On March 11, 2009 the Pacific Adventurer was tousled by Cyclones just off of Australia’s Queensland coast. The rough seas caused its hull to pierce and a reported 270 tonnes of oil to be spilled into the sea. (Not to mention the 31 shipping containers of ammonium nitrate lost overboard.)

The Pacific Adventurer mishap was in the news everyday for weeks on end.

On August 21, 2009 came Australia’s latest oil leak courtesy of the PTTEP Australasia Montara well head which from day one has reportedly been spilling 400 barrels of oil each and every day. Yet aside from a minor news grab now and then and various blogs keeping the story alive there is little to no continual interest in this disaster.

The ongoing flood of this oil leak is being driven down the road of environmental tragedy by complacency.  This slippery track is carrying with it a very loud message to anyone listening that if you want to pollute Australian Waters go right ahead, just make sure you don’t do it off one of our tourist beaches.

Currently 3138 tonnes and increasing by 53 tonnes per day the PTTEP Australasia Montara well head continues to leak unhindered.

At 3,752,100 litres (That’s 3.75 million) it has a way to go before reaching the 40 million litres (34,000 tonnes) spilled in the Exxon Valdez disaster of March 24, 1989, but this still makes it Australia’s third largest spill and 11 times greater than Pacific Adventurer.

The Australian Government currently has two responses in action the first being the use of toxic dispersants and the second to negotiate a two year monitoring fund.

Neither of which are in any way an appropriate response to the magnitude of the situation.

After three failed attempts to plug the leak there still appears to be no urgency on the part PTTEP Australasia and the Australian Government appears willing to just sit by and watch.

PTTEP Australasia says it will try another attempt in four days but this time the Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett needs to step up and add some incentive to get the job done in the form of a substantial fine for each and every day the problem remains unsolved.

There is precedent for this in all levels of Australian bureaucracy, just try having something of yours leaking into Sydney Harbour and see how much you get penalised for each day that it continues.

Perhaps a good starting point for our Federal Environment Minister is the reported $350,000 fine bestowed upon the Pacific Adventurer.  Mr Garret could impose this amount as a daily penalty until the leak is plugged.

References:
Major Oil Spills in Australia
Exxon Valdez oil spill
Conversion Tool
Oil tonneage

Let me preface this by stating unequivocally;

Animal cruelty in any form is simply not on.

Why was Smokey the cat shot?

Because he was out roaming the country side.

In a country where native fauna is being decimated by introduced animals; why did the Dunn family of Carisbrooke, Victoria, allow their cat to be outside of the house in the first place?

Putting aside the issue of stupidity and cruelty on the part of the perpetrator(s), the raw basic fact is that if the cat was not roaming around doing what all cats do then it could not have been shot.

Unfortunately the Dunn’s aren’t alone in this habit, recently there was also Clyde, a long-haired Himalayan cat found 3200km from home after his “mysterious three-year odyssey”.

But these are just two highlighted incidences of a deeply rooted problem, not only here in Australia but around the world. A problem that creates an unimaginable nightmare for victims of this predator. A Google image search for “Look what the cat dragged in” will show you hundreds of photos relating to this topic.

Much of Australia’s wildlife is most active at night, especially at dusk and dawn and, unfortunately for them, this corresponds with the activity period of Cats.

Many people don’t give a second thought to what their cat gets up to once they’re outside. What they don’t realise is that even the most docile of cats will prey on and kill native wildlife because of their natural hunting instincts.

Putting a collar with a bell on it on them, is simply not enough. Studies continue to show that predatory behaviour in cats is only marginally reduced by this. Cats are silent stalkers so the bell may not sound in time to warn prey animals. The cat will also learn to just move more cautiously so that the bell doesn’t ring in the first place.

Yes there are other cat attachments, CatBib™  CatAlert™ etcetera however the best possible solution is to keep your cat confined to your property,  indoors or in a special enclosure or cattery, at all times. Then, and only then, will our wildlife be protected. This simple and effective measure would have also prevented the misadventures of Smokey and Clyde.

Inside Cat = Domestic – Outside Cat = Feral

Useful links:

• Catnip Modular Cat Parks
• CatBib™
• CatAlert™
• NANA – Cats and wildlife information
• Cat Protection Society – Responsible Cat Ownership
• WIRES – Cats and wildlife information sheet

For thousands of years now we have exploited animals to our advantage, whether it be in the domestication of cows, the eradication of an entire species through unwarranted fear or the indiscriminate killing of animals because we simply must adorn ourselves with that poor creatures pelt.

There is also the indirect interference through mismanagement of our natural resources, such as the clear felling of old growth forests so that 400 year old trees (Eucalyptus regnans) can be turned into pulp and returned to us as a $5.00 ream of copy paper.  This indirect interference invariably leads to habitat loss and more often than not the areas are replanted with nonindigenous species with a completely different growth cycle to make the “plantation” more profitable but only after the area is sprayed with herbicide and covered with baits to prevent the endemic species returning.

It would appear that this ongoing and ever increasing exploitation of our resources is not without its payback.  There does not seem to be a year go by where we do not hear of a breakout of some disease or a new strain of a previously “under control” viral agent

Scientists have reported a direct link between deforestation in the Amazon with the increase in numbers of malaria-inducing mosquitoes.  The substantial increase in the mosquito biting rate means that humans are more than 200 times more likely to be bitten.

“By dramatically changing the landscape, we are tipping the balance in a way that is increasing the risk of malaria transmission,” says Jonathan Patz a professor both in UW-Madison’s Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies and the department of population health.

In the 1980s AIDS came out of Africa and just three years ago scientists pinned its origins on wild chimpanzees in a corner of Cameroon. The first known human case was of a Congolese man whose blood was stored as part of a 1959 medical study.

In 2002-03 there was the near pandemic of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome). In April 2003, the World Health Organization issued a press release stating that a coronavirus identified by a number of laboratories was the official cause of SARS. According to Wikipedia “Coronaviruses are positive-strand, enveloped RNA viruses that are important pathogens of mammals and birds. This group of viruses cause enteric or respiratory tract infections in a variety of animals including humans, livestock and pets.”

There are other incidences where animal born disease has affected humans; Mad cow disease, Lyssavirus, Psittacosis and the latest nasty to rear its head – the Hendra virus.

So what does all this mean?

Maybe, just maybe, nature is trying to get back at the Human Race for the havoc it is wreaking on the planet.

Each day with everything I read, hear and see I become more and more convinced that as we don’t respect what we have, we don’t deserve what we have and maybe Earth would be better off without humans.

At least then the earth might have a chance to recover.