Armistice Day / V-E Day Switzerland
Celebration of WWII Victory Sint Maarten / St. Martin
Liberation from Fascism Day – 1945 Czech Republic
WWII Victory Day St. Pierre & Miquelon
Liberation Day France
Liberation day (Liberation from Germany after WW2) Norway
Liberation of the Republic Slovakia
Parent’s Day South Korea
VE Day French Guiana New Caledonia
V-E Day United Kingdom United States of America
Victory Day Guadeloupe Martinique
Tara Day Buddhism
World Red Cross Day http://www.redcross.org.au/events_default.htm
Heart Week http://www.heartfoundation.org.au/
National Volunteer Week http://www.volunteeringaustralia.org/
Tourette Syndrome Awareness Week http://www.tourette.org.au/index.php
Time of Remembrance and Reconciliation for Those Who Lost Their Lives during the Second World War http://www.un.org/en/events/remembranceday/
More about May 8 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_8
Climate Change
Climate change brings more Sahel storms.
Climate change is upsetting rainfall patterns and the frequency of flooding in West Africa as it makes the region’s Sahel storms three times likelier.
http://www.dailyclimate.org/t/-995200128361630519
Health and climate change
The World Health Organisation’s director-general describes climate change as ‘the fifth horseman’ of the apocalypse, as doctors are encouraged to speak out more about illness and death caused by extreme weather.
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/2017/05/06/health-and-climate-change/14939928004580
How to fix climate change: put cities, not countries, in charge
Benjamin Barber
It can’t be left to dysfunctional nation states to tackle – but as Oslo and Seoul have shown, metropolitan centres can rise to the challenge of global warming
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/may/07/fix-climate-change-put-cities-not-countries-in-charge-oslo-seoul
Climate talks: poorest countries lead the way on climate change.
Gebru Jember Endalew International Institute for Environment and Development
The world’s poorest countries champion long-term, emissions-neutral development strategies, and several are leading by example.
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/2460133000468966696
National
Australians want company tax spent on environment: survey
Australians appear to be highly sceptical about the Federal Government’s commitment to protecting nature, according to a new survey which reveals the majority of people want more money to be spent on environmental protection.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/story-streams/federal-budget-2017/2017-05-08/federal-budget-2017-australians-want-more-spending-enviro/8504912
Banks push coal toward private equity
http://www.afr.com/business/mining/banks-like-westpac-wave-coal-toward-private-equity-20170504-gvyvo3
Energy cash for pensioners
Up to 3.5 million Australians will receive one-off cash payments by June 30, to help them cover their energy bills.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/budget-2017/budget-2017-pensioners-to-get-energy-cash-payments-by-june-30/news-story/14adc9571035eb6ec0d62eed1571968a
Australian push may open more doors for batteries on power grids
http://www.theage.com.au/business/energy/australian-push-may-open-more-doors-for-batteries-on-power-grids-20170507-gvzuyw.html
Australia’s energy crisis ‘tipping point’
Matthew Stevens
Glencore’s most senior Australian executive says jobs are already being lost because of the energy crisis.
http://www.afr.com/business/australia-passes-a-tipping-point-in-energy-crisis-20170505-gvzemz
Gene drives may cause a revolution, but safeguards and public engagement are needed
Rachel A. Ankeny, University of Adelaide and Ary Hoffmann, University of Melbourne
A broad process of communication and consultation should be initiated before gene drives are applied to control pests and diseases in Australia.
http://theconversation.com/gene-drives-may-cause-a-revolution-but-safeguards-and-public-engagement-are-needed-77012
Victoria
New gas plant that can ‘power a city for decades’ fires up in Victoria
A new multi-billion-dollar gas plant at Longford in Victoria’s east has the capability of powering a city of 1 million people for 35 years, and will help boost production for the domestic energy market, Esso Australia says.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-07/longford-plant-will-boost-gas-production-esso-says/8504560
New cash for Bass Strait oil
Exxon Mobil has flagged major new investment in the big offshore Victorian gasfields it owns with BHP Billiton.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/mining-energy/exxon-mobil-to-invest-in-bass-strait-gasfields/news-story/448a994a1f23509926a51cb51f8f9479
Budget concerns as tunnel costs surge
THE cost of Melbourne’s Metro rail tunnel has surged to $11.03 billion after a long-awaited signalling trial was tacked on to the project, prompting warnings on the project’s cost.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/melbourne-metro-rail-tunnel-costs-increase-due-to-signalling-trial/news-story/194a1cc491b209c53a609f21887bcf2d
Blues over views: Royal Park’s village no site for a high rise, says council
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/blues-over-views-royal-parks-village-no-site-for-a-high-rise-says-council-20170507-gvzp0w.html
New South Wales
Doubts over Narrabri gas project
The government claim that fast-tracking the Narrabri gas project could help solve domestic gas shortages is in doubt.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/mining-energy/doubts-over-36bn-narrabri-projects-ability-to-solve-domestic-gas-shortage/news-story/dea8e326552058a53eae0fc22de0dac0
South Australia
Christies Beach section closed after unchlorinated water released from plant
Swimmers and fishers are being told to avoid a 400-metre section of Christies Beach after unchlorinated water from a Wastewater Treatment Plant was released into the ocean.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-07/christies-beach-section-closed/8504166
Tasmania
Vote called on $75,000 study
A FEASABILITY study into a long awaited and publicly-funded visitor centre at The Springs on Mt Wellington will be considered by the Hobart City Council this week.
http://www.themercury.com.au/news/tasmania/hobart-councillors-to-vote-on-75000-visitor-centre-study/news-story/22d4d0c992ee693ab6dff6412b9ada00
New state planning laws a disruptive attack on communities
Linley Grant
Linley Grant fears that social amenity will be lost with the emphasis on making a fast buck.
http://www.themercury.com.au/news/opinion/talking-point-new-state-planning-laws-a-disruptive-attack-on-communities/news-story/0a113dbd2a950c5208571147a1a372f7
Western Australia
WA Labor’s Metronet gets $1.2b kickstart
The Turnbull Government pledges more than $1 billion for WA road and rail infrastructure projects, including Metronet, as part of a federal budget funding deal with the state.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/story-streams/federal-budget-2017/2017-05-07/federal-budget-2017-wa-gets-infrastructure-funding/8504088
‘It’s this or we all walk off’: Radical plan to bring bush back to life
David Pollock is a cattleman with no cows. He would rather watch the grass grow on the historic Wooleen Station. He is slowly returning his childhood home in remote WA to its ancient splendour. In a landscape more than 3 billion years old, the final product will take over a generation to complete.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-08/wooleen-station-couple-taking-radical-stance-over-regernations/8484476
A-G orders Aboriginal trust probe
The WA Attorney-General has taken the unusual step of ordering a wide-ranging inquiry into the management of an Aboriginal trust with claims to large areas of mineral rich land in the Pilbara.
https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/a-g-orders-aboriginal-trust-probe-ng-b88466010z
Sustainability
DIY teas create zero waste in the home
When you reached for your cup of tea this morning, it is likely you used tea leaves, a teabag or made a pot. But growing your own tea at home could do wonders for your wallet and more.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-07/war-on-waste-the-slow-cuppa-and-creating-zero-waste/8499756
Pharma pollution fuels resistance to antibiotics, bacteria turns super bug.
Blighted by a high level of pharmaceutical pollution, Hyderabad has emerged as a virtual factory churning out bacteria that have developed resistance to over 90% of known antibiotics. The culprit is unchecked release of untreated pharma waste into water bodies
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/2460133000468965261
The eco guide to laundry
Microfibres in synthetic clothing are one of the biggest menaces when washing your clothes, says Lucy Siegle. A mesh laundry bag is the best solution
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/may/07/the-eco-guide-to-laundry
We should create cities for slowing down
Marcus Foth and Mirko Guaralda
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/comment/we-should-create-cities-for-slowing-down-20170507-gvzve9.html
Nature Conservation
In Brazil, signs that a soy moratorium is slowing down deforestation.
For such a tiny bean, soy has done a huge amount of damage, destroying untold hectares of South American rainforest over the decades.
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/-995200128361630530
Ten years after the crisis, what is happening to the world’s bees?
Simon Klein, Université de Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier and Andrew Barron, Macquarie University
It’s a decade since US beekeepers first noticed that their bees were mysteriously dying. Now we know much more about Colony Collapse Disorder, raising hopes that we can turn bees’ fortunes around.
http://theconversation.com/ten-years-after-the-crisis-what-is-happening-to-the-worlds-bees-77164
Now for something completely different …
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Maelor Himbury