Australian scientists resign from Murray-Darling Water commission due to a lack of heed 21 May 2011 I don’t usually post these announcements, but GetUp are reliable and on target. Today it was revealed that key scientists have walked away from the government’s Murray Darling Basin Authority process in protest. Right now the Murray Darling Basin Authority is in the final stages of recommending how to deal with the water crisis in the Murray Darling. But shockingly, scientists tell us that the Authority is preparing to announce environmental water flows so low they won’t save our nation’s food bowl. Worse still, the Authority has cancelled all independent scientific review of the Government’s Murray Darling plan in an attempt to cover up its lack of environmental credibility. The Wentworth Group of Scientists have just resigned from the process in protest1 – but they need public support. That’s where GetUp members can make a difference. In a few weeks the Basin Authority will announce its plan. Let’s create a huge public petition to the Environment Minister, Tony Burke, demanding that the Government bring back scientific review before it’s too late: www.getup.org.au/campaigns/murray-darling/petition/save-the-basin The Murray Darling Basin has been sucked dry by decades of over extraction. Despite recent rain and floods the Murray Darling Basin is on the brink of ecosystem collapse. Already over 90% of the floodplain wetlands have been destroyed along with native fish and bird populations. Without a basis in science the basin plan could lock in the death of over a quarter of the iconic river red gums on the Murray. This would spell disaster for the internationally recognised wetlands on the river. Scientists and sustainable famers can’t fix this situation alone. Their voices are being ignored. But if we all join with them, we can’t be ignored so easily. Sign this petition to call on Environment Minister Tony Burke to bring back the science: www.getup.org.au/campaigns/murray-darling/petition/save-the-basin We can’t let the opportunity to save our most precious waterways be wasted by bureaucrats wanting to take the easy option and ignore the science under pressure from the heavy irrigators. Please join the petition to help back up the scientists. Thanks for taking action, The GetUp team PS – Click here to read the full statement the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists provided to GetUp explaining why they pulled out of the Murray Darling-Basin Authority (MDBA) process. — 1 The Age ‘Key scientists cast doubt on Murray water return’, Richard Willingham. May 21, 2011. Australian stuff Ecology and Biodiversity Politics
Ecology and Biodiversity Couple of organismic blogs 20 Jun 2007 No! Not orgasmic! [There, that should bump up the hits] You all know, of course, the inestimable Darren Naish and his wonderful blog Tetrapod Zoology. What? You don’t? Go there immediately and come back when you’ve read it all, and the old site too. [Fifteen days later] So, I wanted… Read More
Accommodationism Accommodating science: Faith and reason 5 Mar 2014 [This is the penultimate chapter. I can’t be bothered trying to get the references or footnotes included in the posts, so you’ll have to wait for the book. Some of this has appeared on the blog before in less well written form, so don’t worry about the deja vu] All… Read More
History How to fix Iraq, and not invade Iran 28 Sep 200718 Sep 2017 There’s been a lot of media spin and unthinking objections to the visit of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to the US. He was called the “modern Hitler”, for example. This strikes me as both unthinking and dangerous. Ahmadinejad is his own kind of threat and problem, and comparisons to past dangerous… Read More