Wendy Bacon Journalist, activist
Menu№ 5 in Wading through greenwashing
Foul odours are again plaguing residents in Western Sydney as floods and rain cause a crisis in the waste industry and raising further concerns about the NSW's capacity to regulate powerful companies.
The NSW prison system is in the grip of a crisis caused by the COVID pandemic. Prisons generally receive little coverage which is why readers may know so little about this. In this story, I focus on Junee prison where two prisoners have recently died and severe restrictions are threatening the health and welfare of hundreds of prisoners and their families.
№ 4 in Wading through greenwashing
A new documentary by Mandy King and Fabio Cavadini about the environmental struggle to save Kosciuszko National Park
Last week was the fiftieth anniversary of the first Green Ban in Sydney. In this piece for City Hub, I reflect on the Green Ban period and report on this week's events at 'Willow Grove' Parramatta, the site of the most recent Green Ban.
№ 3 in Wading through greenwashing
The NSW EPA ordered Bingo Industries to install a gas plant to remove unhealthy hydrogen sulphide odours. Two gas flares were lit but the odours continue. Western Sydney residents, backed by local Labor MPs, are calling on the EPA to close the plant down. In this blog post, I reveal long term weaknesses in the landfill's environmental record, management and regulation.
Last month, the failure of Australian governments to implement the 339 recommendations of the 1991 Royal commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody report was a major story in parts of the Australian media. This failure should be no surprise because by 1995, the implementation of the Royal Commission recommendations for change was already described as a 'tragic farce'. In this post, I explore the media's contribution to that failure and signs of both hope and concern thirty years after the Royal Commission.
№ 2 in Wading through greenwashing
Bingo Industries is still causing terrible odours in Western Sydney. The EPA has not used its powers to shut the site down but has restricted Bingo's landfill licence and ordered it to install a gas burning plant. Local MPs, Blacktown Council and residents say they won't stop campaigning until the odours are gone for good.
№ 1 in Wading through greenwashing
Bingo has passed its deadline for cleaning up terrible odours affecting thousands of residents in Western Sydney.
Porter denies a rape allegation but does this really settle the question of his fitness for the office of Australia's first law officer?