read more about fake id.

Fiinally, for those wishing to critique the Douglass et al paper:

Welcome to the International Journal of Climatology manuscript submission and peer review website

Have a hysterical weekend!

Regards,

Paul Biggs