Politics

The NSW Environment Minister has just approved Water Sharing Plans that will enable floodplain harvesting licences to be handed out in the Northern Basin. Cate Faehrmann, NSW Greens MP and water spokesperson, says this is a gift for big irrigators in the northern basin and will spell the end of a healthy Darling-Baaka River and Menindee Lakes.

Local producers are benefiting from the completion of early works on the Ouyen to Murrayville line, as part of the Murray Basin Rail Project. Works included the removal of heat and speed restrictions along the 109-kilometre Ouyen to Murrayville Line – to boost safety and improve reliability ... "It's great to see early works complete on the Ouyen to Murrayville line – which will improve safety, capacity and reliability of services and better connect local producers to our major ports.”: Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Jacinta Allan

Water allocation prices in the southern Murray–Darling Basin are likely to remain low for a third consecutive year, according to the latest ABARES Water Market Outlook. ABARES Executive Director, Dr Jared Greenville said based on the current climate outlook from the Bureau of Meteorology, ABARES considered the wet scenario to be the most likely, with prices expected to fall to $58 per ML.

The Queensland government is moving to sell the former Queensland Agriculture Training Colleges (QATC) property at Longreach, which has trained agricultural leaders for more than 50 years. Minister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries and Minister for Rural Communities Mark Furner said the 17, 511ha site would go to market later this year.

Chris Oldfield. Existing trees and vegetation will be bulldozed and an avenue of 47 London Plane Trees planted along the footpath of Stewart Tce – from Park Tce to Playford Dve. The decision comes despite fears that it could ruin $1 million worth of hockey turf.

Chris Oldfield. After six years of being idle, and at least $40,000 budgeted for “design work”, Naracoorte’s old library building remains vacant. What to do with it, and what the designs are for, will be discussed behind closed doors in a workshop by Naracoorte Lucindale Council.

An advocacy group has slammed what it calls “inaccurate and harmful” reporting of an issue that is crucial to rural communities and the national prosperity. Speak Up Campaign chair, Shelley Scoullar, said rural Australians are ‘fed up’ with unacceptable media standards and the lack of effort to ensure crucial issues are reported accurately and with balance. Mrs Scoullar said the latest example was from the ABC’s national environment and science reporter, Michael Slezak, and his reporting of Australia’s State of the Environment document, in which he used selective information that presented a false picture of Murray-Darling Basin Plan progress in broadcasts and online, including ABC National News.

The federal government will add $455 million to its coffers after Treasurer Jim Chalmers moved swiftly to double foreign investment application fees. Labor’s election promise will become reality from this Friday. Foreign purchasers buying a residential property worth $1 million will be slugged an application fee of $13,200, up from $6,600. The same will apply to foreign buyers acquiring agricultural assets worth $2 million, and commercial assets worth $50 million ... “Australia welcomes foreign investment that is in Australia’s interests,” Chalmers said.

With Australian biodiversity under significant threat, the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) is urging the federal government to look to investment and collaboration with farmers. The call from the NFF comes after the recent release of the State of the Environment Report which revealed biodiversity across the country is experiencing a massive decline and currently remains under threat of further deterioration.