Qld

Rio Tinto’s Indigenous Employment and Development team are gearing up for another jam-packed year of programs, activities and events across Cape York ... Weipa operations general manager Shona Markham said she was impressed by what the team offered.

A man as been fined $15,000 by the Cooktown Magistrates Court over the felling of 113 old-growth trees in the Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park. In 2020, a timber export company entered into an agreement to log Cooktown Ironwood trees (erythrophleum chlorostachys) on two Cape York stations that border the national park.

Australia's largest irrigated cotton property, Cubbie Station, is back in local hands after Chinese textile giant Shandong Ruyi sold its remaining stake to co-owner Macquarie Asset Management. Cubbie Station is responsible for around 10% of the country’s cotton output and is now entirely held by the Sydney-based company.

The high cost of fuel around the nation has put service station owners in the spotlight – sometimes for the wrong reasons. Richard Ireland is one of the directors of Weipa Servicentre and explains why the price in the Western Cape is different to other outlets.

Peak sugarcane organisation CANEGROWERS is seeking urgent discussions with local government amid an escalation of people using Queensland farms as dumping grounds ... ARR.News asked some further questions of CANEGROWERS on this costly problem.

Goomeri and District Show March 2022 - The event in pictures

Warwick Show & Rodeo, March 2022 in pictures.

More than $400 million is expected for the Worral Creek Aggregation in Queensland, which is tipped to account for over 10% of this year’s Australian cotton crop. The Reardon family is bringing the 26,855 hectare aggregation in the Border Rivers region to the market as record crops and commodity prices attract more investors into the agricultural sector.

Mark Knowles. Emerging silica sands explorer Diatreme Resources believes it has struck gold near Cooktown after announcing significant growth to its project’s resources. Last week, the ASX-listed company said its Si2 North Project resource had recorded a significant increase of around 134 per cent to 124 million tonnes (Mt).

Member for Cook Cynthia Lui said a trip to Cooktown and Hope Vale had highlighted some of the positive contributions made by councils and community groups in the region ... “Given the vast size of my electorate, it is always fabulous catching up with locals in Cooktown and Hope Vale to see and hear first-hand the progress of state-funded projects, programs and matters where I can assist,” she said.

Calling all foodies and culinary experts! From July 29 to August 7, local restaurants, farms, tourism and event operators will throw open their doors as part of The Curated Plate culinary festival, and offer the best of the Sunshine Coast’s local food and beverage experiences across a 10-day period.

The Jolly Swagman Hotel Motel on the NSW and Queensland border is the latest regional venue to change hands. Affectionately known as ‘The Jolly’, the venue has been operated for over 20 years by local Jim Brown, who cited the buoyed market as the catalyst to sell the asset. More than $2 billion of hotels changed hands in 2021, and the market momentum has carried over into the new year.

“Increasing the capacity of the existing channel escapes will mean environmental water can fill wetlands and creeks that would otherwise only get wet during large over bank flows ... We put an end to buybacks because of the damage they have done to regions like this – stretching beyond the individual farmgate and impacting on the efficiency or whole irrigation networks”: Keith Pitt, Minister for Resources and Water.

Central Queensland workers stand to benefit with a number of jobs soon to be up for grabs as part of the $367.2 million Rookwood Weir project ... Water from the weir will be available for sale later this year as part of the second stage of the tender process.

Toowoomba Regional Council moved a motion on 14 March to ensure Emu Creek Dam is firmly on the State Government’s radar as an option for future water. With the State Government undertaking work on a Regional Water Assessment, Toowoomba Regional Council Mayor Paul Antonio said it was vital Emu Creek Dam was considered as part of this assessment.

Record breaking fuel prices are already starting to have an impact on Cape York residents and businesses but there are concerns the real pain will be felt during the tourist season ... “If these prices stay this high then I’m sure there will be many people reconsidering their travel plans. And if they do still travel, they are likely to have less money to spend on tours, souvenirs and eating out": Dave Donald, Western Cape Chamber of Commerce VP.

Hitting the pause button on a fuel excise tax would provide instant relief for motorists as the federal government faces pressure to act on soaring prices ... Queensland LNP Senator Susan McDonald said the government had to do something, and the fuel excise was the “bluntest instrument” available.