BWC seeks to recoup costs
Michelle Daw. Barunga West Council is looking to recoup up to $305,000 a year in expenses and lost income associated with council land and buildings ... The audit covered council land use and unmade road reserves for cropping, grant payments and public liability as well as personal accident insurance premiums for progress associations and groups. Payment of water and power bills and building insurance for buildings not owned or used by council, council mowing the ovals at the Bute and Port Broughton sports clubs, and council’s community grants program were also audited.
Draft corridor for VNI West narrows area of interest: TCV
Transmission Company Victoria (TCV) has ... released the draft corridor for the Victorian component of the VNI West transmission line project. TCV has narrowed the area of interest for the proposed transmission line to width of about 2km.
Wake up Australia – Renewable energy won’t save the planet if it costs the earth: Robert Onfray
Robert Onfray. I am not sure many people are fully aware of the massive engineering changes currently underway in our rural landscape. The changes are on a scale never attempted in this country before, and it is swallowing obscene amounts of money for minimal benefit and, indeed, no proof it will improve the climate ... Australian Rural & Regional News will open a page for discussion on this comprehensive and provocative article on the renewable energy transition.
QFF’s energy saving program expands to Toowoomba and Western Downs regions
The Queensland Farmers’ Federation (QFF) are pleased to announce the expansion of their free energy saving program, Energy Southern Queensland (EnergySQ), to the Toowoomba and Western Downs regional council areas ... The expansion of the program will now give access to farms in all four regional councils areas supported to develop an Energy and Carbon Action Plan specific to their operation.
Charging ahead on Yorke Peninsula
Michelle Daw. The RAA is set to install its second electric vehicle charging station on Yorke Peninsula, part of a planned total of eight within the region. Barunga West Council has accepted an offer by the RAA to replace its two existing Teslabranded chargers on Harvey Street, next to the Port Broughton council chambers by the end of the year.
Land sale puts history in jeopardy
Will Hunter. It is feared a historic crane located on an allotment listed for sale as part of a Department for Infrastructure and Transport land disposal in Port Wakefield may be at risk. The allotments … were listed for sale with Ray White Yorke Peninsula after Wakefield Regional Council advised DIT it had no interest in acquiring any of the land identified for disposal.
Immigration – Something is not right
Imagine building half of Perth in three years because that's what's needed to accommodate the nearly one million people that are expected to arrive between 2022 and 2025 ... No doubt, some will trek inland to the smaller country towns but don't expect them to stay long as the Federal government has recently moved to introduce new visa rights making it easier for migrants who have taken one of the regional work visas to bail from the bush and retreat to the big cities, leaving the businesses that sponsored them in the lurch.
Innovative project aims to deliver region’s first community battery
The Mildura region could soon boast its first community battery following the launch of an innovative regional project. The Regional Greenhouse Alliance Neighbourhood Battery Investigation Project aims to develop investment-ready business cases for single community batteries at 18 locations across regional Victoria, including Mildura.
Road to recovery
Restoration works by the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) have begun on Cambooya Connection Road, with other roads in the local area to follow ... A TMR spokesperson said the Department is undertaking works on these roads to repair damage caused by several significant rainfall events between November 2021 and May 2022.
Council puts case for a special rate variation
General Manager George Cowan highlighted issues around the council’s financial position at last week’s Council meeting and sought a resolution to proceed to community consultation on a potential application for a proposed permanent Special Variation (SV) ... representing a cumulative Special Variation of 48.1 per cent over two years. "Some of the causes of this position have been building progressively over a long period and some are much more recent ..."
Basis for rate variation explained
A report presented to the Narrandera Shire Council last week provided a detailed analysis of Council’s current and long-term financial position and outlined drivers for those outcomes. It was tabled together with the recommendation for a rate variation application that will now go to the ratepayers of the shire for consideration. The report identified implications for service levels and impact on residents.
Cheap power push watered down
Touted as the biggest thing since irrigation by Gannawarra Shire Council mayor, Charlie Gillingham, the VNI West project is set to stamp its 70-metre-high 500KV power lines across the landscape and skyline. One of the project’s biggest advocates has been Gannawarra Shire Council (GSC) itself with a transmission company spokesperson confirming the only reason the project is “this far west” has been the Council’s push for a terminal station to sprout an explosion in wind and solar farm.
Nhill Lake bore update
Nhill Free Press and Kaniva Times contacted GWM water for an update on the Nhill Lake’s Bore. A new lakeside bore at Nhill Lake will replace the existing infrastructure and secure a more reliable water supply for the lake.
Southern Wimmera and Northeast Pyrenees Pipeline moves another step forward
GWMWater, in partnership with Pyrenees Shire Council, has been investigating the feasibility of extending the Wimmera Mallee Pipeline to provide water to rural properties in parts of the Pyrenees, Northern Grampians and Central Goldfields Shires.
New Legana Primary School making headway: Jaensch
Construction of the new Legana Primary School is well underway, with steel and timber framing for the general learning area buildings largely completed and preparation of the slab for the administration building now in progress ... “The new school is expected to open its doors in 2025 to students from the Legana and Grindelwald areas": Minister for Education, Children and Youth, Roger Jaensch.
Moah Creek Wind Farm reaches key development milestones: Energy Estate
The Moah Creek Wind Farm project has recently reached two development milestones. Firstly, it has been granted planning approval from the Queensland State Assessment and Referral Agency ... consent from the Queensland Government under the Planning Act 2016 for the construction of the wind farm and its associated vegetation clearing.
Supply chain inefficiencies hold back Australian grains industry: GrainGrowers
The ability of the Australian grains industry to compete internationally is being seriously hampered by supply chain inefficiencies, with recent record harvests highlighting a need for more capacity in the current network, a GrainGrowers commissioned report has found. The ‘Connecting the Dots: Improving Australian Grain Supply Chain Efficiency’ report was compiled by independent global strategy consultancy LEK.
Ribbon cut on mighty Bells Creek Arterial Road: Palaszczuk, Bailey
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey and Member for Caloundra Jason Hunt officially opened the eight kilometre extension of Bells Creek Arterial Road, completing the 11.9km link between the Bruce Highway and Caloundra Road.
Unfunded concept design includes Pipidinny Rd intersection
A concept design to extend the dual carriageway of Wanneroo Rd to include the Pipidinny Rd intersection has been completed, according to Main Roads WA. “Main Roads completed a concept design for the extension of the dual carriageway of Wanneroo Rd just south of Bernard Rd North to just north of Pipidinny Rd in 2021 however, this is not currently funded for construction,’’ a Main Roads spokesperson said.
Farmers welcome new powerline inquiry: NSW Farmers
The state’s peak farming body has welcomed a new Parliamentary Committee to re-examine underground transmission lines following strong community outrage. A recent government-dominated review into undergrounding high-voltage transmission lines ignored community concerns and strong opposition from the farming sector, recommending enormous above-ground towers and powerlines...
Stakeholders tour youth centre a week ahead of soft launch
Local stakeholders were invited for a tour of the Tennant Creek Youth Centre a week ahead of its soft opening next Friday. The Youth Centre will open just in time for the school holidays at a soft opening from 3pm next Friday afternoon with a disco, laser tag, games and action on the ninja course.
Mount Isa to host nuclear power forum: Katter
Mount Isa will next month host a first of its kind, community-led event discussing Australia’s energy future, with a particular focus on nuclear power technology. The Mount Isa Nuclear Power Forum: “What if we went nuclear?” is being staged by Katter’s Australian Party Leader (KAP) and Traeger MP Robbie Katter, who has promised a “frank discussion around the possibilities of nuclear power production in outback Australia”.
