Philip Hopkins
64 POSTS
Ag group provides helping hand
It was the drought about a decade ago that the penny finally dropped for farmers in East and Central Gippsland. The tough times had brought people together and looking forward, the question on many farmers’ mind was ‘How to boost farm production in the good times better to cope with the tough times?’ ... in 2018-19 the Gippsland Agricultural Group was formed ...
Orbost corn popped across globe
In many European countries right now - Spain, France, Hungary and Poland - farmers are just putting the finishing touches on planting their sweet corn. Similar plantings occur in other parts of the world - from South Africa to Chile, Uruguay and New Zealand - at a different time of the year. They have one key thing in common: they source their sweet corn seeds from Snowy River Seeds in Orbost.
Active management the only way to reduce risk: Tony Bartlett
Dr Tony Bartlett. The claims in my critique of research published by academics David Lindenmayer, Philip Zylstra and others are not demonstrably false and do not misrepresent scientific evidence. They are based on my own very considerable experience in forest management as well as careful consideration of both their research and the much wider body of Australian bushfire science ... There is a very strong body of existing knowledge about forest fire management in Australia, much of which is based on decades of on-ground research trials and the analysis of outcomes from major bushfires.
Committed question
The Coalition before the election planned to keep its nuclear power policy if it lost, but the huge election defeat may now put this intention under scrutiny. This comes as just days before the election, a nuclear expert reconfirmed that a nuclear station in the Latrobe Valley would cost $10 billion, and highlighted China's new status as the world's largest user of domestic nuclear energy.
Five years of data in one application
Star of the South is confident of lodging the environmental approval applications this year for its proposed windfarm offshore from Gippsland. This follows the state government releasing the latest guidelines to implement the offshore wind projects.
Seven years for nuclear: Parker
A 1000 megawatt nuclear power station using South Korean expertise could be built in the Latrobe Valley in seven years, with a fleet possibly in 11 years, at an estimated cost of $10 billion each, according to an Australian nuclear expert, Robert Parker.
Burning off the answer to intensity
A major study after the devastating 2019/20 wildfires in Victoria and New South Wales found that prescribed burning dramatically reduced the intensity of the fires, according to a bushfire expert. Dr Tony Bartlett, a winner of the Australian Fire Service Medal (ATSM), said after 2019/20, a major study was undertaken to test the effectiveness of prescribed (fuel reduction) burning at a landscape scale in terms of reducing the severity of the wildfire in a wide range of forest ecosystems.
Confidence growing for new gas field
Lakes Blue Energy is increasingly confident that within a few months, its 21-year struggle to get a new big onshore gas field in South Gippsland up and running, will come to fruition. The company, previously Lakes Oil, has submitted plans to the state government for the Wombat 5 gas well, located a few kilometres west of Seaspray.
France’s timber lesson
On the first anniversary of the Victorian state government’s closure of Gippsland’s native forest industry, France’s rebuilt historic Notre-Dame Cathedral has been completed in all its glory – and French timber was at the heart of this historic project. The oak hardwood timber used came from trees in French forests between 80-150 years old, with some more than 200-years-old.
Secure the food supply
All agricultural land in Victoria should be mapped and strategic land use planning established to protect farmland in major areas such as Gippsland, according to a landmark report by a Victorian parliamentary committee. This was one of 33 recommendations and 29 findings in a report ‘Securing Victoria’s Food Supply’ by the Legislative Assembly Environment and Planning Committee.
