News

Mentoring to transform ideas into real solutions is one of the key offerings of a new program launched today by Hort Frontiers. The new program – Australian-Grown Innovation, developed in partnership with Startupbootcamp and Cluster Connect - is designed to drive innovation that will tackle the most pressing challenges in horticulture.  

This tight-knit town of 86 residents is deeply committed to supporting one another, with nearly half the community recently coming together at the community hall to strengthen connections, share perspectives, and build a Community Emergency Management Plan to face challenges with confidence.

The steam engine at Donald Lions Train Park received a much-needed preparatory wash on the weekend from CFA members of the Donald Fire Brigade. The train is scheduled for a facelift and required washing prior to being painted by Geoff Blake.

Dr Ali Bajwa. Gazanias, a popular groundcover plant, are increasingly invading cropping paddocks in South Australia and Victoria. Dr. Ali Bajwa of La Trobe University is studying their spread and control methods under the GRDC's National Grower Network.

A 1000 megawatt nuclear power station using South Korean expertise could be built in the Latrobe Valley in seven years, with a fleet possibly in 11 years, at an estimated cost of $10 billion each, according to an Australian nuclear expert, Robert Parker.

A major study after the devastating 2019/20 wildfires in Victoria and New South Wales found that prescribed burning dramatically reduced the intensity of the fires, according to a bushfire expert. Dr Tony Bartlett, a winner of the Australian Fire Service Medal (ATSM), said after 2019/20, a major study was undertaken to test the effectiveness of prescribed (fuel reduction) burning at a landscape scale in terms of reducing the severity of the wildfire in a wide range of forest ecosystems.

Lakes Blue Energy is increasingly confident that within a few months, its 21-year struggle to get a new big onshore gas field in South Gippsland up and running, will come to fruition. The company, previously Lakes Oil, has submitted plans to the state government for the Wombat 5 gas well, located a few kilometres west of Seaspray.

Austinn Lane. A Wallaroo student has received world recognition for her hand-painted surfboard. With help from her neighbour, who had experience in fibreglassing, 11-year-old Trinity spent six months painting her board during the 2024 season in preparation for 2025.

Sarah Herrmann. A fight for justice has begun after revelations that neither ElectraNet nor SA Power Networks are required to compensate customers for the up to 20-hour power and telecommunications outages that hit Yorke Peninsula on Friday, March 14. Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis told the South Australian Parliament on Tuesday, March 18 there is no regulated compensation scheme for transmission network failures...

Rachel Hagan. Community consultation on the Yorke Peninsula for the Regional Shark Mitigation Project has begun, with Surf Life Saving South Australia visiting southern YP.

Out now! Subscribe here!

Out now!Buy here! I Subscribe here!

The Business Council of Co-operatives and Mutuals (BCCM) ... welcomes the ACCC recommendation which calls on the Government to support better prices and competition for Australian shoppers especially in regional and remote areas through measures to incentivise more community owned and co-operative stores.

The NSW Government changes to the Shark Management Program include the removal of shark nets on beaches from 31 March 2025. The timing of the removal of nets to avoid the peak of turtle migration has been communicated to Surf Life Saving Clubs ... SLSNSW provides drone surveillance services at 50 sites across the NSW coastline during key times of the year.

Cattle ticks have been found on cattle at a property next to the Bonalbo Showground. It was during a routine inspection of the cattle that the ticks were discovered and the relevant authorities notified the managers of the showground. 

Along Bungawalbin-Whiporie Road, spiders escaping floodwaters took to spinning their webs higher off the ground. Photographer Jimmy Malecki took some stunning photos of the webs and of two different spiders.

More than 84,000 homes and businesses in the Northern Rivers experienced power outages during ex-cyclone Alfred. Some lost power multiple times. The State Government has written to energy companies asking them to defer electricity bills...

Lorraine Dutton aka Lawless is a Barkandji woman, born in Broken Hill, raised in Bourke with a deep connection to Wilcannia. Back in 2017, Lorraine teamed up with Desert Pea Media (DPM) ... Lorraine has continued her work with DPM and is now being paid to improve her skills as a singer/ songwriter.

People who travel past the Wilcannia Local Aboriginal Land Council will have noticed a new business sign outside – YILABARA. This is the new trading name for the NSW Local Aboriginal Land Council’s Employment and Training program - Yilabara Solutions, the new version of CDP (Community Development Program).

The Barkandji Rangers are coordinated by the Barkandji Native Title Group Aboriginal Cooperation (BNTGAC). The program is a ‘career pathway for Barkandji Traditional Owners’, a stepping stone to further employment with organisations such as NSW National Parks.

Central Darling Shire Council has announced that the Campervan and Motorhome Club of Australia Limited (CMCA) has declared Wilcannia an RV Friendly Town. The CMCA has grown since 1986 to become the largest recreational vehicle (RV) club in the southern hemisphere, now boasting over 68,000 members and a fleet of more than 34,000 vehicles.

The Barton Highway has undergone significant upgrades over the past few years. The first stage of works opened in early 2024, and duplicated the highway from the NSW side of the ACT Border to Kaveneys Road in NSW ... Detailed planning work to deliver Stage 2 of the Barton Highway upgrade is currently being finalised.