The PM is off to Antarctica:
Parting plea to Key as he heads to Ice
As Prime Minister John Key flies over the Ross Sea, environmentalists hope the experience will help him reinforce efforts to secure a marine reserve over the pristine region.
I applaud the Antarctic Ocean Alliance for their attempt, and I hope that it is successful. But this is the PM whose government tried to initiate mining in our national parks, and fallen over backwards to facilitate off-shore oil exploration. Nothing in Key’s character or behaviour to date suggests that he has the capacity either to understand environmental risks, or to be moved by the beauty and fragility of the natural world.
Come on John – prove me wrong. Please…
ummm…
“It’s an environment unlike anything else, a place of great beauty and history. The great explorers from Shackleton to Scott all launched their expeditions from New Zealand.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10860137
Then further on ..
Most people can remember the first time they learnt about the loss of our aircraft down here.
“I know I was starting School C at around that time – it’s a memory that’s lasted with me till now.”
Still can’t remember the springbok tour though!!!
thats what i thought too
Aren’t we already leading the charge on this marine reserve.
From the article you linked to
“New Zealand and the United States have proposed the world’s largest marine protected area of 2.27 million square kilometres for consideration by the 25-member Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) at a meeting in Germany in July.”
Sounds like a good thing to me and hopefully the start of more reserves around the antarctic region.
Slicing the pie for Antarctic oil and gas.
Not until 2040 at least.
Sounds like a bet 😉
It would be a fairly safe bet that one
http://www.coolantarctica.com/Antarctica%20fact%20file/science/threats_mining_oil.htm
Indeed very little chance of any mining there in the foreseeable future.
I thought there would be a treaty in place, otherwise they’d already be raping away, but then it’s not like a gfc or oil shortage can’t change treaties and governmental resolve.
I’ll still take the bet even if it is one I want lose.
I imagine our PM is more than a little frustrated that he is unable to monetise New Zealand interests in Antarctica.
Could quite easily put a man off his dinner.
Long may he be frustrated. Antarctica is too valuable, too pristine and too awesome to be turned into another commercialised waste land.
I had a friend who commented one day when I was eating breakfast and Facebooking, that he reckons a McDonalds store needs to open down there. I just about dropped my Milo.