NEWS DESK Gardening years MORNINGTON Garden Club members will celebrate its Diamond (60th) anniversary on Monday 9 July. An afternoon tea will be held for the 100 members at the Uniting Church Hall, Mornington. Guest speaker will be Jane Edmonson of TV's Gardening Australia.
Raffle winners FIRST prize of a $1500 coffee machine in a raffle held by Balnarring Bowls and Social Club went to Stephen Taylor. Second prize of a $95 dry wall sander went to Celia Sexton while Lorraine Vidler came third for a $50 shop voucher.
Red Cross meet THE Sorrento/Portsea/Rye Red Cross Unit will hold its monthly meeting at 1.30pm Thursday 9 May at Sorrento Community Centre, Morce Avenue, Sorrento. New members welcome. Details: Coralyn Wickham 5988 0880.
History talk MORNINGTON Family History Society’s seminar 1.30-4pm Saturday 2 June at Frankston South Recreation Centre, Towerhill Road, Frankston, will feature Carol Rosenhain speaking about James Lean, “The man who carried the nation’s grief”. Members $6, non-members $15 includes afternoon tea. The research library is open 11.30am-12.30pm, call 9783 7058.
Noah has no place for factory farming Stephen Taylor steve@mpnews.com.au A KUNYUNG Primary School pupil is speaking out about what he sees as the evils of factory farming of domestic animals and he wants others to back him in his stand. Grade 5 pupil Noah Kyriacou, 10, said his vegetarian mum, Lucy, had encouraged him in his advocacy over the past four years, and that seeing a preview of the “horrific” animal rights’ documentary Dominion, set him “on the path against factory farming”. “Every second, millions of animals are dying because of humans, and yet eating their flesh is making us unhealthy,” he said. “I have been researching [the topic] in many places: speaking to lots of people, watching the internet, and asking local GPs who all say that we should end factory-farmed meat.” Noah talks to school mates about related health issues and has given a power-point presentation in class to illustrate the side effects, which he said encouraged at least one pupil to reconsider changing his diet. “Consuming large amounts of meat is linked to diabetes, heart disease, obesity and other lifestyle diseases,” he said. Noah said factory farming “enables us to eat way more meat than is good for us”. “The meat is often from sick and unhealthy animals that eat grain, rather than the grass they are designed to eat. A primarily plant-based diet is healthiest for us and is the diet that could help save the planet.” Noah said the meat industry was “one of the most polluting”.
Chicken lovers: Noah and Maddy Kyriacou at home in Mt Eliza with their free-ranging chicken “Browny”. Picture: Yanni
“The world is waking up and people are changing,” he said. The Mornington Peninsula had an opportunity to be part of the positive movement that’s happening by promoting a transition away from factory farming, he said. “Nearly half the Amazon rain forest is being logged because of factory farming needing more grain to feed the cattle. If we switched to a free-range diet all the animals [there] would go back to living in peace and
harmony and the rain forest would grow back.” Proof of Noah’s commitment to the cause is that he has “never, ever had a Big Mac or KFC – and that’s made me far healthier”. His teachers think he is doing a “really good job”. “And they say I use persuasive language, too,” Noah said. That skill may come in handy convincing his father Adam to join the others in the family and become a vegetarian. “He’s working his way
towards it,” Noah quipped. And a career? Maybe Noah has his sights set on becoming a vet? “No, I think I might become an engineer or a doctor,” he said. Whatever the future brings, he is determined to continue campaigning for animals’ rights. “I definitely, definitely, definitely think that factory farming should end.” Noah has started a petition on change.org called “End factory farming in Australia”.
Pressure builds against gas plan Keith Platt keith@mpnews.com.au A GROUNDSWELL of opposition is building to AGL’s floating gas terminal at Crib Point and a hydrogen gas to liquid plant at Hastings. Information about the gas terminal and the hydrogen plant – led by Kawasaki Heavy Industries and part financed with $100 million from the state and federal governments – will be aired at a public meeting at Crib Point next Tuesday (8 May). The meeting is being organised by
a steering committee for a group calling itself the No AGL Gas terminus for Crib Point. Candy Spender-van Rood said guest speakers “will inform people about just what this gas jetty would mean for Western Port if it goes ahead”. “There will be information about the possible dangers as well as the environmental implications, and the fact that there will be no jobs for locals,” Ms Spender-van Rood said. “We will have petitions there for people to sign and hand-outs with more information.” The public meeting follows a series
of information sessions held by AGL and precedes a second public meeting being organised by Hastings MP Neale Burgess who has publicly criticised AGL’s plan. Despite several requests to his office, Mr Burgess’s federal Liberal colleague, Flinders MP Greg Hunt, has not answered specific questions from The News about whether he supports or opposes the gas terminal at Crib Point. Mr Burgess says the gas terminal would be the beginning of the “industrialisation” of Crib Point (“MP against Crib Point gas plan” The News 24/4/18).
Julia Stockigt, of Bittern, sees the AGL plan and Kawasaki’s hydrogen pant as “two serious threats [to Western Port] from poor planning and opportunistic private enterprise. “Kawasaki is proposing a coal-tohydrogen plant using the Port of Hastings to export the resulting fuel. Japan will get the benefit of a clean green fuel while we are left with the dangerous emissions from burning brown coal,” she said. “This would increase heavy traffic on roads not built for the purpose as the hydrogen is trucked into Hastings.” Ms Stockigt said AGL gas terminal
would provide few jobs “it will cause serious air, light, noise and water pollution and negatively impact property values”. “Some important decisions regarding these proposals are due to be made in coming months. Unless we put pressure on our government, we will have to live with the negative impact of these schemes for decades to come.” The public meeting organised by the No AGL Gas terminus for Crib Point group will start at 7.30pm tonight (Tuesday 8 May) at Crib Point Community House. Details on the No AGL gas terminal for Crib Point on Facebook.
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Mornington News 8 May 2018
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