MEDIA RELEASE 12 March 2010Conservation Council of SA (Conservation SA), SA Council of Social Service (SACOSS), SA Unions (SAU), and Local Government Association of SA (LGASA) have compared notes on their state election prioritiesand agree that the major challenges facing the state include: Providing water security Strengthening local community and managing population growth Providing services and infrastructure to meet the needs of the growth Meeting the environmental sustainability challenge Creating and securing green jobs for the future

MEDIA RELEASE 3 March 2010

Minister for Environment and Conservation, the Honourable Jay Weatherill and the Conservation Council SA (Conservation SA) today launched the Green Hubs project at the Woodville Bowling Club.

MEDIA RELEASE 4TH JUNE 2009

The Conservation Council of South Australia (CCSA) is disappointed the environment is again at the bottom of the Rann Government’s priorities in the 2009 State Budget. While initiatives for transport infrastructure and renewable energy funding are welcomed, the vast bulk of this funding is coming from Commonwealth sources. Closer to home, the impact on SA’s natural environment looks bleak as across-the-board cuts will see jobs slashed and programs cut in the Department of Environment and Heritage.

MEDIA RELEASE 24TH MARCH 2009

The Conservation Council of South Australia, South Australia’s peak environmental body with over 55 member groups, have today criticised the State Government for the deliberate guillotining of critical scrutiny of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Roxby Downs expansion.   The Government has announced that the EIS which is scheduled for release on May 1st will only be open for comment for eight weeks. This is less than required for a suburban shopping centre! The Roxby EIS will detail what will be the single biggest project in South Australia’s history. The largest document ever produced in SA, the EIS must address major issues such as: the massively increase in demands for SA’s power and associated infrastructure, the huge demand for water and the impacts on the coast and marine environment through the construction of a proposed deep sea port and desalination facility at Point Lowly.

The Conservation Council of South Australia (CCSA), South Australias peak environmental body, today called for bipartisan action to address stormwater harvesting and aquifer storage and recharge (AS&R).

Adelaide has been slow to take up the opportunities offered by stormwater, despite studies conducted over 15 years ago [1] showing its capacity to meet a substantial proportion of our water needs, said CCSA Campaigner Jamnes Danenberg.

MEDIA RELEASE

The Conservation Council of South Australia, the states peak environment group, is calling on the State Government and the local member for Cheltenham, Minister Jay Weatherill, to co-operate with the Charles Sturt Council to ensure the open space of the former Cheltenham racecourse site is preserved for an innovative stormwater harvesting and aquifer recharge development.

download discussion document

As State and Federal Government Ministers prepare for tomorrows Murray Darling Basin Ministerial Council meeting, environment groups have called on governments to commit to buying water to save the Murray River.

The money is flowing but the Murray is still dying  it is drowning in red tape, said ACF Healthy Rivers Campaigner, Dr Arlene Buchan.

The cheapest and most efficient way for governments to meet their commitments to return the first 500 gigalitres of water by 2009 is to purchase water using a range of market mechanisms.

Last weeks Federal Budget put a further $500 million towards saving the Murray on top of previous commitments of $500 million for water acquisition from State and Federal Governments.

While the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry Peter McGauran has expressed opposition to the idea of purchasing water from willing sellers for the river, some Governments have already decided to purchase water for the environment.

Media Release

States peak environment body welcomes agreement between the SA Government and BHP to protect underground oasis

The Conservation Council of South Australia today congratulated the SA Government for facilitating an Agreement with BHP Billiton to protect the Great Artesian Basin from any increased water extraction for the future needs of the Roxby uranium mine.

"We are very pleased that the GAB will be protected from increased exploitation by the mining operations. This is particularly important for the fragile GAB springs, which are recognised as threatened under Federal laws, and which have been the subject of a long campaign for World Heritage listing", said Michelle Grady, CEO of the Conservation Council of South Australia.

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Rann and Kerin must listen to the people

MEDIA RELEASE

Goolwa, Sunday 12 February, 2006 The 100km Murray to Mike walk concludes in Adelaide today with a festive rally in Elder Park, featuring SA film-maker Rolf de Heer, Unions SA, SACOSS, environment groups and community members. The rally demonstrates wide community support for strong policies on climate change and renewable energy at the March 18 election.

Supported by Greenpeace and the Conservation Council of South Australia, the 27 walkers have travelled through some of Australia's most climate change-vulnerable land to draw attention to the urgent need for action to quit greenhouse polluting coal and shift to clean, renewable energy.

Entering the market and purchasing water entitlements is the only way to return real water to the River Murray in time to avoid irreversible ecological decline.

South Australia is currently leading the rest of the Murray Darling Basin (MDB) governments in advocating for a return of at least1500 gigalitres of water per year to the Murray by 2018. However, a review of the scientific literature suggests that the river needs about double this to have any chance of returning to health.

Australia s leading river ecologists state that annual flow returns of 1500 gigalitres, will give the river a moderate chance of regaining its health (1). In other words, this is the bare minimum that must be returned.

It is predicted that more than 2000 gigalitres may be lost from the system over the next 20 years due to:

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Submission in response to : Environmental Flows for the River Murray South Australia s framework for collective action to restore river health 2005  2010 DRAFT for Consultation  October 2004 December 2004 Introduction The Conservation Council of South Australia ( CCSA ) is the peak environment body in SA with a membership of over 50 environment groups. CCSA welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Environmental Flows for the River Murray DRAFT, a document that we believe has the potential to seriously address the critical condition of the River Murray in South Australia . Each chapter of the document is discussed below. Ch1. Introduction

CCSA is very concerned that the documents vision, in pursuing the return of at least 1500 gigalitres of water per year by 2018, is insufficient if the objective is to achieve a sustainable relationship with the river.

The Conservation Council of South Australia today welcomed the South Australian government's budget allocation for the River Murray.

"We know that getting water back into the Murray is the first and most pressing priority for restoring the River's health" said Simon Divecha, CEO, Conservation Council of South Australia

"The River needs at least an extra 1,500 billion litres of water a year. Most of this water has to come from upstream and these communities will need to adjust to using less water.

"South Australia is leading the way to make this happen with this announcement for water funding"

"The levy amounts to 15 million dollars in the first year and 20 million per year thereafter"

It is estimated that 1,500 billion litres of water for the river, will require up to one and a half billion dollars of spending. If the federal government was to pay half (three-quarters of a billion), over ten years, then Victoria, NSW and SA's share could be $250 million over a decade. A fair water system would allow for some of these costs to be met by the increase in the value of water licences.

"The Murray is a national priority. It is reasonable that the federal government finds at least three quarters of a billion dollars over ten years for its water. On defence security we spent a similar amount in one year at war in Iraq. This is a small amount to secure our environmental future"

"South Australia's announcement is a clear call for action upstream and federally. We need to fix the Murray quickly for the sake of its environment, as well as South Australia's quality or life and our economy"

"At the same time other environmental issues in this state need to continue to be addressed. We must be careful that money for the Murray does not create new Murray-like problems with funding cuts on other environmental programs" concluded Mr Divecha

For More Information: Simon Divecha, CEO, CCSA 0417 879 439

The Conservation Council of South Australia (CCSA) today welcomed Simon Creans pledge to make restoring the River Murray one of the federal governments major priorities, should it win the next federal election. CCSA is looking to Prime Minister Howard for the leadership to make the River a bipartisan priority.

The River Murray is the environmental and economic lifeblood of South Australia said Simon Divecha, CEO, CCSA.

Its continued decline is an ongoing national tragedy and restoring life to this River will revitalise communities along its length.

We are delighted that Mr Crean is making the River a national priority for the ALP and committing to return water to the river

The Murray Darling River system is facing substantial decline. This decline and the need for urgent action is highlighted in the recent bipartisan Adelaide Declaration from the South Australian Parliament. The Declaration states that:

...the River Murray is of great cultural, social, environmental and economic importance for Australia. the overuse of water from the River Murray and its tributaries will soon also impact on the sustainability of the very industries that depend on the water resource. Irrigated crops, urban water supplies, tourism, and recreation are all threatened by the continued decline in the health of the Murray.

We hope Mr Howard matches Mr Creans commitment said Mr Divecha. South Australians can make such a bilateral political commitment; we hope the Federal Parliament can as well.

Fifteen hundred billion litres a year of water for environmental flows give the river a moderate chance of restoring its health. The river also needs immediate flows.

All parliaments need to commit money and resources to stop the decline of this river and avert a great national tragedy from occurring.

Further information:

Simon Divecha, CEO, CCSA, Phone 08 8223 5155 or 0417 879 439

Today the first nationally endangered listing for a habitat in South Australia will be announced. The endangered Fleurieu Peninsula Swamps will be recognised as a nationally Endangered Ecological Community.