Bryan Walker
New Opencast Mine Permitted - Hot Topic
Aug 27, 2011 •
News today that resource consent has been granted to Perth-based company Bathurst Resources for opencast coal mining on 200 hectares in the Mt Rochfort Conservation Area on Denniston Plateau, northeast of Westport. It will become New Zealand’s second largest opencast coal mine after Solid Energy’s nearby Stockton mine. The commissioners said that the consent was [...]
The Power of Non-violent Civil Disobedience - Hot Topic
Aug 26, 2011 •
In a post on the Guardian website Bill McKibben reflects on civil disobedience after his stint in jail last weekend. He had thought he might be writing a blog post from jail: “But frankly, I wasn’t up to it. The police, surprised by how many people turned out on the first day of two weeks [...]
Milliband’s Reading Cheers Monbiot - Hot Topic
Aug 24, 2011 •
George Monbiot has a striking piece in the Guardian this week, asking how much of the economic growth of the past 60 years is real and how much an illusion created by levels of borrowing that cannot be sustained. Ireland is his exemplar: “Go to Ireland and you’ll see that even bricks and mortar are [...]
SOS Roadshow Still Travelling - Hot Topic
Aug 24, 2011 •
The last time we reported on the Jim Salinger, Rod Oram and Caroline Saunders roadshow was after their Hamilton visit in July which I attended. They haven’t finished yet, and their itinerary for September to November is posted below. Jim Salinger comments on their visits since they were in Hamilton: “Since our Bay of Plenty/Waikato [...]
Thinking Old-Style Big - Hot Topic
Aug 23, 2011 •
A full page feature recently appeared in the Waikato Times in which Press journalist John McCrone interviewed Solid Energy CEO Don Elder on the Southland lignite proposals. It was a thoughtful piece of journalism, and I wish I could provide a link to it but it doesn’t seem to have appeared on the Stuff website. [...]
Arrests and jailings begin - Hot Topic
Aug 22, 2011 •
Arrests have begun on the first two days of the tar sands protest action outside the White House which I wrote about on Friday. Bill McKibben was among the first batch arrested on Saturday. The police have tightened up on their earlier assurances that the arrests would result in a $100 fine and release the [...]
Why Tar Sands Must Stay in the Ground - Hot Topic
Aug 20, 2011 •
After drawing attention to climatologist Jason Box’s intention to take part in the act of civil disobedience planned at Washington over the next fortnight, I thought it might be useful to underline why the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, which will carry crude oil from the tar sands of Alberta to refineries in Illinois, Oklahoma and [...]
Scientist prepared to risk arrest - Hot Topic
Aug 19, 2011 •
Climatologist Jason Box, interviewed earlier this year by Gareth on The Climate Show #7 (interview begins 21 minutes in), is preparing to take part in an act of civil disobedience in coming days. The purpose is to try to convince President Obama that approving the extension of a controversial oil sands pipeline — the proposed [...]
Biochar remains promising - Hot Topic
Aug 18, 2011 •
A recent commenter on Hot Topic made critical reference to biochar, providing links to publications from Biofuelwatch. Since I have written posts in the past highlighting the favourable possibilities which biochar may offer I thought it was perhaps time to revisit the matter. Biofuelwatch is an organisation which works “to raise awareness of the negative [...]
Another wind farm approved. - Hot Topic
Aug 16, 2011 •
Bit by bit wind energy in New Zealand continues to make progress. It was announced today that the Environment Court has upheld resource consent for Meridian’s proposed Mill Creek wind farm in the Ohariu Valley north-west of Wellington. The decision grants approval for 26 of the 31 turbines applied for, resulting in a combined capacity [...]