Qld

McKinlay Race Club

An industry-led, wide-scale search through previously mined and discarded rock and earth could help boost Australia’s global position as a clean energy powerhouse ... Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Madeleine King said the new Atlas of Australian Mine Waste, could provide industry with additional opportunities to extract valuable resources from previously mined rock and earth.

Queensland Country Rugby Union have announced that the 2023 Queensland Country Rugby Union Championships will be hosted at Victoria Park in Rockhampton, proudly sponsored by Rockhampton Regional Council. The event is expected to attract between 700-800 players and their families at the end of June this year and will be held in Rockhampton again in 2024.

Standing since 1921, the Cambooya War Memorial will need to be rebuilt after a vehicle drove into it early last Saturday, causing significant damage including toppling over the obelisk. A Queensland Police Service spokesperson said between 5.50am and 6.10am on Saturday, a single vehicle left the road and hit the War Memorial.

LifeFlight Australia’s helicopter crews are well known for saving human lives but now they have the capability to safely rescue beloved, furry family members too, including from the Toowoomba base. In an Australian-first, LifeFlight Engineering has created a purpose-built Animal Rescue Capsule (ARC) which can be used to rescue, winch and transport pets securely from life-threatening situations, such as floods.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has described regional newspapers as ‘absolutely vital’ and as the ‘lifeblood of their communities’ before offering to help ensure that a larger share of the Queensland state government advertising budget be directed at communicating with regional Queenslanders through independent regional newspapers.

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The Nationals leader and Member for Maranoa David Littleproud said the first 12 months of an Albanese Labor government had been tough for Australian agriculture, with the full effect to be felt in the coming few years ... Mr Littleproud said farmers and processors were making investment decisions not to plant and not to invest, because the government could not provide them confidence of a stable workforce, which was driving down supply and consumer prices up.

Thirteen years ago, Dr Geisel answered the call of Allora residents for a local doctor who would start a new chapter in our community. Warwick lost the service of Dr Geisel where she had practiced for twenty years. Dr Geisel commented that it was her concern about our community being so desperate for a doctor and she thought she would like to try and work in a small community.

Just some of the entertainment at this year's Mackay Show includes : 

Winton Show Society

Layla is not your average Border Collie/Moodle cross. As a trained Positive Response Assistance dog, she offers unwavering support and grounding to her owner and Council librarian, Caitlin. These dogs assist people whose lives are often severely compromised by anxiety and fear.

The nation is on track to plant an impressive 23.48 million hectare winter crop this year – up slightly on last year’s crop area – Rabobank says in its newly-released 2023/24 Australian Winter Crop Outlook ... overall harvest totals are forecast to be lower than last season, with expectations of drier growing conditions due to the likely transition to an El Nino climate cycle, the specialist agribusiness bank says.

Mount Larcom & District Show Society

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LifeFlight Australia’s highly anticipated, brand new Roma helicopter base has officially opened its doors, with a formal ceremony on 30 May 2023, to mark the momentous occasion ... “For people in real need in isolated circumstances – there is no sight better than the vision of a LifeFlight rescue helicopter coming into view during an emergency”: Australian Country Choice CEO Anthony Lee.

From timber and metal to stationery; and crafts and organics to soils, a range of material otherwise destined for landfill is being traded – and given new purpose - using the online marketplace-style ASPIRE platform ... Early adopters of the platform are two local businesses Rockcote, Australia’s leading paint manufacturer, partnering with the Yandina Community Gardens’ Food Loop program.

Cook Shire Council has made formal its continued commitment to Reconciliation by adopting its first ‘Innovate’ Reconciliation Action Plan 2023-25 (RAP) at the May Ordinary Council Meeting, and ahead of Reconciliation Week. The RAP outlines the internal organisational framework Council will employ over the next two years to target the four key focus areas outlined by Reconciliation Australia: Relationships, Respect, Opportunities and Governance.

Millions of years after Dinosaur nests were dotted around Outback Queensland, the Eromanga Natural History Museum (ENHM) is unveiling a newly created bronze nest at the internationally renowned Museum and home to Australia’s biggest dinosaur ... Designed by artist Phill Wharton and developed by 3d printing firm StudioKite the bronze artwork is a scaled representation of a dinosaur nest of the large sauropods found in the Eromanga region.

The Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority is offering loans to help growers build small-scale rural workers’ accommodation. QRIDA Regional Area Manager for South East Queensland Brian Coe said providing accommodation for workers could give farm businesses a competitive edge with Australia’s low unemployment rate and rural housing shortage.

Toowoomba patients in crisis now have access to enhanced mental health services in their own home, thanks to the joint efforts of the Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) and Queensland Health. The Toowoomba Mental Health Co-Responder Service, which became operational last Wednesday, pairs a QAS senior paramedic with a senior mental health clinician from Darling Downs Health in order to deliver fast, collaborative specialist care.

With existing measures seemingly having minimal effect on perpetrators of youth crime, a 24/7 youth co-responder team was introduced to Toowoomba last weekend in an effort make a positive difference. In Toowoomba to launch the team last Saturday, new Youth Justice Minister Di Farmer said it was one of five new co-responder teams being established across Queensland, alongside Mount Isa, Hervey Bay, South Brisbane and Ipswich.