Booklovers bag a bargain at Bookfest

It is estimated over 150,000 Brisbane book lovers flocked to the Convention Centre at the weekend searching through over 2million books on 4km of tables to snap up a bargain.

The Lifeline Bookfest is held in Brisbane twice a year and the January 2010 Bookfest marks its 24^th year raising funds to assist Lifeline in delivering programs and support to the local community.

It was expected sales from the opening weekend had raised a total of $700,000 and Bookfest coordinators were confident of reaching their goal of raising $1.5million by the time doors close on January 24.

“The success of the Bookfest events manage to blow me away every year. We exceeded our budget last year and made almost 17 per cent more than the 2008 events,” Bookfest Coordinator Mr Roy Firth said.

“The Lifeline Bookfest is a win-win event for Brisbane – there are bargains to be found for everyone, the money raised goes back into the community, and the event itself creates a community.”

The event, however, would not be as successful without the support of the 600 volunteers it takes to run the 9-day event.

First time volunteer Ms Sara Griffin said she had been a long time visitor to the Lifeline Bookfest and always looked forward to the event for cheap and quality books.

“It is great to be experiencing Bookfest from the other side of the fence this year,” she said. “I believe in the work that Lifeline do in the community and hope they reach their fundraising goal this year.”

The January 2010 Bookfest runs daily (8:30am-5pm weekdays and 8:30am-8pm weekends) until January 24 at the Brisbane Convention Centre, South Brisbane For more information log on to www.lifelinebookfest.com

Movies: Up in the Air

Director Jason Reitman is interested in the idea of likeable male protagonists who are cheerfully committed to their amoral jobs. In Up in the Air, our amoral protagonist is Ryan Bingham, played (of course) by George Clooney, who spends his life on aeroplanes and in hotels, touching down briefly in anonymous offices to fire poor saps whose spineless bosses don’t want to get their hands dirty.

It’s a life Bingham loves so much he rhapsodises at motivational talks about living with an “empty backpack” – without the tiresome anchors of work and family. His only goals are accumulating loyalty points as he travels and the occasional fling – a role which Alex (Vera Farmiga) is happy to play.

Up in the Air, as you would expect, is contemporary, thoughtful, and cleverly written. It’s a movie with a lot on its mind: how do we exist in a society that is so atomised and casual, where our main loyalty is to brands and jobs but not to people, where we struggle so often to make connections with those around us?

At one point in the film, Bingham confidently asserts “I’m surrounded by people”, and it is this line that is at the heart of the film – whether we trivialise them, uphold them or ignore them, our relations with others are what give our lives meaning. The recently unemployed, portrayed in some cases by the actual victims of the US’s still rising tide of joblessness, reiterate a common theme that family is what is motivating them to do better, to realise their dreams.

But as the film makes clear, loved ones can fail us too. Other characters besides Ryan pay considerably more attention to their relationships, with mixed results; we see shaky and failed home lives despite the best of intentions. The characters’ lives are indeed up in the air, but we never really grasp something that helpfully resolves the uncertainty.

Up in The Air is like a late night philosophy conversation in the pub. It’s great fun, but you end up with some astute observations on the meaning of life that you can’t really work out what to do with.

The casting is pitch-perfect. George Clooney is as dry as always, and it’s great to see that as a young ambitious understudy Natalie (Anna Kendrick) receives credit and praise from the film on her own terms without having to knuckle under to the older male’s way of doing things, compared to the situation in say, State of Play. The next step will be to have a woman protagonist in Clooney’s role, without making it a “women’s movie”.

And Jason Bateman’s beard effectively hides the haplessness that we saw in Arrested Development to create Ryan Bingham’s disagreeable boss.

Whether you envy or despise Ryan Bingham, it’s clear that Up in the Air is one of those films that people will look back on as bringing out the spirit of our times. Go see it, and if you can find a “moral of the story”, be sure to let me know.

Up in the Air is in cinemas now.

Blitzen Trapper Blitzes the Hifi Bar Brisbane

Saturday November 14, 2009

Words and Pictures: Kate Scantleton

It’s great when you enter a live gig with no expectations and walk out having been blown away. Such was the case of US band Blitzen Trapper @ the Hifi Brisbane last night. The Hifi Brisbane has, until this point in time, not stood up to the expectations of many (including myself) in terms of providing a great show. It can be safely said that after watching last night’s gig, the Hifi Brisbane has finally found its mojo. It was only a matter of time!

The ‘Trapper are the kind of musicians that refuse to be ‘boxed’ into any particular category, mixing country with electro-pop, grunge-esque guitar licks with sweet harmonies, and a capella melodies with synthetic noise. They make it work. Let me give you the heads up, these guys are destined to be the next big thing. Jump on the bandwagon now while you’re ahead.

Let me set the scene for you: Trapper are a six piece, all members of which chip in all over the place – drummer Brian Koch and guitarist Marty Marquis create the most amazing harmonies with lead singer Eric Earley, whilst the rest of the band, Erik Menteer, Michael VanPelt, and Drew Laughery, jump between bass, guitars, synth, keys and percussion. Mix these amazingly talent gents with catchy tunes and an hour and a half of non-stop music, and you have yourself one hell of a gig.

Blasting onstage with Sleepytime in the Western World, the band made it blatantly clear what the audience was in store for. Filling the rest of the set with songs from their numerous releases, highlights being Black River Killer, Silver Moon, Furr and Big Black Bird, the set was filled with both sweet, soft melodies and intense crescendos.

It was surprising to hear of a not-so-well-known abroad band touring Australia, and leading up to the gig I was a little unsure of whether their performance could actually warrant an international tour. I can certainly say that my attitude has completely done a 180. This is one band who have managed to capture the hearts of good music followers, and I personally have not been able to remove them from my mp3 player since. I’m very much looking forward to their future return to our welcoming shores.

Climate change threatens global food security

By James Schultz

The United Nations Environment Program fears the world is heading for a major food crisis if there aren’t drastic changes to the way food is produced and handled around the world. It says climate change, increasing water scarcities, and a rise and spread of invasive pests such as insects, diseases and weeds may substantially reduce crop yields in the future.

Meanwhile, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation says a 70 per cent rise in global food production is needed by 2050 for a growing population tipped to reach nine billion people.

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation says Australia is particularly vulnerable to climate change, and stresses the need for effective water management across the nation. The CSIRO has found that parts of Australia have received record low rainfall over the past several years. Its research also suggests that the water scarcity being experienced in southeast Australia began 15 years ago.

Australia experienced its warmest August on record last month amid soaring winter temperatures. The Australian Bureau of Meteorology described it as a “most extraordinary month” with mean temperatures 2.47 degrees Celsius above the long-term average.

The National Farmers’ Federation says these factors have cost Australia 90,000 on-farm jobs and placed entire regions under enormous stress as farm production has plummeted. Many in the agriculture industry are now looking at ways to improve farming practices and reduce water usage, but debate over how best to do this continues. One of the more controversial solutions being discussed is genetically-modified foods.

GM foods or GMOs (genetically-modified organisms) are plants or animals that have had their genetic makeup altered to exhibit traits that are not naturally theirs. For example, plant geneticists can isolate a gene responsible for drought tolerance and insert that gene into a different plant. The new genetically-modified plant will then theoretically gain drought tolerance as well.

Complex Issue

The use of GM foods concerns human and animal health, the environment, ethics, and the future needs of the world’s population. But according to professor in biological sciences at the University of Newcastle, Raymond Rose, GM foods are often overlooked when it comes to the climate change debate.

Professor Rose says the development of drought-resistant crops could play a large role in meeting the 70 per cent target set by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation. “Climate change and food production are closely connected to plants, and genetic engineering of plants can impact very directly on the food supply,” he says. “If you go across Australia in a drought you’ll see gum trees looking pretty good because they have strategies to deal with that, and now we can have legumes that can potentially deal with that too.”

But Gene Ethics chairperson Scott Kinnear says GM foods are a “magic bullet” which has so far proven ineffective. “Nothing has been successful in terms of crop yield,” he says. “Food security is far more likely to be achieved through a better understanding of soil biology and other factors.”

Mr Kinnear says there are concerns that GMOs could cause the reduced effectiveness of pesticides, gene transfer to non-target species, allergies, and potentially birth defects in humans and animals. “It’s just simply not worth the risk,” he says. “We’re much better to work with the existing seed varieties that have been produced using traditional techniques and work on increasing yields through better management of soils and changing what we grow.”

But Professor Rose says this is a common argument based on lack of understanding. He says there are stringent testing procedures associated with GM foods and various safety measures to prevent harm to humans, animals and the environment. “One of the really big shames is that people can use gene technology every day in medicine to prolong human lives, but when we might prolong a lot more lives on average using it in food, people get worried.”

Testing and Regulation

All genetically modified foods intended for sale in Australia and New Zealand must undergo a safety evaluation by Food Standards Australia New Zealand, an independent government agency. In Australia, the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator also oversees the development and environmental release of GMOs under the Gene Technology Act.

According to FSANZ, licences for GMOs will not be issued unless any potential risks can be managed to protect the health and safety of people and the environment. “If the genetic modification causes an unexpected effect in the food, such as increasing its allergenicity or toxicity, it will not be approved. To date, we have identified no safety concerns with any of the GM foods that we have assessed. Other national regulators who have independently assessed the same GM foods have reached the same conclusions.”

According to Scott Kinnear, however, the types of safety testing conducted by FSANZ are woefully inadequate. “We’ve got a regulator that really turns a blind eye,” he says. “It looks at what it wants to look at and ignores what it doesn’t want to see. They don’t do independent research, they simply look at the data presented by the companies themselves and it’s simply just not reliable.” Mr Kinnear says FSANZ has a political position in favour of GM crops that it will always maintain. “I mean look how hard it was to finally reach some degree of acknowledgment that smoking causes harm and it’s still not banned.”

Food Security

Dr Glenn McDonald, senior lecturer at the School of Agriculture, Food and Wine at the University of Adelaide, says food security will be difficult to come by. “I think people on both sides of the argument have a tendency to overstate the benefits and the potential dangers of genetically-modified crops,” he says. “They’re going to be a useful tool in certain areas but they’re not going to allow you to grow crops without water. You’re probably realistically looking at a yield advantage of maybe 10 to 15 per cent at the most.”

Dr McDonald says GM crops are only part of the solution. “Part of the problem has actually been the over-allocation of water resources within the Murray-Darling Basin and the political issues associated with water being distributed amongst different states, many of whom have different priorities.”

National Farmers’ Federation economics and trade manager Charles McElhone agrees. “It’s a combination of a whole realm of issues including drought policy, infrastructure development and building a strong national market for water that recognises and rewards improved efficiencies in that area. All our sectors are acutely dependent on the weather and that includes rainfall, temperatures and frosts. It all has a bearing on every single one of our sectors. You can’t just say GM in isolation is going to be the panacea.”

Dr McDonald says in the long-run, despite the complexity of the problem, he’s confident human ingenuity will prevail. “What happens – and this has been going on ever since agriculture started – is that you get a loss of farmers, but you tend to get the loss of the poorer managers so the agricultural industries tend to sort themselves out. We’ve faced similar types of challenges in the past and they’ve always been overcome.”

ETS voted down will lead to election

The Prime Minister will again try to have the emissions trading scheme passed in the Senate next month after the Federal Opposition proposed to delay the vote.

The Federal Opposition has proposed to kill off the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme bill, wanting the vote delayed until after the UN’s Copenhagen Conference on Climate Change in December.

Leader Malcolm Turnbull says Australia should at least wait until the US Congress have passed their version of an emissions trading scheme.

Independent Senator Nick Xenophon says Australia with its different economy and industries doesn’t need to wait for the US, but the business industry says Australia would do well to be guided by the country with the world’s largest economy.

General manager of policy at the Queensland Chamber of Commerce and Industry Nick Behrens says though the federal government has recognised the need for the ETS to begin in 2011, the chamber’s stance has not changed.

“Australia should not adopt a carbon pollution reduction scheme until such time as those countries with a similar industrial profile as ours embrace their own responsibilities and implement emissions trading schemes,” Behrens says.

He says if Australia moves ahead of global schemes, the country’s exporters and importers will be disadvantaged.

“But given that unemployment rates are now increasing dramatically, given that business and consumer confidence are at all time lows, now is not the time to be imposing additional significant costs on businesses at all.”

Greens Senator Christine Milne says Australia’s target as it stands will hinder carbon trading globally.

“It drags down the possibility of an ambitious global agreement in Copenhagen.

“Because the target is so conditional, everybody knows it will never be triggered,” Milne says.

But Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is eager to put the bill to the Senate’s vote again in June.

If the bill fails twice, it could trigger a double dissolution election.

Christine Milne says the Greens are happy to fight an election on climate change because they know the community sees the party as a genuine voice for real action.

The Greens want the bill scrapped completely, arguing it doesn’t go far enough.

National Party Senators risk losing a seat in the Senate if they vote against the scheme.

The party have vowed to vote against the bill in its current form because of the negative financial impact it will have on regional areas and the farming and mining industries.

16,000 dead received $900 bonus

And the Opposition is maintaining its pressure on the government over its stimulus payments.

Malcolm Turnbull has accused the government of “reckless” spending after it was found $40 million in stimulus payments went to expats and dead Australians.

The Australian Tax Office has admitted $14 million went to 16,000 dead people and $25 million has been sent to about 25,000 people living overseas.

$11 million was also spent on marketing the cash injection.

Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner has rejected suggestions the payments were wasted.

Gen Y expects large pay rise

New wages figures show pay packets rose 3.3 per cent in the year to May, but it seems Australians aged 18-34 believe they’re worth more than the economic downturn is delivering.

The Melbourne Institute Wages Report has shown the majority of the 1,200 Australian households surveyed expect a 2.6 per cent wage rise over the next 12 months.

But Generation X and Y have higher expectations.

Author of the report Dr Edda Claus says 25-34 year olds expect the largest rise of 10.8 per cent.

“Typically the people that are aged between 25 to 34 they are on their way up in their career. So you would expect them to have a higher wage rise because they have more experience,” Dr Claus says.

Optimistic 18-24 year olds expect an 8 per cent increase over the next year, which youth trends expert Dr Harry Zaphir says is due to the generation having only been exposed to times of solid growth and economic prosperity.

Dr Zaphir says the results show young Australians are setting themselves up for disappointment.

But despite the generations having high hopes, they should understand when the pay rise doesn’t come through.

“They’d have to be living in a bubble not to realise what’s going on at the moment,” Dr Zaphir says.

Past trends show young people have moved jobs quickly if their wage expectations weren’t met, with Dr Zaphir saying that mind set is about to change.

“When they realise that everyone’s in the same boat and they’re not going to be able to command better salaries elsewhere will stick it out. They won’t be happy about it, but no one is,” he says.

Dr Zaphir says management needs to explain to their young employees whether their job is secure, how the business is coping and how they’ll pull through the recession.

Dr Claus says because some respondents haven’t received a pay rise in the past year, they aren’t optimistic about getting one in the next 12 months.

Those surveyed aged 50+ are most pessimistic, anticipating a rise of just 0.3 per cent – the results heavily reflecting the gloomy labour market.

Dr Claus says the rise in the basic hourly wage and the total pay figures have decrease since the 12 months to February.

“Which is also consistent with the slowing labour market – people are not getting as many bonuses, they’re not working very much overtime,” she says.

With the Global Chamber Platform predicting the financial crisis will turn a corner around mid-2010, disappointed workers may not be sulking into the next financial year.

LR

Safety of uranium exports questioned

After the nuclear weapons test in North Korea yesterday, world leaders have lashed out at the Stalinist state. 

US President Barack Obama says the testing is a threat to international peace and a blatant violation of international law.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has labelled North Korea’s nuclear test as “provocative and destabilising”.

But the Federal Labor Government has made uranium export deals with China and is considering the same with Russia – two countries who in the past have violated the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which internationally prevents the use of uranium for military purposes.

The Australian Conservation Foundation’s David Noonan says there are no benefits in uranium mining and the “toxic, hazardous industry” should be phased out.

“There are direct links between the agenda to promote and expand the nuclear industry globally and the threat and the risk of weaponisation that can follow from the duel use of Australian uranium,” Noonan says.

Noonan says the North Korean explosion shows they used nuclear and civilian reactors to develop a weapons program and Australia, as one of the world’s largest uranium exporters, needs to strengthen safeguards quickly to prevent this from happening again.

“There are things Australia can be doing, but there’s little support or little emphasis being showed by the Federal Government to actually get on either with properly controlling uranium mining or with properly limiting the risk that follows from Australian uranium exports.”

In the past India, China, the United States and Russia have all failed to honour the peace treaty and Noonan says there’s a double standard in Kevin Rudd’s response.

“You know it’s one thing to say, to condemn, North Korea and their nuclear weapons test, but we are looking the other way when the nuclear weapons states fail to honour their NPT obligations,” he says.

Dr Ron Huisken, Senior Fellow at the Australian National University’s Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, says he sees North Korea’s actions as walking away from their commitment.

But he says countries like China and Russia have too much at stake to risk deliberately exploiting uranium exports.

“The price that they would pay in terms of international regard and prestige would be huge,” Huisken says.

“But for the big guys that we’re currently doing it to, there’s I think essentially no risk.”

The Queensland Government has banned uranium mining in the state, with the Premier Anna Bligh under pressure from the Liberal National Party and mining groups to lift the moratorium.

Though the Queensland Greens support the halt, spokeswoman Libby Connors says the government “has quite hypocritically been allowing exploration for uranium mining”.

The Federal Government is under pressure from the Opposition to override any state bans, and the Queensland Resources Council also supports utilising uranium mining to create jobs and help the struggling Australian economy.

But Connors says uranium isn’t a stable employer and Australia should be looking to sustainable industries to aid the nation.

“Until the issue of waste disposal is resolved it’s just totally irresponsible for Australia to be supporting the nuclear industry in any shape or form,” Connors says.

Connors says new safeguards need to be established so countries, like North Korea, don’t pull out of the treaty when it suits them.

“Because a country can be a signatury and then it can change its mind and tear up the agreement and they’ll then switch to a more agressive stance using Australian uranium,” she says.

Safety implications of uranium mining include developing reactors, managing high-level nuclear waste, fuelling nuclear fires, proliferating weapons and terrorism.

LR

Second swine flu case in Queensland

by Sarah Ford

A second person in Queensland has tested positive to Swine Flu, bringing the total number of cases in Australia to eighteen.

The twenty-year-old Paddington student returned from a holiday in New York on Saturday and reported feeling unwell.

Health authorities confirmed overnight that the woman had contracted the virus.

Six people who had contact with the woman, including house-mates and friends, are in separate quarantine for a week. The woman remains at home with her boyfriend by her side.

Australian Medical Association Queensland President Chris Davis, says the rapid spread of the disease is not surprising.

“Essentially it comes as no surprise given the degree of global travel, so potentially we’ll get a few more,” he said.

The ACT, New South Wales, Western Australia and South Australia, today announced any child returning from countries with large flu outbreaks will be banned from school for seven days.

The countries include Mexico, the United States, Japan, Canada and Panama.

Australia’s Chief Medical Officer Professor Jim Bishop, says the measure will help buy time before the August vaccine date.

“We expect to have some vaccine within three months or so but it’s going to be a very tight race to make sure it’s valuable for us,” he said.

Of the eighteen confirmed cases in Australia, eleven are in Victoria, two are in South Australia, two in New South Wales, one in Western Australia and two in Queensland.

Mr Davis says the government is being extremely cautious, but warns people should not become complacent and should maintain hygiene practices, including washing hands and avoiding direct contact with mouth, nose or eyes.

The swine flu virus has only caused mild symptoms in people in Australia, but scientists warn it may mutate into a more dangerous strain.

Storms continue to damage

by Paul Sutherland

The rain may have stopped and the waters subsided, but the aftermath of South East Queensland’s recent flooding will be felt for months and Queensland is not the only state affected by the wild weather – New South Wales is the latest victim of the carnage.

Last week’s flash flooding in South East Queensland kept the SES busy, with more than two thousand cries for help received from residents.

As of this morning, all of the call outs in the Brisbane region had been attended to, with only four remaining in the south.

But while the role of the SES might have drawn to a close, Brisbane City Council’s cleanup is in full swing.

Councillor David Hinchliffe, whose Central Ward was one of the hardest hit, says the clean up costs are going to be enormous.

“Obviously we’re talking tens or possibly hundreds of millions of dollars over all of Brisbane,” he said.

The flooding caught thousands off guard, damaging property and causing traffic chaos across the region.

And Brisbane is still reeling from Wednesday’s deluge, with CityCat services still unavailable due to unsafe conditions on the river.

Councillor Jane Prentice from Brisbane City Council says debris washed into the river poses a safety threat to passengers.

“We’ve had a horse jump, we’ve had a jetty, we’ve had gas cylinders. The last thing we want is damage to a CityCat with passengers on board,” she said.

Further south, the Gold Coast’s beaches continue to be hammered by wild waters.

Shannon Hunt from the Gold Coast City Council’s Engineering Services, says erosion and debris on beaches are a major concern, but the clean up is well under way.

“At this stage it’s difficult to determine what that might cost but we’ve got the plant and the equipment in place to respond to the situation at the moment,” he said

The weather system that caused so much carnage in the South East moved into Northern New South Wales, and caused extensive flooding there. Some roads are still closed and towns and coastal communities cut off.

Mayor of Clarence Valley City Council, Richie Williamson, expects the clean up bill to be in the millions of dollars, but he says it’s nothing they haven’t seen before.

“Probably every 6,7,8,9 or ten years we get a flood of this nature like this, it’s certainly not the biggest flood ever experienced but it’s certainly not the smallest. It’s a significant event,” he said.

Irwin’s Support Starts to Crowe

Three weeks after Russell Crowe’s appearance on the David Lettermen show supporting Terri Irwin’s bid to stop mining in Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve, 160, 000 signatures have been gathered for a petition to stop the mining.

The petition to the Queensland government is a bid by Terri Irwin to stop a bauxite mining project by Cape Alumina Pty Ltd in part of the Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve, which is located in Cape York, north Queensland.

“The support has been inspiring, and has confirmed that we are representing the interests of a nation in protecting our wildlife and their habitat. The Save Steve’s Place petition gives the people of Australia a voice – and it is ringing loud and clear. We are almost at 165,000 signatures,” Terri Irwin says.

Russell Crowe appeared on David Lettermen’s April 17 show in support of his good friend Steve Irwin, and said, “He’s not here to stand up for himself and I just feel, as his friend, that we can’t do nothing”.

Cape Alumina media representative Richard Owen says a lot of the recent interest in the mining project has been fuelled by, “The gladiator’s entry into the fray. Maximus Glutius.”

The Wilderness Society, who are working with Terri Irwin, are amazed by the response to the issue after Crowe’s appearance.

“It has been enormous globally, over 160,000 signatures. I have never seen anything like this for an environmental issue before,” Wilderness Society spokesperson Glenn Walker says.

Terri Irwin’s petition is to protect the Wenlock River area of the wildlife reserve, which is the major tributary to three important spring fed wetlands, and contains rare and endangered flora and fauna.

“The Wenlock river system is incredibly intact. It has the highest diversity of fresh water fish anywhere in Australia, around 50 different species,” Walker says.

“There are two endangered species we are particularly worried about – the freshwater sawfish and the spear-toothed shark. The mining company want to build a port at Port Musgrave and the dredging will disturb these animals because they are bottom feeders.”

The Wilderness Society believes they can stop the mining proposal soon if the Wenlock River is declared wild by the Queensland Government.

“The way we can stop it is the Wenlock Wild River declaration proposal. Submissions to the government close next week and we expect the government to declare the Wenlock River wild by August.”

The Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve is on a pastoral lease bought by Terri Irwin in 2007 in memory of her husband, though Cape Alumina have had mining rights to that area for the last five years.

Cape Alumina dispute that their mining project will have any negative impact on the environment and accuse Terri Irwin of running a scare campaign.

“The petition is not valid because it is based on emotion. It’s a stunt. They haven’t done the studies,” Cape Alumina CEO Dr Paul Messenger says.

“We invite Mrs Irwin to be engaged in this process. She ignored our offers before and the due process, particularly involving the indigenous people. What she forgets is that it’s not Steve’s place, its traditional Aboriginal land and she is ignoring the wishes of the native people.

“There are opportunities for Aboriginal people. They want this to go ahead, because it will provide hundreds of jobs in a remote part of the country. There will be substantial benefits that will flow on to the people of Marpoon, and what they (petitioners) want to do is deny these people the same standards of living that they enjoy themselves.”

The Cape Alumina project has the potential to earn three to four billion dollars in export earnings over its initial 10-15 years according to company estimates.

A spokesperson for Environment Minister Peter Garrett says, “The proposed mine cannot proceed without assessment under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Act, and that assessment is underway”.

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