green action news: issue 20, spring 2013

Green Action NewsM O B I L I S I N G P E O P L E T O S A F E G U A R D O U R E N V I R O N M E N T ISSUE 20 • SPRING 2013

How people powercan safeguard ourenvironmentPLUSProtect Victoria from coal exports

G R E E N A C T I O N N E W S | I S S U E 2 0 | S P R I N G 2 0 1 3 | w w w. e n v i ro n m e n t v i c t o r i a . o r g . a u22

IN THE 1970s THE HAMERgovernment, led by the Liberal Party,had a motto of protecting our naturalenvironment ‘as if for a 1000 years’. Theyunderstood that our natural assets, ourforests, rivers, farmland and climate, arethe lifeblood of every Victorian and mustbe used sustainably.

Just 40 years later, the Liberal/NationalCoalition has certainly changed its tune.They treat our natural assets like aresource to be exploited at any cost.Private development in national parks,massive expansion of coal mining inproductive farmland, new ports inmarine protected areas... unfortunatelythe list goes on.

While the ALP has traditionally beenstronger on the environment, nogovernment has been particularly goodat protecting threatened species like the

Leadbeater’s Possum which is so close tobeing lost forever.

We’re fed up with our environmentbeing treated like a political football.

Immediately following the 2010 stateelection, we developed a new strategyto make sure that whichever party formsthe government of the day, they act tosafeguard our environment for allVictorians.

At the heart of our strategy is peoplepower.

Thanks to you, we’re buildingcommunity power to get theenvironment back on the agenda andkeep it there. We call it our Superforce!

We’re creating a community ofactivists who are willing to get out intheir local neighbourhoods and holdface to face conversations on ourenvironment and what needs to be done

to safeguard it. Find out more aboutthese amazing people and our strategyon page 8.

We’re banking on the power of thepeople (that’s you) being greater thanthe people in power (political leaders).

It’s a pretty good bet when youconsider that every big win in history -from civil rights, to a woman’s right tovote, to saving the Franklin - was drivenby people willing to speak up.

Nothing is more powerful thanpassionate people, organised intogroups, demanding change. It’ssomething that the pollies simply can’tignore!

Like every great win, it will take timeand hard work to protect ourenvironment. We’re in it for the long hauland I thank you for being with us.

Let’s go…!

> Kelly O’Shanassy, Chief Executive Officer

Our new strategy for change

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I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E

Green Action NewsIssue 20, Spring 2013Design 2Fish ProductionsPrint Almar PressContributing writersAlex Merory, Amber Sprunt, CharlieDavie, Juliet Le Feuvre, KellyO’Shanassy, Domenica Settle, MarkWakeham, Victoria McKenzie-McHarg,Tom HartneyEditorAlex Merory (03) 9341 [email protected] Membership enquiries (03) 9341 8100 [email protected] Media enquiries(03) 9341 [email protected] Green Action News is an Environment Victoria publication. For more information, visitwww.environmentvictoria.org.au

Our Rivers Our Lifeblood

What a new browncoal industry meansfor Victoria (cont)

Why you care

Communityorganising

One MillionHomes Alliance

Federal Election2013

Communities vs big polluters

What a new browncoal export industrymeans for Victoria

It’s time that politicians of all parties stood up to safeguard our environment. And that’s

only going to happen when the power of the people is greater than the people in power.

G R E E N A C T I O N N E W S | I S S U E 2 0 | S P R I N G 2 0 1 3 | w w w. e n v i ro n m e n t v i c t o r i a . o r g . a u 3

S A F E C L I M AT E

BUT THE FULL EXTENT OF THEgovernment’s plans to develop a newbrown coal export industry for Victoriaare only now starting to emerge.

If these plans go ahead, up to 13billion tonnes of brown coal could beallocated for mining and subsequentexport to be burnt in Asia. From theheart of our fertile farmland in Gippslandto protected marine zones besideWilsons Promontory, the impact of anew brown coal export industry wouldreach far into the future of all Victorians,tearing away hopes of combattingclimate change.

Our challenge now is to protect Victoriafrom this disaster before it’s too late.Thank you so much for providing thefunding so that we can do this! Read onto find out what treasures lie in the pathof destruction, and how you can helpProtect Victoria from Brown Coal Exports.

Eating away at our fertile food bowlContaining some of Victoria’s mostproductive farmland, Gippsland is hometo 22 percent of Australia’s milkproduction with a dairy industry worth$2.1 billion a year1.

But this vital food bowl is at risk, withhundreds of thousands of hectaresacross Gippsland covered by coal and

gas exploration licences and anothermassive coal giveaway for the regioncurrently under consideration.

It’s not just Gippsland at risk. Themarket garden town of Bacchus Marshon Melbourne’s western fringe is alsothreatened by coal mining.

By going ahead with brown coalexport plans, the Napthine Governmentwould be choosing coal over food,threatening our food security andsquandering our opportunity to be asource of food for the region.

Barrelling through our major citiesThe plan would also see major new truckroutes or coal freight trains runningthrough towns and suburbs acrossVictoria. Documents seen byEnvironment Victoria suggest thatseveral million tonnes of coal could betaken by truck or train to the Port ofGeelong each year.

That would mean coal trucks andtrains spewing pollution through thesuburbs of Melbourne and Geelong,increasing dangerous particulatepollution and backing up traffic acrossour two biggest cities.

Putting protected marineecosystems at riskIf the Napthine Government plans toexport coal to Asia, they’ll need majornew port infrastructure to make ithappen.

The Victorian Freight Strategy releasedin August 2013 lists supporting browncoal exports as one of the top five freightstrategies for the state. Coal companieshave expressed interest in shipping coalfrom Westernport, Melbourne, and eventhe Port of Geelong.

Even more alarmingly, we have goodreason to suspect that coal exports arethe major driver behind newdevelopment in a protected marine zonebeside Wilsons Promontory, Corner Inlet.

THANK YOU!A huge thank you to those who were able to donate to our recent appeal tostop these brown coal exports. Standing up to the coal industry and theirpolluting plans is only possible because of your help. We hope you feel veryproud of the difference you are making by taking this action.

Latrobe Valley farmland. PHOTO: JOAN BOWKER

Southern right whale

1. http://www.gippsdairy.com.au/GippslandFacts/DairyinGippsland.aspx

What a new brown coal exportindustry means for Victoria> Victoria McKenzie-McHarg

When then state Treasurer Kim

Wells announced in 2011 that the

Victorian Coalition Government

would protect the competitive

advantage of Victoria’s brown

coal ‘come hell or high water’, we

knew we had a fight on our

hands…

continued page 6 >>>


IN THE MANY YEARS THATEnvironment Victoria has been workingwith Victorians to help protect andrestore our river systems and celebratetheir value, we’ve experienced a lack ofcommunity understanding about theissues facing our rivers and the need forrelevant,easily accessible and conciseyet comprehensive information.

The Our Rivers Our Lifeblood projectis our chance to fill that gap. With yoursupport and help from the HelenMcpherson Smith Trust, we’redeveloping an innovative web-basedatlas of Victoria’s 29 river basinsshowing each catchment’s majorfeatures, values, condition, water usersand key threats.

For the first time Victorians will beable to access all this information in theone place, in a form that is accessibleand engaging. The atlas will underlinethe diversity of our river systems andtell some of the fascinating storiesabout their wildlife and history.

Our Rivers, Our Lifeblood is the first comprehensive web

atlas of Victoria’s 29 river basins, designed to help people

understand the plight of our lifeblood – our rivers.

Our Rivers, Our Lifeblood

> Juliet Le Feuvre, Healthy Rivers Campaigner

H E A L T H Y R I V E R S

The spiny crayfish storyVictoria has nine species of spiny crayfish, our largest freshwater crustaceans.Five of them are listed as threatened. Some are widespread but rare, like thegiant Murray spiny cray (or Murray lobster), which is found right acrossnorthern Victoria, while others like the East Gippsland spiny cray are morecommon but live in only a handful of rivers. The Glenelg spiny cray orPrickleback is listed as endangered and found only in the Glenelg River. Thisunlovely but unique creature is the only spiny cray to be fully protected fromfishing in Victoria.

Southern spiny crayfish. PHOTO: NATMANDU (FLICKR)

It’s all about damsDid you know that every single river reach that is classified in good orexcellent condition is upstream of a major dam? Not a single section ofriver that is downstream of a reservoir is in good condition anywhere inthe state. Dams really do have a devastating impact on river health.

Hume Dam. PHOTO: BIDGEE


Setting the policy agenda forthe 2014 state election

Equally importantly, the atlasidentifies conservation priorities in eachriver basin and provides potentialsolutions to mitigate the key threatsand reduce Victoria’s majorconsumptive uses of water foragriculture, industry and in our cities.

We’re bringing these strands togetheras a set of state-wide themes to helpset the policy agenda for the 2014 stateelection:• Fairer sharing of water – current

sharing arrangements prioritisehuman use and rivers are leftcarrying less of their own water andmost of the risk of drought andclimate change

• Restoring landscape connectivity –river corridors are key toreconnecting isolated habitats,allowing for species propagation andmigration both on land and in water

• Protecting water quality – byrestoring riverside vegetation andprotecting wetlands that play a vitalrole in removing pollutants

• Preserving water quantity – byreducing greenhouse gas emissionsand providing a safe climate. A drierfuture is the biggest threat of all toour rivers and wetlands. This project enables us to re-engage

on wider issues of river health and welook forward to sharing them with you.We’ll be launching the Our River OurLifeblood atlas in October, and areplanning to get out and about tocelebrate our wonderful rivers andencourage action to protect and restore them.

Go to www.environmentvictoria.org.au/lifeblood for more details

Fish killsFish kills have been happening in Victoria since at least the 1860s. Some ofthe stories are enough to make your hair stand on end – in the 1930s cyanidefrom mining killed thousands of cod in the Loddon and spoilt the fishing foryears. Around the same time copper sulphate, used to control an algal bloomin Hume dam on the Murray, corroded the dam gates and killed truckloads offish, birds and crayfish as far downstream as South Australia! Fish kills are stilla major problem – black water events following recent flooding in northernVictoria caused widespread fish deaths. The best preventive measure?Improved environmental watering.

Fish kill, Hattah 2012

The Shaw galaxias The Shaw galaxias that lives in a creek in theheadwaters of the Macalister River in Gippsland hasonly recently been recognised as a separate species,just in time to save it from extinction. Barriers havebeen erected to exclude trout from its habitat to givethe little fish a chance to avoid being wiped out by thevoracious introduced predator.

Shaw galaxias. PHOTO: RUDIE H. KUITERCOMP

The Murray hardyheadThe Murray hardyhead is a little fish that used to be widespread across theMurray-Darling Basin. It is now nationally threatened and in Victoria it isfound in only four lakes. As the fish has a lifespan of about 18 months itneeds to breed every year. It is therefore essential that the lakes where it livesdo not dry out. The species was thrown a lifeline by emergency watering ofits habitat during the drought and a captive breeding program at Mildura.

Murray hardyhead, North-West Victoria

Listed as an internationally significantwetland under the Ramsar Convention,Corner Inlet is home to protectedseagrasses and mangroves and thecritically endangered Orange-belliedParrot. Southern Right Whales pass byon their annual migration path. Yet ifcoal exports leave from Corner Inlet itcould be dredged and destroyed tomake way for massive coal freighters.

Blowing the carbon budgetAll of this coal would be destined forburning in power stations in countrieslike India and China, resulting in massivegreenhouse pollution.

In 2011, Carbon Tracker’sgroundbreaking report ‘UnburnableCarbon’ found that to limit globalwarming to 2ºC, only one fifth of theworld’s remaining fossil fuel reservescould be used by 2050. Yet this plan todig up and ship Victoria’s brown coal tothe world would blow Australia’s carbonbudget out of the water and dashchances of stopping runaway climatechange.

What’s more, these plans would onlybe possible with the help of billions ofdollars in taxpayer subsidies,representing a bonanza for the coalbarons but little value for the Victorianpublic.

Stage one of the government’s plan isalready underway. Recent mediasuggests that the government is justmonths away from announcing therecipients of a $90 million fund set up bythe state and federal governments tosupport new coal projects in Victoria.

We need to step up now. If we’re goingto stop this disaster from going ahead,and protect Victoria for futuregenerations we need to stop these plansbefore they get off the ground.

Our plan to stop brown coal exports thanks to you!This is not the first time we’ve battledbrown coal export plans. Thanks toindividuals like you helping to protectour environment and climate wesuccessfully harnessed communitypower in 2009 to halt these plans. In2012 we also achieved a delay for sixmonths, buying us some much neededtime.

This time as we take on the coal

industry’s export plans again we’replaying to win.

We’re talking to landholders acrossGippsland about the threat to their landand meeting with communities directlythreatened by proposed new coal ports.With your incredible support, ourSuperforce of 600 volunteers will be outand about in the coming months talkingto people across Victoria about what’s atstake.

Over the next six months we plan togather 15,000 signatures calling onPremier Napthine to protect Victoria andabandon their coal export pipedream.With this copy of the Green Action Newsyou received a petition form with spacefor your friends and family to sign andshow their commitment to ProtectVictoria.

Please, ask your friends and family tosign this petition and return it toEnvironment Victoria to kick-start thisstatewide campaign to Protect Victoriafrom coal exports.



TAKE ACTION!1.Sign the petition at

environmentvictoria.org.au/nocoalexports or incuded withthis Green Action News.

2.Tick the box at the end of thepetition if you want to help getmore people signing on.

3.Share with your family andfriends.

OVER THE NEXT SIX MONTHS WE PLAN TOGATHER 15,000 SIGNATURES CALLING ONPREMIER NAPTHINE TO PROTECT VICTORIA.

Orange-bellied parrot

>>> From page 3


S O C I A L M E D I A

Why you careWe asked you why you’re concerned about the environment and we were overwhelmed by theflood of beautiful, heart-felt responses on our Facebook page. Here are some of our favourites.

Lisa: The earth is round and beautiful; infinite in its

complexity and finite in its capacity.

Beornn: If I knew the answer to why I care about theenvironment I’d be able to tell you why I care about myself,but there’s no ready answer and it’s redundant when we haveno other self or environment to care about.

Dean: I opened my lungs, my eyes, my ears and my heart as

I grew and found that I belonged to the most incredible place

we know in the Universe.

Devanesan: For intergenerational equity, as I have

7 grandchildren.

Barb: I’ve been fortunate enough to experience a number of

natural environments and I so want my grandchildren to have

those same opportunities, and, in turn, their children too.

Rusty: We are part of the environment and its health is

integral to ours, thus environmental destruction is self-

destruction, and preservation of nature is self-preservation.

Henry: It’s elemental my dear Watson. We ARE our

environment and our environment is us. It grows us, it shows

us, it makes us, it shakes us, it bakes us and consecrates and

ultimately takes us!

Annie: Because my ancestors’ ancestors’ ancestors have leftthe earth in a beautiful state, I’d like my great-great-great-grandchildren to be able to say the same of me.

Maureen: I want my grandchildren to experience and feel

the wonder of this beautiful world we are privileged to be

able to live in.

Shannon: She compels me to love her becauseshe is everywhere and all around me, she is me,and I a tiny part of her.

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK!Every day we post our take on the latest news

affecting Victoria’s environment. Join the conversation. LIKE our page at

facebook.com/environmentvictoria

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THERE ARE TWO SOURCES OF POWERin western democracies: organisedmoney and organised people.

In recent times we’ve seen thegrowing power of organised money inAustralia, from campaigns by billionairesagainst the mining tax, polluters againstthe carbon tax, and irrigator associationsto weaken the national plan to save theMurray River.

Despite the extremely generousfinancial support we receive from peoplelike you to run our campaigns, we can’tmatch the deep pockets of vestedinterests.

But we have something else up ourcollective sleeve: people power.Environment Victoria has longunderstood the need to build strong,grassroots campaigns that mobiliseVictorians. We still hold the equal worldrecord for organising the largest climatechange protest the world has ever seen,with 50,000 people attending the 2009Walk Against Warming in Melbourne(matched only by the rally inCopenhagen).

The ability to mobilise people todemonstrate popular support forprotecting our environment at keymoments is powerful, and with the helpof people like you, it’s gotten us over theline in some crucial wins for ourenvironment. We’ll continue to mobiliseour supporters against the bigenvironmental threats we face. Butlooking at the current politicallandscape, it’s clear that we need to domore. We’re simply not powerful enoughto create the lasting change we sodesperately need.

And given the urgency and scale ofthe environmental challenges we face,we just can’t afford to take two stepsforward and one step back any longer.

Albert Einstein allegedly said: “Thedefinition of insanity is doing the samething over and over again and expectingdifferent results”. The environmentmovement needs a new approach.

In the wake of the 2010 Victorianelection, with the Coalition Governmentundoing much of the progress made by

environmentalists over the decades, wedecided that a change in strategy wasneeded.

As an organisation we decided todevelop and invest in a new skill -community organising. At its heart ,community organising is about buildingpower. It’s the long-term process ofbuilding durable community power toget our issues on the agenda and keepthem there.

We’re creating a community ofactivists who understand the threat toour environment and are committed toworking with us over the long term toachieve real change. Through organising,

R E C L A I M V I C T O R I A’ S E N V I R O N M E N T

Community organisinVictoria’s future and w

WHAT WE’VE ALREADY DONE:• Committed to investing in

community organising tobuild lasting power

• Created a permanentCommunity Organiserposition

• Launched an incrediblysuccessful new volunteercampainger program withour Superforce of over 600volunteering to give atleast one day per monthfor the next three years

• Had two thousand face-to-face conversations withVictorians in the areas thatdetermine the outcome ofevery state and federalelection

• Undertaken staff trainingwith the highly successfulSierra Club in the US

• Implemented weeklycommunity stalls acrossMelbourne, fortnightlyphonebanks where we talkabout the latest issue withtarget communities, andinspirational bi-monthlyvolunteer trainingmeetings

• Met with 33 State MPs(from all parties) to briefthem on our ReclaimVictoria’s Environmentcampaign

• Deployed our organisingcapacity in the federalelection with volunteershaving 550 conversationsin the four most marginalVictorian seats askingvoters to consider theenvironment at the ballotbox

THANK YOU!Thank you to our amazingsupporters who are helping to make our organising strategybig, bold and effective.


and thanks to your support, we’rerecruiting new volunteers to thecampaign, providing training to buildskills, power and leadership, andestablishing lasting relationships thatwill keep us united as a team that isstrong enough and broad enough towin. These deep relationships, combinedwith the right skills and actions willcreate the presence and power in thecommunity we know is needed to makea difference.

With community organising at theheart of our plan, we’ll be able to buildpower for our movement acrossVictorian communities and mobilise oursupporters when it matters on a scalewe’ve never seen before.

One of the key tools is having one-on-one conversations with Victorians aboutwhy we need environmental leadershipfrom our governments, what ourgovernments are currently doing, andhow things could be better. Face-to-face

conversations are most likely toinfluence people’s opinions and beremembered - particularly if it’s aneighbour or friend approaching yourather than those professional greeniesfrom Environment Victoria!

By using an organising model andworking with hundreds of volunteers,Environment Victoria massively extendour reach. Instead of a handful of stafftrying to influence community attitudeswe have our very own ‘Green Army’. Talkabout Direct Action!

And this organising capacity is beingtargeted to have maximum politicalimpact. Rather than trying to spread ourefforts right across the state we’vefocused most of our efforts on thehandful of areas that determine theoutcome of every state and federalelection. For instance, did you know thatwhichever party has won the seat ofMitcham has held government since theseat was created 46 years ago? Thatmakes the voters of Mitcham prettypowerful, and a strong ally if we canensure that the environment is at thefront of their minds when polled bypolitical parties. That doesn’t mean weforget about everywhere else. The greatthing about supporting a growingvolunteer base is that we can have apresence on the ground in areas we’venever managed before.

The commitment we’ve made toorganising, thanks to your ongoingsupport, is reinvigorating EnvironmentVictoria at a difficult time politically. Asan occasionally battle-weary activist itreally puts a spring in my step to meetwith amazing volunteer activists who areworking the phones into the evening as Ileave the office, who are knocking ondoors on a Saturday afternoon inFrankston, Prahran, Blackburn orMordialloc, or forming a newEnvironment Victoria action group in thewestern suburbs.

This is our future, and it’s exciting toembark on a journey that is going todeliver many long-lasting and powerfulenvironmental outcomes, not just forEnvironment Victoria’s campaigns, butfor all environmental campaigns in thisstate for decades to come.

ng: it’s Environmentwe’re excited

WE’RE IN GOOD COMPANYWe know community organising works because it’s had big results elsewhere.Here are some others who are kicking goals:

• The Sierra Club’s community organising has fast-tracked the closure of 145coal-fired power stations in the United States in just the past 3 years

• Political campaigns like the Obama campaign, and closer to home AdamBandt’s campaign in the seat of Melbourne, are using community organisingtechniques

• In Australia, 100% Renewables and Lock the Gate are effectively organisingand mobilising communities

JOIN US! To get involved in our community campaigns, sign up to volunteer at environmentvictoria.org.au/volunteer

> Charlie Davie, One Planet Living Campaigner


Community powerin the communitysector

With energy prices rapidly rising, reducing household energy and water use is a big step towards alleviating financial

disadvantage as well as promoting environmental protection. In the One Million Homes Alliance, environment and

social service groups have been working together to take that message to the Victorian government.

O N E P L A N E T L I V I N G

To read all about One Million Homes visit www.environmentvictoria.org.au/onemillionhomes

SINCE 2010 ENVIRONMENTVictoria has been coordinating the One Million Homes Alliance, adiverse coalition of communitygroups together representinghundreds of thousands ofVictorians.

Campaigning for improvedinvestment in the energy andwater performance of Victoria’sexisting housing stock, startingwith disadvantaged households,the Alliance had an early win whenthe Victorian Coalition went to theelection in 2010 with the promiseto “support the transition of allexisting housing stock to meet anaverage of 5 star energy rating.”

Since then however, theBaillieu/Napthine government hasdone little to progress thatcommitment. The Alliance is nowworking to make investment inefficient homes an election issueonce again in 2014.

According to EnvironmentVictoria Campaigns Director MarkWakeham the advantage ofworking together in an alliance isthat it provides a range of avenuesto deliver the message effectively.

“Melbourne’s electricity priceshave risen by 84% in five years, and88% of electricity comes fromburning brown coal. We know thisgovernment has shown littleinterest in reducing emissions, butwe can have a differentconversation about the cost ofliving benefits of improvinghousehold energy efficiency.Bringing together diverse allieshelps us make the case in a rangeof ways,” he said.

The One MillionHomes AllianceVictorian Council of Social Services(VCOSS), Kildonan UnitingCare, theConsumer Utilities Advisory Centre (CAUC),Moreland Energy Foundation (MEFL), theAlternative Technology Association (ATA),the Victoria Local Government Association(VLGA) and the energy services companyEnergy for the People.

MEFL“Moreland EnergyFoundation works withthe community inpractical ways to reducegreenhouse emissionsand respond to climatechange. We recognisethat the impacts ofclimate change will befelt most by those lessable to adapt. Lowincome anddisadvantagedmembers of thecommunity are less ableto respond to risingenergy costs or avoidadverse health impactsfrom a changingclimate. The One MillionHomes initiative is animportant partnershipthat deliversmeaningfulimprovements topeople’s lives and setsbetter standards for thehomes we live in in thefuture.”

CUACThe Consumer Utilities AdvocacyCentre Ltd (CUAC) is a specialistconsumer organisationrepresenting Victorian energy andwater consumers in policy andregulatory processes. The OMHAlliance’s work fits our focus onthe principles of affordability,accessibility, fairness, andempowerment. Improvinghousing energy performance is avaluable systemic reform thatparticularly helps low-income,disadvantaged, rural, andregional consumers, whoseinterests we believe must be aprimary consideration in energypolicy and service provision. Wesupport the Alliance’s evidence-based and constructive approachto working with the VictorianGovernment to help fulfil theirelection commitment of makingall homes 5-star energy efficient.


F E D E R A L E L E C T I O N 2 0 1 3

Federal election 2013

THANK YOU!Thank you to those who financiallysupported our short and sharpfederal election campaign to informvoters of the national environmentdisaster we were facing.

Making sure Victorians knew what was at stake when they cast their voteFace-to-face conversations > 700Envirotracker flyers distributed > 15,000Times Envirotracker was viewed online > 80,000Voters who saw local paper ads > 100,000

Election 2013 was a tough one

for the environment.

This was no surprise.

WITH A LABOR PARTY RIVEN BYinternal battles, Tony Abbott’ssuccessful (and fact-free) scarecampaign on the carbon price, and amedia barracking for change,progressive issues didn’t get much ofa look-in.

Environment Victoria was involvedin the election in two major ways,thanks to our fantastic volunteers anddonors. Firstly we were able to field-test our organising capacity in keyparts of the state in preparation fornext year’s state election. Secondly wegot out early with the mostcomprehensive environment policyanalysis by anyone in the country,Envirotracker, and made sure that ourpolicy snapshot was seen by around200,000 voters.

It’s always hard to know what’s inpeople’s minds as they cast theirvotes, but the Climate Instituteconducted a fascinating exit poll of1500 voters on election day. 40% ofCoalition voters nominated a strongereconomy as the most important issuein determining their vote, with just3% nominating scrapping the ‘carbontax.’ More voters want the Coalition toachieve emissions cuts of 5-25% (40%of voters) than to repeal the ‘carbontax’ (28%). The polling also shows thatAustralians across all political partiesstill care about the environment andwant action on climate change —even if it isn’t a top-tier voting issue.Yet.

We’ve got a plan to change that(see page eight), focused on the long-term strategy of building grassrootspower in the places that matter — theseats that changed hands at thefederal election and also determinedthe last state election. We’ll beensuring all parties know they need acredible environment policy andvigorously defending past gains alongthe way, like the carbon price, effortsto save the Murray, investment inrenewables, national environmentlaws and National Parks Protection.We’re up for it and we know that youare too.


Communities vs big pollutersVictorian communities facing the prospect of being ripped apart for coal mines and export infrastructure can

take heart from the resilience of other communities around Australia taking on the fossil fuel industry – many

of whom are prevailing by banding together. Here’s what we can achieve when we join forces.

> Tom Hartney, Communications Officer

Bulga vs Rio TintoWhen fossil fuel monster Rio Tinto

steamed into Bulga with the intention ofextending its open-cut coal mine, theydidn’t expect Bulga to put up much of afight.

But with help from the NSWEnvironment Defenders Office, theresidents of tiny Bulga stopped theexpansion through a challenge to theLand and Environment Court, makingworldwide news.

Unfortunately, the coal-addicted NSWgovernment weren’t amused, joining RioTinto in a challenge in the SupremeCourt, which will deliver its findings laterthis year. In the meantime, the NSWgovernment has introduced a newpolicy to elevate the importance ofproposed projects’ economic valueduring the approvals process. But indoing so they’ve upset a hornet’s nest offarmers, horse breeders and grapegrowers…

With Victorian farmers andcommunities facing their own fight toprotect their land from internationalmining companies, we watch eagerly tosee how this David and Goliath battleends.

James Price Point vs WoodsidePetroleum

Following an epic ten-year campaign,an alliance of environment groups,Broome community groups andTraditional Owners succeeded in its fightto protect one of the world’s last greatpockets of wilderness when WoodsidePetroleum announced plans to walkaway from its controversial gas hubproject at James Price Point in theKimberley.

James Price Point is undeniably amagical place – a Lost World of dinosaurfootprints and sacred Aboriginal sites,featuring the world’s largest humpbackwhale nursery.

Yet, backed by the Western Australiangovernment, Australia’s largest oil andgas producer Woodside Petroleumplanned to dredge the ocean floor andbuild a gas hub in the middle of it all.

The Wilderness Society led an inspiredcampaign targeting the project’sfinanciers, featuring support from high-profile musicians, blockades bycommitted activists and several legalchallenges to the state approval process.In August the Western AustralianSupreme Court ruled the WA EPA’sapprovals of the project invalid due toconflict of interest.

A R O U N D A U S T R A L I A

Solar CitizensCouncil vs WesternAustralia

As Australians continue to vote withtheir switches by embracing the solarrooftop revolution, the consequence hasbeen a historic reduction in demand forelectricity nationwide andunprecedented reduction in greenhouseemissions.

So when the Western Australiangovernment announced an ill-considered plan to retroactively cut thesolar feed-in tariff designed to providefair reward for solar users feeding energyback into the grid, they had a fight ontheir hands.

And who better to lead the chargethan the newly-minted Solar CitizensCouncil, representing Australia’s 2.5million rooftop solar users. Afterreceiving almost 10,000 emails fromdisgruntled solar users, WA Premier ColinBarnett admitted he had got it wrongand reversed his decision in one of themost welcome political backflips inrecent memory.

A win for the environment and a winfor people power!

Rio Tinto coal mine, Bulga. PHOTO: YEWENYI (FLICKR)

James Price Point. PHOTO: GREENSMPS (FLICKR)


Seaspray andPoowong vs CSG

Another threat facing communitiesaround Australia is the rapid expansionof the Coal Seam Gas (CSG) industry,with little regulation and littleaccountability.

While the Victorian government hasdeclared a temporary moratorium onCSG exploration in recognition of theuncertainty surrounding the impacts onour health and environment, theindustry continues its expansionunchecked interstate. And the Victoriangovernment is under pressure from thegas industry to overturn its moratorium.

While this scourge has ripped apartmany communities around Australia,pitting neighbour against neighbour, anincreasing number of communities haveunited in defiance of the threat. QuitCoal and Friends of the Earth have beenworking closely with these communities,supporting them in 'locking their gates'to coal and gas companies.

This has resulted in communitiestaking the further step of declaringthemselves 'coal and coal seam gas free'.After surveying their entire communitythe tiny South Gippsland town ofPoowong found that 95% of landholderswere against the proposeddevelopments, and declared itself Coaland CSG-free with a human sign. InAugust, Seaspray followed their lead,with an overwhelming 98% in support.Another 12 towns are in line to do thesame before the year is out.

Paid to Pollute:Australians vs BigPolluters

In the months leading up to thefederal budget, and thanks to thegenerous financial support of people likeyou who made it possible, EnvironmentVictoria forged an alliance of 84 ofAustralia’s leading environment andcommunity groups to strip Australia’sbiggest polluters of over $10 billiondollars a year in taxpayer handouts.

Along the way, we held actionsoutside dozens of MPs’ offices and petrolstations nationwide, sent over 8000messages to the Treasurer and MPs fromour amazing supporters and made newseverywhere from The Australian to thePort Macquarie News.

The federal budget included a cut todepreciation for mining exploration andprospecting that will save taxpayers $1.1 billion over the next four years.

And two months later, with a new PMand a new Treasurer, we had another winin the wake of changes to the carbonprice package, with $770 million inhandouts to Australia’s dirtiest coalgenerators being cancelled.

These wins are a sign that communitypressure is working and the tide isturning against a free ride for the fossilfuel industry. But the fight to cut polluterhandouts is far from over. The alliancewill keep up pressure on our politiciansinto 2014 when Australia will host theG20, given the G20 nations havecollectively agreed to phase out fossilfuel subsidies.

The Reef vs The Coal Barons

With the health of the Great BarrierReef already at critical risk, and withseveral massive new coal portdevelopments in World Heritage Areasbeing fast-tracked for approval by theQueensland government, Australia’siconic natural wonder needs our helplike never before.

Plans to expand ports to open upshipping channels would involve rippingup millions of tonnes of sea floor anddumping the sediment in the GreatBarrier Reef World Heritage area,choking coral and polluting preciousturtle and dugong habitat.

But with the Reef’s World Heritagestatus – and 60,000 tourism jobs – atstake, Australians aren’t about to liedown and allow this marine wonderlandto become a lost wonder. WWF andGreenpeace have both led vocalcampaigns to save the Reef fromindustrial ruin.

So far the campaign has succeeded indelaying approval of the world’s biggestcoal port at Abbott Point, with thousandsof people contacting Federal EnvironmentMinister Mark Butler and forcing him todelay his decision until November. Whathappens next is up to us.

Join the fight for the Reef at wwf.org.au

Seaspray Great Barrier Reef. PHOTO: UNIVERSITY OF DENVER (FLICKR)

WHEN PHILL AND HIS WIFE HAD their first baby they also received anunexpected arrival - big energy bills.

It’s a common story. Having a baby cansend energy use soaring, right whenhousehold income tends to be down.But there are lots of simple thingspeople can do to save energy and save on bills.

That’s where Environment Victoriacomes in! We’re running a new project

with low-income new parents across thestate to help them cut down theirenergy use.

We’ve been heading out to Indianplaygroups in Sunshine, young mumsgroups in the Latrobe Valley andkindergartens in Nhill in far westernVictoria. Despite all the chaos ofenthusiastic kids charging around theroom, spilt fruit juice and smelly nappies,we’re finding that parents are really keen

to hear what we have to say. “As soon as you start talking about

saving energy and bills, everyone’s gottheir story, everyone has questions,” saysproject officer Kat Gaita. Project officersKat, Miranda and Phill are parentsthemselves, so they understand thesometimes crazy world of parentingsmall children.

In addition to the workshops, Kat, Philland Miranda are also training a selectgroup of new parents to carry out simplehousehold sustainability assessments.They’ll then go to the homes of othernew parents to share their experiencesand offer suggestions of simple waysthat households can save energy.Everything from rugging up instead ofrunning the heater all night to puttingcheap bamboo blinds on the outside of windows to dramatically cut down the amount of summer sun getting intothe home.

The project is possible thanks to theLow Income Energy Efficiency Program,which is part of the federal Departmentof Resources, Energy and Tourism.

Between now and 2015 EnvironmentVictoria will run workshops with 1,200families, and will train 420 parents insustainability assessments, who will thenreach out to another 3,300 families. If the project is as successful asGreenTown and other past EnvironmentVictoria community projects, we think it will make a real difference tohouseholds’ financial, andenvironmental, bottom line.


S U S T A I N A B L E L I F E S T Y L E S

Project officer Phill Falcke, with hisoldest daughter, Eleanor. Phill is basedin Nhill, in western Victoria.

FuturePoweredFamilies> Domenica Settle, Project Manager

Future-Powered Families

is helping low-income

parents take charge of

their energy use.


Dear Kelly,

Yes! I want to save Victoria’s environment by preventing brown coal exports. Please accept my donation of:

■■ $100 ■■ $250 ■■ $500 ■■ $1000 ■■ Surprise us $ _______________

Please find enclosed: ■■ Cheque or ■■ Money Order (payable to Environment Victoria Inc.)

Or charge my credit card as follows. ■■ Amex ■■ Mastercard ■■ Visa

Cardholder’s name: ________________________________________Expiry date: __ __ / __ __ Signature: ___________________________

Card number:

■■ Please send me information about how I can create a Victoria that’s FOREVER GREEN by making a gift to Environment Victoria in my Will.

■■ Please send me information about how I can safeguard Victoria’s environment for the long term by becoming a Green Action Partner.

Are your personal details correct on your letter? Or are you moving soon? Please update your personal information here if necessary.

PERSONAL DETAILS

Title: First Name: Family Name:

Address:

Suburb: State: Postcode:

Email:

Tel: (BH) (AH)

Please complete this form, tear off this page and return it to Reply Paid 12575, A’Beckett Street, Melbourne, VIC 8006 or visit

www.environmentvictoria.org.au/give and make your donation online. Thank you for your generosity!


URGENT: Stop plans to pillage and plunder

Chief Executive OfficerKelly O’Shanassy

CAMPAIGNS & PROGRAMSCampaigns Director Mark WakehamHealthy Rivers Campaigner Juliet Le FeuvreSafe Climate Campaign Manager Victoria McKenzie-McHargSustainable Living Manager Michele BurtonOne Planet Living Campaigner Charlie Davie Sustainable Living Program Managers Nina BaileyDomenica SettleEva Gaita

Sustainable Living Project Officers Kat Gaita Miranda BlokPhillip FalckeCommunity Organiser Jane StabbCommunications Manager Alex MeroryCommunications Officer Tom Hartney

OPERATIONSOrganisational Services Manager Ivan Kolker Accounts Officer Helen VineAdministration Officer Cate HoyleFundraising Manager Amber SpruntDatabase Officer Tony Cox

BOARDPresident Amanda NuttallVice-President Robyn MurphyElizabeth McKinnonSue NoySimone ZmoodHugh WarehamAlison RoweDieter SchadtJoan StaplesCarl Young

REGULAR VOLUNTEERSJanet GellieEugene CrozierLes SmithIan HazewinkelLance LesselsSarah BoweJulia BarnesMichael Alexander

Freya ScullyChristy ArnottNeil BarterNic Gordon

TALK TO USPhone(03) 9341 8100 [email protected](03) 9341 8199

PO Box 12575A’Beckett Street, Victoria, 8006www.environmentvictoria.org.au

WHO’SWHO AT

Did you know you can donate online? www.environmentvictoria.org.au/give

It’s been a tough time for people who careabout the environment. So you’ll agree wecould all use a good laugh and a chance tobe inspired by the incredible work ofcommunities to create change.

Come and help us celebrate Victoria’smagnificent environment as we recognisethe extraordinary achievements of Victoriancommunities over the past year and enjoythe hilarious musical stylings of Tripod.

A G M

Environment Victoria AGMand environment celebrationJoin us (and Tripod!) for a night of laughs, celebration and inspiration

PHO

TO:

ERW

INJA

CK

SON

WHENWednesday 23 October 2013AGM 5:30pmEnvironment Celebration 6:50pm

WHERERMIT Swanston Academic Building, 445Swanston St, Melbourne (we’ll send you a map upon RSVP)

RSVPEssential by Friday 12 October byenclosed form or atenvironmentvictoria.org.au/rsvp

green action news: issue 20, spring 2013

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