Media Release

For one night only - Sunday 28 August - the Whyalla Left Hand Club will come to life, hosting visiting and local music acts as part of the Festival of Small Halls Winter Tour.

Demand for the facilities at Wagga Wagga’s new $12 million Multisport Cycling Complex at Pomingalarna Reserve is growing, with several events on the calendar for August. The 2022 AusCycling Mountain Bike Marathon National Championships will be held at the facility next weekend (13–14 August), followed by the Wagga Wagga Trail Marathon on Saturday 20 August.

There has never been a better time to visit Mullewa than right now. As the bush blooms all eyes are on the flourishing heart of wildflower country ... “Mullewa really is the place to be this time of year and it is not just about the wildflowers,”: City of Greater Geraldton Mayor Shane Van Styn

The Port of Mackay has broken a decade-long record to post its greatest trade year by volume. Treasurer and Minister for Trade and Investment Cameron Dick said the 3.6 million tonne throughput for 2021-22 beat the previous record for 2012-13.

Boutique Hunter Valley winery, Briar Ridge Vineyard, wins “Other White (& Blends) Wine of the Year” with the 2021 Limited Release Albariño by winemaker Alex Beckett ... Winemaker Alex Beckett also recently took out the Riedel 2022 Hunter Valley Young Achiever of the Year award that recognises exceptional talent and contribution to the wine industry by winemakers under the age of 35.

Escrow.com, the leading provider of secure online payments and a wholly owned subsidiary of Freelancer Limited (ASX: FLN, OTCQX: FLNCF), has announced a partnership with ONFARM, a world-first agricultural meeting and marketplace founded in Australia and available worldwide. The partnership will help secure farmer-to-farmer transactions for livestock, hay, grains, machinery, farming equipment and more.

More than 19,500 feral pigs have been culled in seven months through targeted aerial shooting operations run by the NSW Government ... “There is a definite concern that if FMD was to enter our country, it could be spread through feral pig populations across NSW,”: Minister for Agriculture Dugald Saunders

The NSW Government has announced a Riverina rail revival is under way with more than $70 million in rail projects funded under the Fixing Country Rail Program, with the largest project now officially complete.  Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Sam Farraway said 174 kilometres of rail between Junee and Griffith has been replaced, while a $11.7 million project is about to get under way near Coolamon to further reduce rail bottlenecks on the line.

Sterile fruit flies will be released across the Riverland this week, as part of an eradication plan to stop breeding. From Monday 1 August, the Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) started releasing 20 million sterile male fruit flies per week.

In the lead up to the 150th Anniversary of the first telegraph being sent from Australia, the Royal Australian Mint has released a unique $1 coin that depicts the Overland Telegraph Line running through the centre of Australia, from Port Augusta to Darwin.

Rex has announced record high passenger numbers and revenue across both its domestic and regional networks in the first month of the Financial Year 2023 (FY2023). On the domestic front, July’s pre-audited base passenger revenue was at $13.6m, almost double that of the monthly average of the prior three months at $6.87m.

Another 400 hectares has been secured to protect koalas in the Coomera Connector corridor. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the Greenridge property at Pimpama, within the Gold Coast's Koala Priority Area, is one of the largest private, and suitable, land holdings close to stage one and future stages ... “The additional 400 hectares is next to the PRCA, creating almost 900 hectares to protect the local koala population and improve their home range and connectivity well into the future.”: Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk

Victorian irrigation innovator Rubicon Water is maximising water use on farms from the Murray Darling to India and beyond, driving jobs growth at its key Shepparton base ... In Karnataka, the Rubicon Water system manages the water supply to more than 400,000 hectares of farmland through 1,250 kilometres of canals.

The Labor Party has already begun walking away from its pre-election commitment to deliver the Murray Darling Basin Plan in full and on time in hypocritical revelations from the new Federal Water Minister ... Fast forward a few weeks to the first sitting week of Federal Parliament and Federal Water Minister Tanya Plibersek is already saying she is open to delaying the 2024 deadline which would break an election promise.

In partnership with Varuna, The National Writers’ House, the New England Writers’ Centre is delighted to announce that entries are now open for the fourth year of the prestigious Varuna-New England Writers’ Centre Fellowship.

There is more certainty for farmers and the environment after the NSW Government’s licensing and measurement reform became law in Water Sharing Plans for the Border Rivers and Gwydir Valleys. Minister for Lands and Water Kevin Anderson and Minister for Environment James Griffin have approved changes to the Border Rivers, Gwydir and Macquarie Water Sharing Plans.

More than $5 million was pumped into the local economy in the first half of the year thanks to two local festivals, economic data shows. The Port Fairy Folk Festival and Long Weekend Street Fair, held in March, and the Koroit Irish Festival, held in late April, resulted in a $5,118,949 increase in spending across the Moyne Shire. Spending associated with The Port Fairy Folk Festival and the Port Fairy Street Fair totaled $3.58M, up 40 per cent from the previous year when the festival was postponed due to Covid.

Lismore City Mayor Steve Krieg has opened the new Tucki Creek Bridge at Tucki Tucki which was replaced due to safety issues. Our specialist Bridge Crew replaced the ageing wooden bridge with a new 12.1m x 4.8m single span concrete structure. This new structure founded on concrete driven piles has been designed and constructed to achieve a 100-year design life while improving its flood immunity and safety for local farmers and truck drivers.

The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) has raised concerns that the Commonwealth Government is rewriting history in an attempt to buyback and deliver water to South Australia under the Murray Darling Basin Plan. VFF Water Council Chair Andrew Leahy said the response from Water Minister Tanya Plibersek to South Australian MP Rebekha Sharkie’s question in Parliament this week ignored the history behind the 450 GL up-water target.

NSW Farmers members called out a lack of fairness in the energy transition during debate at the organisation's annual conference ... “You cannot simply build infrastructure to benefit substantially city users without addressing the impact on regions and rural landowners who have invested in their biodiversity and production capacity,”: NSW Farmers Energy Transition Working Group Chair, Reg Kidd