Land & environment

Rodney Stevens. 'Don't drown our town...Stop the fill'. Those were the chants that echoed across Ford Park and the Yamba Markets on Sunday as more than 100 concerned residents donned red and held up 'Stop the fill' signs to protest against the continual parade of b-doubles dumping fill for floodplain developments ... "They've written to council, they've contacted council over the years about the drainage, about the floodwater in their homes, about the lack of an overall plan and nothing happens."

The forestry sector in Tasmania supports more than 5,700 direct and indirect jobs, many of which are in our rural and regional communities. Our forestry industry delivers a wide range of renewable products which are essential to the community.

Drone technology is being used to inspect the Tweed’s 40 water reservoirs, saving Council time and money. The new technology has been introduced in recent weeks as a way to more easily scan for information about the structure and quality of the water held in each reservoir ... “We can now conduct inspections of the reservoirs ourselves, on the ground, straight away and at very low cost,”: Water and Wastewater operations manager Brie Jowett

This year Forestry Corporation will plant around 14.7 million seedlings to grow timber that builds the homes, houses and infrastructure of Australia in forests. That’s the equivalent of 28 trees planted every single minute of every day throughout 2022 and a substantial contribution to the state’s communities, economy, building industry and carbon sequestration: Forestry Corp NSW CEO, Anshul Chaudhary. 

The turmoil in the native forest industry is deepening, with Australian Paper turning to recycle more paper as its hardwood timber supply dwindles, while a sawmill in the state’s far east is due to close because it has no timber. Recent developments have underlined the crisis facing the Gippsland industry.

Dynamic sustainable farming duo Sylvia Leighton and Peter McKenzie were awarded the 2022 Australian Government Landcare Farming award for their work on Wilyun Pools Farm, a 1214ha property near Wellstead on the south coast of Western Australia ... “Sylvia and Peter serve as an inspiration to the farming community across Australia. Their motto of ‘seeking balance’ exemplifies what landcare farming is all about: production, community and environment,”: Minister for Agriculture Senator Murray Watt

A new world-class wildlife hospital at Werribee Open Range Zoo is now fully operational to treat sick and injured wildlife in Victoria’s western region as part of the response to the devastating 2019/20 Black Summer bushfires. Minister for the Environment and Climate Action Lily D’Ambrosio announced the completion of the RSPCA Koala Ward at Werribee Open Range Zoo, which will increase capacity to provide expert, compassionate care for sick and injured koalas, native birds, reptiles and mammals in Victoria’s western regions.

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews across the State are being trained to use state-of-the-art drone technology to assist in firefighting operations and other emergencies ... The RPAS are equipped with thermal imaging cameras and laser technology that can detect variable heat temperatures, identify people or animals under threat in a fire zone and measure the size of an area impacted by fire.

Celebrate the amazing environment, biodiversity and threatened species that call the Gloucester region home this September as part of the Gloucester Wild Festival. Australia is home to more than 500,000 animal and plant species, many of which are found nowhere else in the world. In NSW there are close to 1000 species at risk of extinction, 116 of which are located in the Gloucester region.

The current shooting, hacking up and burying of Brumby carcasses under piles of branches in the Bogong High Plains, the Victorian Alpine National Park and the Barmah National Park should be stopped immediately. A motion in the Victorian Parliament passed last week, voting in favour of cancelling current, and planned, aerial and ground shooting of Brumbies ... “This is the result that we have been fighting hard to achieve for years now”: Bev McArthur, Member for Western Victoria.

Virginia Gale. On President Beth Gale’s patio we all gathered together for a quick meeting as there wasn’t a lot to report. We were then joined by Skye MacPherson, Project Coordinator for South Eastern Red Tailed Black Cockatoos (Calyptorhynchus banksii) ... The Red Tailed Black Cockatoo are on the endangered list and there are about 1500 in the South East.

Chris Oldfield. The birds, bats and frogs of Ramsar-listed Bool Lagoon have their own calls and stories. Those stories will be shared when Bool Lagoon and Hacks Lagoon (currently dry) next have water. ... “So, finding a way of sharing that site with people – it's important to me. It seemed like a good fit to be doing environmental eco tours at Bool Lagoon to share that wonderful site with people”: Dr Abigail Goodman.

The presence of Varroa Mite (a parasite of adult honey bees that weakens and kills colonies and can also transmit viruses) has exacerbated and magnified the regular stresses of beekeeping in Australia ... “Lead by beekeeper volunteers from around Australia, the eradication effort is progressing well; however, if NSW can't contain Varroa Mite, then it will eventually be everywhere in time, including Victoria”: Owner and Managing Director of Warral Maldon, Lindsay Callaway.

Lee Mead. Over the past 16 years, the Tarrangower Cactus Control Group has achieved remarkable success in increasing knowledge about wheel cactus in our local area, and how to keep the problem under control. Now, in this new era of change, the TCCG Committee has decided to plan some different approaches and objectives for our future.

Mr Beasley’s divisive and abrasive approach to the River Murray is illustrated in his 2021 book, Dead In The Water ... "A successful advocacy role in the Murray-Darling Basin requires having the confidence of the Basin communities – which include irrigators, other businesses, and the public. I’m not convinced that appointing a Sydney lawyer, who believes water buybacks are the only way forward, will wash with these communities" : Opposition Minister for Water Resources and the River Murray Nicola Centofanti.

Prominent barrister and author, Richard Beasley SC, has been appointed South Australia’s Commissioner for the River Murray ... "Having a Commissioner for the River Murray sends a clear message to upstream states that South Australia is serious about defending its water rights, including the 450 gigalitres promised but not delivered": SA Minister for Climate, Environment and Water, Susan Close MP

There has been much said about the Murray-Darling Basin Authority over the 10 years of Basin Plan implementation ... The latest attempt by the Murray-Darling Basin Authority to justify the hydraulic land clearing and loss of capacity of the Murray River needs to be called out for what it is – mismanagement in breach of the 2007 Water Act.

Kirstin Nicholson. Leitchville’s Matthew Hawken is part of a new program designed to strengthen the future of regional communities through capacity building and collaboration. The Drought Resilience Leaders Development Program is an initiative of the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund offered in 12 regions around Australia. The Mallee region program includes 25 people working in agriculture, financial service providers, irrigators and self-employed business consultants.

A plan to have community at the forefront of co-design was the feature of Western Murray Land Improvement Group’s (WMLIG) Reconnecting River Country Program (RRCP) Wakool presentation ... During the night, attendees were walked through the RRCP mapping tool. The maps are generated through computer modelling for various flow options from 15,000 megalitres per day up to 40,000ML/D.

25 years ago, August 1997. For the second year in succession Allora won gold in the Tidy Towns Environmental Awards in Category D (population 801-1500). Allora Action Association president Peter Briggs said the whole community contributed towards the winning of the award and that the Warwick Shire Council workers played their part by maintaining the parks and gardens.

A diagnostic tool using nano technology to rapidly detect high-risk plant pests and pathogens in the field will undergo feasibility testing in a biosecurity innovation pilot kicking off this month. The lab-on-a-chip project will investigate if portable nano-biosensors improve the efficiency of plant disease detection at Australian borders and in-field surveillance.