Kia Kaha, Kia Toa
Be strong, be a warrior.
My Backyard From the Chapters
Junior Activists Partners
Getting involved Issue 1 l My Backyard
Australia
2012 proved to be a successful year for the Earthrace Australia chapter thanks to the team led by Alan Winstanley and Iztel Castillo. They worked alongside Bob Irwin and Colin Riddell in a campaign that aimed to change indigenous hunting laws in Queensland to protect the region’ s sea turtles and dugongs.
and might feel they’ ve done enough for now, by still allowing them to be killed even for‘ ceremonial reasons’ to keep indigenous populations appeased, and a lack of enforcement against poachers is nothing to celebrate.
there have been 55 recorded unprovoked attacks, which averages at about 1.1 attacks per year.
As one of the petitions stated,“ To put things in perspective, on average there are two to three deaths per year from bee stings in Australia”.
We’ ll continue fighting tooth and fin against this until we get reassurance
After a successful rally in front of the Queensland Parliament House in February, the first stage of the campaign was accomplished after the Queensland government changed the cruelty laws to include indigenous hunting methods of dugongs and turtles.
Alan, Bob Irwin and Itzel, dugong and turtle rally, Brisbane, February 2012
Thanks to our Aussie team, other Earthrace chapters organised rallies in support too with good crowds turning up outside embassies in New Zealand, the UK and the US.
No-one really knows how many dugongs or endangered sea turtles are being slaughtered cruelly each year or how many are left but a 2012 report stated it might be as few as fifty in the region.
These divers didn’ t find this Great White dangerous!
© Daily Mail
CULL THREAT TO GREAT WHITES
A number of politicians called for a cull in late 2012 of Great White Sharks in response to attacks off the Western Australian coast with a potential A $ 6.85 million allocated towards the plan.
Earthrace joined with many other concerned groups and individual in protesting vehemently against this course of action. that it won’ t be happening!
Plans for 2013
The Earthrace Australia chapter is
Last year, this green sea turtle was oneone of about 60 of the species that washed excited about this year as the team up dead in the region. make plans to work vigorously on a photo courtesy of the Townsville Bulletin campaign that will target proposed coal ports and the damage they do to the Great Barrier Reef and the marine life that exists there.
The Abbot Point coal port expansion ignores the 2012 United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation report recommendations not to develop new ports outside those already existing adjacent to the Reef.
Although the Australian Government continue to downplay the issue According to The Australian Shark Attack File, in the last 50 years
Contact Earthrace Australia: alan @ earthrace. net
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