Contributor, ARR.News

"Australia is the sixth most forested country in the world but is a net importer of timber products. The current approach is not working if we want to continue to provide local timber products to support affordable housing and flow-on benefits to meet society’s needs. We are in effect, exporting our forest management challenges to other nations, when we have high environmental standards and highly skilled professionals and scientists to appropriately manage our resources locally": Dr Michelle Freeman, President of Forestry Australia.

In last week’s Federal Budget, the Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, announced a new levy on farmers to help raise an extra $1 billion over four years to help overhaul the nation’s biosecurity protections ... “Australian farmers are not the ones posing the incoming biosecurity threat, so why are they the ones specifically paying for it when every Australian gets the benefits of good biosecurity?”: Member for Western Victoria, Bev McArthur.

The Malinauskas Labor Government is delivering on its election commitment with the introduction of new laws for stronger penalties for people who disturb or destroy Aboriginal heritage ... The new laws will make the maximum penalty for the damaging, disturbing or interfering heritage offences $2 million for body corporates and $250,000 for individuals and/or 2 years prison.

A new plan developed by Gannawarra Shire Council in partnership with more than 30 agencies will guide the Gannawarra’s recovery from the October-December 2022 floods. The Gannawarra Municipal Flood Recovery Plan features 48 priority actions across 11 recovery target areas that Council and other agencies will work on to guide recovery efforts.

Powerlink has developed a new framework – the SuperGrid Landholder Payment Framework - that significantly boosts payments to landholders hosting new transmission infrastructure. Under the new framework, Queensland landholders hosting new transmission infrastructure will receive higher payments.

The Northern Territory is currently on show at the Northern Australia Defence Summit – a key industry event to promote opportunities and enhance support for the defence industry. The Northern Territory is positioned as a key enabler for defence in the Indo-Pacific region and the Northern Territory Government is undertaking a range of strategic investments to support a capable and resilient defence industry.

More South Australians will be able to access the Japanese Encephalitis Virus (JEV) vaccine, with eligibility now expanded even further. The expansion removes the requirement to be outdoors for four hours on most days for people living or engaging in outdoor flood recovery (clean-up) efforts in eligible high-risk areas adjacent to the River Murray.

From kindergarten to high school, Sunshine Coast students are turtle-y in love with turtles ... “Hatchlings are the most popular topic with the kids wanting to know if they can breathe under the sand, how they get out of the nest, what happens if they get left behind and if a mother turtle can find the hatchlings if the nest is relocated": Leisa Baldwin.

Boat operators are urged to take special care in the Tweed River, with several sightings of a dugong reported to Council over the past 12 months. While dugong are known to occur in Moreton Bay, the presence of one of these marine mammals in the Tweed is both unusual and exciting.

The Lockyer Valley knows only too well just what the impact of a severe weather event can look like – physically, mentally and emotionally. Following two severe flood events in 2022 alone, after bushfires and years of drought, Lockyer Valley Regional Council has forged important new partnerships to bring tangible benefits to the community.