Contributor, ARR.News

“Water use has drastically declined since the Basin Plan,” said NIC CEO, Zara Lowien “with one in three litres of irrigation water, now out of production and new Sustainable Diversion Limits (SDLs) set by the Basin Plan in force” ... “More water is no substitute for these projects. It’s a lose-lose, the environment can’t get the important projects, and communities and industries will further suffer from less water, unless alternatives are considered,” said Ms Lowien.

“Net zero means we have to completely change everything we do in a single generation, from how we drive, to what we eat and make ... There needs to be new modelling done on what the exact cost of net zero is. In Senate estimates, the government was unable to outline the cost of Australia reaching net zero. That is unacceptable. Australians deserve to know how much this radical proposal will cost them”: Senator Matt Canavan.

Negotiations to create a new western Queensland national park on Vergemont Station have been finalised ... The proposed 300,000-hectare national park ... will form part of a 1.5 million-hectare protected area corridor. ARR.News asked the department some further questions.

A new report by Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) reveals more than 1,500 people have come to the organisation since 2023 with complaints about social media and other digital platforms. The report, Digital platforms complaints insights, shows 71 per cent per cent of disputes are with the major tech companies Google, Microsoft, Apple, Hubbl, and Meta.

A major expansion of the Gippsland Water’s Regional Organics facility will increase capacity to turn food and garden organics into high-quality compost to boost the productivity of Victorian farms thanks to the Allan Labor and Albanese Labor Government. Minister for Environment Steve Dimopoulus announced the completion of a $12.9 million upgrade to the Gippsland Regional Organics Facility...

The Murray–Darling Basin Authority’s 2025 assurance report on the Sustainable Diversion Limit Adjustment Mechanism (SDLAM) has found that significant work remains to deliver a number of outstanding SDLAM projects, and many projects will not be delivered in time or at all. The SDLAM has a strict deadline of 31 December 2026 under the Basin Plan, and for any projects to be counted they must be complete and operational.

The Victorian Farmers Federation has welcomed the Victorian Government’s decision to freeze the Emergency Services Volunteer Levy for a further 2 years and increase the property value threshold for volunteer exemptions from $5m to $10m.

Gippsland Critical Minerals (GCM) will commence work on its Mining and Rehabilitation Demonstration Pit (MRDP) in early 2026 with the workplan formally approved by Resources Victoria, marking an important step forward in progressing the redesigned project ... “It is exciting to get the go ahead to commence this work which will give the community some real insight into our mining methods and how the project has changed”: GCM CEO Michelle Wood.

The Department of Health has confirmed the first detection of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) in mosquitoes for the 2025–26 season. The virus was found in a mosquito trap in the Horsham Rural City Council area, as part of Victoria's Arbovirus Disease Control Program.

WFI Insurance today shared concerning rural crime statistics in conjunction with the University of New England Centre for Rural Criminology, revealing 90 per cent of NSW farmers have experienced crime on farms, with around 30 per cent victimised 7 or more times. The crime statistics from UNE’s National Rural Crime Survey were highlighted on a special WFI rural crime podcast which aims to help farmers reduce their risk of being targeted by criminals.