Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Unfortunately I haven't been able to get online much in the last month, so if this has been discussed please inform me.

Over the last couple of weeks a huge environmental disaster has been occurring in Esperance, you may have seen it in the news.
Hundreds of dying birds alerted people to the problem of rising lead levels in the area.
Now for those that don't know, the train tracks run through town out to the port which is basically a central pivot point for grain, fertilizers,nickel and lead.

The latest news is the lead levels in the fish are totally unacceptable due to the run off of nickel and lead dust/particals into the water when it rains

Government types have now flown down there to assure the people that everything is being done to alleviate the problem.

Now excuse me if I'm wrong but didn't the government types ok this form of transport of heavy metals (in open train carriages) in the first place.
Didn't the government make a s*#t load of money from the taxes payed out by all the companies mining, transporting and selling these products.

This boils my blood to say the least. It doesn't take rocket science to work out nickel and lead particals are not good for your or the environments health.

Rant over!

I know it will get up some peoples noses...

But frankly I beleive that many corporations have a criminal mentality, sadly often fueled by politicians with a similar mentality...

That is....

It's not a crime until you get caught.....

It's financially beneficial to take the cheaper, even if polluting, option now and cop the fines/penalties later than to design efficiencies and pollution controls into the production process from startup.

And hey if you can do it quietly in a third world country for the price of greasing a few palms.... whoooooo.... motza!!!!

Hey Look at Lapindo here in Indo.

They dug a well for natural gas and found a mud volcano. The mud is now about 3 meters high cover a very large area of residential buildings. 1000's are homeless and the only road into surabaya was closed yesterday.

Geez...not good

Worst part about that jtjf.... the company involved is an Australian company I believe!!!.... or was.... maybe they sold it off and did the bolt

Last I heard they wern't doing the bolt. Was it BHP or subsidary? Can't remember.

Everyones in a bit of a pickle there but the situation wasn't criminal. I don't know if anyone could have expected to dig a releatively small drill hole and then have giga litres of mud explode out of it.

What remains to be seen is how responsible they are in the aftermath. Since masses of mud is still pouring out of the thing (how many months has this being going? not just one or two) we are still a ways from seeing the situation finalised. Having said that I have heard that the initial compensation offers wern't very fair.

I don't think that coporate types are any more inherently criminal than the rest of the population. Trouble is they are human and when they make the petty, slack, irresponsible, dishonest, selfish, etc, etc, decisions that we all make on a daily basis people lives can be serioulsy affected.

I break the law and speed relatively regularly despite my best efforts (I get slack) and my fear of having to explain myself to guys that I know semi socially.

Truck driver doesn't maintain a safe driving distance and speeds a bit cause he was not paying enough attention or in a hurry and people die in a tunnel (for non Vics happened last week).

I go to the tip with a load look it over and say "she'll be right". Most of the time it is, sometimes it isn't. Most of the time I stop and pick my rubbish up. Being honest though, its only most of the time I stop not all.

Someone dosn't cover a lead ore carriage didn't think it through (they should have), was slack, cost cutting (they shouldn't have been) or just didn't care enough (they should have) and the environment and peoples health are potentially affected in a big way.

The problem is that the corporates types are just like you and me. They rise to positions of responsibilty, influence and power but that rise dosn't make them better or worse morally or ethically. However, because their actions can affect so many we get to see their inherent humanity which isn't always pretty.

Stuart.

Well put Stuart.

The only gripe I have is these people are payed to think.

Any mine site here in West Oz has so many rules ands regs its boardering on maddness.(ask any contractors working for BHP)
These rules are there to protect workers/staff etc from dangerous work conditions.

Ever noticed that when the goods leave the sites (nickel/lead) the rules seem to drop away and anything goes, Just get the product to the boats and she'll be right.

It's this mentality that most problems come from

It was Santos, and I know very little about it apart from whatever they do, it won't be enough.

It is questionable it was lead exposure that kill the birds. The bird deaths have exposed the higher lead levels in the area which is bad (the levels not the exposure), but lead doesn't lead to 1000's of birds dropping dead simultaneously. Lead builds up over time for long term health issues.
I have worked at that port, as we did the controls for the gas turbine power station which is on port grounds. We where told even then (2-3 years back) not to drink the tap water, as it was from rainwater tanks filled with run off from the ports sheds.
All the iron ore ports I have worked at are subject to Mines Act, which leads to the "rules ands regs its boardering on maddness" bit. For example if you where caught driving without a seatbelt by the mines inspector on the sites you would face up to $10000 fine, and your employer up to $25000. I expect the Esperance port is also subject to the mines act, and as such environmental contamination will lead to mountains of paperwork, followed by vigorous wrist slapping.

I can understand ignorance to effects such as this in the 60's or 70's ...

But in 2007 ...

This is not morally acceptable.

However , there is international pressure to get competitive prices ... so that we can sell goods, services and products.

Other countries are prepared to poison their citizens to be competitive in international markets. They do!

Other countries have "sweat shops". So do we!

Moralistic views are "expensive"!

OK , a simplistic view, on my part but I think a realistic one!

The economics of survival is about competition.

There are "rules" ... but when you get down to it, many people, and corporations are prepared to play "dirty".

If your life is on the line, people tend to forget ethics.

On the other hand, large corporations forgot about ethics a long time ago.

Politics is driven by power, which is driven by money.

I guess in a way, business is like biology. Survival of the fittest.

What will humans do longterm?

I guess you know the answer to that one already!

A corporation is a seperate entity in todays society and has rights much like any person. However a corporation does not have any morals or ethics, feels no remorse, and has no empathy.. I once heard corporations likened to the most extreme psychopaths...

One wonders then how it is that there can be any logical justification in granting an "entity" greater rights than an individual person or a collective group of people....

Yet we give greater access and input to state and national policy to corporations... entities..... and structure economic decisions, directions and IR laws for the benefit of "entities" not people or families.....

We prop up and fund failing "entities" and banks... while workers, mum and dad investors are the last to have their entitlements and investments payed out when an "entity" collapses....

I make no bones about it... while the "principle" of free enterprise is valid, the modern day implementation of capitalism is devoid of any moral integrity, flawed by it's inherent corruption and hippocracy....

Sadly I believe a fatally flawed system...... sadly because the alternatives will only be born from a catastrophic collapse or by the shedding of huge amounts of blood and tremendous suffering of millions.

Whoow Rup that is one serious rant--I hear and once thought the same thing...still a bit
I think the shedding of blood has/is happening, the next is to reduce our reliance on our 'wants' and 'needs' being provided by 'them'.

Turn off the tele talk to our kids,
lead by example, tell no lies,
mean what you say, and say what you mean!
AP is a good start to providing more of what we need
and less of what we don't...
becoming less reliant is the key
C1.. rant over nearly... treat every one the way you would like to be treated--and focus on what you want, no what you don't have...

C1, hats off to you.

I'm in agreeance with all of your suggestions, and the world would be a much better place if more poeple followed them.

Steve

Well said C1.
Would add, if you can't have what you want, want less