The News Review:
- Flame Retardants Found in Rare Tasmanian Devils
- ‘Bleak outlook’ for forest industry
- Coffee Club Transforms Lives
- Victoria claim win over South Australia in Traralgon
Flame Retardants Found in Rare Tasmanian Devils
National Geographic – Jan 28, 2008
nationalgeographic. The find triggered local media reports suggesting that the chemicals might be linked to the mysterious cancer that has been killing the rare marsupials for more than a decade.
‘Bleak outlook’ for forest industry
The Australian – Jan 28, 2008
The report obtained by The Australian under Freedom of Information laws was prepared by private consultants URS Australia for the federal Government before its decision to approve the mill. It warns demand for Tasmanian woodchips "will at best remain relatively flat" and that increased global competition will hamper efforts to crack into emerging markets. Prepared for the federal Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry the report suggests some of Tasmania’s 130 logging and log truck contractors will not survive. URS senior consultant and the report’s author David Paul concludes there will need to be a cut in the number of contractors to improve the sustainability of the industry. His report suggests the Gunns pulp mill with its demand for up to four million tonnes of woodchips each year would reduce – but not avoid – the need for such a cut. "Regardless of whether or not the pulp mill proceeds there will be continued adjustment in the native harvest and haul sector as the volume of native forest pulpwood available for harvest declines and areas of hardwood plantations become available for harvest" his report concludes… His report suggests the Gunns pulp mill with its demand for up to four million tonnes of woodchips each year would reduce – but not avoid – the need for such a cut. "Regardless of whether or not the pulp mill proceeds there will be continued adjustment in the native harvest and haul sector as the volume of native forest pulpwood available for harvest declines and areas of hardwood plantations become available for harvest" his report concludes. It warns price and demand for Tasmanian native forest woodchips will continue to fall. "Large increases in Chinese consumption will provide increased demand for hardwood woodchips" it says. "However this will be moderated by imports of pulp from low-cost producers particularly in South America. "China’s pulp and paper manufacturers have also demonstrated a desire to source woodchips from development plantations in Southeast Asian countries at lower cost compared to Australian suppliers. " The report says the $2 billion pulp mill proposed for Tasmania’s Tamar Valley by Gunns would help "mitigate" the unfavourable export market.
Coffee Club Transforms Lives
abc.net.au – Jan 28, 2008
The scale and speed of the slaughter of most ethnic Tutsis by the Hutu people shocked the world. Today communities there are still trying to rebuild after the devastation. Three families who survived the genocide and moved to Tasmania Australia’s island state as refugees have come up with a unique way to help those back in their homeland. The Rwandan Coffee Club raises money to buy cows for villages and as Jocelyn Nettlefold reports this latte set is making a lot of difference to many lives. AUBERT RUZIGANDEKWE RWANDAN REFUGEE : Because I love soccer it helped me to you know to integrate. JCELYN NETTLEFLD: This season Aubert Ruzigandekwe wants to lead the Hobart United team to premiership glory. Most of the players share more than just fancy footwork they are refugees from war-torn countries… Coffee is Rwanda’s premier export and source of foreign currency. It’s in huge world wide demand. The Tasmanian club’s business mentors Carlos and Nikki Kindred expect the new brew will help boost the club’s popularity. NIKKI KINDRED BUSINESS MENTR : As a business they have an absolute awesome amount of potential to grow. I mean coffee’s huge in Australia now. JCELYN NETTLEFLD : It’s hoped the charity coffee will eventually fund a vocational training centre in Rwanda to help those devastated and isolated by the 1994 atrocities particularly orphans and widows. FAINA ILIGGA : And for us it’s really very important that we feel we can do make a difference in their life.
Victoria claim win over South Australia in Traralgon
NEWS.com.au – Jan 28, 2008
Their good work allowed the home side to reach 6-160 in the 33rd over and win by four wickets for one bonus point. Paceman Clint McKay celebrated his return to the team after a foot injury by dismissing Matthew Elliott (7) and Mark Cosgrove (1) early on and then at the end by staying with Crosthwaite to be 10 not out when the win was achieved. Victoria leapt from bottom of the table to fourth and with games in hand on Tasmania Queensland and the Redbacks is in the mix to challenge for another final. The Redbacks were happy to bat after winning the toss but things went awry after McKay made the early breaks. SA stumbled to 6-76 in the 24th over forcing its lower-order batsmen to go into survival mode. Graham Manou (41) and Ryan Harris (39) ate up overs and pushed the total to a near-defendable target before spinner Bryce McGain and Andrew McDonald cleaned up the tail. McKay finished with a tidy 2-18 from eight overs with new-ball partner Peter Siddle a Latrobe Valley lad enjoying the support of his home crowd on the way to 2-27 from eight overs.