Fight to stop Tesla project in South Australia to continue after council approval
Tesla has been targeted globally by protesters furious at Musk's work with the Trump administration, and at his ideology which the billionaire often espouses through his social media platform, X.
This week that anger boiled over in the South Australian capital, half a world away from Washington DC.
About 95% of the nearly 1,000 submissions were opposed to a proposal to build a Tesla showroom and battery recycling and repurposing factory. Many expressed 'anti-Tesla and anti-Elon Musk sentiment'.
For decency, the local council redacted the language in some submissions to describe Musk and Tesla.
'We should not support and put money in the pockets of a [redacted] who openly [redacted] salutes, is [redacted] human,' said one.
The world's richest man has announced he will leave his role in the department of government efficiency, which has slashed jobs and funding for US government agencies with often chaotic and devastating effects. He is pivoting back to his businesses, including Tesla, amid slumping sales.
Meanwhile in Adelaide, the Marion city council overrode community objections and approved the factory project to proceed to the next stage, which will need state government approval. The council said the project would bring in 100 jobs and millions of dollars to the community.
But the protest movement 'Trees not Teslas' is determined to fight on.
While conservation groups and others were protesting against the Tesla project because of the need to remove trees on the land where the plant would be built, Trees not Teslas also fired people up over Musk himself.
'Neon' from Trees not Teslas did not want to use his real name, in part for fear of reprisals and in part because the group considers itself a collective.
He said the traction the group got was 'wild', with their website getting thousands of views, but he acknowledged it was impossible to work out how much influence they ultimately had.
Neon said the fight will continue, as the state government considers whether to approve the council's proposal to revoke the site's status as community land.
Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email
'We just move that further up. We have to. We move that into actions for the state government,' Neon said.
'We spread more awareness. We try to get more people involved. It now becomes not just a council issue but a fundamental state issue.'
He said they started the campaign primarily to protect the trees on the site. '… our main focus was the trees … we're looking to preserve green spaces,' he said.
'We're very pro-electric vehicle and pro-green energy.
'But the industry that destroys green spaces is … green in name only.'
The council argued that the space had not been publicly accessible since 2016 because of contamination. Neon said trees can help remediate the land.
He also echoed comments made by the councillor Sarah Lascombe, who voted against the proposal, that the factory would only recycle or repurpose Tesla batteries, when most people use other brands.
While the discussion has centred around electric vehicle batteries, it is possible the site could also recycle and repurpose Powerwall batteries.
Guardian Australia has contacted Tesla for comment.
Neon said the council voting eight to three to seek state government approval despite the community objections made the public consultation process seem like a box-ticking exercise.
The mayor, Kris Hanna, said the project would bring jobs and an income stream into the community, and that Tesla would just set up elsewhere, if not in Marion. Tesla, Hanna said, had pledged to retain most significant trees and replace more trees than it was required to.
Neon said the established trees would be replaced with saplings, removing many of their benefits.
The state premier, Peter Malinauskas, said earlier this week that major industrial developments were welcome in the state and that while he 'violently' disagreed with Musk's politics, they were 'his prerogative'.
A state government spokesperson said the government welcomed investment and job creation in SA and would consider the proposal.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
4 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Sorry America, but it's not Australia's fault that your healthcare system is failing you
If I were president of the United States, I would certainly be concerned about the cost and performance of the country's healthcare system. The grim statistics are well known. As of 2022, the US spent $12,555 per person on healthcare, almost twice as much as other wealthy countries, including Australia. That gap alone cancels out about half of the difference in income per person between the US and Australia, according to World Bank estimates. Higher expenditure on healthcare would not be a problem if it delivered a healthier population. But this is not the case. The US has one of the lowest life expectancies of any rich country. And even though more Americans die young, those who survive have worse health than elsewhere. Americans suffer from chronic diseases like diabetes, asthma and depression at around twice the (age-adjusted) rate of other rich countries. This gap is too large to be accounted for by specific causes like gun violence or drug overdoses, or even unequal income distribution. The US has worse health outcomes at every point on the income distribution scale than other rich countries, even though those at the upper end have much higher incomes. Sign up: AU Breaking News email And the problem is getting worse. The US saw declining life expectancy in the years after 2014 and, unlike other countries, saw a late, limited recovery from the increased death rate after the onset of the Covid pandemic. There's not much hope for rapid progress in US health outcomes. The destruction of US public health infrastructure through budget cuts, the gutting of key agencies such as the Center for Disease Control and the appointment of notorious anti-vaxxer RFK Jr as secretary of health and human services will only make matters worse. It's unsurprising then that President Donald Trump is looking at the cost side of the equation. As might be expected he has raised, again, the perennial grievances of US health policy. This is the fact that Americans pay far more for prescription medicines than do citizens of other countries where prices are controlled through mechanisms like Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). And, given his grievance-based approach to the world in general, it is no surprise that his latest statement on the topic describes Australia and other countries as 'freeloaders' on the US. The US government is, of course, entirely within its rights to set its own policy regarding the pricing of prescription drugs. The US Department of Veterans Affairs already has a program similar to the PBS, under which it pays about half as much of the typical US price. There is no reason this couldn't be extended to the entire US Medicare system, except that the result would be to close down 1,000 or more private plans, each with their own lobbyists. And with a bit more effort, the US could establish its own version of the PBS, covering all Americans. Quite possibly, faced with lower prices in the US, pharmaceutical companies might demand higher returns from other countries including Australia. But a systematic reform of this kind is beyond the capacity of the Trump administration. Instead we have seen the typical Trumpian claim that other countries are benefiting unfairly from medical research done in the US. This was arguably true in the second half of the 20th century when the US was the undoubted centre of global medical research, most notably through the National Institutes of Health. But funding for the NIH (adjusted for inflation) peaked in 2004, and has suffered from decades of financial stringency. Meanwhile, the US share of genuine innovations, measured by 'new molecular entities' has declined and is no longer notably larger (relative to GDP) than that of leading European innovators. The development of semaglutide (Ozempic and Wegovy) treatments for obesity and diabetes by Danish firm Novo Nordisk is a notable example of a drug of particular importance to the US being developed in Europe. More generally, if Trump wants to import ideas like the PBS into the US system, Australia has plenty to offer. Australia's Medicare system, combining a single-payer universal scheme for standard healthcare with private insurance and fee-for-service medicine as an upper tier, could provide a politically palatable way of delivering the US demand for 'Medicare for all' without destroying the private sector. But of course, this isn't the Trump way. What we will doubtless see, as in the recent tariff negotiations, is a series of bullying demands, resulting in triumphant announcements of magnificent deals, which turn out, on closer inspection, to be largely illusory. The bigger lesson for Australia in all of this is that, as with China, we need to treat the US not as an ally or friend but as a trading partner which will seek to push us around whenever possible. The correct response, again as with China, is to stand our ground until the other side sees the pointlessness of bullying and the mutual benefits of free exchange. John Quiggin is a professor at the University of Queensland's school of economics
The Guardian
34 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Australian activists allege they were ‘brutalised psychologically' after Israeli military detained Gaza aid boat
Two Australian activists say they were 'brutalised psychologically' and treated 'like criminals' by the Israeli military, including being strip-searched, shackled and denied external communication, after a boat they were on was intercepted and detained while attempting to transport aid to Gaza as part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. Journalist Tania 'Tan' Safi and human rights activist Robert Martin were among 21 activists on board the Handala when it was intercepted on Sunday and transported to Israel. It had carried food, baby formula, nappies and medicine, as Palestinians continue to starve in what UN-backed hunger experts have called a 'worst-case scenario of famine' unfolding. Sign up: AU Breaking News email On Friday morning local time, the Australians landed at Sydney airport after spending days in Israeli custody. Safi told reporters they were still 'a little bit wobbly' and felt 'very sore and weak'. The Handala crew had previously confirmed they would go on a hunger strike if the IDF intercepted the boat and detained its passengers. 'It feels like a bit of a dream at the moment to be honest … it's been a rough ride,' Safi said. 'We were dehydrated and exhausted. We've been disconnected from the world.' Safi said at least 30 IDF members boarded Handala when it was intercepted, and claimed all were armed, some with four guns. 'They knocked me in the leg with one of their machine guns,' Safi said. 'They were playing this odd psychological game of offering water and food with the camera crew, trying to get us to accept things from them, but none of us would. 'We don't want to take anything from an entity that is starving babies to death.' Safi said after arriving at the port of Ashdod, about 40km south of Tel Aviv, their bags were taken and they were placed in an interrogation room. Many items were still missing, she said. They confirmed reports that US labor activist Chris Smalls was physically assaulted by the IDF – including being choked and kicked in the legs. 'Chris, the only black man, was pinned down by seven or eight men,' Safi said. 'When I asked about him they came into the room and dragged me out by my arms, I'm still bruised from it. 'They pulled me out and threw me down on the floor, they made me take off all my clothes, they strip-searched me right there, made me squat up and down … they treated us like we were criminals.' Eventually Safi said they were able to see someone from the Australian embassy, who lobbied for the pair to be able to contact their friends and family and to access legal representation. 'In these prisons, we saw face-to-face the soullessness and the cruelty and brutality,' Safi said, adding that they had awoken to the sounds of a fellow inmate 'howling and screaming and crying in pain'. 'There were moments where they would handcuff me and grab the handcuffs and just throw me against the wall.' Martin said he had been 'manhandled' along with a few others when initially demanding legal representation. 'We had no rights … I have a lot of medication, they didn't allow any medication at all,' he said. 'The Australian government demanded I be able to make phone calls to my loved ones, they did not allow me to do that either, and anybody else.' Eventually, Martin said, the pair were shackled and transported from Tel Aviv to Jordan. In Jordan, they received assistance from the embassy and were taken to hospital, where they were temporarily deemed unfit to fly due to their weak condition. 'We thought they were going to just dump us there, that was very, very scary for us not knowing, having no phone, no money, no access to anything,' Martin said. Safi said they didn't realise how poor their condition was until they were hooked up to the IV in hospital and told they were 'really unwell'. 'I just passed out and slept for like 16 hours,' Safi said. 'I couldn't sleep [in prison] … they shine the torch in your face until you wake up, or they bang on the door every time you fall asleep. 'We did not commit any crimes. They tried to get us to sign documents that said we had entered Israel illegally, which is not true … we were taken completely against our will and brutalised psychologically in every way.' The last boat sent by Freedom Flotilla, the Madleen, was intercepted by the Israeli army in international waters on 9 June and towed to the Israeli port of Ashdod. It carried 12 campaigners on board, including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, who were eventually expelled by Israel. In 2010, nine flotilla activists en route to Gaza on board the Mavi Marmara flagship vessel were shot a total of 30 times by Israeli soldiers. Five were killed by close-range gunshot wounds to the head. The Israeli embassy in Canberra and Israeli ministry for foreign affairs were approached for comment.
The Guardian
34 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Five Labor MPs defy NSW premier and vow to attend pro-Palestine march across Sydney Harbour Bridge
Several New South Wales Labor MPs have defied their premier, Chris Minns, by vowing to march across Sydney Harbour Bridge in support of Gaza this weekend as police attempt to challenge the protest in court. Labor's Stephen Lawrence, Anthony D'Adam, Linda Voltz, Cameron Murphy and Sarah Kaine were among 15 NSW politicians who signed an open letter on Thursday evening calling on the government to facilitate 'a safe and orderly event' on Sunday. Police were due to oppose the protest in the NSW supreme court on Friday afternoon. If successful, that move would strip protesters of certain legal protections and leave them vulnerable to arrest if they decided to proceed with a so-called 'unauthorised' march. Lawrence said the state's 'slow and steady demonisation of protest' risked repeating the events which led to Sydney's first Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras march in 1978 being met with police violence. In a statement posted on Facebook on Friday morning, Lawrence criticised 'the passage of laws that allow police to be used to end protests the government doesn't like'. 'We have seen in these respects one long, unprincipled capitulation to reactionary politics and it is dangerous,' the Labor MLC said. 'I am a member of the Labor party, not the Liberal party. Our party is founded on protest and collective action. Attending is my way of sending a message that, in my view, we need to change course.' Lawrence said while the circumstances of the protest were 'not ideal', the event had become 'absolutely inevitable' which he said was 'largely because of the way it has been mishandled'. He said he wanted to attend Sunday's march to express his 'utter revulsion' at Israel's actions – which he said other countries, including Australia, had provided cover for. The other NSW parliamentarians who signed the letter calling on the government to allow the march over the harbour bridge were independents Alex Greenwich and Jacqui Scruby and the Greens' Jenny Leong, Tamara Smith, Kobi Shetty, Sue Higginson, Cate Faehrmann, Abigail Boyd and Amanda Cohn. Libertarian John Ruddick was also on the list. Greenwich, the state MP for Sydney, said he shared the 'widespread community horror' over what was happening in Gaza and said marching across the bridge would send a powerful message of solidarity. 'Having successfully lobbied the previous Coalition government to allow a march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge in support of LGBTQ equality during Sydney WorldPride, I know it can be done,' he said in a statement. On Tuesday afternoon, the deputy police commissioner Peter McKenna announced the force had rejected an application from the protest organisers proposing a route across the Harbour Bridge to the US consulate, citing safety risks as the reason. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion He said at the time, police were open to negotiating alternative routes. However, the protest organisers, the Sydney-based Palestine Action Group, said in a statement that the protest 'must go ahead' and vowed to fight in court for their right to stage a protected protest. The premier on Friday morning said he expected 'everybody in NSW to respect the outcome of the court's decision'. 'I acknowledge there's a lot of people in Sydney, in NSW, that want to be part of a protest,' Minns told reporters. 'They're very concerned about what's happening in Gaza to Palestinians and they want to be heard.' Minns said people who were planning to participate in the protest would still have 'every opportunity to be heard' even with an alternative route. Earlier in the week, he suggested a march over the bridge would cause the city to 'descend into chaos'. Sydney's weekly pro-Palestine rallies have typically involved marches through the CBD. A march across the Harbour Bridge could still go ahead on Sunday if even the court sides with police but protesters could face being arrested under anti-protest laws if they obstructed traffic, for example.
