|
Austrade promotes moving to Japan
Japanese consumers just can’t get enough of Australian
exports, but Australian companies need to set up in
Japan to maximise advantages in Australia’s largest
export market.
Australia’s most loyal market is steadily expanding
and the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) and
its Japanese counterpart the Japan External Trade Organisation
(JETRO) will tour Australia this week advising companies
already exporting to Japan on how they can benefit
by investing in Japan through establishing operations.
Their four practical “Setting Up in Japan” workshops
will focus on how to boost export sales by getting
inside the market.
Austrade has invited as guest speaker at these seminars
Mr. Terrie Lloyd, publisher of Jap@n Inc, and a well-known
Australian entrepreneur who has established eight businesses
in Japan over the last 20 years. Trade and investment
experts from Austrade and JETRO will be on hand to
advise on why getting inside the market works and how
best to do it.
Australia’s Senior Trade Commissioner in Tokyo,
Mr. Phil Ingram, said that even though Australian exporters
are doing well in Japan, the ones that are doing the
best are those that have established some sort of presence
inside the market to support their sales.
“A resurgent Japan means plenty of opportunities
for exporters, but getting inside the market and getting
closer to the customers can lead to even greater sales.
After many years of reforms and deflation, Japan is
not such an expensive country to set up a business
and the returns are definitely there to be had,” Mr.
Ingram said.
“Australian companies sold over $25 billion
in goods and services to Japan last year, more than
double that of the USA, Australia’s second largest
market.”
The seminars will be held in Brisbane (24 Aug), Sydney
(27 Aug), Melbourne (30 Aug) and Adelaide (31 Aug).
Desalination more palatable for WA Farmers
The Western Australian Farmers Federation Inc. (WAFarmers)
has welcomed the State Government’s announcement
that a desalination plant is to be built as the State’s
next major water source.
WAFarmers Senior Vice President and Property Rights
and Water Resource Security portfolio holder Dale Park
said that the announcement was a significant win for
WAFarmers as desalination was one of several options
put forward in the early consultation process on the
State Water Strategy.
“The Government’s proposal to extract
water from the South West Yarragadee would potentially
have disastrous outcomes for the dairy and horticulture
industries reliant on the aquifer for their ongoing
productivity and viability,” said Mr Park.
“WAFarmers continues to support the Government’s
research into the SW Yarragadee but not as a potential
supply source for metropolitan consumers. Social and
economic studies already conducted into the extraction
proposal have shown that the aquifer should be preserved
for the communities reliant on it.”
The Government has highlighted potential environmental
impacts as the primary reason for the move away from
the SW Yarragadee, but is reminded that the environment
is only one third of its sustainability equation. Economic
and social factors demand equal consideration.
“The projected financial imposition on consumers
of less than a dollar a week is miniscule when put
in perspective with the continued supply of high quality,
low cost horticultural and dairy products coming out
of the region. Importing these products to replace
lost production through farm water restrictions would
hit a consumer’s pocket much harder that the
desalination cost,” he said.
WAFarmers believes that several other options remain
that can contribute significantly to bolster the States
water supplies and will continue to work with the State
Government to pursue these outcomes and at the same
time improve the water resource security of its members.
Plankton poo key to global warming
Plankton waste could be the key to understanding how
much carbon dioxide our oceans can store, according
to Tasmanian researcher Dr Karin Beaumont.
"
We need to understand where and how carbon dioxide
is stored in the oceans. Part of the answer lies in
the poo of microscopic zooplankton: does it float or
does it sink?" said Karin.
"Heavy poo that sticks together and sinks to
the ocean floor is good. It locks up carbon dioxide
for thousands of years."
"Other poo that breaks up and floats near the
surface is not good. The carbon dioxide in this poo
can be re-released to the atmosphere, adding to the
Greenhouse Effect," says Karin, who conducted
her research as part of a PhD with the University of
Tasmania and the Australian Antarctic Division.
Around 25% of carbon taken up by the oceans is currently
stored in the deep-sea. "Knowing which plankton
contribute to this carbon export will help us understand
how changes in their abundance will influence the
greenhouse effect", says Karin.
As algae grow in the oceans, they take up carbon dioxide
- a powerful greenhouse gas. Zooplankton are tiny marine
animals that graze the algae.
Karin has discovered that the waste from the most
abundant plankton floats. And, there is currently 1500
million tones of protozoa, a type of zooplankton, in
the Southern Ocean alone.
|
