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The report highlights the complexities of water management and notes that each Basin government holds information about rules, entitlements, allocations, and environmental water - there is no single source of information. This is something the Inspector-General has noticed as part of a trend, with states operating under their individual jurisdictional powers.

In the last quarter of 2021, MainFM’s Queer and Now successfully produced a nine-part podcast titled ‘Pride Across the Ages’ ... the series is an incredibly moving, challenging, heartfelt, funny, honest and raw collection of stories from the LGBTIQA+ community ‘across the ages' who call Central Victoria and the towns of Mount Alexander Shire home.

The NSW Government has launched two new groundbreaking projects to encourage landholders and farmers to invest in sustainable timber production as part of their land management practices. The Forest Stewardship Program and Farm Forestry Certification Pilot are the first of their kind in Australia and mark a new era in sustainably managed forestry on private land in NSW.

Patricia Gill. Noongar cultural burning may offer historical cues for contemporary fire protection but these cannot be relied on to produce a fire resilient landscape. So said environmental historian Professor Andrea Gaynor at the Royal WA Historical Society Conference ... Prof. Gaynor said Noongar burning practices belonged to a mobile culture and were never intended to protect a sedentary society in a landscape which had been subjected to logging, farming and urban development.

After a two-year hiatus the national economy benefited from a $100 million injection from the biggest and most successful Henty Machinery Field Days on record ... Held on September 20-22, the 59th annual field days featured 14km of outdoor shop fronts from over 800 exhibitors on over 1200 sites.

The recent NSW Legislative Council Committee investigating the long-term sustainability and future of the timber and forest products industry has recognised the value that collaboration brings to outcomes ... The committee commended WMLIG for its efforts to recover and respond to the various changes impacting its region by working together to build a 'healthy working forest' and were encouraged to hear about wood waste and crop residue initiatives as well as recycling programs.

Farmers and landholders in the Riverina are having their say on Inland Rail, according to NSW Farmers. NSW Farmers Treasurer and Inland Rail Taskforce chair Peter Wilson said there must be benefit for landowners and the broader farming community if railway lines were to cut properties in half.

Cries of “make sure our TAFE is here to stay,” rose high in the air as staff and members of the NSW Teachers Federation from Grafton TAFE joined hundreds of their colleagues across the state on September 21, holding a stop work meeting to voice their concerns regarding uncompetitive salaries, exploitation of casual employees, and untenable workloads.

Rodney Stevens. Booming boat sales and above 90 per cent occupancy has Yamba Marina looking to expand its berths from 95 to 145, enhancing the Clarence River’s reputation as a premier boating destination. Yamba Marina owners Peter Sutton and Kay Cottee said they are looking towards their biggest expansion since they took over the marina.

A small South East Queensland council holds grave concerns over the future of their community as Inland Rail proceeds full steam ahead with plans to rip through the heart of their towns ... “We have been raising our concerns since this project was first announced and continue to advocate for our community in our ongoing objection to the unreasonable impacts of Inland Rail": Lockyer Valley Regional Council Mayor, Cr Tanya Milligan.

Samuel Davis. A man who has experienced one too many encounters with crocs in Cape York has blasted the publisher of a “dangerous” video that shows the apex predator being fed out of the side of a boat. In a 12-second clip posted to Facebook, a saltwater croc snatches a fish tossed at its snout by fishermen as the vessel nears a muddy mangrove.

Years of drought in northern New South Wales led Gunnedah region’s Sam Conway to establish an innovative ‘co-farming’ business model to reduce production risk for small to mid-sized broadacre farmers ... The Co-Farm model revolves around small to mid-sized “passive” landholders contributing their land into a joint venture, where operating expenses and profits are shared on a percentage basis.

The Australian Livestock and Rural Transporters Association (ALRTA) has acknowledged the recent tabling in the Australian Senate of animal welfare incident reports occurring at export abattoirs in 2020 and 2021. Chair of the ALRTA National Driver and Animal Welfare Committee, Graeme Hoare, said that the association welcomes the very high compliance rate but will continue working to eliminate welfare incidents entirely.

Central Queensland is stepping up in Queensland’s renewable energy revolution with cheap, clean energy now being exported via a new grid connected battery at Tanby, south of Yeppoon ... “It means renewable energy made during Central Queensland’s many sunny days can be stored to use during peak demand periods in the evening": Deputy Premier and State Development Minister Steven Miles .

‘Room 4 a Roomie’ is an innovative pilot project which aims to address an accommodation shortage within the Kingston District Council area. We are partnering with Ray White Kingston to match potential tenants with suitable accommodation.

The Chief Executive Officer of an Aboriginal corporation in Tennant Creek has labelled Westpac’s sudden closure of its branch as an abandonment of the Barkly’s Indigenous community. Papulu Apparr-Kari Aboriginal Corporation (PAK) has been a long-time customer of Westpac, also helping out its Indigenous customers without identification to use its bank services.

Regional Australians angry over continued bank closures have a chance to have their voice heard in federal parliament. The Regional’s Australian parliamentary petition calling for an immediate moratorium on closures and a new banking inquiry has been approved and can be signed online until 12.29am on October 6. It comes as the number of regional ‘big four’ banks looks set to slip below 1000 by the end of the year, a reduction of nearly two thirds of their network since 1975.

Angela Willsmore. Falls in older people are a serious health concern. In South Australia, SA Health reported in a March 2020 report that 47 people are admitted to an SA public hospital every day due to an injury caused by a fall ... Earlier this year, Good Country Physiotherapy commenced a falls prevention pilot program at Longridge Aged Care.