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March 31, 2006
Renewable energy target needs more wind power
The New Zealand Wind Energy Association today said the Government could still meet its renewable energy targets for 2012 if it allowed network companies to develop wind farms.
The Government announced earlier this week that it would need to update the national energy and efficiency strategy because its targets looked unlikely to be met.
The Wind Energy Associations Chairman Mr Murray Kennedy said that wind energy development would be a major contributor to the original target for 2012, but the target could still be met if network companies are allowed to build wind farms in their own right.
If more farms were built in some of the remote areas in New Zealand, the nation could reduce transmission costs and add to the local security of power supply.
Mr Kennedy said that the Association was very disappointed that Eastland Network had been recently prohibited by the Commerce Commission to build a wind farm in the Gisborne area.
Many of the network companies are community owned and this would enable the people in the area to feel more involved in wind generation.
The Wind Energy Association believed that any network company investing in a wind farm should have full governance control.
The New Zealand Wind Energy Association supported the work carried out by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority but noted that they were restricted from achieving a number of targets by current Government polices Mr Kennedy concluded.
The NZWEA has more than 60 members including some of New Zealands largest electricity generators and lines companies.
In 2004 the wind industry was the fastest growing energy sector in New Zealand with growth of more than 300 per cent. 170 MW is now installed and operating. 90 MW is currently under construction, more than 400 MW of new capacity has been consented in the last 12 months and just over 600 MW is currently in the resource consent process.
Posted by nick at 6:00 PM | Comments (0)
March 29, 2006
The Save Happy Valley crew do it again!
Today coal industry lobby group Coal Representatives Against Progressive Policy (CRAPP) protested against the 'Climate Change and Governance' conference, held at Te Papa.
With slogans such as 'Kyoto Schmyoto' and 'Save My Six-figure Salary', CRAPP claimed that seriously combating Climate Change would jeopardise the massive bonuses and perks they get for producing one of the world's most polluting sources of CO2 emissions.
"Although today's CRAPP protest is light-hearted street-theatre, climate change is a serious threat to New Zealanders and the environment", said Timothy Bailey, Wellington spokesperson for the Save Happy Valley Coalition.
"The Labour Government wishes to be seen 'tackling' climate change, yet is whole-heartedly encouraging state-owned coal miner Solid Energy to continue with unsustainable coal mining. Solid Energy plans to mine Happy Valley on the South Island's West Coast, which would produce 12 million of tonnes of carbon dioxide and destroy prime kiwi habitat", he said.
"CEOs on massive six-figure salaries, such as Solid Energy's Don Elder, are the only people who really benefit from coal mining. The rest of us are forced to suffer the consequences of environmental degradation and climate change caused by coal mining", said Mr Bailey.
"The five million tonnes of coal in Happy Valley would largely be exported to steel-making industries in Japan and China. The idea of mines in ecologically significant areas such as Happy Valley is totally abhorrent when the only benefit is a tiny addition to the government's multi-billion dollar surplus", said Mr Bailey.
"We call on the Labour Government to reign in Solid Energy and stop its planned Happy Valley mine in the interests of those who will suffer from climate change" he said.
/ENDS
Source: http://indymedia.org.nz/newswire/display/43065/index.php
Posted by nick at 12:01 PM | Comments (2)
Greenpeace TV
Check out the Ocean Defenders TV broadcasts from the Esperanza on the Ocean Defenders website. In the the latest broadcast: Sara reveals what we've really been up to in the last few weeks and our other Sarah explains why we're doing it! It's all about pirates and we're bringing in the authorities! Click here to watch TV
Posted by nick at 11:07 AM | Comments (0)
March 22, 2006
Four people, one team and one goal: 100km in 20 hours.
Run 100km?? Are you mad? Is that even possible?? These are the kind of things people say when we tell them we've entered a Greenpeace team into the 'Oxfam Trailwalker' - a 100km adventure race through the hills around Taupo to raise money for Oxfam.
Well as the name implies you don't have to run the whole thing - it is acceptable to walk some or all the course - and there is 36 hours to it in. So no we're not mad and yes it should be possible! Indeed we aim to finish in less than 20 hours. We think it's an excellent cause, a worthy challenge and weve put in the hard yards in the Waitakere ranges in preparation for the big day.
It is going to be challenging, but the cause is good and we reckon we up to it - especially with your support
The Greenpeace team includes our direct actions coordinator (Chris), our web guy (Nick), our fundraising extraordinaire (Amanda) and our climb team leader (Michael).
Every three seconds a child dies of poverty.
Were raising funds to help Oxfam save lives and alleviate suffering. In the 36 hours we have to complete the course, 43,200 infants will die from a completely preventable cause. This is the equivalent of every New Zealand toddler dieing in a single weekend.
At least 80% of all funds donated by you will go directly to Oxfam emergency, development and advocacy work to help some of the world's poorest people. The remainder is used to make that work possible.
And the more you give, the more the Government will give you back!
You may be able to reclaim the tax on your donation. This means that if you are intending to give a certain amount, you could think about adding 50% more since youll be refunded a large proportion anyway. You will receive a tax receipt which you can use to reclaim the difference.
For example, if you would like to make a donation of $36, please enter an amount for $52, and present the tax receipt to the Inland Revenue with your end of year tax rebate claim. The end result is that you have given just $36 but Oxfam receives $52 and could use this additional amount to provide seven school books so that those children have something to learn to read when they are at school.
Please click here to sponsor the Greenpeace team and help Oxfam fight the good fight
Posted by nick at 5:24 PM | Comments (0)
March 9, 2006
Furry 'lobster' found in Pacific
Marine biologists have discovered a crustacean in the South Pacific that resembles a lobster or crab covered in what looks like silky fur.
Kiwa hirsuta is so distinct from other species that scientists have created a new taxonomic family for it.
Posted by nick at 9:04 AM | Comments (0)
March 7, 2006
Greenpeace image wins 2nd place in Pictures of the Year International
Picture of the Year the US equivalent to World Press Photo has offered 2nd prize, in the Science and Natural History category, to Greenpeace photographer Nick Cobbing for twelve incredible pictures of the Greenland ice and glacier feature. National Geography win 3rd and 4th place in the same category.
Greenland's glaciers are melting even faster than previously thought and contributing more and more to sea level rise caused by global warming. If you live near the sea and think global warming isn't a problem for you, it's probably time to think again.
The latest reports on increased levels of glacial discharge, in the journal Science, reports the amount of ice being dumped into the ocean from the Greenland Ice Sheet has doubled in the last 5 years. Scientists had thought that global warming did not yet significantly threaten the ice sheet and it would take over a thousand years to break down.
A full breakdown would result in a catastrophic global sea level rise of 7 meters. That's bye-bye most of Bangladesh, Netherlands, Florida and would make London the new Atlantis.
The new evidence indicates the sheet is disintegrating quicker than expected, and backs up our discovery of a disturbingly fast retreat of the Kangerdlugssuaq glacier from our expedition there in 2005.
Sea level rise, caused by melting ice from Greenland and other glaciers across the world, is already threatening some of the most vulnerable communities in the world - small island states in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, in Bangladesh as well as the hundreds of millions living in low-lying coastal areas around the world.
Already, the first global warming refugees are preparing to leave their homes. In November of last year the Papua New Guinea government decided to start moving ten families at a time from the horseshoe-shaped Carteret atolls in the Pacific to Bougainville, a larger island some 60 miles away. The Carterets are only 1.5 metres high and are projected to be completely uninhabitable by 2015.
Scientists are concerned -- but politicians are not taking action. How much more evidence do we need before we begin taking steps to avoid catastrophe? The US Administration and Australian Government continue to block effective international action, other world leaders talk a lot about global warming but avoid action because it might cost too much. But is the cost of New Orleans and half of Florida being under water an acceptable price for America's oil addiction, President Bush?
If our leaders won't jump, it's up to every one of us to take positive action to avoid the worst consequences of global warming. We can all take some, or, even better, all, of our suggested 12 steps to help the climate. If possible, buy your energy from a renewable energy supplier. If your politician doesn't act on global warming - vote for someone else who will.
Only when politicians feel the heat from voters will governments shift their investments from dirty fossil fuel technologies to clean, renewable energy sources that do not cause glaciers to melt, seas to rise and more people to die from increased extreme weather events. We cannot wait for an illusory 'silver bullet' of future technology to 'solve' the problem. We have the tools to start; what we are missing is the political will.
Even in the US, inaction on global warming at the top is being met by change from below: cities, churches, businesses, trade unions, students and the general public are not waiting for the White House to wake up - the US renewable energy industry is booming, almost half of US states and 200 cities have either adopted renewable energy targets or have pledged to meet their own 'Kyoto' commitments through action taken locally.
What's needed is an energy revolution -- one which overturns the ancient fossil fuel regime and brings forth a new vision. Revolutions don't come from the top. They come from the people. The cost of inaction is, quite literally, the Earth.
Posted by nick at 4:36 PM | Comments (1)