The Bullroarer - Wednesday 1st April 2009

Larvatus Prodeo - Energy. It’s what you dig out of the ground.

Is there anything more alarmingly delightful than the creaking gears of history as the dialectic of Enlightenment lurches forth?? For all the gnashing of teeth and angry bashing of keyboards about K-Rudd’s 100% pathetic climate target, the real politics - the subpolitics of experts, bureaucrats and negotiators - continues under the public radar. Few (ie. everyone in the MSM except Bernard Keane) seem to have noticed that the government Marn is going to release a new Energy White Paper at the end of the year. To that end, they’ve published a “strategic directions paper” that doesn’t even bother with any pretense of deliberative input into what is essentially a private taxation regime for the Greenhouse mafia. The whole process is so completely stacked against any outcome commensurate with the challenge of climate change and economic common sense as to be essentially laughable.

The Age - Power-up for clean technology

AMID the gathering clouds of the global economic storm, clean technology innovation can offer Australia a ray of hope.

Clean technology is more than energy solutions for a polluted planet. It is promoting innovation in all industry sectors, from water preservation and quality to housing, food supply and security.

Australia was behind the first wave of clean energy innovations now powering the world. Twenty years ago, solar photovoltaic cell technology left for Spain. Shortly after, evacuated tube technology went to China. Then evacuated glazing technology went to Japan.

In 2001, Dr Shi and his solar cells developed at the University of NSW went to China — and his company Suntech is now the world's biggest producer of solar panels. In 2002, crystalline glass technology went to Germany. In 2007, the solar thermal compact linear Fresnel reflector from the University of NSW went to the US.


Bloomberg - Santos Says Gladstone LNG Project Is Ahead of Rivals

Santos Ltd., Australia’s third- biggest oil and gas producer, said its proposed A$7.7 billion ($5.2 billion) Gladstone liquefied natural gas project is running ahead of rival ventures planned in Queensland state.

The GLNG venture, in which Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd. has a stake, submitted a draft environmental statement yesterday to the Queensland authorities, the first of the major projects planning to convert coal-seam gas into LNG to do so, Adelaide-based Santos said today in a statement. The partners aim to give the go-ahead for the plant in the first half of 2010.

The Age - Polluters' blank cheque

Big polluters knew better than to knock on our doors — they knocked on Kevin Rudd's door instead and got a very different reception. Unbeknown to most households, Rudd effectively agreed to write all these cheques and more. His so-called carbon pollution reduction scheme asked the biggest emitting industries to pay for, on average, just one in every five tonnes of their greenhouse pollution — the rest of us would pay for the other four. By 2020, 45 per cent of emissions would be given away free to the worst offenders, maybe more. This makes it mathematically impossible to make deep cuts in greenhouse pollution in Australia, and the Prime Minister's promise of a "blueprint for reducing carbon pollution at home", becomes undeliverable.

The only way of concealing this is to outsource Australia's emission reductions en masse — paying other countries to reduce emissions on our behalf. That's why Rudd's white paper on emissions trading placed no limit whatsoever on how many emission permits and credits generated overseas could be used in place of emission cuts in Australia. One hundred per cent of Australia's emission cuts could be made overseas just as long as outsourcing options are cheap and plentiful. And they will be.

Larvatus Prodeo - Perspectives on the CPRS

Two critiques of the CPRS today. First, Barry Brook and Tim Kelly have sent a submission to the Senate inquiry, discussing the problems they see with the CPRS. Most should be no shock to LP readers - Brook points out the ineffectiveness of voluntary actions under the CPRS regime, and, given that, calls for more consideration of the carbon tax alternative. Guy Pearse is in The Age discussing the subsidies to Big Carbon and the likelihood of most of Australia’s “cuts in emissions” being the result of purchasing carbon credits on the international market.

Proactive investor - Minotaur Exploration increases stake in geothermal company, Petratherm

Minotaur Exploration has advised that it has acquired 2,000,000 shares in Petratherm Ltd and now holds 20,437,501 shares, or 32%.

ABC - Aust 'left behind' in clean energy stakes

There's been a big step in the United States' newfound enthusiasm for dealing with climate change. Two key Democratic Senators have released draft legislation, responding to President Obama's challenge to 'bring him a bill' to deal with the issue.

The proposed "Clean Energy and Security" legislation would set substantive targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, among a raft of proposals to promote renewable energy and jobs in the sector. Environmental groups in Australia are holding up the proposals as evidence of how Australia has missed an opportunity to lead on environmental policy.

ABC - Wind farm promises jobs boost

The developer of a proposed $800 million wind farm says the project will generate 40 jobs and boost income for landholders in the Harden Shire. Epuron says it is planning to build up to 185 wind turbines over three areas west and south-west of Yass, including about 70 near Jugiong.

Epuron's project manager Simon Davey says about 10 farmers would lease land for the turbines. "It's going to produce enough electricity for about 170,000 average homes over a typical year which is equivalent to taking about 310,000 cars off the road every year," he said. "The capital investment in the project is about $800 million, making it one of the most significant infrastructure projects in that part of New South Wales."

Peak Energy - Resilience Economics

Peak Energy - Stimulus Appears to Be Sparking Alt-Energy Revival

Peak Energy - Dumb Meters Get Smarter

Peak Energy - Squatter Cities In The US

Peak Energy - Big Brother is watching: surveillance box to track British drivers is planned

"Quarry Vision",by Guy Pearse,in the latest Quarterly Essay is about as good a run down as you will get on how the hierarchy in Australia works.

It is not an easy read.Not because of any fault in the writing but because I found I was getting extremely angry with every page turned.
Fundamentally,the essay wasn't telling me much I didn't intuitively know but Pearse lays it out in excruciating detail.

Given the present situation and the likely direction of events I think we have a long way to go down before there is any chance of a change for the better.Large scale destruction of the present system is necessary for the birth of a sustainable nation.

Every day that passes observing the current madness makes me deeper green with a touch of the red and black as well.

Hopefully it's still available later in the month when I know I have spare cash. :)

Large scale destruction of the present system is necessary for the birth of a sustainable nation.

Not going to happen, I don't think. Both sides of Government are beholden to Big Coal. Only those 'sackcloth-wearing lentil-munching commie hippies' called The Greens have any idea. :(

They want us to be rich today and tomorrow. They want Australia to make things instead of just digging them up and selling them overseas, and want to keep jobs here.

Sad to say, it seems the Greens are the most patriotic party we have.