Politics

The new gallery, Djaa Djuwima, which means to ‘show, share Country’, will become a permanent branded space at the Bendigo Visitor Centre. Djaa Djuwima is an exciting and important cultural step in reconciliation, to better understand, recognise and respect the living culture and creativity of our Traditional Custodians of the land.

Finance Sector Union national secretary Julia Angrisano said the union is calling on the Federal Government to inquire into the provision of local banking services, particularly in regional areas and supported calls for a moratorium on regional bank closures.

Tweed Shire Council is urging Tweed River floodplain landowners to seek Council assistance in projects that can improve water quality, after recent testing detected acid-affected water in the river and red spot disease in local fish ... Recent testing has indicated acid sulfate soil (ASS)-related runoff from floodplain drains is affecting water quality in the Tweed River, with indications this is severely impacting fish health.

Minister for Agriculture Gayle Tierney has announced the Labor Government is investing $120 million – the single largest investment in plantation establishment in the state’s history – in an agreement with Hancock Victorian Plantations (HVP), planting an extra 16 million trees in a new estate.

Nillumbik Friends of the Great Forest have followed with interest the developments in the native forest logging industry, in particular the decision by the Andrews government in 2019 to halt native forest logging in 2030. Victoria is well placed to transition to a 100 % plantation industry as we already have considerable areas of plantation ... The industry has every right to be upset with the government for withholding the funding for a fair and just transition ... ARR.News asks NFGF a few questions.

A NSW parliamentary inquiry into the granting of a contract to resurface two arenas at the Sydney International Equestrian Centre has found the tender process managed by the Office of Sport was flawed and that “robust probity standards” were not applied.

Regional Australians found themselves as the butt of a nasty joke at weekend, with both the new Federal Government and the Opposition treating them like idiots over the critical issue of bank closures. In the ultimate dodgy trick, the final report in to the Taskforce into Regional Banking was snuck out at 4.52pm on Friday evening before a long weekend by the Albanese Government despite the report being a Coalition document overseen by two shadow ministers (Michael Sukkar and Perin Davey) whose current portfolios have nothing to do with treasury, finance, business or regional Australia.

The Regional Banking Taskforce came together for meetings in Sydney, Orange, Mildura and Canberra to hear and discuss how bank branch closures have impacted individuals and regional communities, and to work collaboratively to identify possible solutions ... The Taskforce’s final report made 7 recommendations ...

Sustainable land management in Western Australia has been boosted by a ground-breaking initiative that has more accurately calculated the extent of salinity in the agricultural region to support new approaches to conserving natural assets and agricultural productivity. The 'Mapping salt-affected land in the South-West of Western Australia using satellite remote sensing' report by the national science agency, CSIRO, and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) was released at a forum in Perth.

The Albanese Government welcomes the Council of Financial Regulators’ paper on potential policy responses to address the problem of de-banking in Australia. De-banking, where a bank declines to offer or withdraws banking services to a customer, can have a devastating impact on businesses and individuals. It can also put a handbrake on competition and innovation in emerging sectors of the economy.

South Australian pastoralists inside the Dog Fence will continue to benefit from the services of wild dog trappers, with funding for the trapper program guaranteed for the next four years ... The wild dog trapping program is open to landowners or managers inside the Dog Fence who have baited and still experience impacts from wild dog attacks.

The impact of a series of major landslips caused by recent weather events has been assessed with a dozen Sunshine Coast roads now facing significant repairs. Heavy rain hit the region between February and May with the worst affected areas being Bald Knob, Wootha (west of Maleny), Glenview, Eudlo, Coolum, Peachester, Montville and Towen Mountain.

The myths about water are many. They range from Australia being the driest continent on earth, to all of our rivers dying from overuse, right up to the government being required to return water to the environment ... here are some not-so-well-known facts that should be shouted out in the present flood of misinformation about our water resources.

The report highlights the complexities of water management and notes that each Basin government holds information about rules, entitlements, allocations, and environmental water - there is no single source of information. This is something the Inspector-General has noticed as part of a trend, with states operating under their individual jurisdictional powers.

NSW Minister for Environment James Griffin said the landmark program is restoring koala habitat on private land, increasing biodiversity and providing an additional revenue stream for landholders through carbon farming ... ARR.News has asked a question of the Minister.

Barkly Regional Council (BRC) meeting had a high number of the public attending in the gallery in light of recent news headlines ... BRC CEO Emma Bradbury said many expressed concerns about the current issues facing Council ... At the end of the meeting, the new Deputy Mayor was elected. Cr Russell O'Donnell will now take over the role from Cr Dianne Stokes.

Member for Barkly Steve Edgington has lashed out at the NT Labor Government after another bout of vandalism in Tennant Creek. This time the people of Tennant Creek’s local post office boxes have been smashed and broken into. Mr Edgington questioned the expenditure of CCTV cameras in the town, when there seems to be no use for them.

Pam Dillon. Water Safety week at the Tennant Creek pool recently had a real family feel to it. Lots of families came down to the pool to celebrate and learn more about how to be safe in and around water.

In the last quarter of 2021, MainFM’s Queer and Now successfully produced a nine-part podcast titled ‘Pride Across the Ages’ ... the series is an incredibly moving, challenging, heartfelt, funny, honest and raw collection of stories from the LGBTIQA+ community ‘across the ages' who call Central Victoria and the towns of Mount Alexander Shire home.

The NSW Government has launched two new groundbreaking projects to encourage landholders and farmers to invest in sustainable timber production as part of their land management practices. The Forest Stewardship Program and Farm Forestry Certification Pilot are the first of their kind in Australia and mark a new era in sustainably managed forestry on private land in NSW.