News

Australian farmland returns continued to outperform, coming in at 12.72% in the 12 months to the end of September, boosted by very strong annual crop farmland numbers. According to the latest quarterly Australian Farmland Index compiled by the Asian Association for Investors in Non-Listed Real Estate Vehicles, income contributed 6.06% and appreciation return 6.38% to the result.

It's worth reflecting on what-just-was: wave after wave of pandemania. Snap lockdowns and travel restrictions were for some, a form of forced minimalism ... The antidote of course is to find our social focus again, re-acquaint ourselves with community activities, get out of forced hibernation and meet the real world ... ranked up there with hidden Hinterland beauty spots is the spring fed waterhole of the old Bexhill Quarry.

Bushfire risk is likely to increase in the future due to the combined impacts of climate change and urban sprawl. This report presents the results of an analysis combining the outputs from stakeholder consultation with those from the Unified Natural Hazard Risk Mitigation Exploratory Decision Support System (UNHaRMED) to quantify increases in bushfire risk due to different population growth and climate change scenarios in four areas of emerging bushfire risk in Western Australia.

Mike Berry. At the time of writing for the last Gazette edition the landscape was becoming quite dry and the fire risk was increasing. Ironically by the time that edition hit the streets the rain had arrived and has been pretty persistent since. Whilst the outlook at the moment is for rain to continue, once the hot weather arrives and if the rain stops, long grass will quickly dry out and become a fire hazard.

Lismore Theatre Company is keen to hear proposals from directors interested in staging a play for 2022. The company has some productions scheduled for the new year but is keen to open the 2022 program to new shows including some more traditional theatre options with a comedic flavour.

Narrandera Shire Council General Manager George Cowan said this week’s decision by IPART to introduce the lowest rate cap in 20 years did not reflect reality. “It is based upon a formulae that reflects generic cost indexes that may have prevailed during the previous financial year. The real cost increase facing Councils next financial year includes wages growth, substantial increases in fuel costs and these are two of the biggest inputs affecting Council operations,” Mr Cowan said.

Jeff Hanson. In their first season in the Ardlethan Barellan District Cricket Association (ABDCA) competition, the Narrandera Carpheads will be playing for silverware on Saturday, with the in-form side heading towards the T20 Harvest Break grand final. The Carpheads, who finished second after losing just one game during the six-round regular season, will take on the top of the table Coolamon Rovers for grand final glory.

Tuesday, December 14 saw the official opening of the Koondrook All Abilities Playground. A dream of former councillor, Steve Tasker, to provide joy for children with limited mobility has resulted in the $592,000 Koondrook All Abilities Playground.

Ali Bohn. “I wanted to make the bathrooms a nice, bright space to go when you’re feeling flat and I thought a nice mural of flowers would look really good": Barham Public School Captain, Shaylah Carter.

It was an exciting day for Moulamein as officials and locals celebrated the opening of the Moulamein Heritage Village. Situated on the corner of Cedar Avenue and Paterson Street, the former vacant land is now home to some of the district’s historical gems. Locals pursued a vision to construct the historical village for visitors and locals to enjoy with the added benefit of doubling as a venue space for events, weddings and music concerts.

South Australian based group ‘The Headstone Project’ recently dedicated the graves of 18 veterans of WWI who lay in the Port Pirie cemetery in unmarked graves with a dedication ceremony held on 20 November 2021.

Australians are urged to put locally-grown oysters on their Christmas table this year and support an industry that has been hit hard recently. NSW Farmers Oyster Committee Chair Todd Graham said the industry was still grappling with the impacts of bushfires, floods, and a COVID-19 induced downturn in hospitality and tourism.

Community Landcare representative organisation, National Landcare Network, is pleased to announce it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with leading agricultural research, education and advocacy organisation, the Mulloon Institute. The MoU will deliver ‘Catchment Scale Restoration and Rehydration Pilots’ across the country.

Australia has secured an emphatic World Trade Organization (WTO) win against India’s price-distorting sugar production supports and export subsidies a WTO Panel found that India had export subsidies in place which were prohibited under trading rules and it recommended their removal. The Panel also found that India’s levels of sugarcane price supports had consistently exceeded permitted levels.

A small school has changed its name to KeithUrbenville to honour the songs they love to sing by rockstar Keith Urban. On Monday, December 14, Urbenville Public School students sat in the classroom to have what they thought was a zoom session with Kate Moore, the director of education leadership. Instead, they were shocked and surprised when Keith Urban appeared on the screen and chatted to them for six minutes.

Bonalbo Artists Alliance exhibition coordinator Vilya de Tozser said 105 portraits featured in the exhibition at Bonalbo Memorial Hall on Saturday, December 11.

With her brother John Bligh and Allan Michael, nine years ago Mary Bligh had her sights set on turning the Commercial into a true local pub with no pokies, “bloody good food” and live music featuring local talent. And she did.

Geoff Helisma. There may be fewer than 50 coastal emus left in existence, but the efforts of  Lions Club of Clarence – Environmental  (LCC-E) and its proactive relationships with government departments and Clarence Valley Council (CVC) have resulted in measures to protect the endangered bird. The speed limit along a 7.2km section of Brooms Head Road, Taloumbi, has been reduced from 100km/h to 80km/h and warning signs have been painted on the road.