☕️ Major health risks from gas plants in NT, revealed

I just went back to see if Zara upheld my Wednesday Trivia™ tradition and I can see she… did not. Is it appropriate to publicly call out your co-founder in the newsletter they created? I guess there’s one way to find out!

Anyhoo. Back to regular programming! Here’s today’s trivia question: What is the dot over a lowercase “i” or “j” called? Answer is in the titbit!

The quote: “China is a good friend of the Solomon Islands, but this is not something a friend does. This is not good in our region.”
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Matthew Wale on China’s test missile launch in the Pacific Ocean on Monday afternoon.

The stat: 1 in 4. The number of image-based child sexual abuse cases where AI is used, according to Adelaide University research. The study also found one in 25 young Australians has experienced, or has a close friend who has experienced, online sexual victimisation through AI before the age of 18. 1800RESPECT: 1800 737 732.

The big question:

Yesterday’s results: A little under half (49%) of you think it was right for the PM to apologise for his comments about Kylie Minogue, while another 42% don’t think he should have apologised, and the rest don’t know. Thanks for voting - your responses inform TDA's journalism and research. [2,100 votes].

Together with AAP.

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Entries close 22 July, 11:59pm AEST – need we say more?

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Melbourne Australian rules footballer Nathan Fitzgerald has died, two days after sustaining a head injury during a club match.

The 27-year-old teacher is believed to have suffered several successive head knocks, including hitting his head on a covered cricket pitch after a heavy fall.

Mernda Central College, where Fitzgerald taught, said he was “an exceptional young man who brought warmth, energy, kindness and genuine care to every part of his life.”

Fitzgerald was playing for Epping Football Netball Club’s (FNC) reserves team on Saturday.

During the match, it’s believed he clashed heads with another player, then sustained a boot or knee to the head before falling to the ground.

He struck his head on the synthetic cricket pitch in the centre of the field, which has a concrete base and is harder than the surrounding grass.

Fitzgerald was taken to hospital, and on Sunday, Epping FNC said he was receiving “end-of-life care”. On Monday evening, the club announced that Fitzgerald had died.

Mernda Central College, where he was a teacher, also paid tribute, describing him as a “deeply valued member of our school community,” who “represented the very best of education. He cared deeply about young people, built strong and meaningful relationships, and made those around him feel seen, supported and valued”.

Epping FNC has also launched a GoFundMe for Fitzgerald's family, which had raised more than $105,000 as of Tuesday afternoon.

Fitzgerald’s death has sparked a broader conversation about using cricket pitches for other sports, including AFL.

Epping FNC president Luke De Vincentis told ABC radio: “We have to be able to use these facilities for multiple purposes, but the risk does come that there is quite a hard strip of surface in the middle of the ground.”

A WorkSafe Victoria spokesperson said they have been notified and “inspectors will make inquiries to determine what further action may be required.”

To learn more about the rise of head injuries in Aussie Rules and AFL, listen to today’s podcast. Listen or watch on Apple here, Spotify here, or YouTube here.

Reporting by Emily Donohoe.

🎧 On today’s TDA podcast, features editor Emma and editor-in-chief Billi explore whether Aussie rules and the AFL can keep players safe. Listen or watch on Apple here, Spotify here, or YouTube here.

💶 What’s driving the popularity of ETFs? You can sign up to TDA Finance here for an explainer in your inbox this morning.

Documents released under Freedom of Information laws reveal senior doctors warned the NT Government in 2024 that emissions from two gas plants near Darwin could increase residents’ risk of cancer.

However, the Government did not agree to expand air quality monitoring until almost two years later.

The warning centred on two major gas facilities near Darwin which residents have questioned for years.

A key concern surrounding the Middle Arm precinct is the release of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), a group of air pollutants emitted during gas processing.

Short-term exposure to one of these pollutants, benzene, has been linked to worsened asthma and increased heart attack risk. Long-term exposure can increase the risk of leukaemia and other cancers.

The World Health Organisation says there is no safe level of benzene exposure. However, the NT Chief Health Officer said the current risk to human health in Darwin is “very low”.

Freedom of Information (FOI) laws allow anyone to request access to government documents, including internal emails, letters and briefings that are not otherwise made public.

Climate Integrity, a not-for-profit research and advocacy organisation, lodged an FOI request with the NT Government seeking correspondence relating to a 2024 warning from senior doctors about the risk of benzene and other VOCs to the local community. Here’s the timeline:

September 2024 - Senior doctors from a medical advisory committee at Royal Darwin and Palmerston hospitals write directly to newly elected Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro. Co-chairs Dr Adrienne Deans and Dr Kaspar Wilson warn that INPEX’s gas plant at Middle Arm is “emitting dangerous amounts of toxic pollution” with no pollution limits in place.

October 2024 - An email chain uncovered by the FOI request shows NT Health's Chief Health Officer Dr Christine Connors had intervened to stop the Chief Minister replying directly. Dr Connors wrote that it is “not the role or remit” of the doctors to write to the Chief Minister. She warned a direct reply would encourage them to keep “bypassing internal processes”. The letter was ultimately redirected to the Department of Health. The deadline for a reply passed multiple times. A senior health official internally flagged that the Department's draft response was missing “a specific commitment to air tox monitoring.”

November 2024 - Nearly two months after the doctors’ original letter, Dr Connors replies on behalf of NT Health. The official response makes no firm commitment to monitor for benzene or other VOCs.

October 2025 - INPEX admitted it had underestimated its own benzene emissions. A 2024 estimate of 4.12 tonnes of benzene was later revised to 556.9 tonnes, revealing an underreporting of more than 13,000%. An independent review later found “fundamental deficiencies” in INPEX's emissions calculations, dating back to when the plant opened in 2018.

June 2026 - Frustrated by the lack of independent data on VOCs, Darwin residents formed a group called Community Healthy Air NT and launched a fundraiser for their own mobile air monitoring equipment. They raised over $100,000. The next day, the NT Government announced plans for its own expanded air quality testing in Darwin.

Days after announcing expanded air quality testing, the Northern Territory Environment Protection Authority approved a permit extension for Santos. It will allow the company to emit toxic gases and VOCs, including benzene, for an extra 26 days each year. Santos already has permission to emit for 36 days each year.

Darwin paediatrician Dr Louise Woodward welcomed the Government’s commitment to expand air quality monitoring, but told TDA: “It’s not enough just to measure the pollution, they actually have to stop these companies from producing the pollution in the first place”.

Reporting by Elliot Lawry.

Claude, the AI for scientific discovery

Researchers at Australia's Garvan Institute are partnering with Claude to do what wasn't possible before: analyse genomic data at massive scale to understand how our genes cause rare diseases, and accelerate treatments to cure them. When science and AI come together, the future of human health gets a little brighter.

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Three brothers, aged 8, 11, and 13, have been advocating for reform, after they were told they’d have to spend about $US25 a week ($AU40) to run a summer lemonade stand. Their efforts have led to a proposed amendment to the Michigan food act, which would allow children to run temporary stalls on private property. Under the conditions, kids will only be able to sell lemonade or other non-alcoholic beverages that do not need to be temperature-controlled for safety. Earnings must also be below $US5,000 a year. The reform has already passed Michigan’s House of Representatives with unanimous support, and is expected to be approved by the Senate later this week.

Reporting by Emma Gillespie.

Dream job alert for a very specific type of person - The Daily Mail U.S. is hiring a dedicated influencer reporter.

They’ll need to be “a trailblazing reporter [who] will spot stories others miss: a single deleted comment, a telling crop in a brand photo, a subtle shift in follower count.”

Here’s hoping the lucky candidate finally gets the Unwell Network story out of Alix Earle. It’s been months! (If you don’t know what we’re talking about, you’re life is probably better for it.)

Reporting by Lucy Tassell.

Trivia question answer: A tittle.