Restdown’s sustainable tourism recognised
Jo and Don Hearn from Restdown Winery and Jungle Lane Beef Co and their business were recently recognised as part of Tourism Australia’s new international marketing campaign on sustainable tourism, and Tourism NSW has also included them in the top 10 things to do along the Murray River, alongside the iconic Mungo National Park.
Ocean-based Carbon Markets Australia and New Zealand – webinar, 28 March 2022
Researchers, Investors, Project Developers and industry participants all play an important role to scale up ocean carbon project development that will bring new innovation to enable large scale emissions reduction, plus many co-benefits such as biodiversity and jobs.
Monitoring the effects of wildfire on water, vegetation and biodiversity: Frank Batini
The very large wildfire in the Perth hills catchments in January 2005 had the potential for severe consequences on water quality in domestic water supply reservoirs ... full recovery will take some decades. This large fire was eventually contained when it reached areas that had been prescribed burnt and carried low fuels.
I’m still lost
For a moment, can we establish that if I was to save the environment it would require a net benefit? This means that I save more environment than I destroy, the environmental assets and ecosystem function are greater than the baseline of where we began. In watching Australia’s water policy develop, be implemented and progress, I often find myself lost or searching for some understanding of how we got here. “We wonder why a frog near a coal mine is environmental matter of national significance, yet a 47,000 hectare wetland is not. 220,000 bird movements a year is a national treasure and now the testimony in this place is the state and federal governments are going to murder Menindee,” was a question put forward by Senator Malcolm Roberts at a recent Federal Estimates hearing on water.
Better use of water for the environment – not more buybacks: Pitt, Ley, Davey
“Increasing the capacity of the existing channel escapes will mean environmental water can fill wetlands and creeks that would otherwise only get wet during large over bank flows ... We put an end to buybacks because of the damage they have done to regions like this – stretching beyond the individual farmgate and impacting on the efficiency or whole irrigation networks”: Keith Pitt, Minister for Resources and Water.
Forty local jobs up for grabs at Rookwood Weir
Central Queensland workers stand to benefit with a number of jobs soon to be up for grabs as part of the $367.2 million Rookwood Weir project ... Water from the weir will be available for sale later this year as part of the second stage of the tender process.
Putting Emu Creek Dam on the table
Toowoomba Regional Council moved a motion on 14 March to ensure Emu Creek Dam is firmly on the State Government’s radar as an option for future water. With the State Government undertaking work on a Regional Water Assessment, Toowoomba Regional Council Mayor Paul Antonio said it was vital Emu Creek Dam was considered as part of this assessment.
New ebook to provide grower resource for soil water repellence
“Book 7 focuses on the impact, expression, diagnosis and management of water repellence in agricultural soil, supported by evidence-based case studies and farmer experiences”: SoilsWest co-director and Murdoch University Associate Professor Frances Hoyle.
Improving water security
A study is currently underway to determine if excess water from the region’s drainage network could be stored in aquifers for the benefit of local primary industries. The Limestone Coast Landscape Board (LCLB) and Primary Producers Sustainable Water Group are together investigating the feasibility of this arrangement in an effort to improve water security and sustainability across the region.
Dalton resigns from party ahead of election
“They refused to vote down dodgy National Party law changes that allowed for excessive water take in the Northern Basin. These law changes really disadvantaged Lower Darling communities and Murray River irrigators” : Helen Dalton ... “This disallowance motion is a political game from a green Independent looking for relevance that undermines years of hard work by the SFF to see floodplain harvesting regulated”: Mark Banasiak, SFF MLC and Deputy Chair of the Select Committee on Floodplain Harvesting.
Dalton leaves SFF
Member for Murray, Helen Dalton, is now an independent after resigning from the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party. The move came after Upper House SFF Party MPs did not show up for a crucial vote on floodplain harvesting. Floodplain harvesting has been a contentious issue as NSW seeks to license and meter floodplain interception.
Council endorses Mount Morgan pipeline
“We know the people of Mount Morgan have been wanting a pipeline for a long time, but we can’t just go out and build a pipeline; unfortunately it’s not that easy" : Mayor Williams ... “It will be one year this month since the Mount Morgan community have been in Level 6 (emergency supply) restrictions. During this time, we have continued to cart water from Gracemere to Mount Morgan, which has cost Council around $4.5 million so far" : Cr Kirkland.
Dalton welcomes decision to quash floodplain harvesting laws
NSW state MP for Murray Helen Dalton welcomed the NSW Upper House vote to disallow law changes that allowed for excessive floodplain harvesting in the NSW Northern Basin on Thursday. “This result is a big victory for communities in the Lower Darling and irrigators in my electorate,” Mrs Dalton said.
Floods inevitable, bad planning avoidable
The costs in human and animal suffering, infrastructure, farmland, wildlife, the list goes on, is immense. What makes it so appalling is that, with good planning, both in terms of infrastructure, such as dams, and planning laws restricting development on floodplains, much of this horrendous waste and loss could have been at least mitigated, and, I suspect, in many cases, avoided altogether.
Lismore, Nimbin water and sewage services affected by flood
The current flooding in Lismore and Nimbin, and associated power outages, have affected Council’s water supply and sewage systems. Residents are asked to conserve water as much as possible as we are currently unable to replenish water reservoirs. Nimbin has approx. 24 hours of water supply left based on normal usage rates and residents are asked to conserve water.
Outdoor water use banned across the Tweed – extreme weather affects water supply
Manager Water and Wastewater Operations Brie Jowett said the extreme weather had washed soil and debris into creeks and rivers that flow into Council’s water treatment plants and caused power outages at the plants and several water pump stations ... Council has been tankering water into Uki but flooding and no road access is preventing deliveries.
Don’t shaft Basin communities: NFF
The world has moved on from when the Basin Plan was established in 2012 and it must adapt to new circumstances. "The upcoming election will be crucial for Basin communities. The next Government will preside over the critical 2024 reconciliation and there have been no answers to how this issue will be addressed," NFF Water Committee Chair Malcolm Holm said.
Tick of approval for Urannah Dam bilateral approval
Urannah Dam is a step closer to reality, with the Australian and Queensland governments signing a bilateral agreement to progress the project ... “The proposed dam and hydro-electric scheme are located in the Broken River Valley (within the Burdekin Basin) approximately 86 km southeast of Collinsville and 80 km west of Mackay in Central Queensland” : Qld Minister for Water, Glenn Butcher.
Wanneroo rejects cuts for growers as solution to looming water crisis
The City of Wanneroo is calling on the McGowan Government to build a new desalination plant in Alkimos by 2028 saying the Water Corporation’s reliance on the Gnangara Mound to supply water for Perth and Peel is unsustainable. The city’s call, which also includes a request for a wastewater recycling plant, is in response to the government’s release of the draft Gnangara groundwater allocation plan (GGAP).
Damned dam a blessing
Serena Kirby. Steve Birkbeck’s 20 million-litre dam at Wentworth Road became a watery asset during the recent bushï¬re. A constant stream of helicopters and ï¬re trucks drew many millions of litres from the dam. Once a controversial feature, the dam is said to have enabled dozens of properties to be saved.
A closer look at the upper Darling River region: Pitt, Toole, Coulton
Minister for Resources and Water Keith Pitt has announced that new light will be shed on the potential for additional groundwater resources in the upper Darling River region ... Geoscience Australia, in collaboration with the NSW Government, will commence an airborne electromagnetic survey across this section of north-west NSW to better understand the location of groundwater resources and their movement beneath the floodplain and its surrounds.
Sneaky plan to hand out Floodplain Harvesting Licences could be illegal and expose Govt to billions in compensation: Faehrmann
Moves by Water Minister Kevin Anderson to pave the way for the handing out of licences for floodplain harvesting as early as this week are likely in breach of the Commonwealth Water Act and could set up a future government to have to fork out billions of dollars in compensation, says Cate Faehrmann, Greens MP and water spokesperson and chair of the recent NSW Upper House Committee into Floodplain Harvesting.
