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VOL 15 ISSUE 42 Nov 20, 2008 |
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Mining: if law gets in the way, change it
Change
of guard at tourism lobbyIn the current Territory laws and processes for assessing the environmental impact of a mining project, the Ministers get to decide on all the important points. So it comes down to this: can the public trust the Ministers – the Environment Minister but also the Mines (now Resources) Minister? The Resources Minister, who is not specifically bound to take into account the Environmental Impact Assessment, has the final say, not the Environment Minister. KIERAN FINNANE reports. Meanwhile, ‘tiny’ can become very big in the nuclear heat. Uranium miner Cameco's Jennifer Parks stresses that her statement last week was not an admission of error. She stands by her interpretation that 35ppm uranium as a “tiny amount”. That is notwithstanding the statement – not denied – by a local scientist (unnamed but known to the Alice News), that 35ppm is 1750 times more than the upper limit in the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines. Ms Parks says she wasn't talking about drinking water: “I said the numbers were correct and clarified and put in context, which your anonymous writer did not do.” Full stories»  ‘I don’t want to be bad. I just get bored’ The "tough love" talk abounds – curfews, boot camps and even riot police – but what do the kids say? Why are they hanging around in the streets late at night and why do some of them turn to crime? BEVERLEY JOHNSON set out to meet a few. Full story» Nuke dump, for & against The Town Council, local activists and some Aboriginal traditional owners this week addressed the Senate Inquiry about the Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Act 2005, supporting the repeal. But the Federation of Australian Scientific and Technological Societies (FASTS) says the need for a properly established and managed radioactive waste facility is well overdue. FASTS is the peak representative body for 60,000 Australian scientists and technologists in the public, university and industry sectors. KIERAN FINNANE reports. Full story»   Special interests – such as ecology, Indigenous culture, solar cities and the cattle industry – will need to be developed as attractions to lure the few people still able to travel in the current world wide recession. That’s the view of Ren Kelly (above, left), vice-chairman of Tourism Central Australia for the past two years. He is throwing his hat in the ring for the top job of the organization of which he’s been a member continuously since 1972. The current chairman, Steve Rattray (above, right), is standing down on November 24. ERWIN CHLANDA reports. Full story» Not bad for a little place like this ERWIN CHLANDA discovers another theme for a T-shirt slogan bound to send the blood pressure of the shoot-the-messenger brigade all the way through the roof: Road fatalities statistics. Full story»  Ballooning made in Alice takes China by storm Local hot air ballooning pioneers, John Sanby and John Wallington, after selling their operation in Cairns, and their business in Alice Springs dropping 75% in five years, were looking for “somewhere in the world” to start another operation. “Africa was too corrupt ,” says Mr Sanby, “South America had too many balloonists already. “India was ruled out because of bureaucracy. “So China was our last option, but Austrade warned us most people failed there." However, they persevered and are now operating in a valley with one million tourists a year. ERWIN CHLANDA reports. Full story» Matriarch of the Lines and Colson families passes on  OBITUARY: Ellen Harriet (Nell) Lines nee Colson, arrived in Alice Springs for the Christmas of 1931. Her introduction to Central Australia was a mighty shock. Mrs Lines (pictured above, seated, centre, in white spotted dress; with her big family) was then a refined, naive and sheltered young woman of sixteen, who had spent most of her life in the strict confines of Catholic boarding schools in Western and Southern Australia. The outback town was hot, dusty and sparsely populated, with only a few shops, pubs and boarding houses, and a few private dwellings spread along a dry river bed surrounded by the beautiful MacDonnell Ranges. Full story» Late artist gets first solo show  An exhibition honouring inspirational Warlpiri elder and renowned artist Darby Jampijinpa Ross will be showing at Araluen from this Saturday. Ross became one of the most significant and visible ambassadors for Warlpiri culture in Central Australia, having contributed extensively to the introduction and acceptance of Aboriginal knowledge systems in both the scientific community and mainstream Australia. Full story» Was the police officer Willshire a murderer?  The Central Australian episode of the recent SBS series, First Australians, has generated controversy in Alice Springs about the reputation of Mounted Constable Willshire (pictured above, from The Lanf of the Dawning, one of Willshire's ethographic publications. The original is held in the National Library). Alice Springs News editor ERWIN CHLANDA speaks to historian DICK KIMBER about what the record shows. Apart from contributing to the episode in interviews, Mr Kimber has also written a chapter for the accompanying book, released this month. He says it differs from the filmed episode in that he illustrates both the Arrernte and bushman’s senses of humour, and gives, “for want of a better description, a lighter touch”. Full story»  Summer starts with hope Pastoralists around Alice Springs are experiencing the most hopeful start to summer for six to seven years. “But there’s still a lot of summer to come,” says NT Cattlemen’s Association executive officer Ian McLean. The country will need follow-up rain during the summer to move out of the drought. KIERAN FINNANE reports. Picture above: Kids frolicking on the weekend near the footbridge over the Todd – normally dry. Picture below: "Perfume Creek" was in full flow again, the government owned Power & Water Corporation sewage recycling scheme notwithstanding. We asked P&W does this creek – flowing under the Stuart Highway and past a children's home – contain partially treated sewage? No comment. Full story»  Centre can be the new Saudi Arabia of renewable energy, says LETTERS TO THE EDITOR writer Dr. Tom Keaney. And ADAM'S APPLE looks skyward and says: Bring on the rain! Go to our archive. TO OUR MANY LETTER WRITERS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD: WE PUBLISH MANY OF YOUR COMMENTS - KEEP THEM COMING! E-mail alicenews@ozemail.com.au All material on this site is Copyright of Alice Springs News and Erwin Chlanda Pty Ltd, and must not be published or distributed in part or whole without permission of Erwin Chlanda Pty Ltd. Tel Australia 08 89 555444. |
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| Erwin Chlanda |
Kieran Finnane |
Jennifer Armstrong |
Adam Connelly |
Beverley Johnson |
Jacquie Chlanda |
Darcy Davis |
Dick Kimber |
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| Managing Editor |
Chief Reporter |
Office Manager & Sales |
Columnist |
Special Reporter |
Researcher | Youth Reporter |
Special history writer |