Australia's IBAs provide the first nationwide conservation blueprint

A number of Australian birds - such as Endangered Mallee Emuwren - are endemic to low, fire-sensitive vegetation. Photo: Rob Drummond/BirdlifeBirds Australia (BirdLife in Australia) has published Australia’s Important Bird Areas, a major contribution to conservation planning in a country where the sheer scale of the landscape has held back the identification of sites of high importance for biodiversity conservation.

“In the 314 IBAs we have a national network of globally significant sites for bird conservation, providing a focus for research and conservation efforts”, said Graeme Hamilton – CEO of Birds Australia.

Australia is home to 803 bird species, of which 312 are endemic. But many of these birds are under threat. Australia and its Territories are ranked fourteenth in the world for the number of Globally Threatened and restricted-range bird species. Four Australian bird species are Critically Endangered, 18 Endangered and 25 Vulnerable. In addition, ‘common’ birds are also at risk: the 2008 State of Australia’s Birds report suggests that about two-thirds of bird species are showing significant long-term declines in the country.

Between 2005 and 2009, with contributions from over 1,000 volunteers and funding from Rio Tinto, the IBA project designated 314 Australian sites of global significance for bird conservation. These sites encompass almost 44 million hectares of land, which include IBAs in all Australian States and most Territories. But almost half of the area covered by Australia’s IBAs has no existing formal protection.

The Australian Government aims to reserve at least 10 per cent of all bioregions, and to protect key habitats for nationally listed threatened species and migratory species. Although more than 9,000 formally protected areas cover 11 per cent of the Australian landmass, many bioregions are under-represented, and many threatened and migratory species are poorly protected. Moreover, even in Protected Areas some species are declining. This highlights the need for conservation in the almost 90 per cent of Australia’s landmass that is outside the formal conservation estate.

“In countries such as the United Kingdom, all sites of conservation significance have been identified”, Graeme Hamilton explained. “Until now, the scale of the task and the inadequacy of baseline distributional data have discouraged such projects in Australia, and the lack of mapped priority areas, especially those off-reserve, has been a hindrance to effective and cost-efficient conservation. The IBA project is the first national site-scale conservation analysis for the country.”

Many of Australia’s small islands support large concentrations of nesting seabirds, especially on the Great Barrier Reef and around Tasmania. Some of these seabird colonies and IBAs are very small: 20 IBAs are less than one hectare in size.

At the other extreme, some IBAs have been designated for species that occur at low population densities over very large areas. These include the South-west Slopes IBA for breeding Superb Parrots Polytelis swainsonii, and Arnhem Plateau IBA for White-throated Grasswrens Amytornis woodwardi, both Vulnerable.

number of Australian birds, such as Endangered Mallee Emuwren Stipiturus mallee are endemic to low, fire-sensitive vegetation such as mallee (important in 22 IBAs) or heathland (11 IBAs). Appropriate fire management is critical if these IBAs are to keep their value. At the wetter end of the scale, the designation of IBAs is triggered by rainforest species (28 IBAs) or specialist mangrove species such as Chestnut Rail Eulabeornis castaneoventris or Mangrove Honeyeater Lichenostomus fasciogularis (17 IBAs). For the birds that inhabit these IBAs, climate change is now the biggest threat.

All major forms of land ownership are represented among the identified sites. Almost a third of the IBAs are privately owned, about eight per cent are under the ownership of traditional Indigenous people, and fewer than 60 per cent owned by local, State or Federal government.

Graeme Hamilton says this breadth of ownership provides a wealth of opportunity for communities, organisations, industry and all levels of government: “To become involved in the conservation and monitoring of Australia’s birds - in the places where it matters most”.

World interest in Australian fishery impact test

The Torres Strait Tropical Rock Lobster Fishery is one of more than 30 Australian fishing sectors to be assessed for its environmental impact using the Ecological Risk Assessment method. Photo: CSIROAn Australian method for assessing the environmental impact of marine fisheries has caught the eye of fishery management agencies worldwide

Aspects of the 'ecological risk assessment' (ERA) method have been adopted in the US, Canada, Ecuador, and the Western and Central Pacific, and by the international eco-labelling organisation the Marine Stewardship Council.

The method was developed in research led by Dr Tony Smith and Dr Alistair Hobday from CSIRO’s Wealth from Oceans Flagship in association with the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA).

“AFMA needed a tool for assessing the ecological risk associated with a diverse range of fishing practices: from the hand-selection of rock lobsters in the Coral Sea, to the trawling of Patagonian Toothfish deep in the Southern Ocean,” Dr Smith says.

“We met the challenge with a three-step method that considers targeted and incidentally caught species, as well as threatened, endangered and protected species. Ongoing research is further developing the method for habitats and ecological communities.

“Each level of analysis potentially screens out issues of low concern and directs attention to higher risk issues. This helps fishery managers to guard against unacceptable changes to the ecosystem, while being strategic about where to focus dollars and time,” Dr Smith says.

Dr Hobday says the completion of ERA reports for more than 30 AFMA-managed fishing sectors has been a mammoth undertaking involving many years of work by a large research team.

“Our ERA reports document the most comprehensive assessment of the ecological impacts of fishing in Australia’s commercial fisheries and for any large set of fisheries in the world,” he says.

“More than 1200 species have been assessed, highlighting the diversity of Australian fisheries and pointing to risks requiring analysis and management, both for individual fisheries, and on a cumulative scale.”

The ERA process contributes to the strategic assessment of fisheries under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and flags priorities for research, data collection, monitoring and management.

AFMA is responding with environmental risk management strategies for each fishery and other initiatives such as a guide for fishery managers to help manage shark bycatch. (Sharks and rays come out repeatedly as high-risk species across many fisheries.)

The research has also yielded a database of information on more than 1000 species of mammals, seabirds, reptiles, scalefish, and sharks and rays.

Sharks worth more in the water than on a plate

Sharks are worth far more to the Australian economy alive than they are on a platter served up with chips or as a filling ingredient in soup, WWF-Australia has said.

"Shark tourism is a growing phenomenon but unfortunately shark populations are not," said WWF- Australia's Reef to Rangelands Policy Manager Nick Heath.

"Shark populations are at dangerously low levels in parts of the Great Barrier Reef, with estimations placing reef shark populations at 3 to 12 per cent of their original size in some 'regular use' areas.

"This is simply not good enough. We must do more to protect these top predators from disappearing on our watch, if not for the benefit of the environment, then at least for the benefit of the back pocket."

A recent James Cook University study funded by the Marine and Tropical Sciences Research Facility found potential shark sightings to be a major drawcard to the diving sector, with tourists willing to pay thousands of dollars to see a shark in its natural environment.

The study found the average live-aboard dive passenger spent at least USD5,000 while in the Cairns / Port Douglas area of Far North Queensland, with many attracted to the region by the opportunity to view sharks in the wild.

The researchers estimated up to 25 per cent (or USD1,375) of each visitor's expenditure was directly attributable to the opportunity to see sharks.

Internationally, similar results have been recorded. A study in the Maldives - a popular tourist and diving destination in the Indian Ocean - estimated the value of one grey reef shark to be worth USD3,300 per year to the Maldivian tourism industry as opposed to the one-off value of USD32 to a fisherman.

"A guaranteed shark sighting is worth its weight in gold to the tourism industry," Heath said.

"It is believed up to 500,000 divers photograph and swim with sharks every year. Not only are shark sightings considered to be one of the most significant of all wildlife interactions but the predator's presence at the top of the food chain is critical to ensuring a healthy and sustainable marine environment."

The JCU research found divers most wanted to see a hammerhead shark in the wild, followed by the whale shark and tiger shark.

Sharks are under particular threat due to their conservative life history traits which are characterised by slow growth rates, late sexual maturity, long gestation periods and birthing only a few young at a time.

They are also particularly threatened by overfishing, accidental bycatch and habitat loss.

Blog Action Day: Forget the schemes, Just cut the carbon.

October 15 is the global Blog Action Day. The topic for 2009 was "Climate Change"
There are times when it is really frustrating to be an Australian. We're in a great position to be a world leader in renewable energy production. Our politicians think so too... but only after they change the definition of "renewables".

In a country with ample sunshine our government curtails subsidies for home installations of photovoltaic panels and looks on as BP Solar quits the country to expand its operations in Spain.


Australia is identified as the world's biggest polluter per capita. Meanwhile, the government of New South Wales, Australia's most populous state and a political and economic basketcase, looks forward to an "era of prosperity" in which coal exports would triple.

At a time when the western world is recovering from a "global financial crisis" caused by the abuse of under-regulated and complicated financial instruments, we see the Rudd Government staking the future of the nation's climate change strategy in a Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, a new set of financial instruments for the market cowboys to play with. A scheme already factoring in concessions to the industries that pollute and deforest, and providing little, if any, incentive to the average Australian to do his or her own bit for carbon reduction.

The onslaught of climate change is accepted by most caring people these days. The consensus of scientific opinion is overwhelming, the evidence provided in the news each day is disturbing. It would be nice to be sceptical and cling to the slivers of doubt that prevail among a minority of scientists, but the risks in doing nothing are too great, the stakes in terms of human life much too high.

Already the proportion of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is ten per cent higher than the scientifically-accepted safe level of 350 parts per million. It's going to be a tough job to reverse that trend - it may already be too late - but act we must.

Playing with markets, preserving obsolete industries, creating schemes and acronyms don't guarantee achievement. It's time for government, Federal, state, worldwide, to stop the talk, cut the schemes, end the loophole talk, and just get on with the job of cutting carbon emission - deep, decisive and fast. Now.

Seal the deal at Copenhagen in December. Act on it before Christmas.

Intensive care procedure saves lives: Swine flu study

A research team has warned medical experts in the Northern Hemisphere not to underestimate the serious impact of the H1N1 (Swine flu) virus with a new report showing that many patients who were critically ill with the virus required prolonged life support treatment with heart-lung machines.

The latest report, released today in the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA), revealed the extent to which doctors in Australia and New Zealand used extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) during the height of the pandemic during June to August 2009.

ECMO is the most advanced and invasive form of life support available for lung failure and has previously been used rarely. This winter, 68 patients suffering severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) - a major symptom of the H1N1 virus - were treated with ECMO.

At the time of the report, 54 of the 68 patients had survived and 14 (21 per cent) had died. Six patients remained in ICU, including two who were still receiving ECMO. Sixteen patients were still in hospital but had moved out of ICU, and 32 had been discharged from the hospital.

ECMO takes blood from the body through large plastic tubes and circulates it through
a system that adds oxygen. ECMO is generally used for a limited time because of the risks of bleeding, clotting, infection and organ failure. ARDS is a very severe condition where the lungs fail due to the rapid accumulation of fluid within the lungs.

The team was led by Monash University researcher Dr Andrew Davies, Senior Research Fellow at the Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Research Centre, who said the H1N1 patients admitted to ICU's were suffering symptoms of respiratory failure and there seemed no choice but to use ECMO to try and save their lives.

"We had not used ECMO machines to treat swine flu patients before because the disease was new to us - but now we know the treatment works and despite the severity of patients' symptoms, most survived," Dr Davies said.

The average duration of ECMO treatment was ten days and the patients stayed in the hospital for an average of 39 days.

The research team - Australia and New Zealand Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ANZ ECMO) Influenza Investigators - conducted the observational study in 15 intensive care units (ICUs) in Australia and New Zealand between 1 June and 31 August, 2009.

The researchers looked at a range of factors including degree of lung dysfunction in patients, how many patients were admitted, the duration of treatment and survival.

Dr David Gattas, Intensive Care Specialist at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney said the research information would better prepare ICU's in the Northern Hemisphere for the patients who develop the more severe cases of the virus.

"The findings of the study should be widely read in the Northern Hemisphere and we hope this knowledge will help medical teams who may have to make fast decisions about starting advanced life supports such as ECMO. Many of these severely affected flu victims can survive" Dr Gattas said.

Big coal companies endanger mining jobs

The Australian Government is doing more to preserve the jobs of coal miners than the companies that continue to make multi-billion dollar profits from coal, according to new analysis from WWF-Australia and the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU).

The report, Power to Change: Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) shows that the federal government has already committed AUD2.5 billion to CCS projects. The coal industry by contrast has only committed AUD512.9 million out to 2017 through its Coal 21 fund. That commitment is less than the government compensation of AUD750 million to the coal industry under the proposed CPRS.

"It is remarkable that the Australian Coal Association is running a scare campaign telling miners that the transition to a low carbon economy could cost them their jobs and yet the industry itself is doing so little to invest in its own future," said Paul Toni, WWF-Australia's Programme Leader for Development and Sustainability

"Climate change is already here, a low carbon economy is fast approaching and yet these companies seem to be putting more effort into seeking exemptions from carbon charges than they are putting into developing CCS and preserving their future."

The analysis also highlights the urgent need for investment in CCS if Australia is to successfully reduce its carbon emissions enough to be part of the international effort to avoid runaway climate change. According to the report, construction of a large-scale CCS facility must begin within two years and testing must be underway within five years if the country's emissions are to be reduced in time.

Should CCS succeed the report estimates that greenhouse gas emissions from coal and gas-fired power generation could be reduced by around 80 per cent. Currently, the report shows 37 per cent of Australia's total greenhouse gas emissions come from fossil fuel-fired electricity generation.

"It's time for coal companies to stump up the cash and just get on with securing the future of the industry in this time of transition rather than looking at filling up their already groaning coffers with more government handouts," said Tony Maher, CFMEU National President.

"We have more than 20,000 members working in the mining and energy generation sector who are smart enough to see that the government has already committed more than twice as much as the coal industry has on CCS. That figure alone is enough to tell them who really cares about the future of coal miners."

Equally important is that once CCS is proven, building new and retrofitted coal-fired power stations will require large workforces. This has the potential to create thousands of additional jobs and create an investment bonanza for Australian companies here and overseas.

"It is time we stopped treating the development of CCS as a burden and see it as an opportunity. If we move quickly we will lead the world in CCS technology and our expertise will be required by every country that burns coal to produce power," Maher said.

'New landclearing laws won't keep bulldozers at bay in Australia'

New tree clearing laws introduced in Queensland today will do little to stop greenhouse gas emissions or the continued destruction of endangered ecosystems and vulnerable landscapes, a coalition of the state's leading conservation organisations said.

WWF-Australia, the Queensland Conservation Council, Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland and The Wilderness Society have joined together to express their disappointment over the announcement of new laws to control the clearing of young forests, also known as regenerating vegetation or regrowth.

"The government has missed a real opportunity to protect the state's endangered species and lands which are vulnerable to degradation," said WWF-Australia’s Rangelands Programme Leader Nick Heath on behalf of the group.

"Each year Queensland continues to destroy more habitat through landclearing than the rest of Australia combined. Unsustainable levels of clearing in the past killed an estimated two million mammals in Queensland each year - including 9,000 koalas, millions of birds and 70 million reptiles - burnt or starved to death through clearing. The new arrangements fail to create sufficient incentive for protecting our precious bushland."

Heath said the new laws would only protect some 800,000 ha of new land, or less than three per cent of Queensland's 27 million hectares of pastoral regrowth vegetation.

This means Queensland's current clearing rates of more than 100,000 ha per annum - the equivalent of more than 1.3 million suburban blocks - will only be reduced by 5 per cent.

Around 90 per cent of current clearing is done on behalf of the beef industry.
"Today's announcement ensures Queensland remains the bulldozer capital of Australia," Heath said. "We can and must do much better."

Landclearing in Queensland contributes 8.3 per cent of all national greenhouse gas emissions, according to 2007 statistics.

The coalition of conservation groups expects landclearing to re-emerge as a key policy issue after the adoption of an Emissions Trading Scheme, as governments and businesses aim to reduce carbon emissions and seek 'green carbon' economic opportunities.

"The Queensland Government still has a long way to go on these issues," Heath said.

"We look forward to working with the Premier in the new year and beyond to further cut the devastating rate of clearing and greenhouse gas emissions in Queensland for the good of wildlife, biodiversity, our vulnerable landscapes and the future of the planet."

Victoria calculates amount of carbon in its forests, parks

Sherbrooke forest, Victoria

The South Australian state of Victoria has become the first in the world to effectively inventory the amount of carbon stored in its public forests, parks and reserves using a carbon accounting system proposed by the Australian government’s cap-and-trade system.

“This new information will help Victorian landowners to enter the carbon market, identify reforestation sites and measure carbon on their own land,” said Victoria environment and climate change minister Gavin Jennings.

Releasing the research in Los Angeles at the California Governor’s Climate Change Summit, Jennings encouraged his own government to consider this new evidence about the carbon storage and emissions from public land in the design of Australia’s Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme and climate change negotiations in Copenhagen in December.

The modelling results show that Victoria’s public land holds the equivalent of 3,031 million (US) tons of carbon dioxide, or 23 years of Victoria’s total greenhouse gas emissions.

“The Victorian Government strongly supports the Commonwealth’s proposed Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme,” Jennings said. “By measuring our state’s carbon with the Commonwealth’s proposed carbon accounting system, we can make more informed decisions about our natural resources and reforestation projects in Victoria in the future."

The Vic LandCarbon project takes into account how bushfire, fuel-reduction burning and harvesting impact levels of carbon stored on public land.

“In the past we have estimated the carbon dioxide emissions from large scale bushfires, but we now can pinpoint how much carbon is emitted by bushfires compared with the carbon that is captured during the regeneration process,” Jennings added.

From this Australia-first modelling, Victoria officials now know that carbon dioxide emissions generated from the February 2009 bushfires on public land exceeded 9.4 million (U.. tons.

“The modelling also shows that bushfires in Victoria over the last decade have emitted over 70 million tonnes (77 tons) of carbon dioxide,” Jennings added.

The results found that over an extended period of time, planned burning can reduce the severity of bushfires, lessening the amount of emissions generated by bushfire.

The Victoria government is building information and science to consider the carbon asset of its public land to drive green jobs and future investment in carbon storage on both public and private land.

“Victoria’s forests will continue to deliver the resources we depend on such as timber, biodiversity and recreation, while reducing the state’s carbon footprint to deliver a healthy future,” Jennings said.

Australia's largest clinical trial to test benefits of aspirin

Aspirin tablets

Researchers at Monash University and the US-based Berman Center for Outcomes and Clinical Research will lead an international clinical trial to test whether taking aspirin contributes to good health in the elderly.

The trial, ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly (ASPREE), has been awarded USD50 million from the National Institute on Aging, part of the National Institutes of Health, the peak health funding body in the US. This support follows earlier funding of USD3.5 million from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia.

The study will recruit 12,500 healthy men and women aged 70 years and over in Australia and 6,500 in the US. Half will take daily low-dose aspirin and half a placebo tablet over a period of five years.

Head of the Monash School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine Professor John McNeil, who is the study's principal investigator in Australia, said the health and wellbeing of older Australians was at the centre of the study.

"We want to look at the potential of aspirin to improve the health of older Australians, something that is increasingly important as the population ages. This age group has not previously been studied in sufficient numbers to inform health guidelines," Professor McNeil said.

"Doctors know that aspirin should help to prevent heart attacks and some forms of stroke. Research indicates that aspirin may also prevent mental decline and some forms of cancer. However, aspirin is also known to have side effects, such as increased bleeding, that may offset its benefits."

Professor McNeil said the study follows increasing international debate about the role of aspirin for prevention of disease in healthy individuals. ASPREE will determine if daily consumption of aspirin will help older Australians remain physically active and productively involved with their families and wider communities, as well as have better cognitive and cardiovascular function.

"ASPREE is the largest prevention trial to be undertaken in Australia," Professor McNeil said. "Its outcome will determine whether health practitioners in Australia and internationally should routinely recommend low-dose aspirin for their older patients."

Professor Mark Nelson, Chair of the Discipline of General Practice, University of Tasmania and a member of the core research group said, "The study is a partnership between researchers, general practitioners and the community. The involvement of general practitioners in Australia is crucial to the success of the study. We will work closely with GPs, initially across Victoria, Tasmania and the ACT and later in other states, to invite the many suitable volunteers who will be needed for the study."

ASPREE study executive officer Dr Robyn Woods commented, "Because of the power provided by the number and the targeted age range of participants, the results of this trial will offer us more insight than any other study into the benefits of aspirin for older people."

Professor Richard Grimm is the US project leader at The Berman Center which is a part of the Minneapolis Medical Research Foundation.

The naked truth about Australia

Satellite images near Culcairn in NSW showing the topography with vegetation (left) and without vegetation (right)Image: CSIROAustralia has been stripped bare of vegetation to expose the surface that lies beneath.

Scientists from CSIRO’s Water for a Healthy Country Flagship have removed approximately 90 per cent of Australia’s vegetation cover from satellite images of the continent to produce the most detailed available Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of its topography.

“The DEM will revolutionise geological applications, land-use studies, soil science, and much more,” CSIRO’s Dr John Gallant said in an address today to the Spatial Sciences Conference in Adelaide.

“Produced at a one-second resolution – about 30 metres – the DEM exposes intimate details about Australia’s landscape features. As a result, we can now clearly make out the shape of our landscape and understand how water might move across its surface, how it came to be its present shape and how variable our soil terrains are.”

Since releasing the Digital Surface Model (DSM) last year, the new vegetation removal process has also resulted in a ‘spin-off’ vegetation height map that may be useful for calculating biomass and contributing to carbon accounting.

The DEM will provide a body of information related to water resources and is a key activity within the water information research and development alliance between the Flagship and the Bureau of Meteorology’s ‘Improving Water Information Program’.

The final phase of building the one-second resolution DEM will occur over the next year with the inclusion of Australia’s river network to produce a drainage-enforced DEM that will assist the Bureau to generate water accounts for the continent.

The DEM is based on the Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) satellite data collected by NASA during its Space Shuttle mission in 2000.

The one-second DEM dataset is licensed and managed by project collaborator, Geoscience Australia, and will be available from mid-November to all tiers of Australian government. A three-second version (approximately 90 metres) of the DEM will eventually be available for public use.

Coastal development threatens Australia's elusive dolphin

Australian Snubfin Dolphin Photo: Isabel Beasley

A rare pod of 67 snubfin dolphins off Townsville face the possibility of local extinction as a result of ongoing coastal development, water pollution and increased shipping activity, WWF warned today.

The elusive group of coastal dolphins is one of only several isolated snubfin pods around Australia, and is extremely vulnerable to threats from human activity around the busy port of Townsville, according to a report by WWF with the support of ING DIRECT, part of ING Group.

The report, Conserving Australia's unique coastal dolphins, says an annual mortality rate of just five per cent of this Townsville population, or three individuals, is enough to drive the local extinction of the species.

"As these isolated dolphins are found in shallow waters close to shore, they are particularly vulnerable to impacts as a result of coastal developments, particularly those close to major centres such as Townsville, Cairns, Gladstone, Darwin and Broome," said WWF spokesperson Lydia Gibson.

The Queensland Government is currently considering a AUD150 million development in prime snubfin dolphin habitat at the mouth of the Ross River in Townsville. The proposed Townsville Marine Precinct Project is designed to address the ongoing and increasing demand for marine facilities in Townsville, and will include a commercial slipway, docking facilities, 40 trawler berths and public boat ramp.

"As pressures on their habitat increase, we need to put more effort into understanding dolphin populations through ongoing research and where possible establish protected areas in key habitats. This will avoid the need for costly recovery measures in the future," Gibson said.

In addition to coastal development, the report outlines a range of other human impacts threatening snubfin dolphins including fishing and netting, pollution and global warming. The snubfin dolphin is Australia's only endemic dolphin and was first found in 2005 near Townsville. It is the first new dolphin species to be described anywhere in the world in decades.

Until recently it was thought to be an Irrawaddy dolphin, the critically endangered species found in coastal rivers of south-east Asia, but recent studies confirmed that it is a distinct species unique to northern Australian waters. Other small pods have been subsequently found near Darwin and off the Kimberley coast in Western Australia.

An ING Direct-funded research project has been looking at snubfin dolphin populations in these locations and conducting photo-identification and genetic sampling of the species.

"While the future of the Snubfin is precarious our staff and customers are happy to help finance research which may ultimately unlock the key to the survival of the species," said ING spokesperson Christian Bohlke.

"Our long term support of Snubfin research has focused attention on the need to fully understand the life cycle of these wonderful mammals," Bohlke said.

Alarming eye deficiencies in Australian indigenous adults

The rate of blindness in Indigenous adults is more than six times higher than non-indigenous Australians, according to the national survey results by revealed

The National Indigenous Eye Health Survey was undertaken by Professor Hugh Taylor AC, Harold Mitchell Chair of Indigenous Eye Health, at the University of Melbourne, in collaboration with the Centre for Eye Research Australia and Vision CRC.

“This is the first comprehensive study of its kind and the first time in 30 years we will have national data on the impact of eye disease on Indigenous communities,” said Professor Taylor.

“The survey puts into sharp focus the frighteningly high level of avoidable vision loss and the unacceptable deficiencies in Indigenous eye health. We knew there was a problem but the extent of it, and the sad fact that much of it could have been prevented, has shocked us.”

In contrast to the alarming adult statistics, indigenous children are five times less likely to have vision loss than non-Indigenous children. “Indigenous children are born with better eyesight than their non-Indigenous peers. However, by
the time they reach adulthood they are six times more likely to be blind and three times more likely to have low vision,” said Professor Taylor.

The survey found the major causes of blindness in Indigenous adults are cataract, optic atrophy, refractive error, diabetic eye disease and trachoma. It also revealed that more than one in three Indigenous adults has never had their eyes examined.

“It is a national disgrace that more than 94 per cent of the vision loss associated with these eye diseases is preventable or treatable,” Professor Taylor said.

The survey was developed through data collected from across the country, from Tasmania and the Tiwi Islands, to the Gold Coast and the Pilbara, giving an accurate picture of the extent and causes of vision loss amongst Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander people.

The data provides an evidence base to develop new government policies to finally deliver sustainable eye care services to Indigenous communities.

“The survey represents the first step in ‘Closing the Gap’ in vision for Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander people. The next step will be to review the availability and effectiveness of the current eye health services and deliver a report within the next six months,” said Professor Taylor.

“We will then make recommendations to government on the best way to develop adequate eye care services for Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander people.”

The Federal Government has committed AUD58.3 million over four years to tackle chronic eye and ear disease including AUD16 million towards the elimination of blinding trachoma that has plagued indigenous communities for the past 60 years.

A key pillar of the initiative will be to fund a national trachoma control programme developed by Professor Taylor.

“Trachoma was eliminated from mainstream Australia one hundred years ago. It is a scandal that it still exists in indigenous communities, along with other avoidable eye diseases,” said Professor Taylor.

“With a concerted effort and better eye-care systems we will close this gap once and for all.”

Toxic oil spill likely to affect scores of species

Up to fifteen species of whale and dolphin, over thirty seabird species and five turtle species are the potential victims of the Montaro Field oil leak, which continues to pour out an estimated 400 barrels of oil each day.

New estimates show up to 30,000 individual sea snakes and 16,000 turtles may be found in the area affected by the oil leak's slick.

Four weeks after the leak began, the well head remains uncapped and the toxic slick from this chronic oil leak continues to spread, with estimates of between 6,500 and 15,000 km2 being covered, an area at least 100 times the size of Sydney Harbour.

These figures are contained in a new report by Australian ecologist Simon Mustoe for WWF-Australia, titled Montara Field Oil Leak and Biodiversity Values, which examines the likely impacts of the toxic oil slick on the region’s wildlife.

"We need to shatter the myth that oil spill only affects marine wildlife when it washes up on our beaches," said Dr Gilly Llewellyn, WWF-Australia's conservation director.

Marine wildlife communities, habitats and species, their location, conservation status, significance under the EPBC Act and vulnerability to the Montara Field oil leak are analysed in the report, painting a picture of an unseen marine community under continuing threat from the leak.

"This area has a huge amount of marine life, including some of the most iconic wildlife in the oceans. Species such as Fraser's dolphin, green and flatback turtles and red-footed booby migrate through this area and may come into contact with the slick.

"We should not be lulled into thinking that spraying dispersants on the surface solves the problem. These dispersants may end up actually raising the level of toxicity in the water column while sinking some of the oil currently on the surface into deeper water," said Dr Llewellyn.

As seabirds spend a large amount of time on the surface of the water, they are particularly vulnerable to the oil slick on the surface.

The report also shows the duration of the leak and slick to be a major concern, with risks to large numbers of individual species and possibly longer-term effects on both individuals and populations.

WWF will next week launch a research trip from Darwin to the affected area to assess first hand the marine life and the potential impacts of the slick.

"It is unfortunate that this unfolding wildlife crisis is not being given the urgency and attention it deserves. Out of sight should not mean out of mind," said Dr Llewellyn. "The only way to really know what marine life is at risk from this toxic slick is to actually go to the affected region and do the research. We will be happy to share our findings with companies and government organisations tasked with cleaning up after this disaster. But more importantly, as the threat of more oil and gas infrastructure in this fragile marine region grows, we must make sure that the very real risk of more leaks is taken into account."

Australia behind in carbon competitiveness

Kings Canyon is part of the Watarrka National Park in Northern Territory, Australia. Photo: Ueli FahrniAustralia and most other nations are short of the carbon productivity and competitiveness improvements necessary to stabilise global greenhouse gas concentrations at 450 parts per million (ppm) or lower, according to a report on low carbon competitiveness by Climate Institute.

The G20 Low Carbon Competitiveness Report, prepared by London-based economics consultancy, Vivid Economics, details three indices: the low carbon competitiveness index (how carbon competitive countries currently are), the low carbon productivity index (how quickly their carbon productivity is improving) and the low carbon gap index (whether countries are improving quickly enough to meet their share of the commitments needed to stabilise global greenhouse gas concentrations at the IPCC 450 ppm scenario.

Only Mexico and Argentina are currently improving their carbon productivity rate. Argentina is ranked 13th out of 19 countries. It has the lowest use of air freight out of any of the countries which improves its ranking in the sectoral composition category, but is consistently ranked in the bottom half across all the indicators.

India is a poor performer and is ranked 17th. It has the second lowest score in the early preparation category with carbon intensive electricity being distributed via an inefficient grid. It is a low GDP per capita country where the costs of starting a business are high. Conversely, it has a low per capita use of energy in the transport sector.

The US is ranked tenth; four places behind China and just in front of Mexico. It achieves a top five ranking in the future prosperity category, but has the highest use of energy in the transport sector and the highest use of air freight. It also performs poorly because of high car ownership and relatively low levels of investment in physical capital. Its ranking is boosted by having the highest amount of investment in sustainable energy businesses and a high share of high technology exports, along with low business start-up costs.

South Africa and Germany are close to being on target and China would also be close if it could return to the carbon productivity gains of the 1990s. Australia is 16th with only Turkey, Russia and Saudi Arabia requiring bigger turnarounds to reach this target. The top five positions in the low carbon competitiveness index are held by France, Japan, the UK, South Korea and Germany. Australia is ranked 15th, the lowest position of any industrialised nation.

While its carbon productivity is improving, Australia's low ranking stems from its carbon intensive exports, low use of clean energy and high consumption of transport fuels.

China attains a ranking of sixth, the highest ranking by a non-OECD country. High rates of reforestation and low transport sector energy consumption lead to a strong performance in the sectoral composition category, but it is a poor performer in the early preparation category due to its rapid recent emissions growth and carbon intensive electricity supply. China has the highest rate of investment in physical capital, and also the second highest share of high technology exports in total exports.

The UK's ranking in third place is driven by the fact that its exports are the least carbon intensive of any of the G20 countries. Other notable contributors are its high prices for transport fuels, high reforestation rates, low cost of business start-up procedures and high investments in sustainable energy businesses.

According to the report, Indonesia is the worst performer. It combines low GDP per capita, very high rates of deforestation, an inefficient industrial sector and cheap transport fuels. It performs better in terms of its transport sector (low use of air freight, car ownership and energy consumption in transport) and its relatively high investments in physical capital.

Saudi Arabia, ranked 18th, has a weak performance across all categories and is the bottom ranked country in a number of indicators including use of clean energy, price of transport fuels, population growth, depletion of natural capital and share of high technology exports. One exception to this is investment in human capital, the proportion of education expenditure in GNI, for which Saudi Arabia ranks first.

South Africa comes near the bottom of the index at 16th out of 19. It has low use of air freight and low transport sector energy consumption, but the most carbon intensive exports, high carbon intensity electricity and the second lowest rate of investment in physical capital.

In his preface to the report, Lord Nicholas Stern writes, "a global economic recovery will present an ideal opportunity for countries to shift towards low carbon growth. Countries who don't seize this opportunity will undermine their future competitiveness and prosperity."

"This report underscores the urgency of preventing further handouts for big polluters, for economy wide reforms with a stronger Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme and for more decisive energy efficiency measures to improve Australia's carbon productivity."

How to reduce households emissions?

Each garbage bag contains 100 grams of carbon dioxide. A household of three people could easily produce enough greenhouse gas emissions in one year to fill 500,000 garbage bags. Photo: CSIROCSIRO scientists say householders can reduce their home and car energy use by as much as 50 per cent by making changes to daily activities.

They explain how in The CSIRO Home Energy Saving Handbook – How to Save Energy, Save Money and Reduce Your Carbon Footprint, launched by Innovation Minister Senator Kim Carr.

“Climate change requires a global solution, but that solution will require action from every individual,” Senator Carr said.

“Australians have a pretty good idea why we need to cut back on our greenhouse emissions. This book tells them how.”

The CSIRO Home Energy Saving Handbook is a practical guide to saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions around the home.

It is written by CSIRO Energy Transformed Flagship’s Dr John Wright, Dr Peter Osman and Peta Ashworth.

“When it comes to tackling climate change, people often ask, ‘What can I do?’,” said co-author Dr John Wright.

“As the book explains, there are lots of things that we, as individuals, can do to reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions at home.

“There has never been a more important time to save energy. Not only is it becoming more vital to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, but the pressure on energy prices will be putting an increasing strain on households across the country.

“Just how much energy and money a person can save depends on their current energy use and the number and types of changes they can make. It’s up to them. Even better, the book shows people how it’s possible to cut their energy use without too much impact on their lifestyles.”

The handbook offers information and advice on how to measure and reduce an *individual’s carbon footprint in all aspects of modern living, including:

*simple energy-saving tricks around the house

*maximising a home’s potential for easy heating and cooling

*ways to save on shopping and transport

*making the most of gardens

*tips for building and renovating homes.

Innovation to combat bushfire dangers

Innovative ideas such as warning and prediction systems, shelter and protection devices and strategies for rebuilding communities have been presented to a design forum aimed at producing novel concepts to protect the community against the threat of devastating bushfires.

Environment, Climate Change and Innovation Minister Gavin Jennings, one of seven judges of the Design for Fire: Challenge Pitch at the 2009 Design Challenge, said he was impressed with the creative thinking shown by Victorian designers.

“Bushfires are an unavoidable part of life in Victoria and the Brumby Labour Government is taking action through events such as this design challenge to explore as many innovative solutions to protect the lives of Victorian families and businesses,” Mr Jennings said.

“The bushfires that devastated Victoria this year were unprecedented and so future fire threats demand creative and innovative responses. By encouraging innovative thinking we could find solutions can be achieved in ways we never thought possible.”

“The Design Challenge encourages researchers, industry and community experts to put their heads together and develop ideas that can have a real impact on Australia lives.”

As part of an ongoing competition, more than a dozen design teams gathered at Federation Square today to pitch their solutions to the design challenge posed by bushfires and their impact on the Australian community.

Run by RMIT’s Design Research Institute (DRI) and supported by the Brumby Government, the challenge brought together participants from a diverse range of backgrounds including chemical engineers, mobile learning experts and cartographers.

“There is incredible value in getting specialists from different fields to share ideas and work together – it was fascinating to see what they came up with,” Mr Jennings said.

“These innovative proposals will hopefully offer us genuine outcomes to help deal with extreme bushfires in the future.”

Five finalist teams will be announced on 10 August with winners invited to develop their concepts for the final stage of the 2009 Design Challenge Award Exhibition to be held in conjunction with DRI’s Transdisciplinary Design Symposium in November.

One finalist team will then be selected to receive the RMIT Design Research Institute Challenge Award which includes $25,000 to fund the next stage of research and development of the proposal in 2010.

Corroboree Frog Trust launched

Southern Corroboree frog. (Source: ABC)Australian Minister for the Environment, Peter Garrett, today launched a charitable foundation dedicated to the preservation of the endangered corroboree frog. More information about the foundation can be found at its website www.corroboreefrog.com.

The Australian Department of the Environment, Heritage and the Arts released the following statement today:

Efforts to save one of Australia’s most recognisable frogs, the Corroboree Frog, from extinction were boosted today with the launch of the Corroboree Frog Conservation Trust Fund.

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts, Peter Garrett, officially launched the Trust at the Wonga Wetlands Education Centre on the Murray River near Albury.

“Many Australians know Corroboree Frogs by their bright yellow and black markings. Sadly, the Corroboree Frog is seriously threatened with extinction and preservation efforts are at a critical stage.”

“That’s why I am pleased to launch the Corroboree Frog Conservation Trust Fund today. The Trust is an environmental charity, which Minister Bowen and I have listed with the Register of Environmental Organisations, so all donations to it are tax deductible.”

Everyone who wants to help preserve Corroboree Frogs will now have one point of access to make donations and learn more about Corroboree Frogs.

Already the Trust partners are working together to deliver a national recovery program:

the Australian and New South Wales Governments have funded scientific and community engagement activities;

Taronga Zoo, Zoos Victoria and the Amphibian Research Centre are breeding Corroboree Frogs to maintain existing genetic variation and to supplement existing populations; and

the NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change continue to research and monitor Corroboree Frog populations to guide future recovery activities.

The ACT Government is also a partner, undertaking breeding programs for the Northern Corroboree frog.

“It is particularly pleasing to see business get behind these preservation efforts and I commend Australian Geographic on their donation and ongoing sponsorship of this cause,” Mr Garrett said.