On 16 February 1983, more than 180 fires fanned by winds of up to 110km per hour (68 mph) caused widespread destruction across the states of Victoria and South Australia. According to Wikipedia, the fires were the deadliest in Australian history, until the Black Saturday bushfires in 2009.
In Victoria, 47 people died, while in South Australia there were 28 deaths.
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In 1986, the Senate Standing Committee on Natural Resources came to do a personal inspection of Kakadu National Park, with the view to making a recommendation on mining in the park.
Their recommendation saw the then Federal Cabinet decide mining could go ahead in the controversial stage 3 of Kakadu National Park.
Gold and platinum deposits could be exploited but uranium was taken off the table.
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While I spent a lot of time in Kakadu National Park, and while Kakadu is the best known park in the Top End, I always had a soft spot for Litchfield National Park.
730 Report on High Temperature Incinerator from Rae Allen on Vimeo.
Mark Record ID 40448
Branch DAR
Type SEGMENT
Source ABC
NEWS/CAFF
Program Title 7.30 REPORT
Segment Title CHEMICAL INCINERATOR
Date of Transmission 09-Jul-1986
Date of Recording
Restrictions CHECK COPYRIGHT
Location DARWIN,NT,AUSTRALIA
TENNANT CREEK,NT,AUSTRALIA
Duration 7.50
Summary IV VARIOUS PEOPLE ABOUT ASPECTS OF HIGH TEMPERATURE INCINERATOR FOR INTRACTABLE WASTES AND BY-PRODUCTS PROPOSED BY NORTHERN TERRITORY GOVT FOR TENNANT CREEK
Shotlist LIB FTG HOUSES, POWER STATION IN BG
LIB FTG DRUMS
LIB FTG ROOFS OF HOUSES, STACKS IN BG
OS RAE ALLEN IV TERRY MCKAY
CU MCKAY
MLS PINK CONTAINERS WITH SIGN DANGER PCB CONTAINER INSIDE
ZO PINK CONTAINERS
LIB FTG HIGH TEMPERATURE INCINERATOR
GRAPHICS DIAGRAMS SHOWING PASSAGE OF CHEMICALS THROUGH INCINERATOR AND FLU GAS CLEANING PROCESS
CU PAGE MASTERS CLASSIFICATION
TD PAGE OF REPORT
CU MCKAY
CU SMALL BATH WITH HAND IN FRONT OF DIALS
ZO BATH, MAN STANDING, DISPLAY IN BG
WS 2 MEN, DISPLAY IN BG SIGN JOHN MORRIS SCIENTIFIC
LS STOKES HILL POWER STATION STACKS
TD STACKS TO BUILDINGS
RTC ALLEN, CONTAINERS IN BG
MCU CONTAINER FROM BELOW
VS CONTAINER
AERIALS INCINERATOR SHIP
GRAPHICS BARRY COHEN
SUPERS VOICE OF BARRY COHEN
CU LAURIE WADE
LS POWER STATION, 2 MEN WALKING BUGGIES ON GOLF COURSE IN FG
LS CHILD ON SEE-SAW IN FG, HOUSES AND STACKS IN BG
MCU SIGN WELCOME TO TENNANT CREEK, THE TERRITORY CENTRE, WE’RE BIGGER THAN YOU THINK
LS STREET IN TENNANT CREEK
LS ROAD WITH TRUCK COMING OVER CREST
CU WADE
CU CHAIN ROBBINS
OS ALLEN IV ROBBINS
CU MCKAY
CU VARIOUS PAGES ENVIRONMENT PROFILE
CU COVER OF PROFILE OF ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES BOOK
CU ROBBINS
CU PIPE WITH LIQUID SPURTING OUT
LS POWER STATION
VS DRUMS
LS PAN TENNANT CREEK COUNTRYSIDE AND TOWNSHIP
CU MCKAY
Subject Heading CHEMICALS
WASTE DISPOSAL
Producer
Director
Writer
Personalities TERRY MCKAY, DEPT OF MINES AND ENERGY
LAURIE WADE, ENVIRONMENT CENTRE
CHAIN ROBBINS, INTERNATIONAL TECHNOLOGY
RAE ALLEN,ABC REPORTER
You sometimes forget how big the Northern Territory is until you find yourself engrossed in a story like this about feral horses.
It’s estimated the number of feral horses in the Territory is in the hundreds of thousands, and considering how much a horse eats, you can imagine the impact on the environment.
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One of the perks of working in a place like the Northern Territory is the opportunity to cover stories in some of the most beautiful parts of Australia.
In mid 1986 I traveled to Kakadu National Park to cover a weed control program. The weed was Mimosa pigra, a plant which was a threat to these world heritage wetlands.
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A constant through my time political reporting in the Northern territory was Marshall Perron.
I interviewed him in all guises, while he was a minister, the Treasurer, the Attorney General, and Chief Minister.
In this story he announced he was stepping down from the front bench to spend time with his family.
Barramundi fishing is not just a recreational sport, but big business in the Northern Territory.
The tension however has always existed between the recreational and tourism aspects to barramundi fishing, and the commercial imperatives of our restaurant tables.
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Rarely however have I come across some-one like Bill Neidjie, who not only had a clear vision of what he wanted, but had the strength of personality to buck tradition and carry it through.
