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Australia

Hancock Prospecting, Main Roads WA proposal sparks fear for Aboriginal heritage, workers on Wittenoom route

Hancock Prospecting, Main Roads WA proposal sparks fear for Aboriginal heritage, workers on Wittenoom route

In the heart of Western Australia’s Pilbara region lies sacred country, littered with lucrative iron ore mines that provide billions for Australia’s economy.

Now, the WA government wants to invest in roads near Karijini National Park and Wittenoom so Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting can transport iron ore through the region.

Fears for Aboriginal heritage have been sparked by the proposal, and also questioned due to its proximity to the deadly asbestos at Wittenoom — the largest contamination site in the Southern Hemisphere.

Gina Rinehart smiles while standing in front of cattle pens
Hancock Prospecting executive chairwoman Gina Rinehart is Australia’s richest person.(Supplied: Hancock Prospecting/James Radford)

Documents seen by the ABC reveal the proposal has not been costed but includes more than 300 kilometers of upgrades and multiple new bridges on Nanuturra Munjina Road, Hamersley Mount Bruce Road, and Karijini Drive.

Aaron Rayner manages cultural heritage for Wintawari Guruma Aboriginal Corporation (WGAC), which holds native title for the area.

He said more than 40 significant sites would be damaged by the road project in the Hamersley Range, especially in an area called Rio Tinto Gorge.

The project would require land clearing and camps for up to 200 workers.

Rocks sit in a cave
Sites in the area have been dated for human habitation back tens of thousands of years.(Supplied: Damien Katich)

“The proposal is to essentially develop a haul road that runs across and right through Eastern Guruma country and will interfere with very important Aboriginal heritage,” Mr Rayner said.

“There are about 45 Aboriginal sites that would be impacted, but there are many unknown and unrecorded Aboriginal heritage sites that will be impacted.”

An iron ore train.
A train lugs iron ore through the Hamersley Range.(ABC News: Rachel Fountain)

The upgrades would allow trucks carrying iron ore from Hancock’s Hardey operation to access the Great Northern Highway on the eastern edge of Karijini.

The mining company launched a feasibility study this year on the Hardey project in partnership with its owners Australian Premium Iron, with Hancock to lead any future development.

Government approached after Hancock rejected

Mr Rayner said Hancock approached WGAC for heritage consultation earlier this year, but they rejected it.

He said traditional owners then received a proposal from Main Roads WA, which backed Hancock’s plan.

Traditional owners have since written to Transport Minister Rita Saffioti and Hancock to voice their concerns.

“Eastern Guruma elders advised Hancock Prospecting that they were opposed to the construction of the road,” Mr Rayner said.

“We hope that both Hancock Prospecting and the Minister for Transport have listened to the Eastern Guruma elders and decided not to build the road.”

A Hancock spokesperson said the company consulted with all stakeholders about its operations and had engaged with traditional owners.

“Any option under consideration by Hancock is done so in consultation with Main Roads WA, in addition to traditional owners, to ensure heritage and cultural social values ​​are understood and respected,” the spokesperson said.

An iron ore mine site in WA's Pilbara
Iron ore mines in the Pilbara generate hundreds of billions of dollars for the economy.(Supplied: Roy Hill)

The documents seen by the ABC show Main Roads WA, which owns the roads in question, contacted traditional owners about the proposal after Hancock pitched the idea.

“Main Roads now has the opportunity after being approached by Hancock Prospecting,” the documents state.

The project would start in 2023 and take about three years to complete, according to the documents.

A spokesperson for Ms Saffioti claimed no direct contact had been made with the minister but said Main Roads WA would engage with stakeholders including traditional owner groups.

Deadly asbestos risk for road workers

The proposal also includes a realignment of Nanuturra Munjina Road around Wittenoom, the site of disastrous asbestos mining historically led by Gina Rinehart’s father, Lang Hancock.

Mountains of deadly blue asbestos tailings litter the area around the town known as the Wittenoom Asbestos Management Area.

Long-distance view of dark-blue soil-like material sitting in large piles among a mountain range.
Massive piles of asbestos tailings still litter the area around Wittenoom.(Supplied)

The WA government officially closed Wittenoom in March as it considered the asbestos to be a public health risk with plans to demolish the town’s few remaining properties.

Curtin University respiratory health professor Fraser Brims said workers on the project in and around Wittenoom would be risking lung cancer and other deadly asbestos-related diseases.

“We don’t know with asbestos if there is a safe exposure level, so really if exposure can be avoided then it must be avoided to keep workers and indeed anybody safe,” Professor Brims said.

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US

DeSantis claims concern over monkeypox is overblown

DeSantis claims concern over monkeypox is overblown

The World Health Organization has declared monkeypox a global health emergency, with more than 25,000 cases reported in 83 countries. Seventy-six countries seeing monkeypox cases don’t typically have infections, according to the CDC. Monkeypox can be spread through skin-to-skin contact and the current infections are overwhelmingly among men who have sex with men.

New York City, which has declared a local state of emergency, has emerged as the epicenter of the disease, with over 1,600 cases of monkeypox. California, which has more than 800 cases, and Illinois, with about 500 cases, have also declared states of emergency over the monkeypox outbreak.

DeSantis also blasted New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, for declaring a state of emergency over the outbreak, saying he was convinced it was a move to restrict people from freedom.

“They’re going to abuse those emergency powers to restrict your freedom,” Desantis said. “I guarantee you that’s what will happen.”

DeSantis’ surgeon general, Joseph A. Ladapo, said on Wednesday during the same press conference that Florida has an adequate number of monkeypox vaccines, though he questioned the safety of two vaccines recommended for monkeypox by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. I have claimed very little data exists on their effectiveness.

The CDC has recommended two vaccines to treat monkeypox — Jynneos, also known as Imvamune or Imvanex, from Denmark, and another known as ACAM2000, which was developed after the World Health Organization declared smallpox as eliminated in 1980.

Ladapo has a long history of questioning the efficacy of the Covid-19 vaccines despite the vast majority of medical professionals, including the US Food and Drug administration and Mayo Clinic, have emphasized the safety and effectiveness of the Covid-19 vaccine.

A US Department of Health and Human Services database also shows the state was allocated 36,383 doses of the Jynneos vaccine last week.

Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.), who is challenging DeSantis for governor, criticized the governor over his response to the virus.

“While Governor DeSantis dismisses Monkeypox, at-risk Floridians still need better information, better testing, and access to vaccines for prevention,” he said on Twitter.

During the press conference, DeSantis also railed against gender affirming surgeries for children, saying that doctors who perform such procedures should be sued. His comments from him follow a request by the Florida Department of Health to the state medical board to ban transition-related medical care for children. The Florida Board of Medicine is expected to vote on whether to begin the rule-making process for the ban on Friday.

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association support gender-affirming care for adults and adolescents. Medical guidelines, however, do not recommend gender-affirming surgeries for children under 18.

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Sports

Charisma Amoe-Tarrant’s emotional tribute after taking out weightlifting bronze

Charisma Amoe-Tarrant, Australia’s strongest woman, won weightlifting bronze for Australia just four years after claiming the silver for Nauru.

The Tokyo Olympian, who won silver for the small Pacific Island nation at the Gold Coast four years ago, finished third in the women’s 87kg division, behind England’s flag-bearer Emily Campbell, who hoisted a Games record 286kg to win.

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Tarrant had an early hiccup with a miss on her second lift before topping out at 100kg.

She missed on her third lift in the clean and jerk but a 139kg lift was enough to put her just one kilogram ahead of Canada’s Emma Friesen in fourth.

Campbell took out the event with a Commonwealth record 286kg total, followed by Samoa’s Feagaiga Stowers.

“I’m proud to be Australian and I’m also proud to be Nauruan so at the end of the day, I’m representing both countries you know,” a beaming Tarrant said.

The 25-year-old began weightlifting at the age of 11 in Nauru with her uncle, who was a coach at a weightlifting gym. Her mother de ella passed away in 2009 due to kidney problems, leading her grandparents de ella to eventually move her to Australia, becoming a citizen in 2016, competing for Australia from 2020.

She looked to the heavens after her final lift, in a tribute to her mother and an uncle who recently passed away.

“I couldn’t help looking up to both up there. All the lifts were for them,” she said afterwards.

Cikamatana was in tears at the medal ceremony and also paid tribute to coach Paul Coffa and his wife Lilly.

“I was emotional because I really appreciative of getting to represent the green and gold and standing on the podium, listening to the anthem,” she said.

“Representing the green and gold is once in a lifetime opportunity and it’s a dream come true.

“They (the Coffas) made all these impossible dreams come true.”

The weightlifter admitted she copped some backlash from fellow Naurans when she initially decided to compete for Australia.

“If I’m being honest, I had that, but I had to tell them, ‘I’m one of you too, I’ve got Nauran blood running in me.’ It took a while but they’re coming back now.”

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Commonwealth Games in pictures: Scottish runner Eilish McColgan breaks mother’s 32-year record with thrilling gold medal

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Australia

Shane Fitzsimmons stood down as Resilience NSW dismantled

resilience NSW is set to be scrapped and its commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons stood down as the state government overhauls its emergency response network.

Fitzsimmons, previously the commissioner of the NSW Rural Fire Service and NSW Australian of the Year in 2020, will stand down from his role as commissioner of Resilience NSW.

Resilience NSW is an agency set up after the 2019-20 Black Summer bushfires to coordinate emergency services and their disaster management.

Resilience NSW Shane Fitzsimmons speaking at the Upper House estimates committee at New South Wales State Parliament in Sydney, Wednesday, 6 April 2022.
Resilience NSW Shane Fitzsimmons speaking at the Upper House estimates committee at NSW parliament in April. (Sam Mooy)

The agency has a $750 million budget.

Following the floods which devastated northern NSW earlier this year, an inquiry was launched to investigate the response to and recovery from the catastrophic event.

Accusations were leveled at Resilience NSW for “dropping the ball” during their flood response and that there was confusion about who was in charge between the multiple emergency agencies.

“Is Resilience NSW just in its infancy or is it a failed experiment?” Banasiak asked.

Houses are surrounded by floodwater in Lismore, Australia.
The inquiry was launched following the devastating 2022 Lismore floods. (Dan Peled/Getty Images)

9News reporter Chris O’Keefe said the inquiry’s report found the state’s disaster response needs to be restructured, starting with dismantling Resilience NSW – meaning Fitzsimmons is out of a job.

O’Keefe also said the report found police should be given a far greater role in responding to natural disasters.

The NSW premier is expected to address the changes later on Thursday.

Devastating deluge impacts two states

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US

Coal industry ‘shocked and disheartened’ by Manchin climate deal

Manchin, Sinema 'exchanging text' on climate, tax deal

The West Virginia Coal Association and several other state-based coal industry groups on Wednesday blasted the tax and climate deal that Sen. Joe Manchin (DW.Va.) agreed to last week, warning it will “severely threaten American coal” and an estimated 381,000 jobs.

“This legislation is so egregious, it leaves those of us that call Sen. Manchin a friend, shocked and disheartened,” the groups wrote in a blistering statement that accused the West Virginia senator of zigzagging in the energy debate.

“Sen. Manchin has seemingly fought against numerous climate measures advanced over the past year by the national democratic establishment,” the groups said. “The current Schumer-Manchin draft agreement on climate and energy frankly leaves us questioning the motivation and sincerity of Manchin’s previous stance and his repeated chant from him: we must ‘innovate not eliminate.’”

The groups warn the deal Manchin crafted with Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (DN.Y.) after months of negotiation “will quickly diminish our coal producing operations and all but obviate any need to innovate coal assets.”

The groups argue the bill — which Democrats have dubbed the Inflation Reduction Act and plan to pass this weekend — will do “nothing for coal or coal generation” and won’t reduce inflation or lower household energy costs.

“By turbocharging the lofty incentives that already extend to renewable energy, our nation’s baseload (reliable) coal electric generation assets will continue to be devalued and thrust into rapid decline,” the groups warned.

The statement was signed by Chris Hamilton, the president of the West Virginia Coal Association, as well as the leaders of the Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wyoming mining associations.

Manchin on Tuesday said he didn’t agree with predictions the bill will lead to coal plants closing in his state.

“I don’t think that’s the case at all,” he told reporters. “We have to have a vibrant fossil industry. We have a lot of coal plants that have been pretty old.”

“Coal is going to be needed for the base load that we’re going to have to have,” he said, arguing that coal will continue to generate enough electricity to meet minimum domestic demand.

Manchin also cited permitting reform, an initiative he is pushing in conjunction with the energy and climate provisions in the budget bill, as something that will also help fossil fuel producers.

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Categories
Sports

LIV Golf stars including Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau on the PGA Tour

Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau and nine other players who defected to the Saudi-funded LIV Golf filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour, the first step in a legal fight that could define the boundaries of where players can compete.

The lawsuit, filed in US District Court in San Francisco, claims the PGA Tour has used monopoly power to try to squash competition and has unfairly suspended players.

A separate motion was filed asking for a temporary restraining order to allow Talor Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford to play in the FedEx Cup playoffs, the PGA Tour’s postseason, which begins next week.

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The lawsuit also revealed that PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan suspended Mickelson for two months in March for his role in recruiting players to LIV Golf. It said Mickelson’s request in June to be reinstated was denied because he played in a LIV Golf event and that he was suspended until March 2024 for playing in another one.

Monahan responded to the lawsuit with a terse memo to his players in which he referred to “11 of your former colleagues” suing the tour and continued to refer to LIV Golf as the “Saudi Golf League.”

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is the primary source of the money paying exorbitant signing bonuses and providing $36 million purses for 48-man fields. Several players are in their 40s and no longer ranked among the top 50 in the world.

Monahan said players knew the consequences of signing up for the rival league.

“We have been preparing to protect our membership and contest this latest attempt to disrupt our tour, and you should be confident in the legal merits of our position,” Monahan wrote.

“Fundamentally, these suspended players — who are now Saudi Golf League employees — have walked away from the tour and now want back in,” he wrote. “It’s an attempt to use the tour platform to promote themselves and to freeride on your benefits and efforts.”

LIV Golf said in a statement: “The players are right to have brought this action to challenge the PGA’s anti-competitive rules and to vindicate their rights as independent contractors to play where and when they choose. Despite the PGA Tour’s effort to stifle competition, we think golfers should be allowed to play golf.”

Its CEO, Greg Norman, has said LIV Golf would be willing to financially support any legal matters. Last month, four European tour players won a temporary stay from a UK judge that allowed them to play in the Scottish Open.

Mickelson reportedly signed a deal worth $288 million to join the Saudi-funded venture, with DeChambeau in the $216 million range. And those are just signing bonuses. Seventeen players already have made more than $1.4 million in three tournaments or fewer.

The PGA Tour denied releases for players to compete in LIV events and suspended them as soon as they put a ball in play. Some players, like Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed and Sergio Garcia, chose to resign their PGA Tour membership.

At the heart of the lawsuit are allegations the PGA Tour is using its might as the strongest tour in golf to bully players and anyone else that could get involved with LIV Golf. It accused the tour of intimidating a tent vendor and a technology company, among others, with whom LIV Golf was trying to do business to launch its series.

It also claims the tour’s threats to ban players ultimately forced LIV Golf to pay more in signing bonuses to get the players it wanted, and forced the rival league to change its startup plans to only eight events this year. LIV Golf announced a 14-tournament schedule for next year.

“The Tour’s conduct has substantially diminished and impaired the entry of the promoters that could meaningfully threaten the PGA Tour’s monopoly, which has stood unchallenged for decades,” the lawsuit contends.

The tour has stood by its belief that it is a membership organization with regulations that players choose to accept. That includes a code of conduct and a requirement to play at least 15 tournaments a year to keep full membership.

Players typically are allowed three releases a year to play overseas events held the same week as a PGA Tour tournament. The tour does not allow releases for conflicting events in North America.

Two LIV Golf events were held in the US, first in Oregon last month and then last week at Trump National in New Jersey. Three more this year are scheduled for courses near Boston, Chicago and Miami.

Monahan has been forceful in his comments about LIV Golf, referring in June to the tour being unable to compete with “a foreign monarchy that is spending billions of dollars in attempt to buy the game of golf.”

“We welcome good, healthy competition. The LIV Saudi golf league is not that,” he said. “It’s an irrational threat, one not concerned with the return on investment or true growth of the game.”

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The stars who’ve signed with Greg Norman’s LIV Golf tour

Categories
Australia

NSW Transport Minister David Elliott puts name forward for deputy Liberal leadership

NSW Transport Minister David Elliott puts name forward for deputy Liberal leadership

NSW Transport Minister David Elliott has publicly thrown his hat in the ring to be the state’s next deputy Liberal leader following the resignation of Stuart Ayres.

Mr Elliott, who will take on one of Mr Ayres’s portfolios as Western Sydney Minister, said he was “prepared to put my name forward” to also fill the deputy leadership hole.

“The parliamentary Liberal Party has had a very traumatic period over the last couple of years and certainly in recent weeks with the loss of a number of ministers,” he said.

“I’ve said to the Premier, ‘I’ll make myself available.’

“Of course, it’s a matter for the party room but I believe I’ve got the leadership qualifications and experience in the military and the private sector to bring something to the party room leadership team.”

The Baulkham Hills MP is likely to face challenges from Treasurer Matt Kean, Roads Minister Natalie Ward and Alister Henskens — who holds multiple portfolios.

Mr Elliott said it would be up to his party colleagues to decide “what qualities they want to prioritize” in choosing a new deputy.

“It is certainly my attempt to provide (Premier) Dominic Perrottet, whether I’m deputy or not, with as much energy and as much frank advice and as much encouragement and loyalty as I possibly can.”

The NSW government was plunged into crisis yesterday when Mr Perrottet announced Mr Ayres had resigned.

Stuart Ayres looks to the sky with a grandstand behind him
Stuart Ayres announced his resignation from the ministry and deputy leadership on Wednesday.(AAP: Bianca De Marchi)

It came after the former deputy Liberal leader, who held several ministerial portfolios, was found to have potentially breached the Ministerial Code of Conduct over his role in the John Barilaro saga.

The appointment of Mr Barilaro to a lucrative New York trade role generated instant controversy and sparked two separate inquiries into the recruitment process.

One of the inquiries, ordered by Mr Perrottet, has “raised concerns” about Mr Ayres’s conduct in his position as the trade minister during Mr Barilaro’s recruitment.

Mr Ayres said he agreed to step down but denies any wrongdoing.

“To maintain the integrity of the cabinet, I have decided to resign as a minister to allow the investigation to be completed,” he said.

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Categories
Sports

Commonwealth Games 2022: Cody Simpson’s mum spills on ‘love triangle’ with Emma McKeon, Kyle Chalmers

Commonwealth Games 2022: Cody Simpson's mum spills on 'love triangle' with Emma McKeon, Kyle Chalmers

Cody Simpson’s mother believes the Australian swimmer is more than equipped to deal with media scrutiny as his personal life continues to be put under the spotlight.

The pop icon picked up a gold medal in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay at the Commonwealth Games earlier this week, swimming in the heats before missing out on a spot in the final.

But Simpson’s relationship with Australian champion Emma McKeon has dominated the headlines, with the power couple embroiled in a reported “love triangle” with Olympic gold medalist Kyle Chalmers.

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During an interview on Channel 7’s SunriseAngie Simpson claimed that the relentless media attention won’t bother her son, who previously dated American singer Miley Cyrus.

“I think he has been lucky because he has had so much history with press and media before, performing on stage for thousands of people,” she said on Wednesday morning AEST.

“I think the pressures of what he has dealt with in camp and at the Commonwealth Games has been pretty easy for him.

“It has given him an advantage to deal with a lot of those pressures and not let that stuff bother him.”

Angie also confessed she was initially skeptical about her son’s return to competitive swimming.

“I feel like a bad mum… I just didn’t think he could transition from so many years of that to then go to such isolation,” she explained.

“But he proved me wrong and once he convinced me he wanted to do it I was 100 per cent behind him.”

Simpson began his swimming comeback journey in 2020 after 10 years away from the pool as something of a sideshow alley attraction — but the Queenslander has quickly proven he’s box-office on his swimming credentials alone.

On Wednesday, Simpson finished fifth in the men’s 100m butterfly final, with Dolphins teammate Matt Temple winning a silver medal.

The 25-year-old’s time of 52.06 seconds was the second-quickest of his career, but still outside his personal best of 51.79 seconds.

“I want to inspire young people to know that they can do whatever it is they want to do, even if they feel like it’s too late or they’re too old to pick something up, because it’s never too late,” Simpson told Channel 7 after the race.

“I think with experience comes confidence. And I’m still gathering the experience, so still gaining confidence.

“I am happy to be here. And I think, win or lose today, I’m going to go back to the drawing board and make sure I come back stronger. I’m already way ahead where I thought I would be at this stage.”

Earlier this week, Chalmers slammed the media for focusing on “clickbait” rather than the Dolphins’ impressive results in Birmingham, declaring he’s not sure he wants to continue in the sport if it means dealing with this kind of attention.

The 24-year-old — who has won three gold medals this week — has been forced to repeatedly deny there is any tension between himself, Simpson and McKeon, who was romantically linked to Chalmers last year.

After his golden swim in the 100m freestyle on Tuesday, Chalmers put his finger to his lips to silence the critics, revealing he’d planned the celebration to send a “powerful message” as he affirmed his desire not to let the media “win” .

“It’s all just false news that is actually just crap. It’s honestly just a load of s**t that is not true,” he said.

“I do nothing but be as positive as I possibly can. I support him on the team but, again, people just want clickbait on the article.

“It’s unfortunate that I can’t do anything right at this point in time.

“I think it’s fantastic that he’s here… it’s fantastic for our sport, it brings new viewers in. What he has achieved in two years of swimming is incredible.”

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Categories
Australia

Which Sydney suburbs gamble the most?

Which Sydney suburbs gamble the most?

“When I walk down the street and I see the lights and hear the sounds [of the gaming machines] it feels like they’re calling me, and I’m sure it does that for a lot of other people,” she says.

The 49-year-old mother who lives in Burwood says counseling provided by the Wesley Mission and other charities has helped her “reduce the harm” of poker machine use.

“I used to play every time I had a dollar, but now I only play once a week or once a fortnight,” Michele says.

NSW poker machine losses total $135 billion over the past 30 years, new research shows.

NSW poker machine losses total $135 billion over the past 30 years, new research shows.Credit:Peter Braig

Wesley Mission chief executive Stu Cameron said hundreds of millions of dollars a year were being “siphoned out” of communities by poker machine losses that could be spent at local businesses and on the welfare of families, including housing.

“Looking at pokies losses by LGA in Sydney, it is immediately obvious that the suburbs that are losing the most money are the suburbs that can least afford it,” he said.

Wesley Mission used historical national gambling data published by the Queensland Statisticians Office to estimate total poker machine losses in NSW have been $135 billion over the past 30 years. NSW was the first state to legalize poker machines in 1956.

In response to Wesley Mission’s findings, a spokesperson for ClubsNSW said: “It is unclear why anyone would be interested in comparing the poker machine losses of NSW and Victoria that have occurred over a period of three decades — Crown Melbourne didn’t open until 1994 , The Star didn’t open until 1995, and NSW pubs didn’t have poker machines until 1997. Clearly, these discrepancies would deliver a skewed comparison.”

The spokesperson said clubs in the state were already “the safest places to play gaming machines” and that the industry was strengthening its approach through a new Gaming Code of Practice, announced in July.

“It should be noted that the Australian Gambling Statistics Report shows that real per-capita gaming machine expenditure in NSW peaked in 2004 and has been falling ever since,” the spokesperson added.

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Tim Costello, chief advocate of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, said Wesley Mission’s research underscored the need for more effective regulation of poker machines, including reduced access to gambling venues and slower gaming machine betting speeds.

“Poker machines are NSW’s blind spot,” he said. “Why do we have such big gambling losses? It’s because of accessibility.”

Cameron said NSW was “ready for change” in gaming regulation. Wesley Mission is calling for a curfew on poker machine venues opening between midnight and 10am; a limit on the number of gaming machines in NSW; a maximum of $1 bets on poker machines in clubs and hotels; and a local council veto over additional poker machines in their area.

*Not her real name. She requested this alternative to protect her identity from her because of the stigma attached to gambling addiction.

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