March 2011

protecting nature living sustainably creating a climate for changePANDANUS

Limmen National ParkSolar Panel Hold UpMarine SanctuariesIndigenous RangersSaving Waterplus:Year of ForestsDesert UpdateClimate Change

Front Cover: Limmen ‘Lost City’ sandstone features by Jay Evans. Flatback turtle and Indigenous Rangers by Chris Francis. Gurruwiling Rangers Planning Meeting by Fiona Peek

Environment Centre NTCoordinator Dr Stuart BlanchOffice Manager Lisa PetersPolicy Officer Dr Melanie BradleyNuclear Free NT Campaigner Cat BeatonCommunications & Magazine EditorHannah SewardCoolmob Manager Robin KnoxCoolmob Team Mary Bowe,Adrielle Drury and Michael Cauce

Contact usEnvironment Centre NTGPO Box 2120 Darwin NT 0801Unit 3/98 Woods Street DarwinT 08 8981 1984E admin@ecnt.orgE COOLmob: coolmob@ecnt.orgW www.ecnt.org

Letters to the EditorE communications@ecnt.org

Facebook Environment Centre NT

Flickr environment_centre_nt

Australian Marine Conservation SocietyNorthern Marine Campaigner: Jess AbrahamsE jessabrahams@amcs.org.auT 08 89417461W www.sealife.org.au

Printed by Colemans on paper from sustainable sources using vegetable inks

Along with the rest of the community our staff have been shocked and amazed at the floods and cyclones that have battered much of Australia since Christmas, including our own Cyclone Carlos.

We extend our sympathies to those who have suffered, losing loved ones, properties and life savings. Several of our staff had to contend with trees falling on roofs, and water entering their homes.

We recognise the highly variable Australian climate, and the La Nina that wreaked havoc

across millions of hectares is a natural feature of Australia’s weather history. But words can be misleading. Many commentators and politicians decried the effects of natural disasters without pondering whether in fact these extremes weather events were partly unnatural consequences of our planet cooking ways.

Two studies published in mid February in the journal Nature found a very clear trend of more extreme weather events since the 1950s that match the trend in increasing global carbon pollution levels in the Northern Hemisphere.

Very heavy rainfall leading to floods has almost doubled in frequency, from 1-in-100 years to around 1-in-45 years. They concluded climate change was clearly having an effect on the weather in their studies.

Certainly the floods in Queensland and Victoria were extremely damaging and large, and all the more amazing coming after a decade of drought in the southeast.

While scientists may not be able to prove climate change caused the floods to be worse than would otherwise have been, they should prove as reminders to us our civilization must dramatically forge a low-carbon economy and drive investment in renewable power.

Stuart Blanch

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Sustainable Seafood Guide

Australia’s

A guide to choosing your

seafood wisely

www.sustainableseafood.org.au

better

no

think

From the ConvenorFrom the Coordinator

Ninox Column

‘They’re coming straight for us!’

Saving Water, conserving rivers, cleaning the harbour

The Interview

Letters EventsMembership Form

Limmen National Park

Desert Update

COOLmob round upNews on Solar Panels

Marine sanctuariesSustainable seafood

Arafura Swamp

Year of Forests

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10

11

13

15

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IN THIS ISSUE

We’ve been busy at the Environment Centre NT to bring you a new look, newly named Magazine for 2011.

After several years of bringing you reports and features on cutting edge environmental issues across the NT and beyond, we decided that our Top End read deserved it’s own identity. So welcome to the very first issue of PANDANUS! This issue is packed to the rafters with environmental news, features, interviews, letters and photos. We would like you to get involved so write in to us and share your news, views and environmental passions. And once you’ve had a read please pass PANDANUS on! - Ed.

New Name, New Look

PANDANUS

Fallen tree during cyclone Carlos by Hannah Seward

Flooded road at Adelaide River by Jay Evans

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Magazine designed by Hannah Seward at GreenkeyE greenkeygraphics@live.com

Australia’s carbon-addicted economy will have a carbon price added from 1 July 2012 to drive investment in a low carbon economy as unveiled by Julia Gillard on 24th Feb. Gillard’s announcement follows the Cancun Climate Conference in Mexico last December, and comes after an agreement by Labor and the Greens in the federal multi-party climate change committee.

The success of the Cancun meeting was modest given the threats to Earth’s ecosystems and societies based on scientists’ predictions of climate change, but nevertheless the unexpected progress on bringing developed and developing nations, including the US and China, together within a single framework to limit warming to no more than two degrees above pre-industrial levels represents good progress and has reinvigorated international negotiations for a binding global treaty.

So what should the Territory do to help achieve this goal? Territory Labor and the Country Liberals have policies aiming to cut carbon pollution by 60% by 2050. Time has moved on and the expectations of Territorians for stronger action on climate change have grown. The policies of both parties allow carbon pollution to increase perhaps by half or three quarters over the next 10 to 20 years.

It’s time for tougher action. The Territory Government and Opposition should commit to stabilising and reducing carbon pollution by 25% to 40% below 1990 levels by 2020. This means cutting carbon pollution levels from around the current 17 million tons per annum (Mtpa) to around 6 to 8 Mtpa. This is a challenge but it’s possible. And it will be easier to achieve than the cuts facing other Australian states.

The Territory’s emissions have remained relatively stable over the past decade, at around 14-16 Mtpa, during which time economic growth and job creation have surged. But pollution levels will skyrocket to way over 20 Mtpa by half way through this decade if emissions from big polluters such as INPEX and Stage 2 of Darwin LNG are not completely offset.

Put simply, the Territory must cut emissions by about 10 Mtpa in 10 years. Moving more quickly to a low carbon economy is sensible given the increase in costs that will be borne

by Territorians as a carbon price works through our economy.

The necessary economic and regulatory reforms to favour low-carbon growth and support investment in a cleaner economy means storing more carbon in native vegetation and the soil, building more solar power farms, constructing more energy efficient buildings, and cutting vehicle emissions.

One example of regulatory reform that could help achieve rapid pollution reduction is changing the government’s draft environmental offsets policy to mandate all carbon pollution by industrial polluters be offset, preferably through funding better landscape management, increasing energy efficiency and subsiding new solar power farms in the Territory. This would drive big polluting companies such as INPEX towards making their projects carbon neutral.

During the International Year of Forests in 2011, a good way to help landholders store more carbon in the landscape would be to map carbon storage potential across the Territory’s landscapes, in a similar way to how mineral and water resources are mapped. This would help land managers to better anticipate options for carbon sequestration on their lands and prepare for entering budding carbon farming markets, as well as for companies that incur a legal liability to purchase emissions reduction permits under future emissions trading

From the Coordinator

A Climate for Tough Action

Image: Stuart telling staff and volunteers about the likely impacts on Darwin Harbour’s marine wildlife from plans by INPEX for blasting and dredging.

From the ConvenorBy Di Koser

To mark a busy year for staff and volunteers we went on a boat trip on Darwin Harbour to look for some of its most amazing and endearing creatures. Dolphins! Lots of ‘oohing’ and ‘aahing’, and cries of ‘two dolphins at three o’clock, 20 metres’ or ‘oh look, there’s one right by the boat’. We even saw a mother with its baby.

As the International Year of Biodiversity in 2010 came to a close, it was a privilege to watch pods of coastal dolphins hunting in the harbour between Darwin city and Middle Arm. Many harbour cities around the world would dearly love to trumpet having dolphins living in their midst.

There were about half a dozen bottlenose dolphins and a similar number of Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins, often hunting fish together. Jim Smith, the owner of the

Sea Darwin boat we hired, said the dolphins moved around that part of the harbour with the tides and the seasons.

Our trip also had a very serious side. We went there with other community members and the media to discuss the future of our dolphins and other marine wildlife. John McBride is a former underwater blasting expert with the Australian Navy and the private sector. He told us the plans by fossil fuel company INPEX to blast Walker Shoal to allow them to dredge a shipping channel would very likely kill dolphins and other marine wildlife within a large area in the harbour.

It was terrible to think the beautiful dolphins swimming right by the boat could be killed from the underwater pressure waves. But INPEX is not the only threat to the harbour.

A recent EPA report pointed out some of the biggest threats were the operation and expansion of East Arm Wharf, as well as sewage pollution and land clearing in the catchment.

So to our members and supporters in the community, thank you for your support in 2010 on our campaign for a Living Harbour. In 2011 we will continue to push INPEX, the Territory and Australian Governments to make sure our dolphins and their habitats are safeguarded.

By Stuart Blanch

Di Koser with Stuart Blanch and his daughter on the Environment Centre NT harbour trip by Hannah Seward

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Bottlenose Dolphin in Darwin Harbour - Image kindly dontated by a guest on our recent harbour outing.

sanctuaries and conservation covenants on pastoral leases.

Our peopleTurning to our people, a great new bunch of members were appointed to the Management Committee at our Annual General Meeting in November to help guide the Environment Centre NT. We thank the outgoing committee members for their hard work and enthusiasm in 2010.

We welcome two new staff. Jess Abrahams, Northern Marine Campaigner with the Australian Marine Conservation Society, who will be working with ourselves and The Wilderness Society to establish a large network of marine sanctuaries in the Arafura and Timor Seas in the next two years.

And our new Nuclear Free NT Campaigner Cat Beaton will work alongside Indigenous Traditional Owners, environment organisations and unions to oppose expansion of the nuclear fuel chain in the Territory.

schemes, likely from as early as 2015.

Helping Territorians live sustainably

The COOLmob program is doing more than ever to help Territorians live sustainably. Day in day out, COOLmob’s Sustainability Auditors are helping householders, community groups and non government schools work out how to cut energy bills and carbon pollution, save water, recycle more, improve public transport and build greener homes and suburbs. They’ve sold half a dozen electric bikes to date this year. As Darwin waits for electric cars that can run on renewable energy, you can get a taste of emissions-free commuting with your own electric bike that you can buy 100% GreenPower for from Power and Water Corporation. Also, read more about what’s been holding up the installation of solar panels on page 12.

The Top End Sustainable Living Festival will be held on the weekend of 4 and 5 June this year. Put it in your diary! We’ll be holding it again alongside the Tropical Garden Spectacular at the Botanic Gardens, and the theme of the two events is ‘Green-Life Balance’ with a goal of providing inspiration, information and innovation. We’ll be appointing a Manager of the Festival soon who will be seeking sponsors, exhibitors, speakers and great ideas for making this

year’s Festival even better.

Nature TerritoryThe future of the wildlife and aquatic ecosystems in the Roper River catchment, as well as the estuaries and marine wildlife offshore in the Gulf of Carpentaria, is shaping to be a focus for the Environment Centre NT in 2011, and beyond. The region faces significant impacts from mining and associated transport and export infrastructure in the years ahead, plus potentially more irrigation water use in the upper catchment. Along with these potential threats there is also good news. After a 20 year wait the massive Limmen National Park should be finally declared in 2011 (see page 7), and the Limmen Bight region of the southwest Gulf of Carpentaria is a prospective site for a large new federal marine sanctuary.

Thanks to the support of our members over the years we’ve secured commitments from Territory Labor during election periods and other times to pass strong new laws and create programs to deliver real environmental outcomes for the Territory. With your ongoing support in 2011, we’ll focus on making sure those commitments are delivered. These include establishing a network of marine sanctuaries to protect a representative sample of marine habitats and wildlife (see page 13); protecting iconic rivers through a Living Rivers program and legislation; and saving the Daly River by ending major land clearing and capping water use.

Also, with the support of our members and supporters this year we’ll finalise our Protected Areas awareness raising project to showcase the value to the Territory of a much larger network of National Parks, Indigenous Protected Areas, private wild

Introducing a brand new anonymous column, Ninox, which is the scientific name for the Barking Owl, a beautiful bird that lives in the Territory’s woodlands and forests. Like the owl, our Ninox Column is known for it’s powers of observation, it’s wisdom, oh, and it’s bark - Ed.

“My New Year’s Resolution – becoming an enviro-champion! I thought hard about what this first column should focus on – perhaps a gripe about the lack of urban design in Darwin or why DCC has planted palm trees in the new Mall. But I thought I’d start with something less tangible – environmental consciousness. This is because I sometimes find myself wondering if we have one in the NT!

One day I was truly frustrated by some comments made in the media and started to read about

environmental consciousness. I wanted evidence that an increase in environmental consciousness would come with leadership. I wanted to be able to wave something under Government’s nose and say “See? Be proactive! Show some leadership! Stop being so beige!”

Put simply, what I read was an increase in environmental consciousness and associated behaviour is influenced by many factors, including our knowledge; knowing what action can be taken; and having the capacity and responsibility to take the action. And so, yes, in a way it does require some leadership, but it also requires action from everyone. Unfortunately I can’t just blame government anymore. I have a responsibility too!

Here are some contact details to help us all do a bit more to get the environment into our collective consciousness. Cut them out, hang them on the

fridge and make a promise to yourself to use them to report problems and voice your concerns.”

Leaking pipes – PowerWater: www.powerwater.com.au/contact_us#forms

Issue with cycleways – Department of Lands and Planning: www.nt.gov.au/transport/ntroads/faults/cyclepaths/feedback.shtml

Environmental concern – your local member electorate. email: electoratename@nt.gov.au (eg, electorate.fonglim@nt.gov.au); Local ABC Radio: www.abc.net.au/darwin/contact/; NT News letters to the Editor. email: ntnmail@ntnews.com.au

_Anon.

Ninox welcomes your comments and any whispers from inside government and industry. Email them to: communications@ecnt.org - Ed.

NINOX Barking Owl painted by local Larrakia artist June Mills. The owl represents the barking owls that live in Darwin. “At night the owl would call to us to let us know that he was up there watching us” - June Mills.

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“They’re coming straight for us!” By Melanie Bradley

dense foliage. Staff and volunteers also searched for hollows – homes for mammals – in the majestic trees. And they witnessed the intense activity of ants and other invertebrates – the forest’s great “engineers”.

Although some commentators might say otherwise, in campaigning against the most destructive and polluting aspects of the INPEX proposal, Environment Centre NT is not questioning or challenging the need for a strong Territory economy. What we are questioning is inappropriate and unnecessarily destructive development.

We support long-term, sustainable investment in our people and biodiversity, not short-term exploitation of our people and biodiversity. Like most Darwin residents, we seek a secure future for this beautiful place that we, the mammals, the reptiles, the birds and the fish, all call home. And we want to ensure that the relaxed living, the beautiful nature and the recreational opportunities that we all enjoy today, will not be eroded by piecemeal, poorly-planned and inadequately-regulated development proposals.

Stay tuned for the Environment Centre NT’s “Living Harbour” campaign, to be rolled out in 2011. And if you’re cruising on the Harbour, keep an eye out for our fellow Darwin residents – those playful coastal dolphins. They may even swim straight up to you!

Images top to bottom: Bottlenose dolphin surfacing - donated; Guests landing at Blaydin Point & Dolphins up close! by Hannah Seward. Savanna woodland at Blaydin point by Stuart Blanch, Stuart Blanch and Melanie Bradley speaking at Blaydin Point by Hannah Seward.

There were excited exclamations aplenty, on a gorgeous Saturday morning in November 2010, when Environment Centre NT staff, supporters and invited journalists spent a few hours cruising around Darwin Harbour on-board a Sea Darwin boat with knowledgeable skipper, Jim Smith. The excitement was all about the pod of twelve dolphins that swam, dived and frolicked alongside us. Unusually, this was a mixed species pod, comprised of Indo-pacific humpback and bottlenose dolphins. It was a truly mesmerising sight to behold.

However, there was pause for reflection and concern when we realised that these dolphins were in the vicinity of Walker Shoal – the now infamous submerged rock that INPEX is proposing to blast. The blasting is required, they say, to create a shipping channel that will allow the big gas tankers to move deep into the Harbour to Blaydin Point. Indeed, it’s not until you get out onto the Harbour and travel to the proposed gas plant site that you appreciate how far into the Harbour it actually is. It is an absurd place to put a big industrial plant that will be serviced by huge ships…

So it was with mixed feelings that we stepped off the boat and onto Blaydin Point. We were certainly buoyant after the dolphin sighting but we were also feeling somewhat sombre. The reality of the INPEX development and it’s detrimental impacts on Darwin Harbour recreation, wildlife, and culture, were being understood first-hand.

Some Environment Centre NT staff and volunteers spent time exploring the rainforest that INPEX wants to bulldoze. They observed a forest alive with butterflies and birds, including two Rainbow Pittas that called to each other through the

Living Harbour

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Common sense water conservation strategies that should be considered are banning the hosing down of driveways and footpaths, ensuring sprinklers are the most efficient available and are only used during the cooler times in the morning and evening, rostering sprinkler use based on days of the week, allowing gardens to be watered by hand held hoses but not sprinklers, and requiring sprinklers to be turned off during the wet. A mix of these types of approaches are used successfully in tropical centres such as Cairns, Townsville and Broome.

Territory households used an average 173,000 litres per person each year, which is over twice the national average of 81,000 litres (see ABS water accounts 2008-09). That means we each use enough water to fill more than two 40 foot shipping containers every year. That’s a lot of water!

It was encouraging to see the NT News run an editorial after our media commentary, agreeing on the need to save water, and even supporting our calls for ditching the hose for a broom for keeping your driveway clean.

The Territory Government cannot guarantee a secure supply of water for greater Darwin in the decades ahead without driving water conservation to reduce demand. The Territory 2030 Strategic Plan commits to a 30% cut in household water use by 2020, which is a very positive move. Could this be exceeded with more

Have you ever been annoyed when you see water being wasted? Does your blood boil when you see sprinklers spraying precious water on to a road or footpath? For me, it’s seeing someone hosing leaves down their driveway and into the gutter. Don’t they have a broom? I ask myself.

Record rainfall this year makes it easier for some Top Enders to think we have plenty of water and wasting it is just part of our tropical lifestyle, Darwin is slowly but surely heading towards water shortages as our population grows, household water use increases, inflows to Darwin River Dam fall due to erosion dumping sediments in the reservoir, and heavy industry expands.

Over the past decade Darwin has been fortunate to have a series of above-average rainfall years that have usually filled Darwin River Dam and topped up the Howard East aquifer. And this wet season has been no exception to that pattern. But it is naïve – and would be poor governance – to bet on this trend continuing.

So when the Australian Bureau of Statistics recently identified Territorians as using more around the home than any other state, we than twice the amount of water per person called on Power and Water Corporation and the Territory Government to establish permanent low-level water restrictions.

Saving water, conserving rivers, cleaning the harbourBy Stuart Blanch

Dams – old and damaging technology

money and a change in culture and technology by the biggest water wasters, who are mostly government?

Water restrictions will only work and be accepted by the majority of Territorians if they are part of a broad program involving education about water conservation, subsidies for water tanks and water efficient appliances through an expanded rebate program, and fair and equitable enforcement of restrictions.

Alongside demand management, investment in major sewage treatment and reuse is critical to free up drinking quality water currently used in industry and on public ovals and gardens, as well as cleaning up the 11 billion litres of part-treated sewage dumped in Darwin Harbour each year.

We need a plan that helps Territorians live sustainably, save water and money, keep free-flowing rivers healthy and cut sewage pollution in Darwin Harbour.

Our call for water restrictions prompted some to call for new dams. But dams are very damaging to free-flowing rivers. Dams are old technology. Dams are also very expensive to build and operate, which would mean householders in greater Darwin paying much higher water rates over decades to pay off the dam.

We were glad to see that the Territory Government’s consultation paper on it’s ‘Greater Darwin Region Land Use Strategy’ did not commit to new dams, but we were however, extremely disappointed to see the CLP’s ‘Planning for Greater Darwin’ discussion paper flag the option of building new dams on free-flowing rivers. Shadow Environment Minister Peter Chandler also recently stated in Parliament that Darwin will need new dams in the decades ahead, and considers them inevitable.

We don’t agree. Many in the community rightly view new dams as unwanted and outdated. The NSW Government recently abandoned plans for the Tillegra Dam in the Hunter River catchment in the face of community outrage, and in 2009 the federal Environment Minister refused permission for the Traveston Crossing Dam in Queensland.

Power and Water is investigating building the Warrai Dam on the Adelaide River just upstream from Adelaide River township. This is also the Country Liberals’ preferred site for a new dam. This dam would interrupt flow in the river, flood part of Litchfield National Park, likely cost hundreds of millions of dollars to build, and divert scarce funds from large scale recycling and demand management programs. A CSIRO report on tropical water management released in late 2009 found dams in upper catchments – such

Green Living

as the Warrai Dam – were of questionable value due to capturing less water as rainfall declines as storms move inland. Further, climate change may cut catchment runoff even more.

Just as the NSW and Queensland Governments were forced to abandon the Tillegra and Traveston Crossing Dams, the Warrai Dam is a high risk and unnecessary option. It would encounter massive community opposition and may not receive federal approval. Power and Water need a long term plan to reduce demand and improve water conservation, and secure water supplies without new dams.

Take Action!

Tell PowerWater that you want the Adelaide River to be free flowing. Email Powerwater directly: LandDevelopmentNorth@powerwater.com.au

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Many Top Enders use a hose to clear leaves and debris from their properties. This is just one of the ways that we waste water. Image by Hannah Seward

the interview By Hannah Seward, Editor & Communications Officer

In the second interview for her new regular column, the Environment Centre NT’s Magazine editor Hannah Seward asks Steve McKenzie, General Manager Water Services, at PowerWater about the Darwin water supply.

Where exactly does Darwin’s water supply come from? ‘90% of Darwin’s drinking water comes from Darwin River Dam, the remainder from bores in the Howard East & McMinns aquifer.’

Can you provide any water usage stats for Darwin and the NT? ‘Water use statistics are reported publicly and are available from: www.wsaa.asn.au/Publications/Pages/PerformanceReports.aspx Darwin and Alice Springs statistics are available from here.’ (See some recent stats at the end of this article - Ed.)

How do we compare with other Australian states? ‘These details are also available in the WSAA National Performance report. Generally speaking water consumption in Darwin is higher than most other Australian cities. But this needs to put in the context of Darwin’s tropical climate and that most Australian cities have much cooler climates and all year round rainfall. Also many Australian cities have been on compulsory water restrictions for most of the last decade due to drought.

While the water consumption pattern of every city is different a valid comparison would be with cities such as Cairns and McKay. Compared to these two cities Darwin uses 50-100% more water per property. The NT Government has set a target to reduce Darwin’s per capita water demand by 30% over the next 10 years and comparisons with other cities would indicate that this should be achievable.’

Is there a risk that we will become short of water in the future? ‘We do rely on our annual wet season to replenish our surface water source and aquifer. In fact inflow into the Darwin River dam is only higher than evaporation for three months of the year, typically December - February. In order to ensure security of Darwin’s future water supply, Power Water is currently undertaking the development of a long term water resource plan. This plan will outline a variety of strategies to secure Darwin’s future water supply including maximising use of current resources, water conservation, leakage reduction, recycling and the development of new water resources.’

How will our current water supply network cope with the growing population? ‘Power and Water undertake continuous modelling and upgrading of it’s water supply system to ensure that there is sufficient capacity to meet future demand. New industries and developments are required to upgrade infrastructure to ensure that existing customers are not disadvantaged and contribute to future system upgrades that may be required.’

Will the cost of clean drinking water increase in the future? ‘Power water is subject to same cost increases (power, fuel, materials, chemicals, communications, labour etc) as everyone else and this means that our costs are increasing. We endeavour to operate as efficiently as possible but ultimately the cost of operating, maintaining and expanding our water and sewerage systems to meet increasing standards of service must be passed on the our customers. We are currently planning to build a treatment plant to improve the quality of Darwin’s drinking water supply by 2016.’ What happens to used water? How is it treated and where does it end up? ‘Most of Darwin’s wastewater is treated and discharged back into the environment via creeks and ocean outfalls under appropriate licences. The Larrakeyah sewer ocean outfall is untreated but will be closed by the end of 2011. Some of our treated wastewater is recycled for irrigation.’

Exactly how much of our used water is recycled? ‘In Darwin and Alice Springs around 1000 million litres per year of sewage is treated and used for irrigation and groundwater recharge.’

Is there anything being done to help conserve water?‘Power Water financially supports a number of Government rebate initiatives promoting water tanks, low flow shower heads, dual flush toilets and pool covers etc. Power Water also actively encourages water conservation through it’s water conservation education programs. We also work with our larger commercial customers to implement water saving measures.’

What is Power and Water’s long term management plan?‘Power and Water has just raised the spillway of Darwin River Dam, increasing its capacity by an estimated 20 per cent or 60,000 mega litres. We are looking at options to maximise the use of our current water resources within the limits of our existing licenses of water

from groundwater and Manton Dam. Over the next few years we will be increasing our focus on water conservation, leakage reduction and education programs in order to defer the need to develop any new dams for as long as possible. Achieving the NT Government target to reduce per capita demand by 20% in the next 5 years and 30% within 10 years will be critical in securing Darwin’s long term water resources. A long term water resource plan is currently under development and will be released later this year.’

How can our readers find out more about saving water?Power and Water’s website has heaps of information on conservation and even a home water use calculator that can help highlight savings: www.savewater.com.au/powerwater/calculator

There is a dedicated resource for kids:www.helpsavetheplanet.com.au

Green Living Green Living

Did you Know?Some water usage stats provided by COOLmob:

• More than two-thirds of our household water is used on the garden or the pool.

• The average daily domestic water use of Darwin households is 487 L/person/day. This is double the average daily domestic water use by people in other Australian cities.

• To pump this water to our households

PowerWater spends approximately $2.5M per year and about a quarter of a million dollars treating it with chlorine and fluoride. The 13,640 MWh of electricity used to pump water, results in the generation of nearly 8,700 tonnes of greenhouse gases.

• If each household in the Darwin/Palmerston area reduced its water use to that of other capital cities, then we would save $1.14M per year and reduce the amount of greenhouse gases generated by 5,500 tonnes.

• Households can save approximately $10 for each 10kL drop in usage, and this potential saving value is increasing every year.

• Between 2008 and 2011, water rates rose almost 73%!

Contact COOLmob for further info and great ways to save money and help lower your carbon footprint:www.coolmob.orgDatasource: COOLmob from PowerWater sources

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Limmen National Park

By Stuart Blanchand iron ore mining

The future of the Roper Region in the southwest Gulf Country is at a crossroads. The Territory Parks & Wildlife Service says parts of the Limmen National Park will be declared within a matter of months. Great news, and a welcome move by Environment Minister Karl Hampton and his Environment Department.

But at the same time, the Territory Government is also championing a massive rail network and port to service iron ore and potentially other mines in the region that could damage natural and Indigenous cultural values on the National Park, adjacent Aboriginal lands and sea country.

Start up miners Western Desert Resources and Sherwin Iron are planning two major iron ore mines, plus associated roads and a port on Limmen Bight. They’re talking about exporting millions of tons of iron ore each year through a very sensitive area when the Territory Government has been shown to be lax at regulating pollution at our existing ports. The miners are a long way from proving the deposits economically viable to extract due to low ore grades, low value adding and massive infrastructure costs.

The Western Desert Resources mine is completely within the proposed National Park, and around half of Sherwin Iron’s tenement is also in the proposed park (although not a current focus). The richer iron ore deposits targeted by Sherwin Iron is to the west on Hodgson Downs which is Aboriginal freehold land, but would most likely involve pushing a road eastwards into the National Park to join with the Western Desert Resources road. Railway lines may follow in the future.

Around half of the proposed Limmen National Park has mining tenements over it, and this proportion increases much more when other exploration tenements for minerals such as ilmenite and uranium are added! And we though National Parks were supposed to be for nature conservation and tourism. Although the areas with rich iron ore bodies are much smaller (see mineral leases on map), the mines could undergo major expansion over many decades to come. Also, more roads, railways and port infrastructure would impact well outside these mineral leases.

The Environment Centre NT has been privately urging the Territory Government for over 12 months to declare the National Park. In November last year we went public after visitors to the area told us about environmental damage being done in the proposed park from mining exploration by Western Desert Resources. Over one hundred kilometres of roads had been bulldozed without proper erosion control, plus a 27 hectare airstrip, without any formal assessment under environment laws – despite it being a proposed National Park – and only weak environmental protections under a mining exploration permit.

We understand many Marra people, the Traditional Owners of the coastal lands and intertidal areas being targeted for the road and port, are very concerned about the plans. Some are opposed and are saying they may not grant consent. If Marra people withhold consent for construction of the haul road or port/jetty, the miners would need to find an alternate and more expensive export route.

The proposed Limmen National Park is big. At 1.2 million hectares, it’s almost three

Nature Territory

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Limmen National Park

By Stuart Blanch

Proposed iron ore mines and infrastructure in Rpoer River region. Im

age provided by Stuart Blanch

times the size of Litchfield and Nitmiluk National Parks combined. The beautiful Roper River forms its northern boundary and its south-eastern section protects the catchments of both the Limmen and McArthur Rivers. The Towns River is almost completely surrounded by the proposed National Park.

The area is abandoned pastoral leases that still bear the scars of overgrazing before the cattlemen walked off the leases in the 1980s. Not long after Territory Labor won government in 2001, it caved in to the miners when then Resources Minister Paul Henderson broke Labor’s pre-election promise not to mine National Parks by allowing mining on a case by case basis. That is Labor’s policy to this day. The Territory Government of the day vested the lands in the NT Land Corporation to prevent Traditional Owners claiming it under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act. They officially proposed it as National Park but never finalised this, thereby keeping it in limbo to ensure the iron ore discovered there in the 1950s may one day be mined.

Federal Minister for Regional Australia Simon Crean told the ABC’s Julia Christensen on 13 December last year that “Well we’ve

Limmen billabong and Flatback turtle by Chris Francis

Image courtesy of Google Maps (Proposed park area not to scale)

made the point that there shouldn’t be mining in national parks.” It’s a welcome comment for sure, but what exactly does it mean? Would Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke reject Western Desert Resource’s plan outright? Calls by the Environment Centre NT to close the legal loophole that allows mining on National Parks in the Territory have been ignored.

Our work to have Limmen National Park declared and protected to ensure mining does not damage sensitive natural and cultural sites will be a key part of our Territory Icons campaign in 2011 to see a major expansion in the protected areas estate in the Territory. Our staff have been meeting and talking with the miners, Resources and Environment Ministers and their departments, federal regulators, Northern Land Council and locals familiar with the concerns of Traditional Owners.

Take Action! You can help get Limmen National Park declared by contacting Chief Minister Paul Henderson’s office on: 08 8901 4000, Chief.Minister@nt.gov.au or write to GPO Box 3146 Darwin NT 0801.

Tell him you want the park declared and areas of high conservation value protected from mining and infrastructure.

Limmen

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Limmen National Park

of national significance. The wetlands, plus Maria Island and Limmen Bight are rated by the Territory Government as being a site of global conservation significance.

The wetlands are a refuge for abundant flocks of shorebirds on their annual migration south. Threatened marine turtles nest on offshore islands. Large herds of dugong feed in the seagrass meadows, and coastal dolphins hunt with the tides as they rework the massive river deltas.

And the million or so hectares of tropical savanna woodland grading into drier Spinifex country is highly significant in itself for its extent and connectivity over more than 200 kilometres from its north-western to south-eastern points.

A place of beauty, wi ldl i fe and Indigenous culture… By Stuart Blanch

The proposed Limmen National Park and surrounding lands and seas support a host of important habitats, from rainforests to springs to sandstone outcrops to river deltas to coral reefs to offshore islands in Limmen Bight.

The coastal areas are known to support many registered sites of cultural importance to Aboriginal people. Traditional owners come from from Ngukurr, Numbulwar and Borroloola to visit their ancestral country.

It’s a place of winding rivers and amazing wildlife. Explorers on the Savanna Way camp in secluded sites, and anglers head for safari fishing camps chasing big barra.

Threatened and significant species recorded in the area are a Who’s Who of species of conservation significance. These include Australian Bustard, Northern Hopping Mouse, Territory endemic plants, shorebirds such as Grey-tailed Tattlers and Roseate Terns by the thousands, large colonies of Ibis and Egrets, nesting beaches for Green and Flatback turtles, pods of coastal dolphins, and herds of Dugong on massive seagrass meadows.

Amazing ‘Lost City’ formations of weathered sandstone occur in the southern part of the region.

Extensive salt marsh, mangroves and intertidal mudflats along the coast on Marra Aboriginal Lands Trust lands form a wetland

Top to bottom: Butterfly Springs by Jay Evans. Bottlenose dolphin and Dugong - donated. Red tail black cockatoo and flatback turtle by Tida Nou. Barra fisherman and shore birds by Stuart Blanch, Northern hopping mouse by Ian Morris.

The ‘Lost City’ sandstone structures in Limmen by Jay Evans

Nature Territory

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By Jimmy Cocking, Arid Lands Environment Centre

It’s been a long time coming but we can safely say now that the Alice Springs Community Garden is happening. After three years of meetings, community consultation, committee formation, grant applications, project planning, and a presentation to the Alice Springs Town Council (ASTC) - the Arid Lands Environment Centre (ALEC), on behalf of the Community Garden Steering Committee, has signed a lease with the ASTC for a section of public parkland.

The lease has a five year term with a five year option. The leased area encompasses almost 500sqm. Pods have been developed

to coordinate activity. Design and Infrastructure, Fundraising, Horticulture and Governance pods feed to and from the Steering Committee. Currently, we have support from the Power Water Corporation for the connection and provision of water for the project, REECE plumbing has also indicated support in the form of irrigation and plumbing needs.

The big ticket items we are now looking for include: fencing (260m), which is unfortunately necessary here; building and construction material for the garden beds and on-going streams of funding. At a recent picnic on the site, we had more

than 50 people attend. Ideas, passion and commitment were abound. The support for a community garden is growing.

2011 will be a year of construction for the community garden and building the resilience of Alice Springs as a desert SMART town. We will keep you posted as to how it progresses.

For more information: Check out the ALEC website:www.alec.org.au or email: info@alec.org.au

Morning sun lights the Mulga over the Angela Pamela uranium lease. The small white dot in the foreground is the cap of an exploratory drilling shaft. Image: Jess Abrahams.The Community Garden gathers momentum - a recent picnic on-site to celebrate the lease-

signing. Photo: Steven Pearce.

driving change from the top-down. The Araluen by-election, resulted in bipartisan opposition to uranium mining at Angela Pamela.

The NT Environment Minister, Karl Hampton tabled the Environmental Protection (Beverage Containers and Plastic Bags) Bill 2010, which paves the way for an NT Container Deposit Scheme and Plastic Bag Ban.

2010: Reflections from a desert waterhole

Alice Springs Community Garden is happening!

DESERT UPDATE

Red centre after rain by Hannah Seward

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The Northern Territory recorded its third wettest year on record in 2010, with 11 months of above-average rainfall soaking the country. This coming off the back of 2009 which was the driest year, gives some insight into the highly variable nature of the desert. The rise and fall of river systems, the bitter cold of July 6 (top of 6.2°C!) and the ease upon which the baking heat returns from above. This is the arid zone.

2010 has been a year of big things for the environment movement in the Centre. The Muckaty Traditional Owners have taken the Federal Government to court over the flawed nomination process for a radioactive waste dump near Tennant Creek.

ALEC moved into the Haaren House complex in late April, which has enabled the development of a community hub in Alice Springs. The Gardens for Food Network kicked off with a series of workshops and a re-print of the Alice Springs Veggie Garden Companion. The Alice Springs Community Garden has got tenure. The NT Climate Change Policy and Territory 2030 Strategy is

COOLmob is a community based project of the Environment Centre NT COOLmob aims to help people reduce their CO² emissions through a range of activities which include household energy audits, television advertisements, publications, campaigns, media events and activities.

I have just returned from a mind blowing 3 days in Jakarta, Indonesia, at The Climate Project Asia Pacific Summit. I found myself in a room with 350 people from 21 countries and every single one of those people was there because they shared the same deep concern about the seriousness of the situation we have got ourselves into. We are all fighting for urgent action for our survival and the survival of mankind. For example, I met Kumon Tarawa who is from Kiribati,

There were many exciting events for COOLmob last year; new staff, new events, more bulk buys, continued lobbying, increased links with community, business and industry and many community organisation and home audits.

We finished the year with a review of our strategic plan and are looking forward to embarking on some new community projects in 2011. So watch this space!

where time has run out for his nation. All his people are destined to become climate refugees as his whole nation is inundated by water as sea level rises.

I sat in the freezing cold room (yes, they too have the same air conditioning management problems as Darwin and this is part of the climate change challenge) and listened to Al Gore teach us the latest science, the consequences and the solutions. As I listened to the facts and figures I felt the extreme urgency of our situation. I also wondered why educated people and leaders, who know the facts, just keep going with business as usual? I also wondered why we so rarely hear the words global warming or climate change mentioned as we continue to hear of devastation in so many countries on a similar scale to our own Australian droughts and floods. The slower we are to act, the more extreme the measures we are going to have to take to cope with the problems we are creating as a result of global warming.

I was also heartened by the many changes that have been made in recent years and the exciting changes in technologies that hold the solutions to controlling our carbon emissions.

So if we care about ourselves, our children and our grand children we have to respond urgently and meaningfully and encourage our politicians to make strong decisions and take urgent action to restructure the way we do things in our society.

As a Climate Project presenter I would like to share the up to date climate change story to any groups of people, be they a workplace, a club or a community group. I can tailor my presentation to your needs but prefer a minimum of 30 minutes plus time for questions. You can contact me by emailing me at coolmob@ecnt.org or phone 89812532 to arrange for me to give a free presentation to your group.

COOLmobExtra . The Climate Project . Asia Pacific Summit

Over 1000 houses are now producing green power on their roofs and dramatically reducing their power bills, with some households only having to pay their fixed daily charge because their panels produce all their power! If you install a 1.5kWh solar system you can save over $500 per year in power costs!

About 110 houses have applied for assessments of their homes for the installation of solar hot water systems through COOLmob’s bulk buy. When their solar hot water systems are installed they will reduce their power bills by up to 30%

18 pool owners have registered to convert their pool pumps to low noise, energy efficient Viron pumps thus saving about 70% of their pool power costs

And 6 people have bought electric bikes to reduce their car use and take on a healthier life style

Exciting Year of 2010 by Robin Knox

COOLmob has been pleased that so many people have taken advantage of our community bulk buys. (See blue box below)

COOLmob cannot do its work without our great staff team, our casual consultants and our fantastic volunteers. We also greatly appreciate the information and feedback from the public who raise issues for us to pursue.

By R

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Green Living

Image: Robin Knox presenting at the Asia Pacific Summit

Images provided by COOLmob

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If you would like to receive our email NEWSLETTER send your email address to :coolmob@ecnt.org

The free bimonthly newsletter is full of exciting sustainable living tips, gadgets and news.

Exciting Year of 2010 by Robin Knox

COOLmob would like to see a strong and viable solar industry supporting the production of renewable energy, but a recent Building Advisory Committee (BAC) ruling has added more cost and bureaucracy to an industry that is contributing to reducing our green house gas emissions.

Since December, the BAC is requiring additional proof of safety testing of solar arrays which has resulted in the solar photo voltaic (PV) industry nearly coming to a standstill in the Territory. Deemed to Comply (DTC) requirements, that were being considered for the mounting of solar panels, will no longer be issued, which means each household will require an individual Building Certifier to approve their solar installation in the NT.

This causes each household to pay about $1000 to a Building Certifier who approves the installation and then provides a Building Certificate. This does not result in any added safety procedures or testing and has caused many PV companies to cease installations while they try and satisfy the new BAC requirements.

The ruling has also brought the $6 million DET Solar Schools Program and the $1+million Solar Champions program to a halt. Suppliers servicing Alice Springs Solar City and householders in Darwin are becoming very confused.

The issue has come about because BAC, without any consultation with the solar industry, has requested proof that the solar panels will not suffer load cycle fatigue (which could cause them to come apart). COOLmob understands that there is a need to comply very strict guidelines in cyclone areas, but the BAC is not presently willing to exempt non cyclonic areas from applying for a building permit.

In Australia the Clean Energy Council (CEC) oversees the safety and technical compliance measures of solar PV systems. This has been recognised recently by the Commonwealth Government prescriptions in the Renewable Electricity Act. They require that in order for renewable energy systems to be eligible under the 20% Renewable Energy Target, the work must be undertaken by accredited installers and meet the necessary CEC standards.

The NT solar industry says that:“The BAC has not provided any guidance as to how the certifier is able to establish that the panels

What to do if you want to install PV panels?

The problem for consumers is that the generous Commonwealth Government solar panel rebate (called Solar Credits) is due to be reduced by 20% from July 2011 and the additional testing that is now being requested for the NT may not be completed by that date. It will be worthwhile going ahead with PV installations before the Solar Credits Rebate reduces, even if you have to pay for Building Certification. The Solar Credits Rebate rate depends on the installation date and reduces by 20% each July, for the next 4 years.

And what about Solar Hot Water Systems?

At present the various solar hot water panel systems (SHW) are not being asked to conduct specific testing for the NT, so they may be the next target of the NTBAC!! So if you are thinking about installing a SHW, I suggest you do it now while the systems are exempt from requiring individual Building Certification and installers are issued with Deemed to Comply certificates.

In Australia some 175,000 homes have installed 330MW of solar PV in 2010, a tenfold increase on the amount of solar installed in 2008. Australia now has over 510MW of installed solar PV, equivalent to a small power station producing zero pollution power.

NOTE: COOLmob presently has a bulk buy of SHW systems, so make the most of this great price and the Government rebates before they run out.

Go to www.coolmob.org to register for a free quote.

have “structural integrity”. This leaves this open to differing interpretation by individual certifiers and is a real risk of inconsistent application.Panels fitted in Australia already meet Clean Energy Council guidelines in order to be eligible for any subsidy and modules have already been tested and have passed IEC61730, IEC61215 or IEC6164 and AS 1170.2 and thus this requirement merely duplicates established standards.”

Before any solar array can be fitted to a house in the NT, a Building Permit must be applied for. COOLmob would like to see the fixing of solar arrays on houses treated in the same way as solar hot water systems that do not require a Northern Territory Building Permit. COOLmob considers the need for a Building Permit and requests for additional testing of panels, after they have already been approved by the CEC, as creating duplication and an unnecessary cost burden on consumers.

Solar power is not a new industry, but is an expanding one, and thousands of panels have been fitted all over Australia. We have just seen how solar panels perform in the real world. In the aftermath of Cyclone Yasi in Queensland Ergon reports that of the 3,500 panels installed on Magnetic Island roofs, only one was blown off by the category 3 cyclone.

Even more reassuring is a house in Cardwell, where the category 5 cyclone hit, that has it’s roof missing, except where the PV array had been installed.... the roof is being held on by the solar array! (Installed by NQ Solar). If Australia’s national solar regulations are satisfactory for other cyclonic areas it is disappointing that the NT Government’s BAC is demanding further testing for the NT!

What does this mean for households who already have PV panels installed without these certificates?

If your panels have been installed by one of the solar companies who have their solar panel mounting system approved, and eventually get their panels approved by the NTBAC you will be in a good situation, but will probably still need to get the array approved. Whilst certification should be sought prior to installation, Certifiers are in a position to issue building permits after the event. This is always more difficult as the works need to be inspected and sometimes it needs to be intrusive to inspect certain details.

News on Solar PanelsBy Robin Knox

Photo voltaic panels on a Darwin roof by Robin Knox

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Many of us share the instinct to look after the special things that live around us. Most people appreciate the need for national parks and reserves to safeguard our native wildlife and their habitat. It is important that we have places free from hunting, mining, dams and the extraction of natural resources in order to protect our precious biodiversity. However as land-lubbers, when we think of the ‘environment’ that needs protection, we usually only think of what we see around us on the land; the plants and animals, forests and rivers, and unspoilt natural landscapes. We often forget that there is a whole other world of plants and animals and natural processes, out of sight and out of mind, that also need our care.

Our seabeds, oceans, coastlines and estuaries are environments worth protecting. The fish that live there are also native wildlife, although ironically they are not protected under our wildlife laws like their land-lubbing relatives and, instead are treated as a resource for harvest, managed under the Fisheries Act.

Thankfully our threatened turtles, dolphins and dugong are protected under biodiversity laws. But their underwater habitats can easily be harmed by inappropriate coastal development, oil leaks and spills, boat strikes and of course over fishing.

Like national parks and reserves on land, marine sanctuaries protect the plants and animals that live within them, ensuring the health of ecosystems by keeping natural processes as free from interference as possible. Like protected areas on land, properly planned, managed and funded

marine sanctuaries can be the foundation of biodiversity protection in the sea. Marine sanctuaries, (or no-take zones, as they are also known) are havens which allow fish to spawn and grow. They protect vulnerable species like turtles and dugongs and underwater habitats such as coral reefs and seagrass meadows. Marine sanctuaries also provide us with places to swim, paddle, study and explore, but where fishing, mining and other extractive uses are not allowed. Far from being places that are ‘locked up’, marine sanctuaries are essentially places where sea life (and people) can swim wild and free.

Importantly marine sanctuaries allow Aboriginal people to maintain traditional hunting and harvesting practices and ceremonies. Indeed, Traditional Owners have a key role to play in the designing, planning and on-going management of marine sanctuaries. As the owners of 85% of the NT coast, and as custodians of invaluable knowledge and understanding, advocates of marine santuaries are enthusiastic supporters of Traditional Owner aspirations to manage sea-country for the conservation of biological and cultural heritage. With many active Sea Ranger groups in the Top End who have plans to extend Indigenous Protected Areas into the sea, Aboriginal communities are leading the drive for better protection of our marine environments.

Despite the opposition they receive from some commercial and recreational fishers, marine sanctuaries are also good for fisheries. They can help rebuild fish populations through increasing the size, biomass and diversity of fish species and can

help repopulate surrounding areas through a ‘spillover’ effect into fished areas. Just two years after the marine santcuary zones were expanded on the Great Barrier Reef in 2004, scientists found that Coral Trout, numbers for example, had increased by 60% in the protected areas. The idea is simple - if you leave fish to breed and replenish, over time there will be greater numbers of bigger fish.

Sadly in the Territory, less than 1% of our coastline is protected. The Top End Sea Life campaign plans to change that. Our vision of a large network of marine sanctuaries across Northern Australia is gaining increasing support. Both the Northern Territory and Commonwealth Governments have promised networks of marine sanctuaries in their respective Top End waters, although much work is needed to ensure they get it right. With your support for this campaign we can ensure a secure future for our unique sea creatures and their habitats.

Why We Need Marine SanctuariesBy Jess Abrahams

Living Harbour

Less than 1% of our largely unspoilt Top End coastline is protected in marine sanctuaries. Gunn Point and exposed coral reef below by Hannah SewardMarine sanctuaries can help us

preserve the Top End lifestyle we are so lucky to enjoy now.Throw netting by Jason Rossendale and Andy Gane with a nice Barra - Image donated.

The Montara oil spill crisis in 2009. We need to protect our fragile marine environments from disasters like this.Image by Chris Twomey

Take Action!visit www.topendsealife.org.au and send a message to our Territory and Commonwealth Environment Ministers that you support a large network of marine sanctuaries in Northern waters.

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Do you love eating fish but know deep down that our ever-increasing seafood consumption is ultimately unsustainable? You probably know that species like Orange Roughy and Patagonian toothfish are unsustainable choices, but what about favourite Top End fish like Barramundi? As consumers we can make a big difference by choosing our seafood wisely, the fish we choose today will directly affect the health of our seas tomorrow, but what seafood is sustainable and what isn’t?

Thankfully the Australian Marine Conservation Society has recently launched the latest edition of their Australia’s Sustainable Seafood Guide. The guide is designed to help consumers make informed seafood choices and play a part in swelling the tide for healthy oceans.

Updated with the latest research, the new Guide covers over 100 species of seafood most commonly found in our supermarkets, restaurants and fishmongers. It also includes regional, imported and canned seafood and information about our fisheries, aquaculture, seafood and health and more.

While the guide does not assess the sustainability of recreational fisheries for people who like to catch their own, it does evaluate the sustainability of commercial fisheries and aquaculture operations for people who buy their seafood. The guide uses a traffic light system for assessing species. Green = a Better Choice, Amber = Think Twice and Red = Say No.

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Sustainable Seafood Guide

Australia’s

A guide to choosing your

seafood wisely

www.sustainableseafood.org.au

better

no

think

Sustainable Seafood in the Top End By Jess Abrahams

Conservation concerns are listed for each species, including; is the species over fished? Where is it from? Was it caught using destructive fishing methods? If farmed, which aquaculture method was used? Assessments can vary based on how or where the species was caught or farmed. So how do common Top End species rate?

Unfortunately Barramundi, our favourite Top End fish, is not a particularly sustainable choice, although this does vary depending on its origin.

Sea farmed Barramundi from both Asia and Australia is on the red Say No list. Why? Like other farmed fish, it is a carnivorous species and many more times the amount of wild fish must be caught and processed into fishmeal to feed farmed fish. With sea cages, there is also real potential for pollution of the sea floor beneath the cage. Escapes and disease transfer from farms are also possible. Small scale, well-located land based ponds can reduce impacts on surrounding waterways and so receive a slightly better amber Think Twice rating.

Wild barramundi caught commercially with gillnet and handline in Asia and Australia also receives an amber Think Twice rating. With a lot of commercial and recreational fishing pressure, there is uncertainty over size of stock. There have also been depletions in many areas, thus the need for ‘no-take’ marine sanctuaries to ensure we have fish in the future. Barramundi caught in gillnets also leads to unwanted by catch of sharks

Mud crab

Blue Swimmer Crab, also known as Sand Crab

Leatherjacket and Ocean Jacket

Mackerel including Spanish, School and Spotted species

Mullet, including Goldspot, Fantail, Yelloweye & Sea Mullet

Squid, Calamari, Cuttlefish, Octopus

Threadfin (Blue), also known as Threadfin Salmon, King Threadfin Salmon, Rockhampton Kingfish, Giant Threadfin, Blue Salmon

Trevally, including Black, Giant, Golden, Bluefin and Bluespotted Trevally

Whiting including Trumpeter, Western Trumpeter, Stout, Sand, Yellowfin, Eastern School & Western School Whiting

and other species. There is considerably less by catch in handline fisheries however.

Other common fish to avoid include Tuna, Salmon, Hake, Flake and Prawns, again these are many of our favourites. You can grab a copy of the guide to find out why.

Commercially caught species that are a better choice are often the fast growing, short-lived, more robust varieties.

Never forget that as consumers, we can and do make an important difference through how we choose to spend our money. If you love eating seafood, eat it sustainably.

Hardcopies of the guide can be purchased via the Australian Marine Conservation Society’s online shop www.amcs.org.au or you can access the guide online for free at:www.sustainableseafood.org.au

Top End species on the Green ‘Better’ list include:

Jess Abrahams is our new Northern Marine Campaigner. He takes over the role from Prue Barnard and more recently, Hannah Seward.

Green Living

Illustrations by Paul Lennon

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Arafura Swamp in central Arnhem Land has a trophy shelf to be proud of! Listed as a ‘Wetland of National Importance’, featured on the Register of the National Estate and a Territory ‘Site of Biodiversity Significance’ - also backdrop to the award-winning film Ten Canoes - the swamp is appropriately attended by three Yolngu ranger groups working together to manage its natural, cultural and economic values.

The Ramingining-based Gurruwiling Rangers and the Mirrnatja SE Arafura Rangers are actively involved in fire management and the control of Weeds of National Significance (WoNS) (Mimosa and Olive Hymenachne) and feral animals. Due to the diversity of habitats on and around the

swamp, unique challenges face the rangers which require specific land management plans. The wetlands of the swamp where WoNS control takes place are inundated for nine months of the year, while the surrounding escarpment and its creeks, billabongs and outstations are largely accessible, if remote.

A third Ramingining-based group, Wanga Djakamirr, cares for the sea country to the north of the swamp. This year has seen an exciting development in Wanga Djakamirr support offered from the Natural Resource Management Board (NT) through the Australian Government’s Caring for our Country program. In bureaucratese, this funding is for the ‘management

Three Ranger Groups have it coveredBy Chantal Bramley, Natural Resource Managment Board NT

Land and Sea Management on Arafura Swamp

and protection of important ecological and evolutionary refugia to strengthen opportunities for adaptation in the face of a changing climate’. In lay terms, it’s for the assessment of saltwater intrusion impact and management options. In partnership with NRETAS and Charles Darwin University, Wanga Djakamirr Rangers have established ground monitoring points, while remote sensing, mapping and modelling will continue into the New Year.

If you would like to find out more about NRMB NT projects have a look at the NRMB NT website:

www.nrmbnt.org.au

Nature Territory

Gurruwiling Rangers Planning Meeting. Photo Credit: Fiona Peek

Wanga Djakamirr Rangers undertake Climate Change Adaptation Workshop. Photo Credit: Shenagh Gamble

Still from the film Ten Canoes filmed in the Arafure Swamp. Image courtesy of Fandango Australia Pty Ltd

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Land and Sea Management on Arafura Swamp

2011 International Year of ForestsBy Melanie Bradley

We all have a personal connection to forests – whether it be their provision of timber to build our furniture and houses; their supply of material to make paper; their role in carbon sequestration and climate regulation at local, regional and even global scales; their release of oxygen that allows us to breathe freely; their provision of food, fuel and medicinal products; or the opportunities they provide for rest, relaxation and recreation.

The 2011 International Year of Forests is about acknowledging the need to conserve, sustainably manage, and in many cases, restore forests. At a global level it is recognised that sustainable forest management can contribute significantly to sustainable livelihoods, poverty eradication and the achievement of internationally agreed development goals. At a national and Territory level, there is a well-recognised need to conserve our native forests to protect soil and water resources, reduce carbon emissions and provide habitat for our unique native plants and animals.

The Northern Territory has impressive native forest diversity, ranging from eucalypt open forests and woodlands in the Top End, to mangroves (or mangal forests) along our coastlines, river red gum forests along our river systems, acacia woodlands in the arid zone, and monsoon rainforests and paperbark forests in areas such as Kakadu National Park.

Thankfully, much of the Territory’s native forests are still intact. We have the largest area of monsoon forest in Australia, 2700 km², which is home to 13% (604 species) of known Territory flora; our woody mangrove forests cover 3800 km², which represents 2.4% of the world’s mangrove areas; and our eucalypt forests and woodlands provide homes for diverse mammal, reptile and bird fauna, including threatened species such as the brush-tailed rabbit-rat, masked owl, butler’s dunnart and red goshawk.

The Environment Centre NT will be actively supporting the International Year of Forests by continuing to campaign for an end to major land clearing in the Territory. We seek to protect our forests as “green infrastructure” that provides important services to humans and also supports an enormous variety of plant and animal species.

In 2010 we commissioned the Environmental Defender’s Office of the Northern Territory to help us develop a comprehensive framework for the management and conservation of native vegetation. We will be promoting this framework in the year ahead and it will provide a basis for our submission to the Northern Territory Government when it releases the draft Native Vegetation Retention and Management Act.

Nature Territory

Mangroves fringing Darwin Harbour, Elly Langridge

Savanna woodland, Bathurst Island

by Glenn Walker

Savanna woodland, Blaydin

Point by Stuart Blanch

Top End riparian vegetation by Elly Langridge

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR We’d like to hear from you....

To the Editor,

When I first arrived in Darwin almost 2 years ago I was horrified to find that median strips in the middle of main roads were irrigated, quite often in the middle of the day. I’m not sure who benefits from this, certainly not the native wildlife. Nor the commuters driving past, who, if they happen to have their window open get a shot in the face of water, which is almost enough to make you smash your car as you jump from the shock and skid on the wet, slippery road.

Most things grow and develop in 15 years but it seems that whatever department is responsible for the maintenance of roads here has little concern for the environment or traffic hazards.

Is there a reason why we plant such water thirsty, maintenance demanding vegetation in the middle of our roads, when we have such beautiful, hearty native shrubs and trees that require little or no maintenance. Do we really need to water our roads during the wet season?

Louise P, Alawa.

Thanks for the letter Louise. the Environment Centre NT encourages people to plant native plants, which can require far less water than introduced species, particularly through the dry season, and are generally far more hardy. We will contact the council about this. Look out for the answers in the next issue of Pandanus. - Ed.

To the Editor,

I would like to take the opportunity to clarify a few points made in the November edition of your magazine regarding the Planning for Greater Darwin discussion paper. The paper is intended to create meaningful discussion within the community and to explore a variety of options.

In terms of the port options and industrial zones it is the intention of the Country Liberals to, as far as practicable, return Darwin Harbour to a largely ‘clean’ port. A second port is likely to be focussed primarily on military, mining and offshore industries and we believe a facility at Glyde Point is the best option.

It is insulting and untrue to claim landowners on Cox Peninsula have fought for decades to ‘cut the peninsula up into a patchwork’.

Our plan for the Elizabeth River proposes two options:

• A tidal weir across the Elizabeth River• No tidal weir across the Elizabeth River

Both provide an opportunity to significantly enhance services and facilities to Palmerston residents as well as creating a new, stand alone city.

Many of these options are decades away and the Country Liberals will listen to the community to develop workable planning solutions that meet the community’s needs.

Terry Mills, Opposition Leader

Thank you for your contribution Mr Mills, we appreciate you taking the time to write in and keep our readers informed. Our staff look forward to discussing Darwin’s future with you. - Ed.

Water Woes

Greater Darwin Planning

Second Time AroundDear Editor,

I’ve just moved into a unit and I’d like to get hold of recycled items and second hand furniture, Have you or your readers got any ideas? - Pete M, Fannie Bay.

Pete, The NT News has a large classifieds section - Friday and Saturday are the best days to look, there is also a lawn sale check list. Get up early at the weekend and cruise the lawn sales for good quality bargains. Thursdays has a Flea Market section, but you have to be quick!

Darwin Tip has a great selection of items that can be cleaned up and re used. There is a large second hand furniture store on Winnelie Road. Also, have a scout around the notice boards outside shops and supermarkets....

...There are several great websites offering almost any item you could wish for. Try Freecycle, Gumtree, Ebay, Trading Post, just search the Darwin or NT pages. Ezy Trader is a printed selection of classifieds that comes out every few weeks and don’t forget word of mouth. Send an email you all your friends, they may have unwanted items to pass on - Good Luck! - Ed.

Here’s your chance to put pen to paper and write in to the Environment Centre NT. We’d like to know what’s on your mind.

Please send any letters, comments, tips, statements, facts or questions to us via post or email and we will select the best ones and put them in the next magazine. Topics can be on anything environmental. Maybe you have a question for the team here, a top tropical gardening tip, ideas to make our lives more sustainable, or simply want to let off steam about an issue, here’s the place to do it!

Write to us: The Environment Centre NT, GPO Box 2120 Darwin 0810 Email us: communications@ecnt.org Call us: (08) 89811984

Please note: Submissions should be no longer than 200 words and must include your name and address and either a phone number or email address. We will not publish your name if you request us not to. We reserve the right to edit all content and refuse submission of any unsuitable content.

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Membership Application

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR We’d like to hear from you....

Darwin Sustainability Drinks at LizardsDrop in for a drink and nibbles, explore inspiring environmental solutions and see what’s happening on the Darwin green scene. Great guest speakers and a whole host of friendly faces.

When: 5pm to 7pm on the first Thursday of every monthWhere: Lizards Bar, Top End Hotel (Cnr Mitchell & Daley St)

Contact: www.sustainabilitydrinks.com

If you have an event we should all know about please contact the Environment Centre NT:the Environment Centre NT, GPO Box 2120, Darwin, 0810

Email us: admin@ecnt.org Call us: (08) 89811984

Facebook: Environment Centre NT

EVENTSUpcoming

Free seminar on ‘Sustainable Mining - What does it look like?’

Free Live Music ‘Music for Muckaty’ (See back cover for further details)

Free talk -‘Reconsidering Ranger’ Uranium Mine Expansion Briefing

Deckchair Cinema Film Fundraiser Night, Showing ‘Gasland’

World Turtle Day Sand Sculpture Competition at Mindil Beach

Save the Date! Darwin’s First Ever Eco Challenge

Top End Sustainable Living Festival

When: Thursday April 7th, 12-1.30pm With Dr. Gavin Mudd, Monash Uni, with panel of mining & regulatory officials. Where: Darwin City Council Civic CentreContact: Environment Centre NT on: 08 89811984

When: Thursday 31st March. Music starts at 9pm.Where: Happy Yess at Browns Mart, 12 Smith Street Darwin.Contact: email: uranium@ecnt.org or call: 08 89811984

When: Thursday April 7th, 6 - 8.30pm by Dr. Gavin Mudd, Monash Uni.Where: The Groove Cafe, Nightcliff Shopping CentreContact: Environment Centre NT on: 08 89811984Hear expert speakers talk about the environmental, water related and health concerns with the Ranger Uranium Mine and proposed heap leach expansions.

When: Thursday 19th MayWhere: The Deckchair Cinema, end of Jervois Road, off Kitchener Drive.Contact: Environment Centre NT on: 08 89811984

When: Sunday 22nd MayWhere: Mindl Beach, Next to the Casino, DarwinContact: www.sealife.org.au for more information

When: Saturday 30th and Sunday 31st July 2011 - Watch this space for more information!

When: Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th June 2011, Botanic Gardens - More information coming soon!

Flickr: environment_centre_nt

Events

You can download a copy of PANDANUS Magazine from our website:

www.ecnt.org

If you would like additional copies of PANDANUS please send us an email or give us a call on the contact details above.

18

Welcome to Jess Abrahams, our

new Northern Marine Campaigner.

Jess is excited to be living near the

coast again after working in Central

Australia for the last 18 months

to help stop the Angela Pamela

uranium mine.

Jess grew up by the beach down

South and has loved adventures

along the coast ever since. He has been lucky enough to dive and

sea kayak in some of the most spectacular marine environments

in the world including the Caribbean, the Galapagos, south-east

Asia, and Australia.

Jess has a Honours degree in environmental studies and is currently

undertaking a Masters in environmental advocacy. He has a strong

professional background in environmental education, sustainable

behaviour change and nature conservation campaigning.

Jess has worked in marine sanctuaries in Victoria and Tasmania

and is excited to be working with Territorians to establish a large

network of marine sanctuaries across Northern Australia. Jess is

taking over the Top End Sea Life campaign from Prue Barnard, who

finished in the role last year.

Feel free to contact jess on jessabrahams@amcs.org.au to find

out how you can help protect our Top End Sea Life.”

And we are also very happy to welcome Cat Beaton as our new

Nuclear Campaigner. Cat has recently moved with her family to

the Top End and is loving the wild weather and opportunity to

explore a new part of the country.

Cat has spent many years as a nuclear free campaigner in

both Victoria and South Australia, inspired at a young age by

the Arabunna protest camp at Lake Eyre South, where Great

Artisian Basin water continues to be used at the Olympic Dam

uranium mine.

Cat worked with the Friends of the Earth Anti Nuclear & Clean

Energy Collective (ACE), the International Campaign to Abolish

Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) in Melbourne. In South Australia, she

was involved in the Lartelare Glanville Land Action Group, and

Friends of the Earth SA.

Cat is looking forward to working with

Territorians on nuclear issues, including

the controversial Muckaty waste dump

and the proposed expansion of the

Ranger Uranium mine in Kakadu.

Please contact Cat at:

uranium@ecnt.org to get involved in

the Nuclear Free NT Campaign.

A warm welcome to the Environment

Centre Team - Ed.

Welcome to our newest

Environment Centre staff members

Check out our Facebook page. Search for: Environment Centre NT

Join us at Happy Yess on March 31st for some great live music and to support the Muckaty Waste Dump Protest.

Environment Centre Christmas Party 2010

Around 45 people came together to talk all things environmental and more at

the Environment Centre offices. Staff, guests, supporters and friends enjoyed

drinks and nibbles in the office gardens.

Christmas party photos by Lisa Peters

If you feel strongly about anything you have seen in this magazine get involved - Take Action!

Contact your local MLA, send them an email, call or write a letter, or submit a post on a our Facebook page.

If we can help you do this please give us a call on 08 89811984