Welcome to Newsletter Number 67 Dear SENG QLD members, contacts and friends, The Sustainable Transport: Reality or Pipe Dream technical session is planned for 10 October at Hawken Auditorium, Engineering House. Our guest speakers will address sustainable transport issues and innovations regarding congestion, fuel vs electricity, public transport, pedal power and urban planning. This month’s newsletter includes: Sustainable Transport: Reality or Pipe Dream Other Events Interesting Snippets Open for comment David's Blog As always, we welcome input from members regarding topics or speakers of interest. Please contact one of the Qld committee members, or consider coming along to a committee meeting, held at Engineering House prior to each of our technical seminars. We hope to see you there! Sustainable Engineering Society Qld Branch Engineers Australia. Sustainable Transport: Reality or Pipe Dream? Date: Tuesday 10 October, 2017 Time: 5:30pm for 6:00 Presenters: Rachel Smith, Gerard Reardon Venue: Hawken Auditorium, Engineering House 447 Upper Edward St, Brisbane Networking: Rachel Smith, Gerard Reardon Cost: Students - $15 Members (EA, SENG, TAs) - $15 Non-Members* - $45 *Those without an EA log in will need to create an EA account to register. This is a simple process and will only take a minute. Speakers: Rachel Smith – Author, Decongestion Rachel’s transport career spans 18 years across the public and private sectors in the UK and Australia. She has two TEDx talks, is the Author of Decongestion, has spoken in London’s Palace of Westminster’s House of Lords, is on the Smart Cities Task Force, is a Sourceable columnist, was part of the BMW Guggenheim Lab in New York, Berlin and Mumbai (nominated by Enrique Penalosa), created Cycling Super Highways, was retained by the UK Government for 6 years as an expert advisor and was awarded the BP International Road Safety Award. Rachel will discuss why the Australian Dream has become our biggest nightmare, 5 mistakes society makes and the 7 ‘sticking points’ or factors preventing change. The diversity of traveller choice now being sought is placing immense pressure on the currency and flexibility of transport policies and the priorities within infrastructure supply programs Gerard Reardon - Director, McCormick Rankin Cagney Gerard has experience in transportation planning, traffic engineering, road and highway design, and urban development within the public and private sectors in Australia. Since joining MRCagney, Gerard has been involved in many high profile planning and transport projects including the South Brisbane Riverside Renewal Strategy, Boggo Road Urban Village, Edmonton Business and Industry Park, and the Flagstone Master Plan. He has also provided traffic engineering advice on signature projects including the Queensland Children’s Hospital, the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre, and the Gold Coast Light Rail. Gerard will discuss policy and program changes that need to be considered and the challenges and opportunities facing transport planners and traffic engineers. In Australia, the transport sector is responsible for over a quarter of our energy consumption, and almost a sixth of greenhouse gas emissions. Globally, transportation contributes around a seventh of greenhouse gas emissions. Of this approximately two thirds are due to passenger travel and one third is due to freight. This is an area in which engineers should be leading the way. Are we doing enough? What more can we do? Our speakers will address aspects of transport such as congestion, fuel vs electricity, public transport, pedal power and urban planning and the session will conclude with a panel discussion which will allow us all to consider and discuss our current progress and plans.
What is the status quo in transport engineering? How is travel choice influenced by technology and climate change policies? How are transport policies and infrastructure supply affected? What does the future hold?. Please join us after the session for networking at the OBar, 52 Astor Tce, Spring Hill. Register Now Register on-line or for more information see the attached flyer. Member rates for SENG and ACF members. Other Events Engineers Australia The Design Rainfall Revision Project – 4 Oct The Bureau of Meteorology is finalising the Design Rainfall Revision Project which will provide users with new design rainfalls. This presentation will provide information on the new design rainfalls for Queensland and demonstrate the functionalities of the new design rainfall webpage. Clean Air Society of Australia and New Zealand (CASANZ17) Clean Air and Environment Conference: The Critical Atmosphere (15 - 18 Oct) Over 300 highly influential global industry experts, policy and decision makers, and key equipment suppliers of the environmental sector gather to understand more about the physical and chemical processes underlying air quality, their effects on human health and welfare, and our capacity to effectively control and regulate air pollution. CASANZ17 hopes to stimulate new ideas and tools that can be applied across the air quality and climate change fields by coming together for this event.
Long Future, Sustain Ability and SENG Reframing the Future and Adapting to Change (25 - 26 Oct)
This 2-day workshop, run by world-recognised experts in sustainability, will harness participants' ability to keep abreast of organisational, social, global and biospheric trends, identify and correct road blocks to sustainable solutions, investigate opportunities and plan activities to reframe the future of your organisation and/or project. The workshop aims to develop participants' adaptive approach to working life that will deliver sustainability outcomes. Centre for Environmental Training (cet) Erosion and Sediment Control workshops (14 – 17 Nov) Four consecutive workshops address the fundamentals of erosion and sediment control, the International Erosion Control Association (IECA) guidelines, construction site water management, and control plans.
Interesting Snippets For your interest, horror and amusement. SENG makes no claims regarding the accuracy or currency of these items.
Qld Gov. The Queensland Government announces a new incentive to address excess waste and increase recycling. A ten-cent refund for eligible drink containers will be paid at authorised outlets. Click the link for more details. Qld Government has also introduced a ban on light single use plastic bags to begin 1 July 2018. Find out more.
A project to build the world’s longest electric super highway has been unveiled by the Qld Government. Regular electric car recharge stations will be available from Coolangatta with motorists able to recharge with green electricity that will initially be provided free. Find out more. General Aurora Solar Energy Project The Aurora Solar Energy Project is an emission-free 150-megawatt solar thermal power plant that has recently been approved for construction in Port Augusta. It is expected to supply all of the South Australian Government's electrical demands. Read more here. Optimsed battery power Collaboration between researchers from Australia and Singapore has resulted in new methods for optimising battery power. By developing alternative electro-catalysts that increase the capabilities of zinc-air batteries, the lithium-ion battery may be replaced by a ‘greener’ alternative that is more readily-available with greater capabilities. Win-win. Estimates that man made emissions higher than previously estimated Methods for constraining natural geologic methane emissions to determine its mole fraction of the global methane source have allowed for man-made emissions to be estimated, however these methods are well-known to be uncertain and imprecise. New analyses of ice-core samples, that assume constant geological methane output, indicate that man-made emissions are likely very much higher than previously estimated. Full journal article available here. Promising Pumped hydro storage ANU researchers model Australia’s potential off-river pumped hydro power storage sites, finding very promising results.. Read more about these exciting energy opportunities for Australia’s renewable energy future here.
Department of Environment and Heritage Protection - Regulatory Updates Criminal ex-manager receives extended jailtime, charged under the Environmental Protection Act 1994 with two counts of operating a quarry without an Environmental Authority (EA). All EAs are now available in a spreadsheet form that can be downloaded from the Queensland Government website.
Awards and Open Comment Draft 'Contaminated Sites Environment Protection' policy As part of regular Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reviews of environment protection policies, the Draft 'Contaminated Sites Environment Protection' policy is now available for public comment. Consultation closes on Wednesday 27 September 2017. Find more detailshere. Protecting Queensland Environment EHP is currently seeking community feedback on its role as Queensland's environmental regulator. They are encouraging Queenslanders to complete a short survey on the environmental issues. Moment for Action Sign the petition David's Blog Keep up to date by reading David's Blog on the SENG website. Log in using your to post comments or questions. Join the conversation on our LinkedIn group page If you have an idea to share, an issue you would like feedback on, or just want to follow the conversation, click here to join the group. |