More than two million Sydneysiders turned off their lights on Saturday 28th March for Earth Hour. Many Adelaide residents also joined in the campaign. I don’t know the outcome in Adelaide, but in Sydney there was a 10.2 per cent drop in energy use. That’s a reduction of 24.86 tonnes of carbon dioxide - the equivalent of taking 48,613 cars off the road for an hour! Let’s hope next year Adelaide can help improve this success rate.

I have presented a number of illustrated talks on my trip to Palestine and Israel in January. When I first returned I gave a presentation at the SA Writers’ Centre, and subsequesntly I presented this my PowerPoint presentation to MPs and guests in Parliament House, and to about 40 people at a community forum in my electorate. Each presentation has provoked much interest in the plight of Palestinians and the chances of peace with Israel. Please let me know if there are any groups or organisations you can recommend who might be interested in inviting me to present this talk.

At a community forum I organised on water last month there were lots of clever ideas for saving water in the home and the garden. For example, there are many water-saving toilet systems now on the market, including Smartflush that can save 35,000 litres per year in the average home. Details of these devices can be found on www.eco-smartplumber.com.au.
The Federal Government produces an 80-page document on maintaining rainwater tanks. It’s available on
http://enhealth.nphp.gov.au/council/pubs/documents/rainwater_tanks.pdf
Mark Thomas from State Flora gave handy hints on establishing a drought-resistant garden. State Flora offers a consultancy service in which you can find out what are the indigenous plants to your area. This, at least, is a good starting point as these plants can survive on the rainfall of your area. State Flora’s website: www.stateflora.com.au

Last week Industrial Relations Minister Michael Wright survived a vote of no-confidence in Parliament.  I voted with the Liberal Opposition, though not necessarily for the same reasons.  I was condemning the Minister because he had just signalled plans to slaughter the last of the Labor Party’s sacred cows: the welfare of injured workers.
Sure, WorkCover’s unfunded liability last year rose $27 million to $723 million. It’s forecast to pass $1 billion by 2009.  The WorkCover Board has recommended how to cut this liability.  Many of their recommendations undermine the principles on which WorkCover was established in 1987. 
Perhaps most punishing to injured workers is the proposal to reduce income payments to 75 per cent of average weekly payments after 13 weeks, and to cease most income payments after two years. 
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