Come and celebrate our unique environment at the World Environment Day Expo at the Museum and Art Gallery NT, Fannie Bay, on Sunday June 3rd.

Relax on the lawns adjacent to the sea and be inspired by the environmental work being undertaken by different groups and agencies in Darwin, across the Top End, and around the NT.

Special features include: 
• Information stalls and displays with lots of great ideas and resources
• Workshops on key NT environmental issues
•  Lunchtime forum with Prof. Ian Lowe about Australia’s environmental challenges
• Live music by local artists
• Food and drinks (served with eco-friendly ware) 
• Children’s area with lots of environmental  activities
………………..and much more!

Stalls and events run from 10.30am to 5pm. See www.ecnt.org for more details, or call the Environment Centre on 89811984.

Friends of McArthur River are in mourning at the loss of a good friend and strong activist. Mr Timothy (who cannot be identified further for cultural reasons) died on Friday after a lifetime of struggle for his people and country.

Mr Timothy, aged only 43, was a leader amoungst his people and the key spokesperson in the campaign to save the McArthur River. It is a tragedy to lose Mr Timothy, and the Northern Territory and Australia are diminished by his premature death.

Our thoughts are with Mr Timothy’s family.

Caution – Whilst efforts have been made to remove reference to and images of Mr Timothy from this site, it may still contain reference to him.

According to the NT government, by ~2010 the NT’s emissions will almost double compared to 1990 levels (1990 is the international benchmark year). This doubling will occur mainly as a result of the planned completion of the Darwin LNG plant and the Alcan refinery expansion at Gove.

These two projects alone, when completed, will increase the Territory’s greenhouse pollution levels by a massive ~35%! No one should be accepting, let alone proud, of such colossal increases from one-off industrial projects – which are only ‘economic’ because overseas-owned corporations want to maximize profits by accelerating the export (and exhaustion) of our non-renewable resources.

A big opportunity!
Northern Australia, including the NT, is home to the world’s greatest remaining expanse of relatively intact savanna woodlands. The value of these woodlands as a global carbon sink – in addition to all their other values – is only just starting to be understood and acknowledged. Working with the WA and Queensland state governments, national and international governments, businesses and non-government organisations, the NT government should lead the way in developing an international carbon offsets scheme that will pay Indigenous and non-Indigenous landholders across northern Australia to protect and look after their native forests/woodlands as an effective global carbon sink – rather than clearing it for woodchip plantations (Tiwi islands) or to run cattle which produce high levels of the most serious greenhouse gas, methane.

read full article

NT Greenhouse Emissions 

The Environment Centre NT has organised a presentation of Two Laws, an archival film made in 1981 in Borroloola. The film, an unconventional documentary, was made on the basis of significant Aboriginal community commitment.

“White people don’t understand that there are two laws and two different kinds of custom in Australia… White people have different laws from Aboriginal people.”

The film is divided into four parts, parts 3 & 4 which will be shown on Tuesday 27th March, deal with the present struggle [1980] for land. The film reminds us of the historical context for their current battle to save the McArthur River. It is a disturbing reminder of Aboriginal Peoples fight for justice against past and ongoing oppression.

The presentation is timed to co-incide with the Traditional Owners legal challenge against the diversion of the McArthur River, which will be heard in the Supreme Court of the NT 26-29th March 2007.

Traditional Owners who are in Darwin for the hearing will speak about their ongoing fight for their land, culture and the McArthur River.

What: Two Laws – archival film presentation from Borroloola

When : 7.30pm, Tuesday  27th March 2007

Where: the NT Museum and Art Gallery, Conacher St Darwin.

Numbers are limited – if you wish to attend please book via freshwater@ecnt.org or 8941 7439

PALM SUNDAY

11am, Nightcliff Markets

APRIL FOOLS DAY
Sunday 1^st April

join us at 11am at Sunday’s Nightcliff Markets,

where a Palm Sunday peace parade meets the foolish fun of April 1

Part of National Nuclear Fools day :
for a peaceful and nuclear free future.

speakers | stalls | music | street theatre | parade
plus fabulous prizes for the best costume!

Contact Emma at ECNT on 8981-1984

www.nuclearfoolsday.org

COOLmob today launched another 4 “Enviro Girl” ads, with more tips to help Top Enders do their bit to reduce greenhouse gases. In addition to letting people know that “fans cool people not rooms” and  saving stand by power, Enviro Girl will now give tips on how to be a cool commuter (2 ads), how climate change will impact on the NT and saving power and money with your pool pump. Look out for the ads on Channel 9 and Southern Cross TV.

We invite all environment related groups working in the Northern Territory to join the hub. The aim is to provide a central news, events, information and links page. If you already have a website we would love to add your RSS/feed or you can post articles direct to the site.

more to come…. Please contact Charles at freshwater@ecnt.org if you are interested