Introduction
Thankyou for the opportunity to comment on this important issue. Our submission seeks to raise a number of issues of concern rather than focus on the detail of the NFP. We endorse the excellent work being done by community groups and others advocating for the sustainability principles that comprise the basis of our approach to food growing and provision.

Issues of concern
The Braidwood Greens believe that the government’s National Food Plan (NFP) will not deliver the  safe, secure, sustainable, local, GM­-free food systems that Australia needs, and we call on the Minister to discard the current plan and start again, to create an NFP that puts the health, well-being and sustenance of Australians at the forefront. The first priority of any NFP ought to be affordable, local, fresh, minimally processed and health-­giving  foods for all. (more…)

Today, September 30, is World Rivers Day.

It’s time for us to put the health of rivers first, because by doing that, the good health of people will follow.

Thankyou for the opportunity to make a submission on the Green Paper. The Braidwood Greens have a strong interest in planning issues, given that Palerang Shire is one of the fastest growing LGAs in NSW and the region is already experiencing the impacts of climate change. In regard to the Green Paper, we are concerned at the focus on growth, the decrease in democracy and the abandonment of ecological sustainability.

We begin by requesting that you note our concerns about the timeline for submissions in relation to the proximity to the NSW Local Government elections. There may be many people who otherwise would have been interested in this review but who will not be focused on this process because of the elections.

We will focus on the Green Paper itself in this submission, rather than on answering the three questions in depth.

1. What are the best aspects of NSW local government in its current form?
Local government being local is the best thing about it. We are opposed to any further amalgamations. Local government has a lot of potential to be even better than it is at present, but it needs to be better funded.

2. What challenges will your community have to meet over the next 25 years?
Pressures for development due to the proximity of Palerang to Canberra; affordable housing when so many new houses are over-sized; difficulty in meeting infrastructure costs; water availability; lack of public transport and busier roads; the need to find work and meet a greater proportion of food needs closer to home.

3. What top five changes should be made to local government to help your community meet its future challenges?
Proper funding and a reversal of cost-shifting. Communities having a real say in developments that affect them, rather than always being overridden by developers. Better co-ordination between government departments to facilitate the DA assessment process. (more…)

The Australian Greens today welcomed comments from a leading nuclear radiologist shattering the myth that a waste dump is needed in outback Australia to house low-level radioactive medical waste.

Greens spokesperson for nuclear affairs Senator Scott Ludlam said the comments from Dr Peter Karamoskos, ahead of the Senate debate on the National Radioactive Waste Management Bill, exposed the dishonest campaign to impose a waste dump on Muckaty Station in the Northern Territory.

“Dr Karamoskos said the most radioactive isotopes generated from nuclear medicine are designated as ‘very low level’ waste, and he described claims that the dump is needed to support nuclear medicine as ‘mischievous scare-mongering’. (more…)

The Australian Greens today welcomed comments from a leading nuclear radiologist shattering the myth that a waste dump is needed in outback Australia to house low-level radioactive medical waste.

Greens spokesperson for nuclear affairs Senator Scott Ludlam said the comments from Dr Peter Karamoskos, ahead of the Senate debate on the National Radioactive Waste Management Bill, exposed the dishonest campaign to impose a waste dump on Muckaty Station in the Northern Territory.

“Dr Karamoskos said the most radioactive isotopes generated from nuclear medicine are designated as ‘very low level’ waste, and he described claims that the dump is needed to support nuclear medicine as ‘mischievous scare-mongering’. (more…)

The Australian Greens today welcomed comments from a leading nuclear radiologist shattering the myth that a waste dump is needed in outback Australia to house low-level radioactive medical waste.

Greens spokesperson for nuclear affairs Senator Scott Ludlam said the comments from Dr Peter Karamoskos, ahead of the Senate debate on the National Radioactive Waste Management Bill, exposed the dishonest campaign to impose a waste dump on Muckaty Station in the Northern Territory.

“Dr Karamoskos said the most radioactive isotopes generated from nuclear medicine are designated as ‘very low level’ waste, and he described claims that the dump is needed to support nuclear medicine as ‘mischievous scare-mongering’. (more…)