Archive for September, 2007

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  Union member as environmental watchdog - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  Two managers of the Wallace Corporation in the Waikato have been found guility in the Environment Court of ordering the burial of equipment containing polychlorinated biphenyl in the foundations of a new building. Polychlorinated biphenyl is a very longlasting carcinogen and by law must be disposed of carefully. By burying them in the building’s foundations there is a [...] read more
  September 22, 2007 11:27 am - 3 Comments
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  nandor on open source software - by frog

  
  
  
  The admission by the head of the SIS Warren Tucker about ten days ago that NZ Government computer systems had been hacked left a number of questions up in the air. Apart from “was it China, as he may have (kind of) implied?” and “what has the Government said to them in response?”, there is [...] read more
  September 21, 2007 4:59 pm - 16 Comments
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  Friday miscellanea - by frog

  
  
  
  Today is Set Net Ban Day of Action – there are some actions underway as we speak. Protestors were grouping at Oriental Bay first thing this morning, heading towards Parliament at 1pm, and plan to get as many signatures as possible en route. From there they’ll head to the Ministry of Fisheries building and then [...] read more
  September 21, 2007 10:48 am - 7 Comments
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  So many Fugitive Emissions!! - by frog

  
  
  
  One would have to say after today’s urgent debate in the house about the Emissions Trading Scheme, most of what we got was little more than hot air. The biggest fugitive emissions, besides the coal seam methane being ‘accidentally’ left out of the scheme, came from National. They have completely rolled over on a price [...] read more
  September 20, 2007 5:18 pm - 17 Comments
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  roll up, read all about it - by frog

  
  
  
  The full documents (forThe framework for a New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme) are downloadable here, and initial Green analysis of the newly announced Emissions Trading Scheme is here. read more
  September 20, 2007 1:57 pm - 1 Comment
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  also - by frog

  
  
  
  interested bodies may like to tune into Question Time, where we have Question 1. No prizes for guessing what it’ll be on! Live stream here, here or   AM Network Frequencies: Auckland: AM 882 Khz Bay Of Plenty: AM 657 Khz Waikato: AM 1494 Khz Napier: AM 909 Khz Wellington: AM 657 Khz Chistchurch: AM [...] read more
  September 20, 2007 1:54 pm - 2 Comments
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  tardy trading tragedy - by frog

  
  
  
  Soooooo, the secrets out, the lid is off and the ETS has been launched. There’s an awful lot of information, opinions and press releases zinging around out there. Good ol’ Scoop has all the info and reactions, including video coverage of Govt’s press conference, and audio of Jeanette’s. The Government’s (Parker, Clark, Anderton) speeches, self-congratulatory [...] read more
  September 20, 2007 1:22 pm - 44 Comments
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  A zoo for the Maui? No thank you. - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  NEWS FLASH: check out these Maui questions in parly with gruesome photos on youtube. While no doubt entirely well meaning, Marinelands proposal to start a captive breeding programme for the Maui dolphin is really just a cop-out for the rest of us. This is not the future of conservation that we all fight for – [...] read more
  September 19, 2007 11:46 am - 2 Comments
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  Rechristened Waste Bill announced - by frog

  
  
  
  The new Waste Minimisation and Resource Recovery Bill was announced today in a press conference. Nandor’s release is here, and a factsheet about the what’s changing and what’s not is here. read more
  September 18, 2007 4:33 pm - 15 Comments
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  First it’s Bin Laden, now it’s the religious right - by frog

  
  
  
  Seems everyone’s keen to be green! After the strangely coiffed terrorist recently discussed everything from sub prime mortgages to Kyoto, it seems over the ditch Family First are keen to get in on the act. (Via The Dead Roo) read more
  September 17, 2007 1:19 pm - 3 Comments
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  bring it on…. - by frog

  
  
  
  Frog realises this is likely to incite all the haters and wreckers to start with the ‘send them home/Guantanamo/Nauru/or worse – Australia’ and so on and so forth, but for those who didn’t read the Sunday papers, there were several pieces on Zaoui that bear repeating. SST’s carried Chris Trotter’s, Finlay MacDonald’s and the paper’s [...] read more
  September 17, 2007 11:10 am - 8 Comments
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  Cruelty-free consumption - by frog

  
  
  
  Apologies for the delaying in posting this, people may still find it interesting. It’s a study completed recently by researchers at the New Zealand Centre for Human-Animal Studies, who, after interviewing some 150 people, identified as ‘non-mainstream/ethical consumers’. Respondents expressed a large number of opinions on various issues – ranging from the difficulty of finding [...] read more
  September 14, 2007 3:36 pm - 21 Comments
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  friday funny – typo of the day - by frog

  
  
  
  It just takes one letter: Seven Fey Reflections For Business Press Release by University of Auckland Business School at 10:56 am, 14 Sep 2007 Seven Years, Seven Key Reflections is the distillation of seven years work by The ICEHOUSE and The University of Auckland Business School. adjective 1. slightly insane 1. British Dialect doomed; fated [...] read more
  September 14, 2007 11:35 am - 10 Comments
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  Medpot Update - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  I have delayed the Medicinal Cannabis bill to 13 Febuary 2008. At this time there are insufficient votes in the Parliament to get my bill through the first reading and therefore to select committee. My decision to delay my bill is based solely on my concern that my bill should remain on the parliamentary agenda [...] read more
  September 13, 2007 12:23 pm - 21 Comments
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  Too few dolphins to count? She’ll be right mate! - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  I presume you all know that New Zealand has the dubious honour of being home to the world’s rarest marine dolphin, the North Island Hector’s Dolphin, known as the Maui. There’s a Population Management Plan for Maui and their south island cousins out for consultation right now (Email submissions to Hectorstmp@biodiversity.co.nz). Of course, protecting the [...] read more
  September 12, 2007 3:58 pm - 15 Comments
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  Richard Heinberg coming to NZ in Oct - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  The Green Party is happy to host peak oil expert Richard Heinberg at two events next month in Auckland and Wellington and warmly invite you to attend. Both of the talks are free. “Richard Heinberg is one of the world’s foremost Peak Oil (oil depletion) educators and has earned his reputation lecturing, writing several well-known [...] read more
  September 11, 2007 9:27 pm - 36 Comments
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  initial reflections on a weekend in sydney - by frog

  
  
  
  this little frog has just returned from the locked-down-police-state-formerly-known-as-Sydney. And despite a really inspiring march, some fantastic speakers (Warren Smith from Maritime Union of Australia was a particular highlight), a great atmosphere encompassing so many different groups, so many people from every walk of life, and some very clever t-shirt design and sign-writing, the thing [...] read more
  September 10, 2007 9:56 pm - 58 Comments
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  APEC, GDP growth, climate change - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  There are five basic positions that you can take on the relationship between GDP growth and greenhouse emissions. The first is that GDP growth is primary, and there is a trade-off between reducing emissions and growing GDP so we shouldn’t reduce emissions. This was the Bush position when he refused to ratify Kyoto because he [...] read more
  September 10, 2007 1:42 pm - 12 Comments
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  Penan people fight Rimbunan Hijau - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  While we have been running our campaign in NZ against the destruction of tropical forests, this report from Friends of the Earth Malaysia says the Penan people of Sarawak in Malaysia have been building road blockades to try to stop the giant Malaysian logging companies Rimbunan Hijau and Samling from logging their ancestral lands. Rimbunan [...] read more
  September 8, 2007 6:33 pm - 22 Comments
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  A man for all seasons - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  Watched A Man for All Seasons the other night. Has one of my favourite quotes in it about rule of law: William Roper: So, now you give the Devil the benefit of law! Sir Thomas More: Yes! What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil? William Roper: [...] read more
  September 8, 2007 5:31 pm - 8 Comments