Inbox and Environment News - Issue 239

 November 8 - 14, 2015: Issue 239

 Misuse of Medicare chronic disease items

2 November 2015 

Serious concerns have been raised about the misuse of taxpayer-funded chronic disease management plans by 'less scrupulous' medical practices for personal financial gain, as millions of dollars in incorrect Medicare claims are ordered to be repaid.

The warning is a key theme highlighted in the Government's independent Professional Services Review (PSR) Agency's 2014-15 Annual Report on Medicare compliance activities against health practitioners - to be tabled today (Monday).

The report shows referrals to the PSR for investigation increased 40 per cent in 2014-15, resulting in further action being taken in 70 per cent of cases. Outcomes included ordering $4.17 million worth of repayments and various reprimands and restrictions on the practitioner’s access to Medicare benefits.

In particular, the report raises growing concerns around the exploitation of ‘grey areas’ and ambiguities in the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) that are allowing Chronic Disease Management (CDM) items to be misused, after they featured in about half of all PSR compliance cases in 2014-15:

"The MBS Items and their associated rules are necessarily somewhat prescriptive. This provides scope for less scrupulous practitioners to populate the clinical record of an attendance with copious 'generic' computer template material; PSR committees often find that these are of little apparent relevance to the particular patient.

"PSR committees frequently find that some practitioners in large practices provide CDM services opportunistically despite the lack of clinical relevance. This is particularly evident in practices that do not take appointments,” the PSR Annual Report finds.

Minister for Health Sussan Ley said today’s warnings around the misuse of Chronic Disease Management items demonstrated the importance of all three elements of the Turnbull Government’s integrated approach to building a healthier Medicare:

• A review of all 5700 items on the Medicare Benefits Schedule and the rules governing their use to ensure they reflect contemporary clinical practice for doctors and their patients and are not misused;

• A review of primary care service delivery, and funding, models, particularly around chronic disease and whether fee-for-service remains the most-appropriate model; and

• The strengthening of compliance and education around the use of Medicare items by health practitioners and practices.

"These findings show the importance of having clear, strong rules around the use of individual Medicare items to ensure they are clinically relevant and reflect contemporary practice, but also aren’t misused for financial gain," Ms Ley said.

“This is particularly important as Medicare’s current fee-for-service model struggles to support patients and their doctors to manage increasingly complex chronic conditions that require integrated care between various health disciplines.”

Ms Ley said she was deeply concerned that “grey areas” and ambiguities in the rules made it harder to track and prove non-compliance by ‘less scrupulous’ practitioners and that these referrals to the PSR may be just the “tip of the iceberg”.

“We've seen over 22 million Chronic Disease Management items alone claimed against Medicare at a cost of $2.7 billion in the nine years since they were introduced,” Ms Ley said.

“This is significant when you consider the number of Medicare items claimed have now reached an average of one million per day.

"I know the majority of health professionals and practices do the right thing by their patients and taxpayers and it’s important we have a compliance system with the appropriate investigative powers and teeth to protect their integrity and avoid public confidence being undermined.

“As this report acknowledges, a big part of the problem is the compliance system governing Medicare is 20-to-30 years old – just like many Medicare items themselves – and I want to work with health professionals to update it to reflect 21st Century medical practices.” 

Ms Ley said it was not too late for health professionals and patients to have their say as part of the Government’s review of all 5700 Medicare items and the rules governing their use on the 

Department of Health’s website. 

The Government's Professional Services Review is made up of independent committees of respected medical professionals who peer review serious allegations of Medicare non-compliance against health practitioners that are detected by the Department of Human Services.

As part of investigations the PSR uncovered examples where some individual practitioners had ordered between 600 and 1000 Chronic Disease Management (CDM) items each last year alone.

The PSR also found evidence of some practices pressuring their doctors to undertake higher numbers of CDM items to increase earnings. 

The main Chronic Disease Management items available through Medicare are a GP Management Plan (item 721) currently worth $144.25 and a Team Care Arrangement allowing referrals to allied health professionals (item 723) worth $114.30.

This is compared to $37.10 for a standard Level B GP consultation for up to 20 minutes.

"A visit that might have attracted an MBS payment for a standard attendance of around $40 turns into a visit attracting total MBS payments of around $250," the PSR reports.

However, Ms Ley said the PSR also raised GP concerns that some patients were putting pressure on doctors to order Chronic Disease Management items so they could access rebates for allied health services that otherwise could not be claimed on Medicare.

“Again, it shows our current system that bills Medicare every time a single service is delivered isn’t providing the best outcomes for patients, health professionals or taxpayers managing chronic disease.”

 Scarlet fever making a comeback

November 4, 2015

An international study led by University of Queensland (UQ) researchers has tracked the re-emergence of a childhood disease which had largely disappeared over the past 100 years.

Researchers at UQ's Australian Infectious Diseases Centre have used genome sequencing techniques to investigate a rise in the incidence of scarlet fever-causing bacteria and an increasing resistance to antibiotics.

UQ School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences researcher Professor Mark Walker said the disease had re-emerged in parts of Asia and the United Kingdom.

"We have not yet had an outbreak in Australia, but over the past five years there have been more than 5000 cases in Hong Kong (a 10-fold increase) and more than 100,000 cases in China.

"And an outbreak in the UK has resulted in 12,000 cases since last year," he said.

Scarlet fever, which mainly affects children under 10, is spread by Group A Streptococcus (strep throat bacteria) known as GAS. Symptoms include a red rash on the skin, sore throat, fever, headache and nausea.

Serious illness can be treated with antibiotics.

UQ School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences researcher Dr Nouri Ben Zakour said the research results were "deeply concerning."

"We now have a situation which may change the nature of the disease and make it resistant to broad-spectrum treatments normally prescribed for respiratory tract infections, such as in scarlet fever.

She said penicillin continued to provide an excellent treatment for patients who were not allergic to it.

Dr Ben Zakour said the rise in scarlet fever could pre-empt a future rise in rheumatic heart disease, which causes permanent heart damage.

"With this heightened awareness, we can now swiftly identify scarlet fever-associated bacteria and antibiotic resistance elements, and track the spread of scarlet fever-causing GAS strains," she said.

Dr Ben Zakour said the evolutionary forces driving the outbreaks were unknown, but bacterial causes, the immune status of people contracting scarlet fever, and environmental factors such as temperature and rainfall could all play a significant role.

"Only a continued study of the patterns, causes and effects of health and diseases will determine the full impact these recent gene changes will have on the global GAS disease burden," she said.

The research, published in Scientific Reports, was conducted by Associate Professor Scott Beatson's microbial genomics group at UQ, with collaborators at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, UK, and in China at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The University of Hong Kong, and the Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology.

Nouri L. Ben Zakour, Mark R. Davies, Yuanhai You, Jonathan H. K. Chen, Brian M. Forde, Mitchell Stanton-Cook, Ruifu Yang, Yujun Cui, Timothy C. Barnett, Carola Venturini, Cheryl-lynn Y. Ong, Herman Tse, Gordon Dougan, Jianzhong Zhang, Kwok-Yung Yuen, Scott A. Beatson, Mark J. Walker. Transfer of scarlet fever-associated elements into the group A Streptococcus M1T1 clone. Scientific Reports, 2015; 5: 15877 DOI: 10.1038/srep15877

 The national outlook is bright and in our hands

November 5, 2015

A ground breaking report has found that Australia is well placed to secure prosperity over the coming decades despite the challenges of an uncertain and possible resource constrained future.

However this prosperity is not a given - instead Australia’s future will be shaped by innovation and technology uptake and the choices we make as a society will be paramount.

The Australian National Outlook, released today, is the most comprehensive quantitative analysis yet of the interactions between economic growth, water-energy-food use, environmental outcomes and living standards in Australia.

CSIRO Executive Director Dr Alex Wonhas said National Outlook focused on the ‘physical economy’ that contributes to about 75 per cent of natural resource use and produces about 25 per cent of Australia’s GDP.

“The National Outlook is a first attempt to understand and analyse the connections in Australia’s physical environment many decades into the future,” Dr Wonhas said.

“It has a particular focus on understanding two aspects: The ‘water- energy-food nexus’ and the prospects for Australia’s materials- and energy-intensive industries.”

National Outlook finds a number of key insights and potential opportunities across the Australian economy. 

“For example, we find strong growth prospects for Australia’s agri-food production, which are forecast to increase at least 50 per cent by 2050, provided long term productivity improvements can be maintained in line with historical rates,” Dr Wonhas said. 

“There’s also the possibility of a win-win for farmers with potential growth in agri-food exports and new income sources for rural landholders through carbon farming on less productive land.” 

National Outlook also finds as Australia’s population grows, so too does water demand.

“Despite projections of a doubling of our water use, Australia could meet this growth as well as enhance urban water security and avoid increased environmental pressures through increased water recycling, desalination and integrated catchment management,” Dr Wonhas said.

The results of CSIRO’s first National Outlook show that energy and other resources could remain a pillar of the Australian economy well into the future, and that energy intensive industries could be well positioned to continue to grow, even in scenarios where the world is taking global action to significantly limit greenhouse gas emissions.

“The key to this success will be innovation and application of smart technologies,” Dr Wonhas said.

“We hope the National Outlook will help Australia chart its future in an increasingly complex and interconnected world.”

The National Outlook explores over 20 possible futures for Australia out to 2050 against the backdrop of the past 40 years.

The work was undertaken by a team of 40 CSIRO experts and university collaborators, and draws extensively on observed data and analysis.

It utilises a world-class suite of nine linked models, includes input from more than 80 experts and stakeholders from over ten organisations, and has undergone rigorous international peer review.

National Outlook is underpinned by more than 10 journal papers including a Nature paper published today.  The report is available atAustralian National Outlook

 Australia is ‘free to choose’ economic growth and falling environmental pressures

November 5, 2015

Over two centuries of economic growth have put undeniable pressure on the ecological systems that underpin human well-being. While it is agreed that these pressures are increasing, views divide on how they may be alleviated. Some suggest technological advances will automatically keep us from transgressing key environmental thresholds; others that policy reform can reconcile economic and ecological goals; while a third school argues that only a fundamental shift in societal values can keep human demands within the Earth’s ecological limits. Here we use novel integrated analysis of the energy–water–food nexus, rural land use (including biodiversity), material flows and climate change to explore whether mounting ecological pressures in Australia can be reversed, while the population grows and living standards improve. We show that, in the right circumstances, economic and environmental outcomes can be decoupled. Although economic growth is strong across all scenarios, environmental performance varies widely: pressures are projected to more than double, stabilize or fall markedly by 2050. However, we find no evidence that decoupling will occur automatically. Nor do we find that a shift in societal values is required. Rather, extensions of current policies that mobilize technology and incentivize reduced pressure account for the majority of differences in environmental performance. Our results show that Australia can make great progress towards sustainable prosperity, if it chooses to do so.

Extracts:

Overall, two-thirds of the scenarios assessed (13 of 18) show improvement in at least one environmental indicator, but only three scenarios (all involving strong or very strong abatement and new land markets) show improvement or stable performance in all three environmental indicators, reflecting the tensions between reducing water stress and restoring terrestrial native habitat, and the importance of integrated governance (see Supplementary Methods Fig. 6 and Supplementary Methods, ‘Analysis of multiple pressures across scenarios’).

Policies to ease pressures extend established options

The scenario assumptions that result in reduced environmental pressures are all continuations of existing trends, combined with greater uptake of energy and water efficiency, and a shift towards stronger global and national greenhouse gas abatement (Supplementary Methods, ‘Overview of modelling framework and scenarios’). Policy settings reflect market-based approaches that are already in place in Australia or other countries.

Greenhouse gas abatement is modelled as a uniform global broad-based carbon price, representing a variety of potential real-world mixes of regulation, standards, grants, taxes, or cap-and-trade arrangements. The carbon price in 2015 is US$15 (moderate scenario), US$30 (strong) and US$50 (very strong) per tonne of CO2 emissions, and increases by around 4.5% per year in real terms (above inflation) to 2050. This drives a 90% reduction in the emissions intensity of Australian electricity from 2010 to 2050 in the stronger abatement scenarios (eliminating coal-fired electricity without carbon capture and storage before 2035 under the highest carbon price). Wholesale generation prices are 61–106% higher in 2050, and household electricity prices are 11–12% higher (strong) or 32% higher (very strong), compared to the no-abatement scenarios. However, affordability changes very little, owing to higher household incomes (in all scenarios) and higher energy efficiency in scenarios with higher prices.

Payments to Australian landholders for biosequestration are 15% below the global carbon price, with the forgone carbon revenue applied to increasing the share of native habitat plantings from 4–5% to 36–46% of total area in 2050. The resulting biodiversity ‘top up payments’ account for 22–30% of payments to habitat plantings in these scenarios over the decade to 2050, complementing carbon income. (These payments should be interpreted as a one-off payment for implementing a conservation covenant, for the area of new habitat added in that period.)

On water, we find that interceptions from new plantings result in increased water stress in many of the very strong abatement scenarios (which have the highest levels of new plantings). We find the profitability of carbon plantings is not sensitive to water licence prices: a doubling results in just a 4% reduction in the area of new plantings in water-limited catchments. Limiting the area of plantings to avoid this increased water stress would require a 200% increase in the water licence price (increasing the asset value of licences to existing owners).

Policy choices are crucial, not changes in values

These results provide insights into the contested relationship between economic growth and environmental sustainability, complementing historical analyses (Supplementary Methods, ‘Competing views on the prospects for sustainability’). A ‘technological optimist’ view considers market-driven technological advances will ensure that growth does not transgress key environmental thresholds. Others suggest that institutional reform and new policies could achieve necessary changes within established values and paradigms, noting that environmental damage may occur during the long lags between problem identification and policy responses. A third ‘communitarian limits’ view argues that sustainability will require a fundamental shift in societal values, often involving a rejection of economic growth or a shift from consumerism to a values-based commitment to living within ecological limits.

We find that decoupling economic growth from environmental pressure before 2050 would not require a change in societal values, but is not automatic—contrary to both the communitarian limits and technological optimist positions. It is not projected to occur under existing trends, and requires, in our scenarios, collective choices to increase global and national abatement efforts.

The analysis explores potential behavioural change in several ways. The modelling simulates bottom-up individual choices on working hours and consumption that shape production and consumption as incomes rise (income elasticity) and relative prices change (price elasticity). These choices interact with different assumptions about policy settings (reflecting collective choices), such as incentives for greenhouse gas abatement, and about bottom-up trends, such as the uptake of energy and water efficiency. None of the scenarios assume a new social or environmental ethic. In particular, increasing Australia’s abatement effort in line with emissions reductions by other countries would be consistent with Australian public opinion40 and assessments of Australia’s national interest in limiting the rise in average global temperature to 2 °C and so is not interpreted as implying a change in values. Rather, the analysis reflects how goal-oriented human behaviour can change with circumstances (including new information, or changes in the actions of others), without requiring any change in underlying goals and values.

We find collective policy choices are crucial, explaining 46–94% of differences in environmental performance and resource use across the scenarios examined (see Extended Data Fig. 7 and Supplementary Methods, ‘Assessing the contributions of individual and collective choices’). Consistent with the institutional reform approach, we find top-down collective choices are particularly important in shaping ‘public good’ outcomes—accounting for 83–94% of the differential in scenario outcomes for net greenhouse gas emissions, and 69–89% for greenhouse emissions excluding land sector sequestration. Bottom-up individual choices play a greater role when private and public benefits are aligned, such as when improved resource efficiency delivers financial savings. Individual choices account for up to half of the differential in scenario outcomes for energy use (33–47%) and non-agricultural water consumption (16–53%).

Steve Hatfield-Dodds, Heinz Schandl, Philip D. Adams, Timothy M. Baynes, Thomas S. Brinsmead, Brett A. Bryan, Francis H. S. Chiew, Paul W. Graham, Mike Grundy, Tom Harwood, Rebecca McCallum, Rod McCrea, Lisa E. McKellar, David Newth, Martin Nolan, Ian Prosser & Alex Wonhas. Australia is ‘free to choose’ economic growth and falling environmental pressures. Nature 527, 49–53 (05 November 2015) DOI:10.1038/nature16065  -  Published online (Open Access) 04 November 2015

 Using a higher GST to pay for income tax cuts is a ‘recipe for more inequality, with higher income earners the winners’

 November 5, 2015: ACOSS Media Release

The Australian Council of Social Service today released new modelling from the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling (NATSEM) to show what an increase in the GST to 15% would mean for households across the community. The NATSEM modelling also shows what  it would mean if the Federal Government used the revenue from an increase in the GST to fund a reduction in personal income taxes across different income groups.

The NATSEM modelling, commissioned by ACOSS with support from the Carnegie Foundation, confirms that using an increase in the GST to fund income tax cuts will mean households on low and modest incomes are significantly worse off and higher income households are the winners, paying less tax overall as a proportion of their income.

A higher GST?

“The NATSEM modelling of an increase to 15% on the existing base of the GST or a broadening of the GST base to fresh food, health and education confirms that either change would be regressive. Low and modest income households would clearly pay a higher proportion of their income, in comparison to higher income households through an increase in the GST, whether by increasing the rate or broadening the base by removing the exemptions,” said ACOSS CEO, Dr Cassandra Goldie.

Ben Phillips of NATSEM said, “An increase in the GST has a much bigger impact on low and modest income households because they spend more of their overall income to meet their living costs, in comparison to people on higher incomes who are better able to save. An increase in the rate of the GST to 15% would require people in the lowest 20% of the income brackets to pay 7% more, people in the middle 20% 4.2% more, and people in the highest 20% income bracket just 3% more of their income.”

Mr Phillips said, “A broadening of the base of the GST to fresh food, health, water and education would also be regressive, with people on lower incomes paying proportionately more of their incomes on these essentials. The relative impacts are clear: 4.6% of income for people in the lowest income brackets, 2.7% for people in the middle, and just 1.7% for the highest income earners.

A higher GST to fund income tax cuts?

“NATSEM has also modelled the impact of raising the GST to 15% to pay for a cut of 5% in all personal income tax rates to demonstrate how this would change who pays what proportion of tax, in reference to their incomes. The results are stark: two thirds of households, on incomes up to about $100 000 would be worse off and the top 40% would gain at the expense of the bottom 60%. The lowest 20% of households by income would lose $33 a week (6.6% of income) on average while the top 20% would gain an average of $69 a week (2.1% of income),” Mr Phillips said.

Dr Goldie said, “Increasing the GST to fund income tax cuts is a also a big, complicated revenue ‘churn’ that would do nothing to ease the pressure on State health, education and welfare budgets, particularly as it would clearly require a major compensation package to ameliorate its impacts on people who are hit the hardest.  If it’s not about raising more revenue, the Government has to justify why this option is being considered at all.”

“Raising the GST to fund cuts to personal income tax across the board, as some advocate, is a recipe for more inequality, not a stronger economy,” said ACOSS CEO Dr Cassandra Goldie.

A better approach to tax reform?

“ACOSS is a strong supporter of comprehensive tax reform to improve economic efficiency to support jobs growth, to increase simplicity and fairness, and to secure a more sustainable revenue base for essential services and infrastructure.  We agree with business and the unions that tax reform should remove tax concessions that are no longer fit for purpose, shift away from clearly inefficient tax bases such as stamp duties towards efficient bases such as land taxes, and remove distortions in the tax treatment of investment incomes. This was clear common ground from the National Reform Summit Group, and consensus between the Business Council of Australia and ACOSS.

“We welcome the Federal Government’s preparedness to put changes to superannuation tax concessions, negative gearing and capital gains and other tax concessions and loopholes, such a discretionary trusts and other tax shelters, back on the table.

“However, if the Federal Government’s main game for tax reform is to shift the responsibility for paying taxes away from personal incomes towards consumption, it would fail on all grounds.  Fairness and simplicity would be undermined and it would do little or nothing to improve economic efficiency. It would be a recipe for driving inequality. The Government’s own Tax Reform Discussion Paper highlighted that the most inefficient taxes are stamp duties and other business and transaction taxes, not personal income tax. This is where the serious effort to shift taxes should be focussed.

“ACOSS does not rule out any increase in the GST. However, an increase in the GST should not be our starting point, when low and modest incomes earners carry the greatest risk.

“There is no doubt that governments will need more revenue to continue to provide the health, education and welfare services the community expects. ACOSS supports efforts to reform the tax system to do this in the fairest and most efficient way. This research confirms our view that increasing the GST should be one of the last options considered to raise revenue for those services, when low and modest incomes earners will carry the greatest risk.

“ACOSS will continue to work with government, business, unions and the community to help make this happen. We cannot afford not to reform the tax system, but tax reform is not all about raising the GST,” Dr Goldie concluded.

 The surprising trick jellyfish use to swim

November 3, 2015

Millions of years ago, even before the continents had settled into place, jellyfish were already swimming the oceans with the same pulsing motions we observe today.

Now through clever experiments and insightful math, an interdisciplinary research team has revealed a startling truth about how jellyfish and lampreys, another ancient species that undulate like eels, move through the water with unmatched efficiency.

"It confounds all our assumptions," said John Dabiri, a professor of civil and environmental engineering and of mechanical engineering at Stanford. "But our experiments show that jellyfish and lampreys actually suck water toward themselves to move forward instead of pushing against the water behind them, as had been previously supposed."

This new understanding of motion in fluids is published in a Nature Communications article that Dabiri co-authored with Brad Gemmell of the University of South Florida, Sean Colin of Roger Williams University and John Costello of Providence College.

A new hypothesis

Dabiri, an engineer, and his collaborators, all biologists affiliated with the Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole, Massachusetts, have spent years studying the propulsion systems of jellyfish and eel-like lampreys. Both animals long ago evolved into efficient swimmers. Each minimal pulsing or undulating movement helps them cover a significant distance.

Studying nature for clues to improve human-made technologies is part of a field called biomimetics, and the interdisciplinary collaborators originally set out to seek insights that might improve the design of submarines, ships and the like.

About three years ago, Dabiri began to suspect that scientists fundamentally misunderstood underwater propulsion, that moving forward like nature's best swimmers was far more complicated than spinning a propeller or kicking one's feet to -- in a manner of speaking -- push off against the water behind.

Instead, they show that as a lamprey slithers along, it creates a pocket of low-pressure water inside each bend of its body. As the water ahead of the lamprey races into this low-pressure bend, the flow of that water pulls the lamprey forward.

Jellyfish propulsion is similar. As the jelly's umbrella-shaped plume collapses, water ahead of the animal is pulled aft, propelling the jellyfish forward.

Measuring the immeasurable

To make their case, Dabiri and his collaborators designed an experiment that enabled them to use a 260-year-old equation that helps scientists to explain the theoretical behavior of fluids around solid objects, such as swimming animals.

This is tricky because solids and fluids are so different.

"Interactions between solid objects are usually straightforward, like two billiard balls bouncing off each other, and therefore you can calculate the forces without much difficulty," Dabiri said. "But in a fluid every molecule is like a billiard ball and they are practically innumerable. There isn't a simple way to calculate all those interactions."

In 1755, mathematician Leonard Euler created an equation to describe fluid motion. It boiled down to the interplay of three variables: time, the rate of flow and the pressure exerted by each molecule of the fluid on its neighbors. Time and flow were easy to measure even then, but pressure is much more difficult to gauge, especially as an animal swims through the fluid.

So Dabiri's team created an experimental system that enabled them to accurately approximate this pressure variable, and it was on this achievement that the paper rests.

"Everyone appreciates that Euler's equation can effectively describe the fluid motion, but extracting the pressure from the equation in real-world experiments has been a longstanding challenge," Dabiri said.

They started with a rectangle acrylic tank about 1 foot wide, 4 feet long and 6 inches deep. In the water floated millions of tiny hollow glass beads that served as proxies for water molecules. They positioned two lasers opposite each other on the thin sides of the rectangle, with a high-speed digital camera set alongside each laser.

As small jellyfish and lampreys swam through the tank, their motions perturbed the glass beads, whose positions were tracked by the lasers and recorded by the digital cameras in fractions of a second. The experiment then became an exercise in computation.

Time and flow could be precisely measured for the beads, at each moment. Making thousands upon thousands of calculations, the team used these two precise variables to solve for the third, elusive variable of pressure. They fed these results into a computer that transformed the mountain of data into a visual representation of the pressure forces at play.

From this image, it became clear that the low-pressure pockets created on the inside edge of each undulating animal movement were the dominant driver of propulsion, by pulling water toward the animal to move it forward.

As an added proof, the researchers compared two batches of lampreys of the same species. The control batch moved in natural, undulating fashion. The experimental batch were modified so that only their tail end flicked, using a less efficient kicking motion, not unlike human swimmers.

"The body undulations of the normal lampreys set them apart as much better swimmers than you and me," Dabiri said. "Human swimmers generate high pressure instead of suction. That's good enough to get you across the pool, but requires much more energy than the suction action of lampreys and jellyfish."

Advanced underwater vehicles

The new biomimetic understandings could provide the foundation for significant advances in underwater vehicle design.

"For nearly 100 years, it has been assumed that mimicking natural swimming meant finding ways to generate high pressures to push water backward for thrust," Dabiri said. "Now we realize we've had it backward, and so the search is on for ways to generate low-pressure suction to achieve more efficient underwater propulsion."

Costello, a jellyfish expert, said the new findings show the mechanism selected by evolution to optimize distance-for-effort in underwater animals.

"Animals that move in fluids almost invariably use flexible, rather than rigid, propulsive structures," he said. "This work opens the door to understanding why evolution has converged upon particular bending patterns."

Brad J. Gemmell, Sean P. Colin, John H. Costello, John O. Dabiri.Suction-based propulsion as a basis for efficient animal swimming. Nature Communications, 2015; 6: 8790 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms9790

 Australian swimming legends gather to donate rare 1954 film to NFSA

November 5, 2015

Two of Australia’s greatest swimmers, Olympic champions Jon Henricks and Lorraine Thurlow (nee Crapp), will gathered at the North Sydney Olympic Pool on Thursday 5 November, to present the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA) with a never-before-seen film shot during their 1954 North American tour – including rare footage of the Australian team’s participation in the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, Canada.

Henricks and Crapp, both dual gold freestyle medallists at the 1954 Games, will be joined by a third famous freestyler, John Devitt, a gold medallist at the Rome Olympics of 1960.

Lorraine Crapp said: ‘[The film is] a marvellous thing. There’s very little record of what we did in that period of time. Team spirit was great. We were very young, the underdogs. What we did in Vancouver 1954 was the beginning of the golden era of Australian swimming, leading up to Melbourne 1956.’

The 72-minute silent film shows the Australian team of 1954 in action in Vancouver and later in San Francisco and the ‘Fiesta La Ballona’ in Culver City, California. It features swimming, diving and athletics competitions, as well as images of the men’s team sightseeing.

The film was shot by Bill Holland, then Secretary of the Queensland Amateur Swimming Association (QASA), and Manager of the Australian swimming team in Vancouver. Some years later Mr Holland presented Jon Henricks with the original 16mm reel – which Henricks kept at his home in the USA until he decided to donate it to theNFSA.

Jon Henricks said: ‘Bill Holland’s love of swimming, and his diligence in making the film, should not be lost. This film represents some of the best performances Australia had had at the Games.’

NFSA General Manager Collections Meg Labrum said: ‘We are very excited about this film, which will now be seen by the public for the first time. Home movies are a fascinating window into our past, showing us a more personal perspective than other films.

‘The NFSA is where Australia’s audiovisual history lives on. We thank Jon Henricks and Lorraine Crapp for their kind donation, which ensures this invaluable film will be now preserved in our national collection.’

Craig Phillips, CEO of the Australian Commonwealth Games Association, said: ‘The ACGA is delighted that this rare and very personal insight into the 1954 swim team’s journey to the Vancouver Games will find a home at the NFSA. It captures an important time in our swimming history and features rising stars who would become Australian sporting legends.’

Australian swimming team at Vancouver 1954 - Swimming legends home movie 1

Published on Nov 3, 2015

The Australian swimming team in action at the Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, 1954. Featuring Lorraine Crapp, Rex Aubrey, Jon Henricks, David Hawkins, Gary Chapman, Cyrus Weld. We see the swimmers competing and receiving their gold medals.

Two of Australia’s greatest swimmers, Olympic champions Jon Henricks and Lorraine Thurlow (nee Crapp), recently donated a never-before-seen film to the NFSA. The film was shot by Bill Holland, then Secretary of the Queensland Amateur Swimming Association (QASA), and Manager of the Australian swimming team in Vancouver.

This clip, narrated by Henricks and his friend and fellow Olympic champion John Devitt, is an excerpt from the 75-minute film.

Ocean beaches and headlands assessment

The NSW Government has announced its decision on the recreational fishing amnesty in NSW marine parks. Based on the Marine Estate Expert Knowledge Panel's advice and further consideration of social values and use conflicts, the NSW Government proposes to:

• rezone 10 sites from sanctuary zone to habitat protection zone to make shore-based recreational line fishing lawful, and to continue the amnesty at these sites until the rezoning process is finalised.

The amnesty has been removed from all 20 remaining sites and enforcement of sanctuary zone rules has recommenced. All forms of fishing are prohibited in sanctuary zones and significant penalties apply including on-the-spot fines of up to $500.

Current arrangements in marine parks 

Community and stakeholder engagement  

Have your say on the draft management rules for marine parks for inclusion in the Marine Estate Management (Management Rules) Regulation 1999. The changes will:

• rezone 10 sites within the Solitary Islands, Cape Byron, Port Stephens–Great Lakes and Batemans marine parks from sanctuary zone to habitat protection zone and to allow recreational line fishing from the shore in those areas,

• update the maps for marine parks. There are a small number of amendments that make corrections to various descriptions and spellings and ensure that the maps are consistent.

For more information please read: 

• Draft Regulation

• Consultation paper

Make a submission

It is recommended that you read the consultation paper, alongside the draft regulation, before making a submission.

• Online submission  or • Hard copy of submission form (PDF)

You can lodge your submission online, via email at contact.us@marine.nsw.gov.au or through the post at:

Ocean Beaches and Headlands- Draft Regulations, NSW Department of Primary Industries, Locked Bag 1, Nelson Bay NSW 2315

Submissions close on Friday 13 November 2015.

See all document and submission form at: ocean-beaches-assessment

 Refuelling mistake leads to pollution in Port Stephens Marine Park

Media release: 27 October 2015

Two men have been fined $7,500 each by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) for dumping 120 litres of diesel contaminated water in Port Stephens Marine Park.

Adam Gilligan, Manager of the Hunter Region, NSW EPA, said, the two men showed blatant disregard for human health and the environment when they wilfully decanted the diesel contaminated water, despite being advised otherwise. 

“The men, a skipper and his deckhand, had mistakenly placed diesel into the water tanks of the vessel they were skippering to Sydney. Staff of Anchorage Resort and Marina, where the boat was berthed, advised the men to have the tanks professionally cleaned once they arrived in Sydney. However, at night, the two men removed the diesel fuel from the vessel’s tanks before dumping the contaminated water onto the jetty of the marina and into the land and waters of Port Stephens Marine Park.

“Anchorage Resort and Marina contacted the EPA to report the incident and assisted with subsequent investigations. When interviewed by the EPA, both the skipper and deckhand made full admissions. They each received a fine of $7,500 for pollution of waters under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act (POEO).

“This investigation involved collaboration between Anchorage Resort and Marina and the EPA to ensure the environmental values of Port Stephens Marine Park are protected. Through the resort's swift reporting, the fuel was able to be removed before any environmental harm was caused.”

Mr Gilligan continued, “All boat owners need to be aware that the EPA regards water pollution as a serious matter. Significantly larger fines and even jail terms can apply if a deliberate pollution incident, such as this one, had been found to cause environmental harm.”

The EPA takes a range of factors into account before delivering a proportionate regulatory response, including the degree of environmental harm, whether or not there are any real or potential health impacts, if the action of the offender was deliberate, the compliance history of the offender, public interest and best environmental outcomes.

For more information about the EPA’s regulatory tools, see the EPA Compliance Policy www.epa.nsw.gov.au/legislation/prosguid.htm

To report a pollution incident, contact the NSW EPA Environment Line 131 555.

 Montreal Protocol meeting to tackle climate change by cutting HFC emissions

Media release: 4 November 2015 - The Hon. Greg Hunt MP, Minister for the Environment

Today I will lead Australia's delegation at the 27th Meeting of Parties to the Montreal Protocol in Dubai, where the focus of global talks will be on working towards a phase down of hydrofluorocarbons.

Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are used as a substitute for ozone-depleting gases. They are man-made synthetic greenhouse gases that have a large detrimental effect on global CO2 equivalent levels.

They are used in domestic, commercial and industrial refrigeration and air conditioning equipment, as well as being used as a foam blowing agent and a non-flammable propellant in aerosols.

The original focus of the Montreal Protocol was to phase-out ozone-depleting gases, such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).

Discussions are now underway to expand the Montreal Protocol for a phase-down HFCs.

In Australia, we are working towards phasing-down the use of HFCs by 85 per cent by 2036.

It is my hope that we can work towards a global phase-down of HFCs and I am confident we can get agreement in Dubai to push ahead with the process of managing HFCs globally.

The Montreal Protocol is considered one of the most successful international environmental agreements ever negotiated and implemented.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) estimates that emissions of more than 135 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent have been averted from the atmosphere.

The Montreal Protocol has provided five-times the climate benefit compared with the annual emissions target for the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol.

UNEP research suggests the recovery of the ozone layer is estimated to prevent 280 million cases of skin cancer, 1.6 million deaths from skin cancer and 46 million cases of cataracts for those people born this century. These are extraordinary numbers.

Australia will continue to work in partnership with countries party to the Montreal Protocol to ensure that ozone protection is based on good science and is technically feasible, and that developing countries are supported in their efforts.

In setting out a mandatory timetable for developed and developing countries to phase out all the major ozone depleting substances, the Protocol has been successful not only in halting the loss of the earth's vital ozone layer but also in paving the way for its recovery.

This work will build on the success to date in helping to meet and beat Australia's 2020 greenhouse gas emissions reduction target and in working towards our 26 to 28 per cent 2030 target.

For more informationwww.environment.gov.au/protection/ozone/montreal-protocol

 Community jubilant at Northern Rivers gas threat buy out Offer

November 02, 2015: Lock the Gate Alliance Media Release

Communities affected by the three gas exploration licences owned by Metgasco in the Northern Rivers say they are jubilant the company’s Board has received an offer from the NSW Government to buy back the licences and has proposed to withdraw from pending exploration activities near Bentley.

Gasfield Free Northern Rivers co-coordinator, Elly Bird said, “This is a day that people around our region have worked for and wanted for over three years. We’re over the moon that the Government and the company have finally seen the light and decided that the community’s rejection of unconventional gas could not be overcome. 

Ross Joseph, a landholder who lives within one of the licences said, “We’re grateful to the Government for finally acting to cancel these licences, and for stopping the drilling at Bentley last year. More than that, we’re just so proud of our community for coming together to turn away unsafe and unwelcome industrialisation of our beautiful region.”

Elly Bird said, “Of course it’s not over for our communities yet. There’s nothing to stop the government granting new licences to explore for gas in our region, and until there is protection in law for a gasfield free Northern Rivers, we will continue to work together to achieve that.”  

 Settlement / buy-back proposal: Metgasco 

November 2nd, 2015 Metgasco

Metgasco advises that the NSW Government has offered to buy-back Metgasco’s three Northern Rivers petroleum exploration licences, PEL 13, PEL 16 and PEL 426, and in doing so also settle legal disputes with Metgasco.  The offer proposes a settlement / buy-back sum of $25 million.

The settlement offer comes after protracted discussions that have been ongoing since July this year.  Metgasco’s shareholders must vote for the offer to be accepted.  Metgasco’s Board of Directors has given careful consideration to the Government’s offer and unanimously believes that acceptance is in the company’s best interest.  As such, it will be recommending to the shareholders that they vote in favour of the proposal.

A meeting of members will be called to allow shareholders to vote on the proposal.  Before then, an explanatory memorandum will be issued to shareholders that explains key elements of the proposal, the reasons for accepting or rejecting the proposal and the company’s plans for the future.   However, in summary, the key features of the proposal are:

  • the NSW Government will pay $25 million in return for cancellation of the three licences, Metgasco withdrawing its development application, and Metgasco withdrawing its legal action in relation to the unlawful suspension of its Rosella drilling approval;
  • in addition, the NSW Government will return approximately $400,000 currently held as securities and other fees at the time the $25 million settlement fee is paid;
  • Metgasco will be responsible for the decommissioning of its remaining two coal seam gas wells, with NSW Government refunding the remainder of the securities it holds (approximately $240,000) on completion of the two well program and final PEL 16 site inspections; and
  • prior to the shareholder meeting to consider the settlement / buy-out proposal, Metgasco will put a hold on its court action and suspend all field activities other than simple maintenance of sites.

Based on the $7.1 million cash held by Metgasco on 30 September 2015, the result of the proposal, if accepted, will be to give the company a cash backing of $0.074/share.

Metgasco’s Chairman, Mr Len Gill, said, “This has been a difficult decision for the Board.  The company has invested heavily in the Clarence Moreton Basin for over ten years and has had significant success in demonstrating large gas resources.  It has many loyal shareholders, many of whom live in the licence areas and invested in the company because of the benefits a gas industry would bring to the region”. 

“Despite the above, the company needs to look forward and consider the different alternatives available.  While the identified gas resources could have a significant value if developed in an efficient and timely manner, the Board has to consider the risks associated with ongoing project approval delays, higher costs and difficulties funding activities over the next few years.  Similarly, the court action to seek damages from the unlawful drilling suspension could yield significant compensation. However, it is necessary to take into account that the court case could take some years to resolve and that even if the company is successful, the damages awarded might be much lower than we seek.  On balance, we believe that it is better to accept the settlement and to move forward.”

Mr Gill also said “More details about the company’s plans for the future will be released before the shareholder meeting.  There is a strong worldwide demand for oil and gas, a demand that will continue for the foreseeable future.  The depressed oil and gas market at present makes it an ideal time to pursue new oil and gas opportunities.  Metgasco has reviewed a number of opportunities over the last two years and is confident of securing attractive opportunities, particularly when it can negotiate without uncertainties associated with its NSW assets.”

The date of the shareholders’ meeting to consider the proposal is likely to be towards the end of December and will be announced shortly.  Metgasco will seek ASIC approval to combine its Annual General Meeting, currently scheduled for 30 November, with the shareholders’ meeting for the purpose of the settlement / buy-back proposal.

 Commonwealth Marine Reserves Review Update   

Co-Chairs’ Update 3 November 2015

Consideration of options

The targeted consultations to test our revised zoning options concluded at the end of August with 80 meetings held in 11 locations and by phone, with over 200 regional and national stakeholders.

The meetings were very productive and our proposals were generally well received.

We received constructive feedback in relation to our options and also identified new issues for which we have been finding solutions.

Advice from the Expert Scientific Panel

As mentioned in our previous updates, we made a number of requests for advice to the Expert Scientific Panel (ESP) in relation to issues raised during consultations held by the Bioregional Advisory Panels (BAPs).

At a final face-to-face meeting in Hobart in mid September, the ESP considered these issues and has now provided us with a series of findings and advice. This includes synopses of research results that have been published since the Commonwealth Marine Reserves (CMRs) system was proclaimed in 2012 and that are relevant to reserves that we have been considering (for example, comprehensive sampling surveys that were recently conducted in the Geographe and Oceanic Shoals CMRs).

Panel member input

Informed by the ESP advice and following our ‘option testing’ with key stakeholders in July and August, we have spent the last month further refining our recommendations for zoning. We believe that we are very close to finding a workable set of solutions.

An early draft of the report was circulated to the members of the five regional panels for comments; we then held panel meetings over the phone to discuss recommendations about the reserves specific to their region.

Completion of the Review

It is critically important to ensure thorough consideration of all material brought before us during the consultations. Although we have been working hard to finalise the report for the Review quickly, bringing all the threads together, within and across the ESP and the BAP streams, it has been a complex and challenging task and has taken longer than expected.

We recently met with Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources, Senator Anne Ruston, who has recently been given responsibility for fisheries, and updated her on the review and our progress. 

We have asked the Government for a short extension of time to help us deliver the best possible options and will deliver a final report by the end of the month.

Further information:

For more information about the Commonwealth Marine Reserves Review and the Panels, please visit:www.marinereservesreview.gov.au

Prof. Colin Buxton Mr Peter Cochrane

Co-Chairs of the Bioregional Advisory

 Fishery status reports released

30 October 2015

The status of wild fish stocks that underpin Commonwealth fisheries has remained generally steady according to a new report from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES).

ABARES Executive Director, Karen Schneider, said the Fishery status reports 2015 showed that of the 92 fish stocks reviewed, across the 21 Commonwealth fisheries, 63 stocks (or 68 per cent) were both not overfished and not subject to overfishing. This is an increase from 61 stocks in last year’s reports. The Commonwealth fisheries include 9 fisheries managed solely by the Australian government and 12 fisheries managed jointly with other Australian jurisdictions or other countries.

Ms Schneider said that for the second consecutive year there were no stocks classified as subject to overfishing in any fisheries managed solely by the Australian government. This is an important measure of management performance, in terms of ensuring the levels of harvest are sustainable.

“The reports also reflect the rebuilding of the eastern zone orange roughy stock, which is now classified as not overfished. The orange roughy stock in this area was closed to targeted fishing because of historic depletion. However, the most recent stock assessment has shown the stock is above the limit, so not overfished. In line with this the Australian Fisheries Management Authority has set a total allowable catch for the 2015–16 fishing season,” Ms Schneider said.

“Unfortunately, redfish in the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery is now classified as overfished based on the most recent stock assessment, and there is uncertainty around the level of fishing mortality that will allow the stock to rebuild. The Australian Fisheries Management Authority is currently developing a rebuilding strategy for this stock.

Additionally, there are a number of stocks managed solely by the Australian government where the status is classified as uncertain—where it is unclear whether the size of the stock or level of fishing mortality are at appropriate levels. Increased certainty in the status of these stocks would provide increased confidence in the associated management arrangements.

“There are also two stocks that are internationally managed and where the fish stocks are fished by several nations—namely bigeye tuna in the western and central Pacific Ocean and striped marlin in the Indian Ocean—that are both subject to overfishing and overfished.

“The reports consider the economic performance of Commonwealth fisheries. These fisheries generated $338.2 million in gross value of production (GVP) in 2013–14, which is 24 per cent of Australia’s total wild capture fisheries GVP of $1.4 billion.

“The economic performance varies across the fisheries, influenced by fishing revenues and costs, changes in economic productivity and management arrangements.”

This report forms part of a suite of ABARES publications that provide a comprehensive and multidimensional account of the trends and outlook for Australian fisheries.

For a copy of the report visit ABARES Publication

 Turtle month: Australians urged to use app to help prevent extinction

November 2, 2015: UWS

As predators and mystery illnesses drive turtle populations in Australia to extinction, Western Sydney University scientists are asking Australians to join the fight during Turtle Month using their smartphones.

November is Turtle Month, a dangerous time of year for turtles as they leave the safety of the water to nest.

To help pinpoint the location of turtles across Australia, Western Sydney University researchers have launched TurtleSAT , a mobile app and website to log sightings of turtles, alive and dead.

"By knowing where turtles are crossing roads or making their nests, we can introduce new measures to protect them," says Dr Ricky Spencer, from the School of Science and Health.

"As a result of Turtle Month last year, we had more than 1000 recordings on TurtleSAT, which resulted in the construction of road signs to warn drivers of areas where turtles are crossing."

"Conservation agencies are now directing resources into managing nesting grounds, rather than broad-scale poison baiting. This is Citizen Science in action."

For Turtle Month in 2015, TurtleSAT has some unique major prizes for Citizen Scientists. Everyone who records a sighting will go into the draw to receive a series of amazing drawings and photos.

Dr Spencer says time is running out for turtles around Australia.

"The Bellinger River Snapping Turtle- a species over two million years old- was in healthy numbers in January this year, but by March it was close to extinction," he says.

"Throughout most of Australia, predation on nests and nesting females is extreme, with foxes able to destroy up to 100 per cent of turtle nests in an area."

Dr Spencer says turtles perform important functions in the ecosystem.

"They are top predators and major scavengers and if they disappear like they have in the Bellinger River, then water quality will be affected," he says.

"The good news is there is hope. If people around Australia record their turtle sightings through TurtleSAT, we can take measures to protect the fragile populations still left, and help the animals recover."

To become a Citizen Scientist and have a chance of winning these unique prizes, just download the App. Keep up to date with news and alerts via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (search TurtleSAT).

 How plant cell compartments 'chat' with each other: Central relay station discovered in the internal communication of thale cress

November 4, 2015

A team of researchers led by scientists from the University of Bonn has discovered a basis of communication in plant cells: The 'MICU' protein controls the calcium ion concentration in the cellular power stations. Using these chemical signatures, the plants regulate, for instance, the formation of organs and react to water stress. The results may be used in the future to optimize agricultural crops. The journalThe Plant Cell reports on the results in its current issue.

Plants react to stimuli from their environment by specific responses: If available water becomes limiting, they curb evaporation from their leaves. If a pathogen attacks, they arm themselves with chemical weapons. If a soil fungus wishes to collaborate with a plant root for mutual benefit, both partners discuss their duties. "All of these fine adjustments require a great deal of communication between the individual compartments of the plant cell," says Dr. Markus Schwarzlaender, principle investigator of an Emmy Noether group at the Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation at the University of Bonn.

When the various components of plant cells communicate with another, they do not use words but calcium ions, i.e. positively charged calcium atoms, instead. "The information is encoded in the fluctuations of the calcium concentration of the various cell compartments," explains Dr. Schwarzlaender. How can a single ion contain and transduce so much information? This is the question scientists have been asking themselves since it became known how various cell compartments 'chat' with each other.

The 'MICU' protein is a central relay station

The team of Dr. Schwarzlaender, together with scientists from Italy, France, England, Australia and the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research in Cologne and the University of Muenster, have now shed light on this question. Investigating the cellular power stations (mitochondria) of thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana), the scientists discovered that the 'MICU' protein fulfills a central role in the control of the calcium ion concentration in the mitochondria.

"In mammals, there is a very similar protein which also regulates the concentration of calcium ions," says Dr. Stephan Wagner from the team working with Dr. Schwarzlaender. Like a turbocharger, it prompts the mitochondria of mammals to provide more energy. The scientists speculated that this could be an interesting candidate, but they were taken by surprise when they found the closely related plant-based 'MICU' to be a central relay station in the communication system of Arabidopsis. "The two, similar proteins in animals and plants have evidently arisen from a common ancestor but over the course of millennia, they have developed distinct characteristics," says Dr. Schwarzlaender.

Fluorescing cellular power stations provide information

By destroying the gene with the MICU blueprint in the Arabidopsis genome, the researchers were able to experimentally explore what influence the protein has on the calcium communication of the plant cells. They equipped the mitochondria with a fluorescing sensor protein. Using the variable fluorescence intensities of the sensor, it was possible to visualize changes in the calcium concentrations of the cellular power stations in the living plants. "We were able to identify a clear influence on the communication of the mitochondria," reports Dr. Wagner. Knockout of the MICU gene resulted, among other consequences, in modified properties of cell respiration.

"With our findings, we have established a basis for influencing the calcium signals in specific parts of the plant cell," Dr. Schwarzlaender summarizes. Since Arabidopsis is considered to be an experimental model for plants in general, the findings may be usable in the future for optimizing crops. Looking ahead the researchers note that if, for example, specific plants could be taught to ally themselves with nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria via modified calcium signals, a large amount of fertilizer used in agriculture may be saved.

Stephan Wagner et al. The EF-Hand Ca2 Binding Protein MICU Choreographs Mitochondrial Ca2 Dynamics in Arabidopsis. The Plant Cell, 2015 DOI: 10.1105/tpc.15.00509

Top: The fluorescent sensor protein provides information on the calcium ion concentration in mitochondria in real time. Blue indicates low, green, medium and red, high concentrations. Credit: Copyright Dr. Stephan Wagner 

 'Magic' plant discovery could lead to growing food in space

November 3, 2015

QUT researchers Dr Julia Bally and Professor Peter Waterhouse have discovered a plant with huge genome properties that can have the potential to be the 'laboratory rat' of the molecular plant world. This could open the door for such things as space-based food production - Credit: Erika Fish

QUT scientists have discovered the gene that will open the door for space-based food production.

Professor Peter Waterhouse, a plant geneticist at QUT, discovered the gene in the ancient Australian native tobacco plant Nicotiana benthamiana, known as Pitjuri to indigenous Aboriginals tribes.

Professor Waterhouse made the discovery while tracing the history of the Pitjuri plant, which for decades has been used by geneticists as a model plant upon which to test viruses and vaccines.

"This plant is the 'laboratory rat' of the molecular plant world," he said, "we think of it as a magical plant with amazing properties.

"We now know that in 1939 its seeds were sent by an Australian scientist to a scientist in America and have been passed from lab to lab all over the world.

"By sequencing its genome and looking through historical records we have been able to determine that the original plant came from the Granites area near the Western Australia and Northern Territory border, close to where Wolf Creek was filmed.

"We know, through using a molecular clock and fossil records, that this particular plant has survived in its current form in the wild for around 750,000 years."

Lead researcher Dr Julia Bally said determining the exact species had led researchers on a quest to find out how the plant managed to survive in the wild for such a long period of time.

"What we found may have a big impact on future plant biotechnology research," Dr Bally said.

"We have discovered that it is the plant equivalent of the nude mouse used in medical research."

"The plant has lost its 'immune system' and has done that to focus its energies on being able to germinate and grow quickly, rapidly flower, and set seed after even a small amount of rainfall.

"Its focus is on creating small flowers but large seeds and on getting these seeds back into the soil in time for the next rain.

"The plant has worked out how to fight drought -- its number one predator -- in order to survive through generations."

Professor Waterhouse, a molecular geneticist with QUT's Centre for Tropical Crops and Biocommodities, said scientists could use this discovery to investigate other niche or sterile growing environments where plants were protected from disease -- and space was an intriguing option.

"So the recent film The Martian, which involved an astronaut stranded on Mars growing potatoes while living in an artificial habitat, had a bit more science fact than fiction than people might think," he said.

Professor Waterhouse said the team's findings also have implications for future genetic research back here on Earth.

"Scientists can now know how to turn other species into 'nude mice' for research purposes. So just as nude mice can be really good models for cancer research, 'nude' versions of crop plants could also speed up agricultural research," he said.

Professor Waterhouse said the fact that the N. benthamiana variety from central Australia had doubled its seed size also opened the door for investigations into how N. benthamiana could be used commercially as a biofactory, as seeds were an excellent place in which to make antibodies for pharmaceutical use.

Julia Bally, Kenlee Nakasugi, Fangzhi Jia, Hyungtaek Jung, Simon Y.W. Ho, Mei Wong, Chloe M. Paul, Fatima Naim, Craig C. Wood, Ross N. Crowhurst, Roger P. Hellens, James L. Dale, Peter M. Waterhouse. The extremophile Nicotiana benthamiana has traded viral defence for early vigour. Nature Plants, 2015; 1 (11): 15165 DOI:10.1038/nplants.2015.165

 CSIRO Comes Out Swinging In Energy Conversation

 4 November, 2015

CSIRO will today launch a massive eight-person energy generating swing at one of the nation's most prominent locations to kick start a conversation about energy sustainability in Australia.

During November, thousands of Australians will hop on the swing and see their movements turned into energy to power a stunning light and sound installation.

Each swing powers a light above its seat and an original ambient music composition that changes with the speed and strength of your swinging. When all eight seats are in motion the word 'INFINITY' is illuminated.

The Infinity Swing will be opened at Customs House Square in Sydney from 2pm today until 8 November before heading to Federation Square in Melbourne from 16 to 21 November.   

CSIRO research director, Glenn Platt, said the Infinity Swing aims to spark a conversation about how energy can be sustainable and affordable for every Australian now and into the future.  

"As the swing shows, energy isn't easy to generate - just look at how hard you need to swing to light up a letter," Dr Platt said.

"Energy isn't frivolous and it isn't free, so the challenge for Australia is how to keep energy affordable and available while protecting our planet.

"CSIRO has got some of the brightest minds in the country developing solutions to this challenge, and the good news is that they don't involve cold showers, warm beer or other dramatic changes to people's lifestyles.

"The answer lies with innovation, and it's at the heart of what we do."

Energy sustainability is one of the greatest challenges facing the world.

Cost, electricity demand, emergence of new technologies and environmental imperatives will all have an impact on how our energy is sourced in the future.

"Getting the energy mix right is an opportunity for Australia," CSIRO Executive Director Dr Alex Wonhas said.

"The CSIRO Infinity Swing is about starting this discussion and showing the community how science and technology has a key role to play in developing smart energy efficient solutions.

"These technologies are allowing people in Australia to continue to do the things that they love, but with greater comfort, more affordability and less emissions."

The CSIRO Infinity Swing will be open to the community for free from 7:30am to 10:00pm on weekdays and from 10am to 10:00pm on weekends.

Representatives from CSIRO will be on hand to discuss their ongoing energy research.

The community can access more information about the CSIRO Infinity Swing, the organisation's energy innovations and practical energy efficiency tips for in the home on the Infinity campaign website. 

Top: The Infinity Swing aims to spark a conversation about how energy can be sustainable and affordable.

  

BANGALLEY HEADLAND WALK

Saturday 14 November, 9 - 11am

Join us for a relaxing walk taking in the beautiful views and coastal bushland of Bangalley Head. 

Bangalley Head stands as the highest point and one of Pittwater’s largest bushland reserves on its clifftop coastline. This - together with the great variety of native plants in the reserve and beautiful ocean views - makes Bangalley Headland Reserve a haven for bushwalkers and wildlife alike. Native birds and marsupials - such as ringtail possums, honeyeaters, spinebills, finches and wrens - feed, breed and shelter among the dense thickets of coastal scrub and pockets of rainforest plants. 

This is a fun event for all the family and a great opportunity to learn more about our amazing flora and fauna!

Where: Entrance to Bangalley Headland Reserve, Marine Parade, Avalon Beach 

Cost: Free Bookings Essential! Online -  In person: Coastal Environment Centre, Lake Park Road, North Narrabeen Phone: 1300 000 232

NIGHT STALK

Friday 27 November, 7 - 9pm

Come and join us after dark for an exciting evening looking for some of the nocturnal creatures that live in Pittwater. It’s a great chance to learn about our wonderful wetlands and its inhabitants. This walk is suitable for children aged five and above. 

Where: Meet point provided on booking.

Bookings Essential! Online - In person: Coastal Environment Centre, Lake Park Road, North Narrabeen Phone: 1300 000 232

Sunday Morning Birdwatching with PNHA

Would you like to know more about our local birds? Our guides can help you discover the birdlife in these wonderful bushland reserves.

15 November, Warriewood Wetlands, Warriewood

Our birdwalks start at 7.30 or 8am and last for a couple of hours. Bring binoculars and morning tea for afterwards if you like. Older children welcome.

Contact us to book and get details for each walk. Email pnhabirdwatching@gmail.com or ph: 0439 409 202 / 0402 605 721. 

 More open space for Hornsby

04.11.2015: Ministerial Media Release - The Hon. Rob Stokes MP, Minister for Planning

Planning Minister Rob Stokes today announced more than 74 hectares of land worth $22.3 million to be transferred to Hornsby Shire Council to provide open green space.

Mr Stokes said the council will own and manage 29 separate lots across the Hornsby local government area as open space for the local community.

“Open green space is a vital part of creating dynamic, vibrant and liveable places across Sydney,” Mr Stokes said.

As Sydney grows, our community must have the infrastructure and public facilities it needs. The NSW Government will continue investing to open up spaces to meet the needs of our growing city.” 

Member for Hornsby Matt Kean and Member for Epping Damien Tudehope welcomed the land transfer. 

“Open green space is an integral part of Hornsby and is treasured by our local community. Protecting and enhancing green space is a key priority for the NSW Government,” Mr Kean said. 

“Epping has seen a large increase in urban development. These steps by the NSW government to ensure land is available for greenspace community use is a welcome balance to that urban development,” said Mr Tudehope.

For more information go to www.planning.nsw.gov.au/office-of-strategic-lands

 Australia is ‘free to choose’ economic growth and falling environmental pressures

November 5, 2015

Over two centuries of economic growth have put undeniable pressure on the ecological systems that underpin human well-being. While it is agreed that these pressures are increasing, views divide on how they may be alleviated. Some suggest technological advances will automatically keep us from transgressing key environmental thresholds; others that policy reform can reconcile economic and ecological goals; while a third school argues that only a fundamental shift in societal values can keep human demands within the Earth’s ecological limits. Here we use novel integrated analysis of the energy–water–food nexus, rural land use (including biodiversity), material flows and climate change to explore whether mounting ecological pressures in Australia can be reversed, while the population grows and living standards improve. We show that, in the right circumstances, economic and environmental outcomes can be decoupled. Although economic growth is strong across all scenarios, environmental performance varies widely: pressures are projected to more than double, stabilize or fall markedly by 2050. However, we find no evidence that decoupling will occur automatically. Nor do we find that a shift in societal values is required. Rather, extensions of current policies that mobilize technology and incentivize reduced pressure account for the majority of differences in environmental performance. Our results show that Australia can make great progress towards sustainable prosperity, if it chooses to do so.

Extracts:

Overall, two-thirds of the scenarios assessed (13 of 18) show improvement in at least one environmental indicator, but only three scenarios (all involving strong or very strong abatement and new land markets) show improvement or stable performance in all three environmental indicators, reflecting the tensions between reducing water stress and restoring terrestrial native habitat, and the importance of integrated governance (see Supplementary Methods Fig. 6 and Supplementary Methods, ‘Analysis of multiple pressures across scenarios’).

Policies to ease pressures extend established options

The scenario assumptions that result in reduced environmental pressures are all continuations of existing trends, combined with greater uptake of energy and water efficiency, and a shift towards stronger global and national greenhouse gas abatement (Supplementary Methods, ‘Overview of modelling framework and scenarios’). Policy settings reflect market-based approaches that are already in place in Australia or other countries.

Greenhouse gas abatement is modelled as a uniform global broad-based carbon price, representing a variety of potential real-world mixes of regulation, standards, grants, taxes, or cap-and-trade arrangements. The carbon price in 2015 is US$15 (moderate scenario), US$30 (strong) and US$50 (very strong) per tonne of CO2 emissions, and increases by around 4.5% per year in real terms (above inflation) to 2050. This drives a 90% reduction in the emissions intensity of Australian electricity from 2010 to 2050 in the stronger abatement scenarios (eliminating coal-fired electricity without carbon capture and storage before 2035 under the highest carbon price). Wholesale generation prices are 61–106% higher in 2050, and household electricity prices are 11–12% higher (strong) or 32% higher (very strong), compared to the no-abatement scenarios. However, affordability changes very little, owing to higher household incomes (in all scenarios) and higher energy efficiency in scenarios with higher prices.

Payments to Australian landholders for biosequestration are 15% below the global carbon price, with the forgone carbon revenue applied to increasing the share of native habitat plantings from 4–5% to 36–46% of total area in 2050. The resulting biodiversity ‘top up payments’ account for 22–30% of payments to habitat plantings in these scenarios over the decade to 2050, complementing carbon income. (These payments should be interpreted as a one-off payment for implementing a conservation covenant, for the area of new habitat added in that period.)

On water, we find that interceptions from new plantings result in increased water stress in many of the very strong abatement scenarios (which have the highest levels of new plantings). We find the profitability of carbon plantings is not sensitive to water licence prices: a doubling results in just a 4% reduction in the area of new plantings in water-limited catchments. Limiting the area of plantings to avoid this increased water stress would require a 200% increase in the water licence price (increasing the asset value of licences to existing owners).

Policy choices are crucial, not changes in values

These results provide insights into the contested relationship between economic growth and environmental sustainability, complementing historical analyses (Supplementary Methods, ‘Competing views on the prospects for sustainability’). A ‘technological optimist’ view considers market-driven technological advances will ensure that growth does not transgress key environmental thresholds. Others suggest that institutional reform and new policies could achieve necessary changes within established values and paradigms, noting that environmental damage may occur during the long lags between problem identification and policy responses. A third ‘communitarian limits’ view argues that sustainability will require a fundamental shift in societal values, often involving a rejection of economic growth or a shift from consumerism to a values-based commitment to living within ecological limits.

We find that decoupling economic growth from environmental pressure before 2050 would not require a change in societal values, but is not automatic—contrary to both the communitarian limits and technological optimist positions. It is not projected to occur under existing trends, and requires, in our scenarios, collective choices to increase global and national abatement efforts.

The analysis explores potential behavioural change in several ways. The modelling simulates bottom-up individual choices on working hours and consumption that shape production and consumption as incomes rise (income elasticity) and relative prices change (price elasticity). These choices interact with different assumptions about policy settings (reflecting collective choices), such as incentives for greenhouse gas abatement, and about bottom-up trends, such as the uptake of energy and water efficiency. None of the scenarios assume a new social or environmental ethic. In particular, increasing Australia’s abatement effort in line with emissions reductions by other countries would be consistent with Australian public opinion40 and assessments of Australia’s national interest in limiting the rise in average global temperature to 2 °C and so is not interpreted as implying a change in values. Rather, the analysis reflects how goal-oriented human behaviour can change with circumstances (including new information, or changes in the actions of others), without requiring any change in underlying goals and values.

We find collective policy choices are crucial, explaining 46–94% of differences in environmental performance and resource use across the scenarios examined (see Extended Data Fig. 7 and Supplementary Methods, ‘Assessing the contributions of individual and collective choices’). Consistent with the institutional reform approach, we find top-down collective choices are particularly important in shaping ‘public good’ outcomes—accounting for 83–94% of the differential in scenario outcomes for net greenhouse gas emissions, and 69–89% for greenhouse emissions excluding land sector sequestration. Bottom-up individual choices play a greater role when private and public benefits are aligned, such as when improved resource efficiency delivers financial savings. Individual choices account for up to half of the differential in scenario outcomes for energy use (33–47%) and non-agricultural water consumption (16–53%).

Steve Hatfield-Dodds, Heinz Schandl, Philip D. Adams, Timothy M. Baynes, Thomas S. Brinsmead, Brett A. Bryan, Francis H. S. Chiew, Paul W. Graham, Mike Grundy, Tom Harwood, Rebecca McCallum, Rod McCrea, Lisa E. McKellar, David Newth, Martin Nolan, Ian Prosser & Alex Wonhas. Australia is ‘free to choose’ economic growth and falling environmental pressures. Nature 527, 49–53 (05 November 2015) DOI: 10.1038/nature16065  -  Published online (Open Access) 04 November 2015

 Independent planning review for Russell Vale Colliery

03.11.2015: Departmental Media Release - Department of Planning and Environment

Public hearings will be held as part of the independent Planning Assessment Commission’s second review of Wollongong Coal’s application to expand Russell Vale Colliery.

The review will take into consideration changes to the planning policy governing mining in NSW and additional information provided by the company.

The Commission completed its first review in April of this year, raising several issues the company needed to address. 

Wollongong Coal provided its final response to this review at the end of September, including a detailed independent risk assessment focussing on subsidence and water impacts. 

The Department is now completing its review of this information and will then provide it to the Planning Assessment Commission.

The second review will provide the Commission an opportunity to review the project in light of recent changes to the State Planning Policy for Mining (the Mining SEPP).

The change means that environmental, social and economic considerations are all given equal consideration under the policy.

Wollongong Coal is seeking approval to expand its mining operations at Russell Vale by extracting 4.7 million tonnes of coal over five years from eight new underground longwall panels.

 Have your say on extending the Rixs Creek Mine Project

03.11.2015: Departmental Media Release - Department of Planning and Environment

A proposal to extend the Rix’s Creek Mine Project located near Singleton will be on exhibition from today for community feedback.

The Department of Planning and Environment is keen to hear the community’s views on the application which seeks to:

• extend the approved duration of mining operations from 2019 until 2038

• recover an additional 32 million tonnes of coal over the duration of the project

• increase the maximum approved extraction rate of coal from 2.8 million tonnes to 4.5 million tonnes per year

• extend the western boundary to construct a new area for waste rock

• increase the hours of operation of the coal handling and processing plant from four- and-a-half days a week to seven days a week

• transport up to approximately 2.7 million tonnes a year of coal via rail to the Port of Newcastle

• continue using the existing waste storage areas

• construct a second New England Highway underpass

• progressively rehabilitate the site.

A spokesperson for the Department of Planning and Environment said the local community always has an opportunity to share their views.

“Community consultation is an integral part of the planning process and the applicant will have to respond to the feedback we receive and this is taken into consideration when we develop our recommendations,” the spokesperson said.

“It’s easy to participate by going online and we encourage everyone to take a look and have their say.”

To make a submission or view the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), visit www.majorprojects.planning.nsw.gov.au.

Submissions can be made from Tuesday 3 November until Thursday 3 December.

Written submissions can also be made to:

Department of Planning and Environment, Attn: Director – Resource Assessments GPO Box 39, Sydney NSW 2001

The application and EIS is also available to view in person at:

• Department of Planning and Environment, 23-33 Bridge Street, Sydney

• Singleton Shire Council, Administration Centre, Corner of Queen Street & Civic Avenue, Singleton

• Nature Conservation Council, Level 2, 5 Wilson Street, Newtown

_________________________

Direct link: majorprojects.planning.nsw.gov.au/job_id=6300

 New amendments to help simplify the planning system go on exhibition

20.10.2015: Departmental Media Release - Department of Planning and Environment

The NSW Department of Planning and Environment today announced the public exhibition of proposed amendments to the Standard Instrument for Local Environmental Plans (SILEP).

The proposed amendments are part of the Department’s ongoing approach to improving planning policy to make it easier to use and understand. 

The five proposed amendments in the SILEP aim to cut red tape and give councils, local businesses and the community greater clarity and certainty on the:

• zoning of hardware and building supplies

• zoning of garden centres

• zoning of places of public worship

• meaning of the ‘minimum subdivision lot size’ rule

• definitions of ‘building height’ and ‘livestock processing industry’.

The revised definition of ‘livestock processing industry’ helps processors to do business with suppliers from beyond their surrounding districts and encourages more specialised processors to trade with a broader base of customers.

A Departmental spokesperson encouraged interested parties to have their say on the proposed changes, which are on exhibition until Wednesday 18 November. 

“These proposed amendments are intended to improve the clarity, performance and implementation of the SILEP, while cutting red tape,” the spokesperson said.

The proposed changes can be viewed at:

• planning.nsw.gov.au/Have-Your-Say/

• The offices of the Department of Planning and Environment at 23-33 Bridge St, Sydney.

Submissions can be made until Wednesday 18 November:

• at planning.nsw.gov.au/Have-Your-Say/

• by post to the Director, Policies and System Implementation, GPO Box 39, Sydney, NSW 2001.

 Submissions on the Exploration Code of Practice: Community Consultation

One of the conditions on titles is that title holders must undertake community consultation according to the guidelines set out by the Division of Resources and Energy (DRE).

The DRE is currently reviewing its Guidelines for Community Consultation Requirements for Exploration and the associated community consultation reporting information.

A draft of the new Exploration Code of Practice: Community Consultation is now available for public comment.

Key highlights

The draft Code:

• requires community consultation to be adequate, inclusive and appropriate, and be undertaken in an open and accountable way

• provides detailed requirements relating to the development of a community consultation strategy

• requires the type and scale of consultation to correspond with the activity impact level (an assessment tool is provided to determine the impact level)

• incorporates detailed guidelines on the minimum requirements for the Annual Community Consultation Report (these are also supported by Community Consultation Plan provisions which outline the content of a plan, and its benefit in informing the annual reporting requirements).

Applicability of the draft Code

The draft Code will apply to all titles (coal, minerals and petroleum) issued after the publication of the Code, through an amended condition of title.

New requirements for minerals exploration

The community consultation conditions on minerals titles will be amended to be consistent with those for coal and petroleum. 

Minerals explorers will need to comply with the new Code and be aware that:

• where the mineral exploration project is a low impact activity, new community consultation requirements under the Code will be no more onerous than the existing requirements

• where the activity is of greater impact, then additional community consultation will be required, proportional to the impact and in keeping with those required for other resources.

Making a submission

The public are invited to submit their feedback on the draftExploration Code of Practice: Community Consultation. You can have your say:

• online: use our online form to have your say

• email: consultationcode.submissions@industry.nsw.gov.au

• post: Community Consultation Code, NSW Department of Industry, Division of Resources and Energy, PO Box 344, Hunter Region Mail Centre NSW 2310

Closing date

Submissions received before the 30 November, 2015 will be considered in the finalisation of the draft Code.

Enquiries

If you have any questions about the process, or for further information, please contact Nicola Robinson by email at consultationcode.submissions@industry.nsw.gov.au or phone 02 4931 6672.

 34th annual Meetings of CCAMLR conclude

4 November, 2015

After four weeks, the 34th annual Meetings of CCAMLR in Hobart have come to a close. Beginning with the working group on Fish Stock Assessment, moving on to the Scientific Committee and concluding with the Meeting of the Commission, delegates have worked their way through an exhaustive agenda.

Highlights of this year's meetings include:

• Improved procedures for review of research plans for new and exploratory fisheries.

• Agreement to convene an intersessional group to discuss integration of climate change research into the work of the Scientific Committee and Commission.

• Acknowledgement that collaboration and cooperation with industry is crucial to feedback management of krill fisheries.

• Wide support for revision of the proposed Ross Sea Region marine protected area.

• ACAP attributed the lowest seabird by-catch ever recorded in the Convention Area, this past season, to CCAMLR’s continued excellence in high-seas fisheries management.

The world's media have focussed on the discussions of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), with two major proposals before the Commission. Proposals for MPAs in East Antarctica and the Ross Sea Region were examined and their merits evaluated according to various criteria.

Each of these proposals have evolved over the past few years as proponents incorporate feedback from other Members. This year the Ross Sea Region proposal, which was amended to include a krill and an expanded special research zone, gained further support from Members. Proponents of both proposals will continue discussions over the next 12 months and the proposals will likely be back on the agenda for the annual meeting in 2016.

Now that the 240 delegates have left CCAMLR Headquarters to return to homes in their respective corners of the globe, staff of the Secretariat are compiling the preliminary reports in the four official languages of the Commission. These reports will be publicly available on the CCAMLR website in early to mid November.

Antarctic images feature in new CCAMLR wall calendar

4 November, 2015

CCAMLR has created a wall calendar for the 2015/16 fishing season and through to the end of 2016.

Each month features a beautiful ‪Antarctic‬ image by photographers John Weller, Karl-Hermann Kock, Volker Siegel, Eyal Kaplan, Clifford Hoang and Nicolas Gasco.

The calendar includes significant CCAMLR dates and nautical twilight charts for important locations, including King George Island, Cape Horn, Davis Station, South Georgia and McMurdo Station.

Images of Antarctic scenes and wildlife represent the pristine environment and the ecosystems within the Convention Area.

All images can be viewed and calendars ordered via the CCAMLR Calendar 2016 page. 

 Mining policy guidelines give industry and community confidence

30.10.2015: Departmental Media Release - Department of Planning and Environment

The NSW Department of Planning and Environment today announced the publication of two final Integrated Mining Policy guidelines.

The Integrated Mining Policy aims to:

• ensure the community has access to relevant and timely information about mining projects

• provide industry and the community with clarity about expectations regarding mining assessments

• improve the regulation and assessment of major mining projects

• help manage the environmental and social impacts of mining.

A spokesperson for the Department of Planning and Environment said the policy helped address concerns about the complexity of the system for assessing major mining projects. 

“The Integrated Mining Policy helps make the system simpler by clarifying the Department’s expectations, ensuring rigour in assessments and maintaining high standards of community consultation,” the spokesperson said.

The two parts of the Integrated Mining Policy released today are:

• Indicative Secretary’s Environmental Assessment Requirements that outline common assessment requirements that proposed mining operations must address in the Environmental Impact Statement as part of a development application

• Annual Review Guideline that brings together the annual reporting requirements of the Division of Resources and Energy and the Department of Planning and Environment into a single, concise document.

Stage 1 and 2 of the Integrated Mining Policy were exhibited for public comment in mid-2015. The final guidelines took these comments into account and the document has been amended where appropriate. 

Guidelines for the economic assessment of mining and coal seam gas proposals are currently on exhibition until 24 November.

Further information: www.planning.nsw.gov.au/Policy-and-Legislation/Mining-and-Resources/Integrated-Mining-Policy

Other IMP documents, such as the Planning Agreement Guideline, are being revised by the Government following public consultations. All documents will be published once finalised.

Once all the IMP documents are finalised, the Government will consult with stakeholders about the implementation process. If there is any inconsistency between the IMP and the conditions of existing approvals, the requirements of an approval will take precedence.

 Economic assessment of mining guidelines

What's this about?

The NSW Government is seeking feedback on draft Guidelines for the Economic Assessment of Mining and Coal Seam Gas Proposals.

The guidelines have been updated to ensure economic assessments are more robust and consistent across NSW. In particular, the guidelines will have a greater focus on the impact of the project on the local community, as well as the state.

Economic assessments are used to inform consent authorities about the economic impacts of a major project, and are one of a number of factors considered in an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

View and comment on the revised guidelines on the NSW Planning and Environment  website until 24 November 2015.

Have your say

Submit your written feedback online  or post to:

Deputy Secretary, Growth, Design & Programs Division, Department of Planning and Environment, GPO Box 39, Sydney NSW 2001

Exhibition Date: Oct. 14 - Nov. 24, 2015

Department of Planning & Environment - 23-33 Bridge Street,Sydney 2000

More Information: information@planning.nsw.gov.au

 1300 305 695 

 Agency Website  Consultation Website 

 Tweed Shire Koala Endangered Population Preliminary Determination

THREATENED SPECIES CONSERVATION ACT 1995 

NOTICE OF FINAL DETERMINATION 

The Scientific Committee, established by the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, has made a Final Determination to REJECT a proposal to list a population of the Koala Phascolarctos cinereus (Goldfuss, 1817) in the Tweed local government area east of the Pacific Highway as an ENDANGERED POPULATION in the Schedules of the Act. NOTICE OF PRELIMINARY DETERMINATION 

The Scientific Committee, established by the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, has made a Preliminary Determination to support a proposal to list a population of the Koala Phascolarctos cinereus (Goldfuss, 1817) between the Tweed and Brunswick Rivers east of the Pacific Highway as an ENDANGERED POPULATION in Part 2 of Schedule 1 of the Act. 

Any person may make a written submission regarding the Preliminary Determination. Send submissions to: Scientific Committee, PO Box 1967, Hurstville BC 1481. Attention Suzanne Chate. Submissions must be received by 4 December 2015. 

Copies of these Determinations, which contains the reasons for these determinations, may be obtained free of charge on the Internet www.environment.nsw.gov.au, by contacting the Scientific Committee Unit, PO Box 1967 Hurstville BC 1481. Tel: (02) 9585 6940 or Fax (02) 9585 6606, or in person at the Office of Environment and Heritage Information Centre, Level 14, 59–61 Goulburn Street, Sydney. 

Copies of the determination may also be obtained from National Parks and Wildlife Service Area Offices and Visitor Centres, subject to availability. 

Dr Mark Eldridge 

Chairperson NSW Scientific Committee.

From New South Wales Government Gazette – Published online October 9th, 2015: http://legislation.nsw.gov.au/maintop/epub

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer: These articles are not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of Pittwater Online News or its staff.

 Common prescription medicines cheaper over-the-counter

03 November 2015

The Australian Government will address inconsistencies in the nation’s PBS that see many concessional patients with a prescription for common medicines such as paracetamol and aspirin paying higher prices than if they simply purchased them over-the-counter.

 Minister for Health Sussan Ley today confirmed the 17 types of common over-the-counter medicines for issues such as headaches, heartburn and constipation that will no longer be subsidised as a prescription drug under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) from January 1 2016.

The decision follows advice and consultation by the independent Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee and is part of the Government’s landmark PBS reforms, which passed the Senate earlier this year.

Ms Ley said the measure would particularly benefit concessional patients who were sometimes paying two-to-three times the retail price of common medicines when they bought them through a prescription rather than over-the-counter. 

“There’s no doubting that many of these over-the-counter drugs such as paracetamol and aspirin can be a simple and easy treatment for various conditions,” Ms Ley said. 

“These inconsistencies in the system have seen patients and taxpayers unnecessarily paying higher prices to fill prescriptions for medicines that can often be purchased cheaper straight off the shelf.

“For example, we currently have concession card holders right now paying $6.10 for a $2 pack of paracetamol if they buy it using a PBS-subsidised prescription, which also attracts a taxpayer subsidy on top.” 

Ms Ley said while these 17 medicines made up only about 15 per cent of over-the-counter medicines subsidised under the PBS, between them they generated 8.7 million scripts costing $87 million in 2014-15 – nearly 90 per cent of the annual $100 million taxpayer spend on OTC medicines. 

As such, Ms Ley said the changes would also save taxpayers about half-a-billion dollars over the next five years, allowing greater investment in new medicines.

“Every dollar we spend subsidising inefficiencies in the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is a dollar we could be investing in listing new, potentially-lifesaving medicines instead,” Ms Ley said. 

“This is another example of sensible public policy this Government is delivering that balances the needs of patients, taxpayers and future investment in new medicines.”

Ms Ley said the measure would save taxpayers by reducing the cost of subsidising these medicines, whilst also reducing the out-of-pocket costs for many patients so they did not need to reach the PBS safety net as quickly or at all. 

Ms Ley said the measure was part of a balanced package of PBS reform measures passed earlier this year that also included: changes that will see many generic drugs drop in price by as much as half; greater competition through the ability of pharmacies to discount the price of the patient co-payment for the first time; a doubling of investment in pharmacy primary care programs for patients to $1.2 billion; and discounts in the price taxpayers pay for expensive medicines still protected by patents. 

Ms Ley said the Government also had a strong record of investment in medicines, with 798 new and amended drug listings to the PBS since coming to office – double listings in Labor’s last term. 

Ms Ley said the PBAC had recommended a number of more-expensive and emergency over-the-counter drugs would remain subsidised on the PBS for patients with a prescription, including ventolin for asthma, adrenalin epipens for allergies and various nutritional supplements.

“Retaining higher-cost and emergency products such as allergy epipens on the PBS ensures these vital medicines remain affordable for patients when and where they need them,” Ms Ley said. 

“These changes also make no change to a patient’s ability to consult their pharmacist or doctor about the use of over-the-counter medicines and I encourage them to continue do so.

“The market for over-the-counter medicines is also very competitive and therefore patients previously paying the fixed prescription co-payment now have the ability to use their consumer power and shop around for the best price.”

The PBAC also recommended retaining PBS access to these medicines for certain patient groups in varying circumstances, such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons, paraplegic and quadriplegic patients, and palliative care patients, as well as alternate arrangements for veterans. 

The PBAC’s advice is based on consultation undertaken with a range of stakeholders in the pharmaceutical supply chain, including consumers and doctors, and can be found on their website. 

PROPOSED LISTING CHANGES FOR OTC ITEMS FROM 1 JANUARY 2016

 Portraits of the Famous and Infamous: Rex Nan Kivell Collection at National Library of Australia

November 2nd, 2015

“I kept always two books in my pocket, one to read, one to write in.”

This habit was an obvious success for prolific Scottish-born writer Robert Louis Stevenson, who brought us the stories of ‘Treasure Island’ and ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.’

A severe chronic chest infection blighted Stevenson’s life and his ability to write, he sought climates more favourable to his health from 1888, travelling to Tahiti, Hawaii, the Marquesas Islands and Samoa. Stevenson travelled on four occasions to Sydney between 1890 and 1893 to buy supplies for his home at Vailima in Samoa. This engaging portrait was etched by a fellow Scotsman, William Strang (1859–1921), who based it on a photograph of 1893 by Sydney photographer Henry Walter Barnett (1862–1934). At times, Stevenson considered settling in Sydney, but the weather and illness he faced each time he visited convinced him to return to Samoa where he died young, at age 44, in 1894.

He’s just one of the characters whose portraits are on display in ‘Portraits of the Famous and Infamous: Rex Nan Kivell Collection’ in the‪ ‎Treasures Gallery‬ ‪ ‬

Image: Portrait of R.L.Stevenson, 1983, by William Strang (1859–1921), engraving, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-136105953

 Mindfulness training helps patients with inflammatory bowel diseases

November 5, 2015

Training in meditation and other mindfulness-based techniques brings lasting improvements in mental health and quality of life for patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), according to a study in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, official journal of the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA). The journal is published byWolters Kluwer.

"Our study provides support for the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of a tailored mindfulness-based group intervention for patients with IBD," concludes the research report by Dr. David Castle, a psychiatrist at St. Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia, and colleagues. More research is needed to demonstrate the clinical benefits of mindfulness techniques--including whether they can help to reduce IBD symptoms and relapses.

Mindfulness Reduces Anxiety and Depression in IBD Patients

The researchers evaluated a mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program tailored for patients with IBD. The study included 60 adults with IBD: Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis. The patients' average age was 36 years, and average duration of IBD 11 years. Twenty-four patients had active disease at the time of the study.

The MBSR intervention consisted of eight weekly group sessions plus a daylong intensive session, led by an experienced instructor. The program included guided meditations, exercises designed to enhance mindfulness in daily life, and group discussions of challenges and experiences. Participants were also encouraged to perform daily "mindfulness meditation" at home.

Thirty-three patients agreed to participate in the MBSR intervention, 27 of whom completed the program. Ratings of mental health, quality of life, and mindfulness were compared to those of the 27 patients who chose not to participate (mainly because of travel time).

The MBSR participants had greater reductions in anxiety and depression scores, as well as improvement in physical and psychological quality of life. They also had higher scores on a questionnaire measuring various aspects of mindfulness--for example, awareness of inner and outer experiences.

Six months later, MBSR participants still had significant reduction in depression and improvement in quality of life, with a trend toward reduced anxiety. The patients were highly satisfied with the mindfulness intervention.

Anxiety, depression, and decreased quality of life are common in patients with IBD. Psychological distress may lead to increased IBD symptoms and play a role in triggering disease flare-ups. Previous studies have shown benefits of MBSR for patients with a wide range of physical illnesses, but there is limited evidence on mindfulness-based interventions for patients with IBD.

The new results show that the MBSR approach is feasible and well-accepted by patients with IBD. The study also suggests that training patients in mindfulness practices to follow in daily life can lead to significant and lasting benefits, including reduced psychological distress and improved quality of life. Dr. Castle comments, "This work reinforces the interaction between physical and mental aspects of functioning, and underscores the importance of addressing both aspects in all our patients."

The researchers point out some important limitations of their study--including the fact that patients weren't randomly assigned to MBSR and control groups. They also note that the study didn't assess the impact on measures of disease activity, including IBD flares. Dr. Castle and colleagues conclude, "A larger adequately powered, randomised study with an active control arm is warranted to evaluate the effectiveness of a mindfulness group program for patients with IBD in a definitive manner."

Kate Neilson, Maria Ftanou, Kaveh Monshat, Mike Salzberg, Sally Bell, Michael A. Kamm, William Connell, Simon R. Knowles, Katherine Sevar, Sam G. Mancuso, David Castle. A Controlled Study of a Group Mindfulness Intervention for Individuals Living With Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, 2015; 1 DOI: 10.1097/MIB.0000000000000629

 First multibeam image for ASKAP's newest receivers

3 November 2015: CSIRO

Early commissioning trials of four ASKAP antennas installed with the second generation (Mk II) phased array feed (PAF) receivers have resulted in the first multi-beam image for the ASKAP team.

The four Mk II PAFs were installed at the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory (MRO) in August, and team has been working to commission the receivers and their associated digital spectrometers, beamformers and correlator.

The first, a single-beam image made with four antennas, was of source B0407-658 – the same source used to create a long-track image during early commissioning tests with a Mk I PAF in January 2013.

The second image, and also the highlight of the recent commissioning run, was a 16-beam image of the Apus field, created using three of the ASKAP antennas installed with Mk II PAF systems. The target field contains a suitable arrangement of several strong sources – its proximity to the southern celestial pole has seen it become a standard test field for commissioning – and it was the same source that produced the first multibeam image with the three-antenna BETA sub-array (and software correlator) in 2013.

The multi-beam image of the Apus field has 16 formed (synthetic) beams, more than any other radio image produced with a radio telescope to date! Both images were made from a single linear polarisation and the data were processed (calibration and imaging) using the purpose-built software package, ASKAPsoft.

These observations have also been used to estimate the system noise over the observing band (48 MHz, centred at 939.5 MHz), giving an estimate, averaged over all 16 beams, of Tsys/η ≈ 111 ± 19K.*

This estimate for Tsys/η is within 1‐σ of the aperture-array measurement previously reported for the prototype Mk II PAF.

These results are a positive indication of the performance of the Mk II PAFs as an interferometer, and build on the strong commissioning results already achieved with the first generation receivers (as BETA).

Further integration, verification and commissioning will allow the team to continue to refine their understanding of the performance of this new technology.

How PAFs help us look back in time

Published on Oct 29, 2015

How do you look back in time? Before anyone was recording history? We’re building a network of radio telescopes that can do just that and our Phased Array Feeds, or PAFs, will make our field of view 100 times greater.

 Early humans linked to ancient Australian extinction

October 29, 2015

While the anthropogenic impact on global species diversity is clear, the role of ancient human populations in causing extinctions is more controversial. New data presented at the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meetings in Dallas, Texas, implicates early humans in the extinction of large mammals, birds and lizards in Australia. More precise dating of these extinction events places them 10 thousand years after the first arrival of humans in Australia, suggesting human predation was the most likely cause.

Australia was once home to a plethora of large-bodied animals, including a huge monitor lizard, large terrestrial birds, a giant wombat, the marsupial lion, and giant kangaroos. Sometime during the last ice age this once-abundant 'megafauna' disappeared. Though this extinction roughly coincides with the first arrival of humans to Australia, their direct role has been hotly debated, as some research has claimed that humans arrived after some of the animals were already extinct.

To shed light on this controversial issue, paleontologist John Alroy, of Macquarie University, New South Wales, and colleagues, set out to more precisely estimate the timing of the Australian megafaunal extinctions. Alroy explains "There's been a lengthy, sometimes heated debate about whether human hunting or other impacts caused the huge mass extinction of large terrestrial vertebrates in Australia during the last glacial period."

Alroy dated over 200 fossils by measuring the levels of radioactive carbon in their bones. Precisely estimating when a species went extinct is difficult because there are gaps in the fossil record. To overcome this problem, Alroy estimated the likely time-range during which the extinction occurred based on the age of the most recent fossil. He found that the megafauna disappeared between 27 and 40 thousand years ago. Using a similar method, he estimated that the first humans arrived between 50 and 61 thousand years ago. This confidently puts humans on Australia when the megafaunal extinctions occurred.

The timings also suggest that there was a ten thousand year lag between the first appearance of humans and their impact on the megafauna. Alroy and colleagues suggest that this delay could relate to the time taken for humans to spread across Australia, or for the technology of early populations to advance enough to hunt large prey.

These findings not only highlight the long-term impact of humans in Australia, but also support patterns seen elsewhere, explains Alroy, "The results are also important because they're consistent with evidence that human hunting caused major extinctions later on in North and South America, in addition to relatively recent extinctions on many islands (such as the loss of moas in New Zealand)."

The above is reprinted from materials provided by Society of Vertebrate Paleontology. http://vertpaleo.org/