Saturday 20th June.

If you are still concerned that the Government’s ‘Water Plan’ isn’t in the best interests of Victorians, there is something that you can do this weekend. Watershed Victoria  are letterboxing Maxine Morand’s electorate of Mt. Waverley this Saturday, the 27th June. Please read on if you are able to come along and help out, even if only for an hour or two.

If you are coming from Melbourne, just turn up at the Pinewood Reserve (Melways 70 G4) between 10.30 and 11.00am.
Letterboxing will finish around 4.00pm, and there will be a BBQ in the Pinewood Reserve after some good footwork.
If you are coming from Wonthaggi there will be a bus and car pooling leaving Wonthaggi at 8.30am from the information centre. Everyone to meet up in the electorate at the Pinewood Reserve (Melways 70 G4) at 10.30 to 11.00am to collect boxes of flyers and maps. Ring Neil on 0413 902571 (or email neilnola@netspace.net.au) to book a seat on the bus, or just turn up at 8.30 and hope for a lift (if you have spare room in a car traveling to Melbourne please call by the information centre to see if anyone is looking for a lift).
Watershed hopes to distribute 20,000 postcards, folded into a flyer. Three quarters of these have been folded, ready to go, but more help is still needed to fold the remainder. If you are able to help with folding and addressing the postcards could you contact Watershed and they will try to get the materials to you asap.
Watershed will also be screening the, “Out of the Blue” documentary, that has followed the anti-desal campaign so far, with a Q & A session, in the electorate, in the following week. If you aren’t available for the letterboxing but would be able to hand out flyers for the documentary screening at railway stations or supermarkets (ideally one male and one female), please contact Watershed.
Bring a pack or bag to hold the letterboxing material, the weather forcast is good so a coat or umbrella might not be needed, sensible walking shoes and lots of good cheer!

Contact: Neil Rankine, Watershed Committee, 0413 902571

Last court case for protester:

Friday 10th July - Jeannie Zigon, the last of the people to go to court after the desal protest caravan was evicted a year ago, was in Wonthaggi Magistrates Court on Friday 10th July. In her defence she raised issues of aboriginal heritage and the limited amount of monitoring for indigenous artifacts that has been undertaken at the site of the “pilot” plant. 

 Results of court case - Case proven but no conviction, 3 month good behaviour.

Jeannie drew her inspiration for her defence from the wise words of prominent Aboriginal people, Professor Lahrissa Behrendt, Aden Ridgeway, Robbie Thorpe, etc.. Click here to download a statement she prepared.

Click here for photos and details of previous events that Watershed Victoria has been involved in.

You might be able to find yourself “on the web”.

Saturday 6th June:   Watershed Victoria Social and Catch-Up

3 pm extending to the evening - drop in anytime. At the Royal Wonthaggi Life Saving Club Hall,  Bay Beach Cape Patterson.  Watch films of the campaign, including “Out of the Blue”, Tophers View on the Desalination Plant and North-South Pipeline, and news coverage from the last few weeks. Live music from our talented local musicians, hear the latest news and maybe help fold a few brochures ?

Please bring a plate to share. More info : 0407 811778.

Wednesday 10th June:

“Death of Democracy” Rally at Parliament Steps 12.30pm . Join campaigns against changes to the planning laws, Blue and Green Wedges and public transport advocates. Presentation of postcards and no-desal campaigning letters to Peter Ryan National Party Leader.  For bus bookings/car pooling leaving from Wonthaggi at 9.30 am, ring Stella 5672 2991, or meet us there.

A great day, thanks to all who; participated, helped with transport, made props, and kept everyone’s spirits up - Well done everyone! Click on a picture to enlarge.

1.00 pm, State Library, Melbourne.        A Watershed Victoria endorsed event.

See www.climaterally.org for more details

Saturday 20th June:

“Death of Democracy” march through Wonthaggi town centre, marking two years since the announcement of the desalination plant project.  Still no explaination as to why desalination was chosen ahead of the other options, and against the government’s electoral mandate. We met at 11 am on the Inverloch Rd in Wonthaggi near the Cottage restaurant.  March around Wonthaggi town centre and finish at Apex Park  with a wake and BBQ.

Click on an image to see the photo in a new window:

The state Government’s says their promise to offset the desalination plant’s electricity use with renewable energy credits, makes the plant’s huge energy use OK. Better than not offsetting at all, if they must build the plant, however this option prevents the reductions in greenhouse emissions that are required to avoid catastrophic climate change. The analysis below uses the recently released Australian Greenhouse Audit to look at the figures:

Victorian emissions soaring, and water a culprit!

From the Federal Governments National Inventory of  Greenhouse Gas Emmissions by Economic Sector 1990-2007 (http://www.climatechange.gov.au/inventory/2007/pubs/NIES.pdf):

In 2007, Victoria had the highest emissions of all the states in the electricity, gas and water sector, at 65.2 Million tonnes CO2 equivalent (Mt CO2-e).

We have eclipsed NSW who were the highest in this sector in the 1990’s.

Victoria has increased its emissions in this sector by some 40.8% between 1990 and 2007, from 46.3 to 65.2 Mt CO2-e. NSW only increased their emissions in this sector by 32.3% over the same period.

Victoria will increase its annual emissions by another 1.2 Mt CO2-e by the operation of  the proposed desalination plant (if kept to the 150 gigalitre capacity rather than the design maximum of 200 gigalitres). This represents another 2.6% increase above our 1990 levels in the water, electricity and gas sector.

Alternative water supply options could have sourced the same volume of water at not much more than a quarter the emissions. To put this another way, water supply need only have increased our emissions some 0.7% further above 1990 levels rather than the 2.6% now being proposed.

Our overall emissions must be reduced, not increased, from 1990 levels to avoid catastrophic climate change. Australia will hopefully reduce its emissions by something like 30% on 1990 levels by 2020. How will this be done when states like Victoria appear uninterested in actually reducing emissions?

Offsetting the desalination plant’s emissions with renewable energy credits will merely cover the new emissions. There will be no net reduction in emissions. Had the Victorian Government pushed the alternative water supply options, we would have had nearly three quarters of the renewable energy available, to actually offset and reduce some 1.9% of those 1990’s emissions (¾ x 2.6 = 1.9). The Victorian Government has instead decided to tie up these renewables (currently more than the quantity available) to cover their wasteful and unnecessary desalination plant.