Qld

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A wide-ranging program of activities is planned to engage young people across the Toowoomba Region for Queensland Youth Week 2023. Held from 11 to 17 April, Queensland Youth Week is an annual celebration of young people aged 12–25, and an opportunity to recognise the positive contributions they make across our Region.

Cairns Indigenous Art Fair (CIAF) has confirmed an impeccable line up of 15 Indigenous fashion designers and wearable art makers from across Queensland whose collective response to the 2023 theme ‘Woven’ will tell a powerful story marking 10 years of fashion performances.

Childcare users in regional Queensland have waited more than 12 months to access services, according to a new study released by the Regional Australia Institute (RAI). The RAI Childcare Study ... focused on accessibility, availability, affordability and quality of childcare and its impact on workforce participation, liveability, population attraction and retention of staff in the Maranoa and Western Downs regions...

Quentin Kennedy, owner of the successful Greenmount organic food producer, Kialla Foods, believes the Federal Labor government’s decision to abandon domestic regulation of organics is handicapping his ability, and those of other Australian organic producers, to grow their export markets because lack of domestic regulation results in a dual system that is unworkable and costly.

A “complex, rare and logistically challenging’’ operation to replace a 100-year-old Sunshine Coast bridge has been successfully completed ... The 21m-long timber bridge is located at 298 River Road, Maroochy River, a rural suburb between Yandina and Marcoola.

The recently released Toowoomba Region Growth Plan shows Westbrook is anticipated to grow by more than 4,800 people by 2051, taking the total population to just over 9,200 ... The Toowoomba Region Growth Plan, presented to Toowoomba Regional Council last week, is intended to act as the long-term population and employment growth strategy for the Region to 2051.

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Labor has failed to dispel misconceptions around the use and overseas imports of kangaroo products, allowing the United States to stick the boot into the kangaroo industry. It comes after shoe brand Nike announced it would stop making any product with kangaroo leather by the end of 2023 ... Leader of The Nationals and Member for Maranoa David Littleproud said the Federal Government had been missing in action and had failed to fight for the industry.

Last weekend the weather was hot but perfect for the tough breed of Heavy Horses at the Allora Showground. This being the second year of running the Darling Downs Heavy Horse Festival over two full days. Organisers were thrilled with the crowd of around 5,000 through the gates with Saturday being a huge day.

Vic Jurskis's clear account of the history of the cycle of plagues and crashes of koalas in Australia's eastern states and the circumstances of those plagues and crashes makes one question whether the time frame for assessing the status of koalas should be 200 years, not 20, and whether the public perception about this much-loved animal is fully informed.

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This week Council will be removing the Leichhardt tree at the Rockhampton Memorial Gardens and replacing it with two young trees which have been propagated from the original ... “This tree has been part of the Memorial Gardens landscape since the site was created in 1996": Communities and Heritage Councillor Drew Wickerson.

Scenic Rim Regional Council is set to put the bite on wild dogs with its biannual baiting program ready to roll out mid-April.  The program, which uses sodium fluoroacetate baits more commonly known as 1080, assists owners of larger land holdings in managing pest animals which not only pose a threat to native wildlife but also pets and other domestic animals.  

Contempt of the Senate is a pretty easy thing to get your head around. Witnesses at hearings who give false or misleading evidence run the risk of being hauled in front of the privileges committee for a “please explain” ... There’s a lot that could be considered as misleading in NAB’s testimony at Sale but saying they are “committed to being where its customers are” is the first outright fib given in evidence to this parliamentary inquiry.

Queensland’s agriculture industry will play a big part in reaching the state’s 2050 net zero emissions target, with the pathway set out by the 21 March 2023 release of the Low Emissions Agriculture Roadmap 2022-2032 by the Palaszczuk Government. The Roadmap charts a clear route for Queensland to achieve even cleaner and greener food and fibre production, while remaining a world-leader in agriculture.

"Landowners and farmers have made it clear at a rally held in Widgee on Friday 17 March, Powerlink and the State Government are not listening to the community ... The community has attended so-called stakeholder meetings in rural and regional Queensland only to discover that the consultation process is tokenism with little to no consideration of alternative power corridors on State owned land": Chair of Property Rights Australia (PRA) Rob Atkinson.

The new battery is one of the next 12 large-scale, electricity network-connected batteries that will help Queensland communities reap even more benefits from rooftop solar. Emerald is home to over 1,920 solar systems, and the battery will allow locals to capture cheap renewable energy and drive down power bills, easing the cost of living.

A clever project that makes it easier for people of all abilities to get out and enjoy the Sunshine Coast way of life, is being expanded ... “The project provides a clear solution for those with disabilities to plan and map their routes and is a comfort to travellers and visitors to our region with mobility issues in identifying where they can get to with ease": Sunshine Coast Council Mayor Mark Jamieson.

Australian farmers continue to ride the rollercoaster of seasons, commodity prices and economic factors, with rural sentiment at the start of 2023 dipping to its lowest level reported since late 2018. The latest quarterly Rabobank Rural Confidence Survey, released on 16 March 2023, found after rallying late last year, sentiment in the rural sector had fallen again this quarter as farmers continue to navigate a range of economic and financial uncertainties.