Good evening China, Germany, Malaysia, and Aotearoa (humble apologies for spelling that incorrectly the other day)...and a special hello to the USofA who, according to my 'stats meter' yesterday outnumbered Australian availees of this here blog...bizarre...and it's a sickness, it is, doing this blog...(yeah, we were going to have a day off today, but he got all toey about it and so here we go again-Ed)...
Yeah he's right...come 3pm and I just felt anxious and even guilty about not doing a post...(a post that has already turned into discussing this post, a post which we weren't going to do in the first place-Ed)...like I said, it's a sickness...but I just couldn't deprive my public...(sorry, did you say deprave your pubic-Ed)...thank you, no I did not...and you had a day off yesterday anyway, sort of...(only 'cause you left me out-Ed)...alright, thank you, enough bickering amongst myself, I'd thank me to just get on with it...
Just to break it up a bit I'll do the Rort Report Part III tomorrow...besides, there's a world outside Mt Gambier where stuff is happening, eg, at Penola where Beach (Petroleum?, Exploration?, whatevs) have been given license by the Weatherill Labor state government to drill a 4km deep 'Gas Exploration test well' right in the middle of one of the world's premium wine districts...(is this Coal Seam Fracking or more direct gas production?-Ed)...good question...
In the bit of interview I heard on the ABC Radio, the Beach (whatevs?) rep (sorry, didn't catch their name) wasn't talking about 'Fracking' and went to great length to explain that the well was completely sleeved and therefore thoroughly sealed and so therefore the aquifers, etc, are completely safe...but who the heck knows...even if it's true, accidents happen...
And another exploration license has also been granted for oil and gas exploration and I'll chase up those details and post tomorrow.
What I don't understand is, why, if the Wind Turbines are so fantastic and are moving us away from Fossil fuels to reduce emissions and thus reduce global warming, etc, why are we exploring for further fossil fuel resources to exploit?...and as always, what is the wisdom of any form of 'mining' in such a fragile environment, particularly with valuable and already vulnerable aquifers that are so important to agriculture, forestry, etc, right in the firing line...literally...is this yet more of our natural resources headed straight off-shore?...
Things aren't quite so rosy in the Wind Turbine Industry right now, either, as concerns about the recent Federal election outcome and Liberal's statements about axing the Carbon Tax, Climate Commission, and more importantly the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, cement market worries about the then predicted looming changes to legislation, and there are resultant repercussions in the Turbine Financing Sector.
Union Fenosa is set to shelve (and may already have) the 98 Turbine project planned for near Pt Fairy in Victoria (67 Turbines at Ryans Corner and 31 at Hawkesdale) due to these 'market pressures'...(they can't get anyone to invest whilst there is so much doubt about the future of funding, etc, and this proves the point that Turbines are wholly economically nonviable-Ed)...
Excellent point Ed...without those massive taxpayer funded 'Renewable Certificates', the Turbines do not create enough electricity to be self-funding...and never, ever will...and how does this stack up and/or get argued out as part of a Free Market economy?...(let the market decide, and Turbines are gone-Ed)...they have to be 'propped up' with funding...
And Pacific Hydro look to be in a spot of bother as well, seeking $71million of government funding for the fourth stage of their project near Portland, Victoria...that's $71m to go with the reported $158m they have borrowed (are trying to borrow?) from the banks...and it appears that it is the market jitters around future funding, etc, have taken their toll and possibly stalled or even stopped this completion of Stage 4 of the project...apparently they are also on the scrounge for $56m for a Solar Thermal Plant near Moree...
Infigen are having two Information Days re the Woakwine Turbine Project on October 11th and 12th 2013, but have not announced the location...I'll post a soon as I know...
Peter Doolan (CEO I think) of the SA Environmental Protection Authority was also recently on the ABC Radio spruiking the wonders of Wind Turbines and stating that South Australia's Carbon Emissions are down due to Wind Turbines...what he failed to mention was that SA now creates a goodly amount of our Carbon Emissions in Victoria due to the Export/Import regime forced on us (SA) by the gross unreliability of Wind generation that demands immediate 100% back-up generation, which we don't have...I've covered this extensively in previous posts...
I don't know whether Mr Doolan was being deliberately disingenuous, which would be concerning, or doesn't understand the structure and functioning of electricity production and/or supply in SA, that he is referring to...(and that would be even more concerning-Ed)...quite...and which would you rather?...that the EPA were lying, or that they were operating in ignorance?...
(And what happened to Labor hack Mia Handshin who Premier Weatherill unilaterally appointed by royal decree to be the head of the EPA?...haven't heard not one squeak from her since her royal appointment...where has she gone, I do wonder?-Ed)...you and me both Ed, you and me both...
Meanwhile, the New South Wales government have decided to address the contentious issue of Wind Turbine Infrasound and related Health Issues, by ignoring it...(deadset-Ed)...deadset...they have officially stated that 'in the absence of evidence stating there is a problem, we are going to approve Turbines anyway'...I'll cover this in detail in a separate post...and speaking of Health...
An announcement from Health Minister Jack Snelling that he has granted the Keith Hospital $1million funding per year for 3 years...but then what?...I have trouble keeping up with what is and/or isn't happening at Keith Hospital...first they had they're funding axed allegedly because they are a private and/or community owned hospital...(then there was some posturing/bullying to try and get the hospital to sign on to SA Health as a public hospital accompanied by threats of closure-Ed)...indeed, and then the offer of some funding for a brief period...and now this...
Pardon my cynicism, but I have grave concerns about the entire issue, namely 1) the Bordertown Hospital is never mentioned in these 'discussions', and it was/is my concern that it will be closed if the focus remains solely on Keith, and particularly if Keith becomes a public hospital...there's just no way this Labor state government will operate 2 hospitals 'only' 30kms apart...and 2) what happens in 3 years?...just more uncertainty?...
And the Mt Gambier Hospital Expansion project has finally received approval from the hospital's owner
(which is not the State government) and will be completed some time eventually next year...but the new Ambulance Station is still a muddy hole in the ground that will also be completed some time next year...and why would you have your Fire Station and new Ambos station actually touching the Rail Easement?...it just seems a very silly place to have your emergency services located...
Tomorrow: The Rort Report Part III
Round and round and round and round...(stop it, I'm getting dissy-Ed)...and round we go and so too the coin that has two sides...and the coin is the very lucrative accommodation 'agreement' that Mayor Steve Perryman has with Old Hospital Demolition contractor McMahon's...
And on one side that coin says Mayor Perryman used his inside knowledge of McMahon's tender to approach them and organise that 'agreement'...and on the other side, McMahons have contacted Mayor Perryman to organise the 'agreement' whilst applying for that Council contract...and when it lands, the face showing will be shown to have grossly corrupted appropriate process...
But will the coin ever land?...I doubt it...this is after all South Australia...I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters...
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