The Muir family are ecotourism operators who run dolphin swims in Sorrento. In the 1980’s Judy lobbied the Victorian government to amend the wildlife act so that dolphin swim operators could be lobbied. In this interview we talk about the need to reegulate ecotourism and audit operators to ensure that they’re operating appropriately. www.polperro.com.au

Servants Community Housing is an organization that caters for around 80 single people on low incomes. Matt Mauldin has coordinated the production of a book about the lives of some of his residents. The book was written by two year 11 students from Scotch College in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs. Its an interesting story, not just the stories of the residents, but also of the interactions between the residents and the students. The book is being distributed for free. You can get a copy through the Servants web site www.sihi.com.au.

Podcast…

0 – 9.23: General chat

9.23 – 22.02: Ecotourism regulation

22.02 – 33.54: Sustainable society

33.54 – 40.03: General chat

http://www.cpod.org.au/page.php?id=245

Dr Alexandra Hart has a PhD in behavioural sciences. Although her background is in integrative health dealing with illnesses such as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, the Action model she developed is enormously relevant to the sustainability sector - even though there's been talk and policy about being sustainable, how come its not been happening? Not everyone is recycling, saving water or buying ethically. Dr Hart's model would say that to make it happen we need to START ACTING. But what needs to happen to make people act?

Also, Alexandra tells a fascinating story about her adventure an Astronomical Observatory!

Eastern Australia is about to be subjected to a plague of locusts. Eris O'Brien runs a sheep and cropping farm in central Victoria, as well as a website called www.savethelocust.com. He believes that the Victorian government's management of the locust plague is ill-considered. He closely observed the last plague and on his farm the effects were minimal – his pastures recovered quickly and wildlife adapted to feast and famine food regimes did much to reduce the severity of the plague's impact.

Eris questions the wisdom of spending millions of dollars on spraying locusts, particularly because the sprays will directly and indirectly kill many of the locust's natural predators. Next time around, the natural controls might be absent.

Podcast…

0 – 9.54: Meander – community managers of the Menzies Creek trail

9.54 – 29.42: SaveTheLocusts.com

29.42 – 36.37: StringyBark festival

36.45 – 42.18: Chat

Councillor Mick Van de Vreede represents Rowville and Lysterfield, suburbs in Melbourne's east. Cr Van de Vreede is also Chair of Knox Council’s Public Transport Consultative Committee and "Get On Board" is the committee's Public Transport Advocacy Campaign.

Typical of many of Melbourne's peripheral suburbs, Rowville and Lysterfield are poorly supported by public transport. When development began in the 1970s heavy rail was planned, but it has not eventuated. The present State Labor government promised a feasibility study into the project prior to the last State election, but the study has not eventuated. Instead Labor now says it has no plans to instigate a feasibility study and points the bus services it has introduced.

Councillor Van de Vreede's committee commissioned a pre-feasibility study in 2004 and the study found that rail could be commissioned mostly within the bounds of land already owned by government. The project would have the measurable benefit of moving 2350 passengers per hour who would otherwise be using cars.

But there are harder-to-measure Community Wellness benefits that would result. Families devoting less time and money to vehicle based commuting are likely to have more disposable income to spend on needs such as housing and family well being. As Rowville and Lysterfield continues to develop and a bubble of young people get a car, the situation is destined to get more pressing.

The "Get On Board" campaign seems to have hit a community nerve at a very opportune time. With a November State election and the emergence of the Greens as a viable third political party in the recent federal election, the stage is set for interesting times.

Podcast…

0 – 7.45: Chat

7.45 – 35.25: Public transport advocacy, and community wellness and affordable housing

35.25 – 38.43: Bees Chat

http://www.cpod.org.au/page.php?id=245

Linton Briggs – Bees and food security

Linton Briggs is a Queen Bee breeder from Glenrowan. His job is akin to that of a cattle, sheep or horse stud operator, except for bees.

Australian native bees do not produce commercial quantities of honey so all Australia's honey bees originate in Europe. Because European honey bees evolved with food crops of the old world they are closely linked to food security. Bees are thought to be worth around $4-5b of Australian agriculture.

These valuable insects are subject to a number of stresses, any number of which, individually or in combination might be linked to colony collapse disorder, a phenomena where the worker bees for a hive suddenly die off. This phenomenon has not yet occurred in Australia but there is a risk that it will in the future. Possible causes are…

• The Varroa mite, a bee parasite that is endemic in every continent except Australia. It is only a matter of time before it arrives here.

• Agricultural pesticides and chemicals

• Mobile phones

• Climate change.

Rather than directly killing bees, the impact of these is more likely to be via weakening the bee's resistance to disease.

Ben Berchill – Broadcaster: Bees in the media

Ben Berchill is a breakfast broadcaster on Melbourne community radio station 3RRR. He is responsible for compiling news bulletins. A couple of months ago he noticed that there were lots of stories about bees, particularly on the BBC. He began reading them out as novelty items, but after an email from an apiarist he started treating the topic more seriously. Two of many bulletins he has compiled are that…

• Urban bees produce better flavoured honey than rural bees, presumably because they have a greater variety of flowers to visit.

• A beekeeper in Europe sprinkles icing sugar on his colonies to rid them of the Varroa mite. He believes the bees preen each other of the icing sugar and in the process also preen the mites away.

Podcast…

0 – 6.58: chat

6.58 – 28.15: Bees and food security

28.15 – 36.45: Bees in the media

36.45 – 42.18: Chat

http://www.cpod.org.au/page.php?id=245

General chat

• Gunns ceases tree harvesting from old growth forests in Tasmania.

• Taking Photo Voltaics to the White House. http://voices.washingtonpost.com/reliable-source/2010/09/update_jimmy_carter_solar_pane.html

• Sustainable House Day. www.shmeco.com

Creature House Nature Books

This is a fantastic story about a young couple with a love of nature seeking to share this love through the Creature House Nature Book shop that they’ve just opened in Olinda. Brett Pemberton and his partner Hayley hope to educate and inspire with books, nature-kits and in-store adventure. Their shop is one with a difference. Hayley is trained in wildlife rehabilitation and they have government permission for in-shop wildlife enclosures. They want to give children and adults the opportunity for face to face contact with animals without having to go to a zoo. If people have a better understanding of nature then they might also have a vested interest in its preservation. If a customer walks away with an understanding of that then Brett and Hayley reckon they’ve done their job.

See the web site at www.creaturehouse.com.au

General chat

• Local news, transport, weeds, clean food advertising trend

Podcast…

• 0-13.05 General chat

• 13.05 – 31.19 Creature House Nature Books

• 32.19 – 43.32 General chat

http://www.cpod.org.au/page.php?id=245

Emma Joely is an artist, 3MDR presenter and former WWOOFer. World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms is an international organization that links volunteers with organic farm hosts. Volunteers swap around half a day of work for board and lodging on an organic farm, but more importantly for the opportunity to learn about organic farming. Emma has spent time on three farms and all her experiences are positive. She speaks of generous hosts, meeting kindred spirits, and becoming aware of the cycle of alive and the need to respect food. Emma's experiences are echoed many times over on the feedback page of WWOOF Australia site (www.wwoof.com.au).

Podcast…

0-11.13 General chat

11.13 – 32.19 WWOOFing with Emma

32.19 – 42.12 General chat

Chris Alenson is from Australia's National Centre for Sustainability and his particular interest is sustainable agriculture. He visited the studio to talk to us about Peak Phosphorus.

Phosphorus is a key component of fertilizers and so is crucial to world food supplies. There are not many places in the world that have phosphorus deposits and in less than 50 years we're likely to run out of it. If we continue along our present path, future generations might find themselves faced with food and national security threats. The good news is that phosphorus cycles in natural systems and many of the serious problems can be avoided by making changes to our waste streams.

Dallas D'Silva is Manager of Marine Fisheries for Fisheries Victoria. His job is to ensure that Victoria's fisheries are sustainable into the future. The main fish species he's responsible for are snapper, king george whiting, bream, garfish, calamari and flathead.

There are 42 commercial fishing licenses in Port Philip Bay. The fish they catch and where they are caught vary from fish-species-season to fish-species-season. Netting technologies have improved dramatically over the years so by-catch is now minimal. Recreational catches of fish in Port Philip bay are usually larger than commercial catches.

Catch and size limits vary from year to year based on counts of juvenile fish and surveys of commercial and recreational fish catches. For this reason, any fish you buy from a fish monger that has been caught in Victorian waters is from a sustainably managed fishery.

For more information go to www.dpi.vic.gov.au/fishing

Podcast…

0-11.36 Australian election. Hung parliament?

11.36 – 27.46 Sustainable fishing

27.46 – 40.20 Chat

http://www.cpod.org.au/page.php?id=245

Dallas D'Silva is Manager of Marine Fisheries for Fisheries Victoria. His job is to ensure that Victoria's fisheries are sustainable into the future. The main fish species he's responsible for are snapper, king george whiting, bream, garfish, calamari and flathead.

There are 42 commercial fishing licenses in Port Philip Bay. The fish they catch and where they are caught vary from fish-species-season to fish-species-season. Netting technologies have improved dramatically over the years so by-catch is now minimal. Recreational catches of fish in Port Philip bay are usually larger than commercial catches.

Catch and size limits vary from year to year based on counts of juvenile fish and surveys of commercial and recreational fish catches. For this reason, any fish you buy from a fish monger that has been caught in Victorian waters is from a sustainably managed fishery.

For more information go to www.dpi.vic.gov.au/fishing

Podcast…

0-11.36 Australian election. Hung parliament?

11.36 – 27.46 Sustainable fishing

27.46 – 40.20 Chat

http://www.cpod.org.au/page.php?id=245