The Editor
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Vandalism on the rise as school holidays begin
Rockhampton residents have embraced the school holidays with families out and about enjoying events, activities, and facilities in the Rockhampton Region. School holidays are meant to be an exciting and wonderful time of the year, but unfortunately, a spike in vandalism and graffiti is putting a dampener on the festivities.
Newell Highway reopens south of Forbes: Farraway
The Newell Highway has reopened between Forbes and West Wyalong after flood waters and extensive damage forced a 49-day closure. Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Sam Farraway said it was a credit to the Transport for NSW crews who worked around the clock to have the highway open before Christmas for families looking forward to spending the festive season with loved ones.
Turbulent year for cotton and wool: Rabobank
International markets for wool and cotton have seen much volatility through the course of 2022 – with the lingering impacts of Covid and escalated geopolitical and economic uncertainty affecting the trade – and the year ahead could be equally turbulent, agribusiness banking specialist Rabobank says in a new industry podcast.
As 2022 draws to a close, what’s ahead for ag commodities in 2023: NAB
Despite agricultural commodity prices retreating last month to the same level as November 2021, many Australian producers are seeing their most profitable period in living memory as 2022 draws to a close. Released on 19 December 2022, NAB’s December Rural Commodities Wrap reports the bank’s Rural Commodities Index was down 2.6% in November on the back of increasing volatility in livestock and grain markets.
Shire of Ashburton first in Western Australia to use Guardian Emergency Dashboard
The Shire of Ashburton is the first local government in Western Australia to join forces with Queensland based company QIT Plus to bring a collated Emergency Dashboard resource to the community ... Having resources such as road conditions, power outages, weather warnings, river heights, airport schedules, boating forecasts, quick links and more on one accessible platform will help to inform the community and highlight how to prepare for incidents and events that impact the area.
Seeing double: critically endangered KI Dunnart detections increases three years post-wildfires
Conservationists are feeling hopeful for the future of the endangered Kangaroo Island Dunnart for the first time since the 2019/20 Black Summer fires. The newfound optimism comes after a large increase in detections of the species within the feral predator-free Western River Refuge.
Federal Labor snubs farmers: VFF
The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) says Federal Water Minister Tanya Plibersek is continuing to ignore farmers. VFF Water Council Chair Andrew Leahy said despite multiple attempts by the VFF to meet with the Commonwealth, Minister Plibersek’s key water adviser and Murray Darling Basin Authority staff were in Shepparton, but did not meet farmers. “There is no group more impacted by the Basin Plan than farmers and the Commonwealth has chosen to ignore us.”
Susan Close skips the country as River communities brace for flood devastation: Centofanti
Water Minister Susan Close has defied Peter Malinauskas’ order to visit River communities once a week in the lead up to the extraordinary flood event, instead favouring a month-long overseas holiday – her third international trip in the past three months. With water levels expected to peak in the coming weeks and more homes and businesses becoming inundated, the Opposition questions the timing and length of the holiday.
PALM scheme leaves smaller growers behind: NFF
The National Farmers’ Federation’s (NFF) Horticulture Council is calling on the Federal Government to ensure its much-heralded solution to the growing workforce crisis works for the whole of the sector. Following Covid-19 disruptions, there was a swift shift towards a greater reliance on the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme, but with that came headaches for smaller employers who previously relied mostly on backpackers.
Self-thinning forest understoreys and wildfire debate – closing question
In light of the discussion over many submissions on the topic of self-thinning forest understoreys and wildfire from our notable commentators - Jack Bradshaw, Philip Zylstra, Roger Underwood and Peter Rutherford - and the continuing differences of opinion, each was asked the following question, with a view to concluding the debate, at least for the time being, and hopefully on a constructive note: What more might it be useful to explore?
