whakatane newsletter october 2011
OIL SPILL UPDATE
Last update here 17th October - Keep up to date via http://www.maritimenz.govt.nz
PUBLIC MEETINGS in WHAKATANE:
Community Briefings by Maritime New Zealand - INVITATION - Monday 17 October 2011
* Iwi briefing @ 3.30pm: Te Manuka Tutahi (Mataatua Marae), Muriwai Drive
* Community briefing @ 6pm: Whakatane High School Hall, Goulstone Rd
POSTER HERE....
FOUND OILED WILDLIFE? If you are out walking the beach and see any oiled wildlife (birds, seals etc) please call 0800 333 771 to report it. Please leave a detailed message if you don’t get through to somebody. If you have time, please stay with the oiled animal to ensure it is not disturbed or injured by dogs etc. If the animal moves please try and record where it goes. DO NOT touch or pick up the animal, as the oil is toxic. Do not try to clean up oil or animals yourself unless you have received relevant training, as the combination of oil and the dispersant makes for a very toxic sludge.
IF YOU ARE KEEN to help out, please call 0800 645-774. Alternatively, please email the response team at iccrena@gmail.com with your contact details and what you can offer. Help is also needed with wildlife observations - there are official forms to record data - then email to renawildlife@boprc.govt.nz. Officials are talking about the cleanup taking months, so it'll be a big effort.
From Pim de Monchy, BOPRC:
(Pim de Monchy is the Coast Care Coordinator, BOPRC, currently seconded
to Maritime NZ working on the Rena Oil Spill response): Things are not
looking good with approximately 30% of the beach at Pāpāmoa covered
with oil, and oil spread from Matakana Island through to Pukehina.
Keep up to date via http://www.maritimenz.govt.nz.
The Incident Control Centre (ICC) is trying to find ways to include
volunteers into the clean-up efforts in a safe and effective way.
If
you haven’t yet got a role in the clean-up and you are physically fit,
and able to commit an eight hour day of hard dirty work, please go to http://www.boprc.govt.nz/oilspillvolunteers
and pop your details in. Please do this even if you have already
registered through the 0800 number or via the email address as the
number of people offering assistance means ICC will be able to manage
the information better and contact only those required.
From Mon 17th Oct
there will be beach liaison volunteers in place on some parts of the
coast. Some voluntary teams will also start to train up to assist the
operations crews already in place. One message that has come through is
that some people who are collecting oil are collecting too much sand
with it. This increases the volume of waste to be disposed of. Others
are using bags to transport the waste which are subsequently breaking
and leaking into the dunes. Please
respect the request to wait until you have been trained and equipped
with safety gear and waste disposal facilities before getting involved
with the clean-up.
HANDOUTS from BOPRC:
Rena response handout 3 per A4 sheet HERE...Rena response handout, single HERE...
GREEN Party in TAURANGA:
Very informative NEWSLETTER, with first-hand accounts of the current situation, and invitation to Branch Meeting on Tue 18th Oct, which Metiria Turei will be attending."For me, all of this has highlighted how important it is to allow ourselves to feel the anger, grief, and frustration, and realise that we are not alone. The support and company of like-minded people is vital; we need each other, our mutual understanding, our humour, warmth and camaraderie, to help us to be strong. And at this time, more than ever, our local ecosystems need us Greens to channel our anger into action, to be strong, to speak up and do what we can, not for reasons of political expediency but for what we know is right." Gillian Oakbrook, Newsletter Coordinator - gillian.oakbrook@xtra.co.nz
WHAKATANE HARBOUR CARE GROUP:
We planned two planting bees for Keepa Road: Thur 20th and Thur 27th Oct.
The first one - Oct 20th is cancelled. The second one should be ok for
Thur 27th Oct. The reason for cancelling the one this week is due to
the risk of oil arriving on our local beaches and thus taking up the
time of conservation volunteers. I know that many of you will be helping
during this oil disaster and you have my sincere thanks. The NZ
dotterels were removed from our local beaches just in case oil does
arrive. The dotterels are extremely vulnerable to oil pollution and
less likely to survive that other shorebirds so the decision was made to
protect them now . John Groom, our local dotterel man has been in
amongst the action helping with his local knowledge. More information
from Sue Greenwood - businesstax@xtra.co.nz, or phone 07 307 1435/027
283 8718WHAT REALLY HAPPENED....?
"What really happened in the tragic Rena grounding in New Zealand. A great video of government inaction, corporate negligence, and a community finally taking over what has become New Zealand's worst ever environmental disaster..." narrated by Peter Bethune of Earthrace.OTHER NEWS
GREENDRINKS - The Sustainable Business Network and Energy Options are hosting GreenDrinks on Tue 18th Oct to jointly announce, with Pou Whakaaro, Whakatane District Council and Ngati Awa, the successful commencement of an exciting project - Community Reuse Whakatane (CReW). CReW is a great opportunity to maximise the use of resources and skills in our community and will bring about positive change for the Whakatane region regarding waste management. VENUE: Energy Options, 5 Richardson St, Whakatane 5pm – 7pm. RSVP to kirsten@ebopchamber.co.nz or 07 307 0118 - by Mon 17th Oct
OCCUPY WALL STREET (GLOBAL CAMPAIGN) and MANY other places - Occupy New Zealand campaigns: Occupy Auckland - QE2 square at 3pm Sat Oct 15th; Occupy Wellington - The Terrace Nov 5th midday at the Reserve Bank Wellington; Occupy Christchurch - 15 Oct at 10am; Occupy Otago - Oct 15 at the Octagon at 1pm. "We want a return to real democracy, a government by the people for the people & an economic system that works for 100% of the people." Watch this - I AM NOT MOVING - Short Film - Occupy Wall Street. (7 mins)
From WWF, Enviroschools and NZAEE, on Environmental Education in Schools:
The general election is nearly here and it’s a perfect time for us to promote our views on Environmental Education (EE) and Environmental Education for Schools (EfS) to prospective MPs. To help get their attention WWF, Enviroschools and NZAEE have produced a document called "Thriving Now for the Future: Education for the 21st Century. Policy priorities for candidates in the 2011 New Zealand general election". Despite the high demand for and interest in EfS there remains a glaring lack of support from central government. This document outlines three priority areas for policy that we think will make a significant contribution to developing EfS in New Zealand's formal education system (ECE through to tertiary). We aimed to be constructive, and have suggested policies that are realistic, achievable, and if done well, effective. Download a copy from the WWF website HERE.... Because we know politicians are more likely to support policies that are popular with the public, WWF commissioned Colmar Brunton to find out what New Zealander's views are on EE/EfS in schools. The results are amazing! 94% of kiwis agree that schools should be teaching about the environment and how to care for it, 74% strongly agree. This is a clear mandate from the public that we want support from government to see our young people receive EE/EfS in schools. Poll results HERE... So - time for action!! If you agree with the content in our report and want the government to adopt the policies outlined, the most simple and effective action you can take is to email/write to your local MPs and the education and environment spokes-people for all main political parties and tell them that like 94% of New Zealanders you think EE/EfS should be taught in schools, and the policies you want to government to introduce are in the WWF/Enviroschools/NZAEE manifesto. Too easy!!! WDC are looking for a new Waste Minimisation Officer. To apply for this position, please visit: www.whakatane.currentjobs.co.nz & enter ref code: 703364. Applications close 26 Oct 2011
CINEMA 5 - Eco-Pirate: The Story of Paul Watson - Part Captain Nemo, part Grizzly Man, the film will follow Watson in the act as he repeatedly flouts the law, so that he may apprehend what he sees as the more serious law-breakers – the illegal poachers of the world. This documentary chronicles the extraordinary life one of the most controversial figures in the environmental movement – the heroics, the ego, the urgency - of the world’s original eco pirate. Starts on Nov 10th. TRAILER
GLOBAL FOCUS AOTEAROA has now [very sadly] closed and are having a final book sale on Mon 16th and Tue 17th Oct 10am-6pm in Global Focus Library, Wellington. A gold coin donation is required for the books. They are not able to post resources out of Wellington so you will need to attend the book sale if you want any books. Venue: L2, James Smith Building, 55 Cuba St, Wellington.
BIRD RESCUE for injured and sick birds- please contact Sue Greenwood on 027 209 0567. Rosemary Tully has retired after twenty years of dedicated service. She has the sincere gratitude of local bird lovers and our feathered friends.
RoundUp Toxicity update - The Toxic Agrichemicals Advisory Forum (TAAF) presented their report on RoundUp/glyphosate to the Tauranga City Council last week. The councillors accepted the information and will be working with TAAF to help ensure the sprays used on Tauranga’s parks are not going to poison people, including the contractors who apply it. RoundUp type weedkillers are NOT SAFE: More HERE...
2012 CAN Cycle Friendly Awards - Nominations are open. The five Award categories are: MWH Best Cycle Facility Project, NZTA Best Cycling Promotion Project, Dunedin City Council Cycle Friendly Commitment by a Business, iWay Cycling Champion of the Year, and Auckland Transport Cycle Friendly Commitment by a Public Organisation.
Nominations are for projects completed between 1 June 2010 to 30 June 2011, and must be in by 2 December. The Awards Ceremony is in Hastings 23 Febr 2012 as part of the 2 Walk and Cycle National Active Transport Conference. For further information, contact Dirk at awards@can.org.nz. More HERE...
KIA ORA GAZA - In Dec 2011, Kia Ora Gaza will join an international aid convoy to the Gaza Strip. the land convoy will leave from London and enter Gaza around 27 Dec, the third anniversary of Israel’s assault on the Strip. The 1.5 million Palestinians unlawfully imprisoned in Gaza desperately need our practical solidarity, humanitarian aid and our help in breaking the Israeli siege. You can donate towards the $50,000 Gaza Appeal. More HERE..
Professor Wangari Maathai dies - Nairobi, 26 September 2011 - Professor Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, founder of Kenya's Green Belt Movement and patron of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Billion Tree Campaign, has died in Nairobi. She was 71 years old. Professor Maathai was one of Africa's foremost environmental campaigners, internationally recognized for her commitment to democracy, human rights and conservation. Tribute HERE... The film Taking Root, screened here last October featuring the life and work of Wangari Maathai is one of the most inspiring films I have ever seen. Contact Us if you would like to borrow it.
TIME BANK HUI - Lyttelton, New Zealand 14-16 Oct 2011 There will be a sliding scale of $0-150 to attend the hui. This includes meals. Fill out one entry for each participant who will be attending. Please register by Friday, 30 September. [If you are keen, they may let you book late!] MORE
FATHERS & SONS - encouraging and insping men across the Eastern Bay of Plenty as they raise their sons to become great men. A couple of EVENTS coming up - Horse Riding Sat 29 Oct 2011 1-2pm AND the Going Wild Weekend 2011 6pm Fri 25 Nov to 2pm Sun 27 Nov. More information HERE....
EXULT - Whether you're looking for some simple fundraising ideas, or you need some more in depth help with Volunteering, Sponsorship or Marketing issues, we have a whole heap of workshops and resources to give you a head start with the business end of your organisation. Next TONIC CONFERENCE - Fresh Thinking for Community Groups - Thur 24th & Fri 25th Nov 2011, in Rotorua. MORE....
And FINALLY... update on FAIRTRADE Coffee in Whakatane! Cafe Coco (taken the baton from Vendor) have continued to use SWITCH Fairtrade Organic coffee, so a BIG UP to them! Java Man has also converted to 100% Fairtrade EDEN coffee. Please support! Give coffee growers a fair deal.
COMPETITIONS & CAMPAIGNS
Win EACH MONTH with ORGANIC EXPLORER New Zealand. All you have to do is: “Like” OE's Facebook page and be in the monthly draw to win.
Latest news, including special pre-order price for upcoming edition HERE....
WWF COMPETITION - Produce an original film on the theme "Life. Nature. You. Make the Connection". Your film should inspire people to love, value and protect the natural world - and to reconnect with nature. Deadline 9 Oct 2011. The entire film must be a maximum of two minutes long. Prizes - Commission from WWF to create a short film with a minimum budget of $10,000 USD and all expenses paid trip to India to attend the CMS Vatavaran environmental film festival.
CLEANFUELZ - "Cleanfuelz has a solution that works." Its Cataylser introduces hydrogen to the vehicle's fuel to change its octane rating - creating a fuel that burns more efficiently. With greater efficiency comes lower overall running costs - less maintenance costs and and lower fuel costs. More information from info@cleanfuelz.com.
