Emission Intensive Events at Manly Beach

Events in Manly are announced via a BIG CO2 footprint. At the beach front/Corso plastic banners are hung into the pines to announce an event. The banners and plastic strings weighing a few grams are being put up and taken down with a maximum of petrol usage and noise pollution.

Also a huge section of the public pedestrian space is taken up by parking a suv, a trailer and a crane in it. With the machinery running, the worker extracts the bit of plastic.

It is especially ironic that 'green events' are being advertised in this emission rich manner. Digital channels do exist. It seems incompatible with the council's 'Sustainability Strategy for Future Generations'.

The 'green family fun' event at Manly Lagoon also degraded the sound scape for the waterbirds/wildlife and adjoining residents. Amplified noise or anthropogenic noise pollution are not beneficial for wildlife. A high impact event.

NB In image 2 note the plane trails of high emission in the blue sky celebrating the aerial combustion engine as well. Families were fascinated with the pollution and the disappearing atmosphere for their off spring.

Manly Beach Riot Day

Following a long celebration period, during which adults modelled marathon drinking in sub-urbia, Australia Day or Invasion Day should be the final bang of the same thing.

To flee sub-urban misery, the oversized cars where packed with plonk, meat, dogs and kids. THE public space in which it all has to take place is of course the beach in Australia. Walkers invest their life racing no less than three dogs in harness (on average) along the beach to empty them there. Schoolies had settled on their towels with endless containers of alcohol and smokes. National flags covered the Corso, most bodies and their skin.

From beach to town the ubiquitous primal sound of "woo hoo" could be heard. The utterance of 'winners' borrowed from another culture and sphere has long replaced the endemic home-grown articulations of "cooee".

Public intoxication, violence, rage and glassing are not foreign to Manly. "Violent attacks have risen on the northern beaches by almost 10 per cent in the past two years." Violence is often said to be 'alcohol-fuelled' amongst mostly young men. Even businesses on the Corso are 'feuding' and 'brawling' diplaying violent behaviour in public.

Later in the day a group of 80 young Australians arrived (by public transport?) also clad in the national flag and said to be sedated by alcohol. Their utterances are claimed to have consisted of: "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie’’, "Aussie Pride", "f*** the pigs’’ "f--k off we're full", "we’re celebrating we are Australian, f*** the ethnics", "lets go f--k with these Lebs" and "tits out for the boys" .
Their deeds were violence against people and vandalism towards objects."They jumped on top of cars and smashed windows as they ran up and down Manly's Corso." "An 18-year-old Asian female in one of the cars was showered with shattered glass, giving her numerous cuts to her arms... A taxi driven by a Sikh Indian was also targeted". Manly Police and the riot squad attempted to restore civic order.

"Australia Day became a scene of brawls and vandalism across the state - with anger spreading from Shellharbour in the south to Port Macquarie in the north." "Ambulance crews were called to a fight at Sutherland train station with reports of a 10-person brawl, with a glassing and a female with a fractured finger." "Police say about 1,000 people were involved in the fight at Burleigh Heads". Head injuries at Batemans Bay. A "massive brawl"erupted on the Queensland's Gold Coast.

The 2005 Cronulla riots in NSW also come to mind. District battles for the golden 'public' sands away from unsustainable hot sub-urbia.

Previous:
Sydney riots I, 05
Defending the turf II, 05
Sydney Riots, Beaches and Exclusionism, III, 05
Spooky for Australian Children, update: 040109 abc
Other:
Rebel Without a Cause
Riots With a Cause
Update:
Manly 'morons' rampage was racist: academic. SMH 270109, " racism dressed up as nationalism"

Manly Ocean Care Day - A Green & Blue Network

Manly Ocean Care Day Festival 2008 - Some impressions from along the beachfront:

The Maori community
was demonstrating their fibre and wood craft. Te Papa Wawata Ki Te Moana performed traditional songs. Using Native New Zealand flax (Phormium tenax and Phormium cookianum) women were demonstrating their weaving skills in a Pacific ambiance, that they had created in their hut. Beautiful handbags and backpacks with intricated patterns. Occasionally Pandanus and flax are also used.

There are some New Zealand flax plants in Manly delighting nectar-feeding birds, bats and possums. Of course there are many fibre plants, that the local Guringai population use/d. There are always weaving artefacts by Tjanpi, the Aboriginal women's basket weaving project from the Central Western Desert region of Australia available in Manly.

"Always was, always will be Aboriginal land"
Australians for Native Title and Reconcilitation (ANTaR ) was focussing on “ issues impacting on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people”. Their Sea of Hands installation is well known.

The Aboriginal Heritage Office is caring for over 1000 sites of Aboriginal culture and heritage in the areas of Sydney known as North Sydney, Lane Cove, Willoughby, Manly, Warringah, Ku-ring-gai and Pittwater. They educate (pdfs) and one can volunteer to report back on the state of vandalism of the sites.

The Ocean & its wildlife
ORRCA is protecting and affording welfare of seals, sea lions, dolphins and dugongs.The rescue organisation trains people, gives advice on 1st aid for marine mammal rescue. They like to hear of any sightings 24/7 - Ph.: (02) 9415 3333

“The Nature Conservation Council works to conserve nature and protect the water we drink, the air we breathe and the places we love.” It is “a non-profit, non-government organisation representing 120 community environment groups across NSW.” “Save Fluffy”, seemed so appropriate for Manly, with on average 2-3 dogs in harness. But they do mean the local Grey Nurse Shark which needs saving from exctinction.

NPA~Marine is the marine sector of NPA (National Parks Association of NSW), they are working with local communities, industries, scientists and government... to help create healthy oceans for the future of NSW.

Terrestial
The North Head Sanctuary will get its own nursery and propagate endemic flora.
Gardening
Great to hand out native Australian (endemic) plants.
Permaculture North is "Sharing Sustainable Solutions with Communities" They offer "an amazing array of skills in self reliance, energy & water conservation, qualified permaculture design and teaching". Rumour has it that there might be a community garden in the future and nature strips will be released from the terror of lawns and petrol 'gardening'.
Fauna
WIRES is "helping injured, orphaned and displaced wildlife".
The stuffed variety of Australian wildlife was preferred as no one wanted to cuddle the poor creatures into discomfort. Leave them in THEIR habitat.
The cat cage was a good idea and should be compulsory.
A dog on the beach, as every day.
Draining Sub-urbia
Stormwater displays - where did all that coloured water go? Did they come in a cleaned car?
Public Spaces
People from Little Manly Beach want a public reserve zoned as Open Space not more real estate.


Edibles - Slow & Local Food
Slow Foods Sydney would like to “preserve and promote local culinary traditions and foods.” Go local-vore and organic, educate about junk food, agribusiness and factory foods. They do not like pesticides, but regional markets. Where were all the Manly chefs?

The Manly Food Coop, for that very local, low packaging organic food - of course.

Sustainable Seafoodies - Soon there will be an "an online guide to sustainable seafood in NSW" Again Manly chefs, do take note on your menues!

A lot on watertanks, solar equipment and light green commodities.
There were many more stalls and activities...

Ideas for future actions
It would be desirable to hand out less dead tree material and refer/put information/displays on the web. Additional networking could strengthen the causes and communities. There seemed to be a forest of resposibilities, eg if this creature is on the beach, in the ocean, on state territory or NPs etc. It is confusing. Too many boarder/ interests for the flux of life. An integrated ecological management plan would benefit the blue & green and all creatures in these biomes.
Images:
1. Maori weaving
2. "Save Fluffy", Save the Grey Nurse Shark, nccnsw
3. Rigtail Possum, dazzled by the daylight
4. The Event along the Manly Beachfront
More:
Manly Beach Ocean Care Day Animation
Ocean Care - Of Albatrosses and Red Tides
Stuff at Manly Beach on November 2008 and December 2008

Manly Beach Ocean Care Day Animation, 2008

Ocean Care Day - every day!
Thanks for the animation to dotAtelier

Halloween - Spoooky for Australian Children

WOOHOO! - It's Halloween again. Let's see what spine-chilling, scary and weird spook lurks in the closet this season.

It has been found that educated and mature parents, capable of long-term thinking/planning produce healthier and smarter kids "Children with highly educated parents, and from families with two working parents, display higher cognitive ability and appear to have fewer behaviour problems." Depressed and immature parents are probably not ideal carers.

The 'One minute a day-dad' is probably steering his attention towards electronic interactivity, just as the mother/carers are not investing in interaction with the child.

Not learning to focus in a social setting could lead to 'Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder' (ADHD). “Drugging unruly children is a method of social control “ in Australia and the U.S. especially. Being under six years old for 'the pharmacological solution' seems no barrier. Later, cognition can be chemically enhanced and psychotropic medication usage becomes prevalent for young adults.

“ Drinking as a means of self-medication” is usually adopted in the parental milieu and might be advanced into "binge drinking" or a “Culture of Extreme Drinking” and self-abuse.

The 'home' environment is a dangerous place: No, not spooky bats, but family dogs maul helpless children to death (here, here, here & etc) or transfer their diseases (image). Nothing is done. Alone in deep water (pools) is also a high risk environment(2 yo, 15 mo, 2 yo). Just mower injuries are considerable.The media is awash daily of violent crimes committed by the 'hand of the carer' against helpless infants, toddlers and children. In 2003 "almost 3,500 children under the age of 15 die from maltreatment (physical abuse and neglect) every year in the industrialized world." (UNICEF 2003, pdf) Nothing much seems to change.

Scaffolding society does not seem to lend much support either, in fact the human balance sheet is sliding into that of a 'developing' country: Australia "continues to accept mediocrity for our young people" at a time when we top the rankings of some global prosperity indices....I'm disappointed in the way Australia has become smug about being top of the pops in wealth and sport, but for the most important element for the future of the country, our children, we're way behind the eight ball," says Professor Stanley.

• Dying very early: "Australia ranks 20th out of 27 nations for infant mortality.""The infant mortality rate for Indigenous Australians is more than double the non-Indigenous rate - we rank in the bottom third of the OECD nations for infant mortality."
• Violence: "There are too many "deaths from injuries and non-accidental deaths...These are children who are killed - neglected so much that they die."
• Children getting children: "Teenage pregnancy rates are much higher than the OECD average, and rates for Indigenous young Australians are the highest in the OECD"
• Lack of sustainable public mobility: Youth road deaths are 12 times higher than Portugal. Chuck mum's SUV. "We need to get kids walking to school, so they can get both exercise and get to know other children.”

• Choking on Pollution: "Australia's asthma mortality rates are one of the highest in the world" pdf
  
• Mental health: - Australia ranks "13th out of 23 OECD countries on childhood mental health".
• Food/Socialising: Australia ranks "21st out of 27 for children eating meals with their parents."
• Communicating: "We have half the rate of parents just hanging out and just talking to their children than Hungary does for example - Hungary is the best in the OECD," Professor Stanley

Adults being addicted to CO2 pumping private mobility reduce the quality of urban air. "There are almost three times more asthma-related deaths in Australia than in Europe" Having the highest asthma rates in the world (pdf), kids are choking. Foetuses are shrinking and harmed, children have reduced cognitive abilities from their externalities. Scientists are urging the government to reduce emissions, to not take that 'sky dome' covering the Earth from very harmful rays away. UV rays increase skin cancers and will sizzle the DNA.

A crowded, hot, water-less and polluted world, without all the other species will be very unhealthy.
The environmental heritage left behind is far from inter generational equity according to this report:
All will have to deal with bio-accumulation:

• Groundwater and surface water contamination,
• PCBs, Radioactive waste and uranium mining, mining activities generally
• new emergent chemicals/toxins
• Urban air quality
• Untreated sewage

In Manly businesses are eager that all immerse themselves in plastic gadgets and costumes, which will soon end up in the tip, or worse the ocean. Trick or treat for advanced children ends up nasty and violent and only keeps the authorities busy.

The best green 'party' (celebration) people could offer the little ones would be to face up to their actions, access their values and act responsibly towards themselves, their offspring, the other species and the remaining biomes and give the Earth a chance. Quality interaction and doing things from scraps can be a lot of fun .
See also: "Manly- It's kinda spooky 2007"
Images: All public art works by young people o.s. Known here as 'graffiti', as it often just is the initials of the scribbler in Manly.
Links

• The Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth -ARACY Report Card on the Wellbeing of Young Australians,
• Never better - or getting worse?The health and well being of young Australians, Australia 21, Richard Eckersley, pdf, 369KB
• John Pilger, Under cover of racist myth, a new land grab in Australia, Claims of child abuse are proving a fertile pretext to menace the Aboriginal communities lying in the way of uranium mining. The Guardian, 241008
  
• A conversation with Professor Fiona Stanley, (Professor in the school of paediatrics and child health at the University of Western Australia, and UNICEF’s Australian Ambassador for Early Childhood Development. NHMRC, 0708, podcast
• Garnaut, Climate Change Review
  
• Intergenerational Justice, 2008, Stanford, Philosophy
• Top ten World's worst pollution problems 2008, Green Cross & Blacksmith Institute
• Australia’s health 2008, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Canberra, pdf
  
• Costume suggestion for 2008 : Plastic choked mermaid at Manly Beach
  

Banksy's "Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill"

“New Yorkers don’t care about art, they care about pets." One could paraphrase it as: Manly-siders also don't care about art or wildlife, they care about pets. Mass hysteria about submissive, privately owned 'pets' and captive creatures in shops, cages and tanks is good business in times of Black Friday, Halloween and Mega Extinction Rates. Something one CAN control.

Banksy's animatronics installation in NYC "Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill" grasps attention on " our relationship with animals and the ethics and sustainability of factory farming, but it ended up as chicken nuggets singing." News about " the implications of animal cloning on food safety, animal health and welfare and the environment" seem to be sparse. Human cloning. au. pops up occasionally.

Good write-up at the Wooster Collective
Check out the videos on sausages and the sedated wild captive cats, the 'shop',
Good Flickr images
Image: Banksy? Berlin
Video via banscopetstore

Manly Jazz Festival

Day two of Manly's Jazz Festival. Car-free for a tiny bit of beach road, pedestrians pushed at the Corso end to the wharf as well against pushy motorists. Maybe, one day they will come around and declare public space for people every Sundays as in other world cities and not just for smelly cars. Maybe the pedestrian areas will truly have no motors in them.

The roaming bands could move with crowds of pedestrians and entertain without the emission intensive stages with hot, blinding spotlights on the audience (in the day-time), that took days of petrol-fueled erection time. As before - a lot of the amplified music had noise pollution and chemical pollution as a side-effect, as the petrol generators buzzed on. Many push bikes were out feeling free to move along the beach 'road'.

Bad planning, to place really loud amplified music on top of the penguin habitat.

Manly Sustainability Fair

The Manly Sustainability Fair seemed to hand over half of the stalls to the promotion of cars and other motorised vehicles. The Mayor held a passionate speech and a consultant foreshadowed the outcomes of the presently human caused actions. Bush-regeneration workers explained their wonderful work they do all over in local reserves.
There was a (Manly Council?) questionnaire which ran along the lines of 'Do you recycle etc.', leaving out all the burning issues. ("On average, each person in Australia and the US now emits more than five tonnes of carbon a year..." SMH )
Some ideas for the next dead-tree questionnaire could be:

• Have you quadrupled yourself?
• How many cars/hummers/motorised bikes are in your household?
• What is the ecological footprint of your McMansion/ dwelling? (AC)
• Do you rely on unsustainable fossil fuel for "HVAC" (Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning ) and transport?
• How many dogs/cats/exotics do you keep?
• How much wildlife/ flora is wiped out of a habitat because of your actions?
• Do you really want to leave a depleted hot planet to the next generation?
• How will you exlain to your multiple kids that your nation did not participate in preventing collapse of the ecological and economic system?
• How will you explain the word 'climate vandals' to them?
• Do you really think you will get away with it all?

The Manly Food and Wine festival - a video

via dotAtelier

Manly Food and Wine Festival

Another Food and Wine festival in Manly. Part of the beachfront is blocked off to stinking noisy cars. The bike racks are full. A feeling of the commons is about with ALL stakeholders being given more quality space and resources. The public regained tables and chairs to sit at the beach and in the Corso – all in non-commercial space and with a great diversity of music as well. Couldn't it be like that all the time?
Food was served on biodegradable plates an cutlery.Vegetarians that happen to be non-alcoholics were defenitely in the wrong place. No stall could be found selling non-alcoholic liquids. Meat was sizzling everywhere in dense blue plumes of smoke. Generators humming above the ocean surf.The Corso, still with wobbly broken pavers displayed the evaporating powers of an abundance of water in Sydney. 'Girth' by flags, just in case one forgot one's location. Kids were kept busy – for a buck - on the fresh turf transplants.
Tomorrow is the Manly Sustainability Fair at South Steyne, continuing the 'Taste of Manly'.

Sydney , Dee Why environment day 270507