No Livestock Exports through Kwinana

Pic from: http://kwinana.inmycommunity.com.au/news-and-views/local-news/Rally-against-live-exports/7558954/

Kwinana Watchdog Group spokesperson Steve Hesse today called on the Local Council, State and Federal politicians to join local community members and do what ever possible to halt livestock exports.

See local media article Rally against live exports.

In other news the West Australian Government led by Colin Barnett has reduced the number of animal welfare officers/inspectors from six to one to cover the whole state. So far this year over 1.8 million livestock have been exported from WA and not one animal has been inspected.

See: Live Export Shame.

Shame on our Government, shame.

Tiwest Gassings carry on unabated

At about 11:30 yesterday morning another 3 contractors were gassed with Chlorine at Tiwest Kwinana.

It seems the gassings have continued unabated since I blogged about the issue last about 2 months ago. I am told that around 13 people have been gassed in that time.

Tiwest has been telling its staff that basically the contractors are making up the gassings to drag the job out a bit. I have spoken to some of those gassed and having been gassed myself a number of times I know they are real. Lets face it no-one would risk their life jumping metres from a cherry picker to try and escape the gas to try and drag a job out for a few more days.

Where are Worksafe? What are they actually doing to protect workers? Are worksafe being told to go softly on Tiwest?

Questions over safety of Nalco oil dispersant

Clipping from Community Newspaper Kwinana Courier

NALCO is the company supplying the oil dispersant Corexit to BP for use on the Gulf of Mexico oil gusher.

Ironicly at the same time as the above photograph was taken of Kwinana Mayor Carol Adams with NALCO manager at Kwinana, serious questions where being raised about the safety/toxicity of this NALCO product and the effects it could have on every living thing in its path.

BP has sprayed hundreds of thousands of litres of the product into the Gulf.

NALCO claims on it website that the water treatment products (oil dispersants) are "safe and highly-effective".

However others are claiming the dispersant is highly toxic and will cause long term damage., indeed the US EPA acknowledges the product is Toxic.

The dispersant has been banned in Europe.

Take a closer look at NALCO's toxic solution here. A video of effected wild life and marine life here. Erin Brockovich talks about dispersants here.

I believe many of the fears are correct are this product could possibly cause serious damage to our planet.

Updates, thanks to information provided by readers:

More info on Corexit Dispersant here.
More concerns of the affects on the Gulf Marine Life here.
Corexit chemical properties released publicly here.
NALCO, BP and and the USEPA until recently kept the ingredients of the Toxic Corexit secret here.
Information on "A newly revealed 'secret ingredient' in Corexit 9500, dioctyl sodium sulfo-succinate has been shown to cause pulmonary edema in animal studies" here.
"Why Toxic Solvents were Used and Covered Up follow the big money" here.
"Evidence of BP oil spill health risks confirm public fears of Corexit toxic cloud" here.
USEPA conducts tests and comments on toxicity of solvents used in the gulf here
'Dirty Hands' by Planet Waves here.

Nalco company history by Crocodyl here.

11-03-2011: NASA confirms toxic dispersant's DID rain down on Gulf Coast and cause chemical injury here.

14-05-2012: Corexit dispersant used by BP during Gulf oil disaster linked to horrific human injuries here