This month we’ve been busy preparing for November, which will be a huge month for events!
From LiveLighter Spring Eco Fest, to our CCWA Conference, AGM and Awards, to our 50th Anniversary Quiz Night, there will be so many ways to celebrate our incredible environment and contribute to its continued protection. We look forward to seeing you at one - or all - of these events!
We’ve also been hard at work advocating for stronger environmental policies, most recently in the form of our joint statement calling for a major review of the Strategic Assessment of the Perth Peel Region (SAPPR) - more on that below.
A message from Sarah about the CCWA Conference, AGM, and Awards 2017:
“Have you registered for CCWA’s Annual State Conference, AGM, and Community Conservation Awards 2017?
This year, we’re holding our conference on Saturday 18 November and Sunday 19 November at a venue that’s special to many of you - Cockburn Wetlands Education Centre in Bibra Lake.
We’re looking forward to getting together for an incredible weekend, where we can learn from each other and collaborate to create a better future for our environment. Together we’ll hear from experts, develop our skills and knowledge, and strengthen our friendships in a stunning natural setting.
On the first evening, we’ll also hold our Community Conservation Awards, where exceptional local environmentalists will be acknowledged for their incredible contributions to the WA environment. If you know someone who deserves recognition for their hard work, nominate them to receive an award!”
A message from Richard about LiveLighter Spring Eco Fest:
“I’m looking forward to seeing you on Sunday from 11am to 4pm in Forrest Place, where we’ll be hosting our LiveLighter Spring Eco Fest 2017 - our annual free community event to celebrate our beautiful Western Australian environment and explore our many options for sustainable living!
LiveLighter Spring Eco Fest 2017 will promote individual wellbeing, connected communities, and environmental conservation through our program of interactive workshops, informative stalls, and unique entertainment.
And this year’s event will be even more special, as CCWA is celebrating its 50th Anniversary! Join us in celebrating and RSVP now!
I would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the generous support of our naming sponsor Healthway, an initiative of the WA Government’s Department of Health, alongside our other incredible sponsors JustInvest and Ethical Homeloans.”
A message from KA about Nuclear Free WA:
“Only 3 weeks to go for the Supreme Court Case hearing and we really need your help! Collectively we have raised a massive $21,000 and need to keep going for a $50,000 target. Please keep sharing with friends and family, and if you haven't seen the short video by Vicky Abdullah you can watch it here!
Please also join us at Environment Matters: Maralinga to Mulga Rock on Thu 9 Nov from 6pm to 9pm for a panel discussion about the proposed Mulga Rock uranium mine in the Yellow Sand Plain Priority Ecological Community. This is an area that became a refuge for the Spinifex people who fled South Australia following the British Atomic Weapons tests at Maralinga in the 1950s. We'll hear from government, community, the company, and a national environmental NGO. You can RSVP here!”
A message from Monica about Frack Free Future:
“Thanks to people like you, Frack Free Future has made enormous progress over the past year, securing a moratorium on fracking under the State Government. That means no fracking – at least not while an inquiry is underway.
That’s why this month we were shocked to reveal new Federal plans for a fracking project and pipeline in the Kimberley - despite the State Government’s moratorium.
And now industry insiders say that the project could receive funding from the Federal Government’s Northern Australia Infrastructure Fund (NAIF) - the same fund that is considering a billion dollar subsidy to Adani’s Carmichael coal mine!
Will you help keep the Kimberley free from fracking, and ask your Federal MP not to invest our public funds in fracking or fossil fuels?”
A message from Piers about the Strategic Assessment of the Perth Peel Region:
“The approval of individual developments in the Perth region over many years without a strategic framework for biodiversity protection has lead to a ‘death by a thousand cuts’ for much of our natural environment.
The Strategic Assessment for the Perth-Peel Region (SAPPR) presented an opportunity to finally do things differently, however the Barnett Government’s ‘Green Growth Plan’ had major flaws and would lead to unacceptable environmental damage.
Together with other leading environment groups, we have released a joint statement calling on the McGowan Government to undertake a major review of the SAPPR, to deliver the the following outcomes:
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Halt native vegetation loss and create a network of fully protected reserves.
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Protect and restore all remaining Threatened Ecological Communities and habitat for endangered species including Carnaby’s cockatoos and Western Ring-tailed Possums.
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Protect and restore the ecological values of rivers, wetlands, and groundwater dependent ecosystems, including by addressing nutrient pollution and enforcing wetland buffers.
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Ensure adequate resources are provided for ongoing research and management of protected areas.
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Apply sustainable urban design to deliver a compact, connected network city.
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Establish effective governance, implementation, and enforcement measures including legally binding conservation commitments and independent monitoring and reporting of outcomes.
We hope the WA Government will consider this statement as a credible and scientifically based, yet pragmatic, benchmark for what the SAPPR can and must deliver.
You can read the full joint statement here.”
A message from Brian from the Wildflower Society about the Helena and Aurora Range:
“Very soon, WA Environment Minister Hon. Stephen Dawson will be making a decision on whether or not to allow iron ore mining in the Helena Aurora range, one of the last remaining undisturbed Banded Ironstone Ranges in the Great Western Woodlands.
The EPA has twice recommended against mining in this beautiful place and community groups, scientists and conservationists have been calling for its permanent protection as a national park for many years.
This will be a key decision that will test the environmental credentials of the McGowan Government. We want them to uphold the advice of the EPA and put the long-term future of this region, Its cultural significance, its potential as a tourism drawcard, and its spectacular natural beauty ahead of a short term low-value mining proposal that would destroy the natural values of the range forever.
Support the campaign to protect this incredible place by sending Minister Dawson a message of support for the Helena Aurora range.”
A message from Judith from Friends of Australian Rock Art:
"Did you know that the rock engravings or petroglyphs of Murujuga (Burrup Peninsula) form the largest collection of rock art in the world? More than one million engravings depict extinct fauna such as Tasmanian tigers and fat-tailed kangaroos, changes in bird and marine species over time, as well as ancient Indigenous beliefs and rituals.
This is why we’re horrified that governments have encouraged industrial development immediately adjacent to the rock art. The pollution has and will continue to produce acid rain which will dissolve the rock art - and with it, 50,000 years of both Aboriginal and humankind’s history.
With the approval of the Traditional Aboriginal Owners, we and UWA’s Centre for Rock Art Research and Management have assembled a team of international experts to measure and monitor the pollution and its effects, and persuade governments and industry to reduce emissions to safe levels.
But we need your help to fund this new and vital research program - will you help protect the largest collection of rock art in the world, by donating now?
We so appreciate your support in helping us protect and preserve the ancient rock art of Murujuga.”
And a taste of what’s to come…
Thank you for everything you do for our wildlife and environment - we’re so glad you’re in our community!
See you soon,
Sarah and the team at CCWA
