Latest news with #SarahHanson-Young
Perth Now
3 days ago
- Politics
- Perth Now
Political leaders 'passing the buck' on algae crisis
State and federal leaders have been accused of passing the buck on an algal bloom crisis which has caused the deaths of tens of thousands of marine animals. Greens senator for South Australia and environment spokeswoman Sarah Hanson-Young accused the federal and SA governments of shirking responsibility for the disaster, which has devastated marine life and caused widespread disruption of commercial fishing operations. "We have the federal government saying it's a state issue, and we have the SA government dragging its feet in asking for federal help," Ms Hanson-Young said. "It's past time that the prime minster and the premier sort this out." The senator has demanded the event be classified as a natural disaster, with major federal government support needed. "This is a national climate catastrophe and it requires a commensurate response." "A COVID-19 style rescue package means support for the affected industries, community and local councils," she said. Federal environment minister Murray Watt said the bloom was a state issue while it remained limited to South Australian waters, but added the federal government was monitoring the situation and working to support the Malinauskas government. "My view was that it would be helpful to have a senior official from my department on the ground," Mr Watt told FIVEAA radio in Adelaide. "That official was in Adelaide yesterday, is there again today, you know, conducting inspections, meeting with the relevant departments." The algal bloom is naturally occurring, but the state's environment department has noted potential contributing factors - with a marine heatwave beginning in September 2024, following an influx of extra nutrients from the 2022-23 River Murray flood, later brought to the surface by an unprecedented cold-water upwelling the following summer. Economic impacts and environmental recovery would still need to be considered, and nothing could be done to hasten the end of the bloom, Mr Watt said. "We've been very clear that we're prepared to support South Australia in managing this, even though it is a matter within state waters," he said. The South Australian government has offered three months of licence fee relief to commercial fishers, some of whom have reported catching nothing since April, a month after the bloom was first reported.
Perth Now
4 days ago
- Health
- Perth Now
‘Never seen before': Shock pics of algal bloom
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler has spoken about the devastating toxic algal bloom in his home state of South Australia as new pictures reveal the scale of the disaster. It follows accusations that 'virtually nothing' has been done by the federal government about the bloom. The algal bloom, called Karenia mikimotoi, is a naturally occurring but deadly phenomenon that has killed marine life in the southern state for months. Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has been pressuring the government to declare the toxic algae a 'national disaster'. 'If this was happening in Bondi, or on the North Shore in Sydney, the Prime Minister would have already been on the beach, talking to concerned locals and the affected industries,' Senator Hanson-Young said on Wednesday. 'But today, we've had virtually nothing from the federal government.' Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has been calling for the government to do more. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia Mr Butler, who represents the Hindmarsh electorate in Adelaide's west, spoke out about the devastation on Sunrise. 'We've never seen a bloom like this, of this scale, of this duration anywhere in Australia,' he said. 'It is incredibly serious. 'I was walking on the beach on the weekend, I saw a dead shark, dead rays – a number of dead rays – dead fish, dead cuttlefish, things I've never seen before in the decades of walking along Adelaide's beaches.' Mark Butler defended the government's response to the algal bloom. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia He said the federal government was working closely with the South Australian government to monitor the bloom but insisted that it was a 'huge ecological event' that couldn't be controlled any more 'than we can make it rain during a drought'. 'We have to understand the impact it is having on communities, and it's a huge impact on the Adelaide community, I can tell you, but also on businesses, on commercial enterprises, particularly in the fishing industry,' Mr Butler said. South Australia's marine ecosystem is being rocked by a harmful algal bloom. Great Southern Reef Foundation Credit: Supplied Shocking footage shows the scale of dead marine life. Great Southern Reef Foundation Credit: Supplied Great Southern Reef Foundation (GRSF) video captures the scale of the disaster, showing dead fish, discoloured water and decaying coral along South Australia's Yorke Peninsula. GRSF co-founder Stefan Andrews said: 'With neon green water, the seabed was littered with dead and dying animals.' The ecosystem is being damaged by the deadly algae across the state. Great Southern Reef Foundation Credit: Supplied GRSF co-founder Stefan Andrews described the 'neon green water' that was 'littered with dead and dying animals'. Great Southern Reef Foundation Credit: Supplied Environment Minister Murray Watt previously said the government was 'deeply concerned by the widespread marine species mortalities caused by this extreme event' and he was getting updates from the Malinauskas government. 'We will give careful consideration to any request for assistance we receive from the state government,' he said.
Perth Now
5 days ago
- Politics
- Perth Now
Call for help with big algal bloom choking coastal life
Calls are growing for immediate federal support and intervention in SA's algae crisis, as fishing and tourism industries struggle with the impact of a months-long bloom with no end in sight. The naturally occurring algal bloom has killed tens of thousands of marine animals of almost 400 species and caused widespread disruption to commercial fisheries and aquaculture since being identified off the Fleurieu Peninsula in March. SA senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the algal bloom was a national disaster requiring a national response, calling on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese "to come to Adelaide to stand on the beaches with me and to take some action". "People are seeing dead fish and marine life washed up on our metro and country beaches every day, people are reporting their dogs are getting sick after walking along the beach," the Greens senator said on Wednesday. Australian Climate and Biodiversity Foundation chair Ken Henry said the massive destruction of marine life was "not an early warning, that's a late warning". "It's well past time that we and others in the world dealt properly with threats of climate change and the warming of the oceans, which ... lies at the heart of the catastrophe that's occurring (in SA)," Dr Henry told the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday. On Tuesday, SA Environment Minister Susan Close said the bloom was a natural disaster but it did not fit the criteria of the National Natural Disaster Arrangements. The state government was working with the federal government on ways to tackle it, she said. A fisheries patrol vessel began underwater observations in the Gulf of St Vincent on Wednesday to understand the effect of the bloom on the ecosystem. Opposition primary industries spokeswoman Nicola Centofanti said she was shocked the government waited almost four months to start monitoring the impact on marine life. The algal bloom has spread along the SA coastline to the upper Spencer Gulf, the north coast of Kangaroo Island, the Fleurieu Peninsula, the Coorong and Adelaide's Port River. Toxins linked to the bloom have been found in oysters and mussels at Port Lincoln, and harvesting at local farms has been halted for at least four weeks. Senator Hanson-Young hosted a community forum in Adelaide on Tuesday attended by hundreds of people, and will call for a parliamentary inquiry into the algal bloom when federal parliament returns next week.
West Australian
5 days ago
- Politics
- West Australian
Call for help with big algal bloom choking coastal life
Calls are growing for immediate federal support and intervention in SA's algae crisis, as fishing and tourism industries struggle with the impact of a months-long bloom with no end in sight. The naturally occurring algal bloom has killed tens of thousands of marine animals of almost 400 species and caused widespread disruption to commercial fisheries and aquaculture since being identified off the Fleurieu Peninsula in March. SA senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the algal bloom was a national disaster requiring a national response, calling on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese "to come to Adelaide to stand on the beaches with me and to take some action". "People are seeing dead fish and marine life washed up on our metro and country beaches every day, people are reporting their dogs are getting sick after walking along the beach," the Greens senator said on Wednesday. Australian Climate and Biodiversity Foundation chair Ken Henry said the massive destruction of marine life was "not an early warning, that's a late warning". "It's well past time that we and others in the world dealt properly with threats of climate change and the warming of the oceans, which ... lies at the heart of the catastrophe that's occurring (in SA)," Dr Henry told the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday. On Tuesday, SA Environment Minister Susan Close said the bloom was a natural disaster but it did not fit the criteria of the National Natural Disaster Arrangements. The state government was working with the federal government on ways to tackle it, she said. A fisheries patrol vessel began underwater observations in the Gulf of St Vincent on Wednesday to understand the effect of the bloom on the ecosystem. Opposition primary industries spokeswoman Nicola Centofanti said she was shocked the government waited almost four months to start monitoring the impact on marine life. The algal bloom has spread along the SA coastline to the upper Spencer Gulf, the north coast of Kangaroo Island, the Fleurieu Peninsula, the Coorong and Adelaide's Port River. Toxins linked to the bloom have been found in oysters and mussels at Port Lincoln, and harvesting at local farms has been halted for at least four weeks. Senator Hanson-Young hosted a community forum in Adelaide on Tuesday attended by hundreds of people, and will call for a parliamentary inquiry into the algal bloom when federal parliament returns next week.
Sky News AU
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Sky News AU
‘We've already coughed up the money': Fury as US considers asking Aust to pay more under AUKUS
Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young claims the AUKUS agreement has been a 'dud deal' for Australia 'since day dot' and new information exposes this. This comes as there are fears the United States may ask Australia to pay more under the AUKUS pact. Sources have told Nine Newspapers the US will ask for changes to the pact before the first submarines arrive. 'The US is already starting to put up the flagpole that Australians, Australian taxpayers are going to have to pay more for it,' Ms Hanson-Young told Sky News Australia. 'We've already coughed up the money. 'It's Australian taxpayers that are front footing most of the cost upfront. We're the ones putting the money on the table.'
