WA

Abalone fishers took advantage of the third fishing hour of the West Coast Zone abalone fishing season, including at Yanchep Lagoon. Yanchep Surf Life Saving Club and Marine Rescue Two Rocks volunteers were at the lagoon this morning keeping a watch on fishers searching for the reef-dwelling mollusc.

Yanchep was one of five suburbs to record the biggest increase in median rent during January, according to the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia.

Gralyn Estate has added to its trophy room winning the 2021 ANZ Boutique Wine Show for their Gralyn Estate Artizan Rare Muscat NV, the 11th  trophy win for the storied wine. Adding to that, Gralyn Estate was awarded  a double gold medal at the Global Fine Wine Challenge  and a score of  95 Points and Gold at the Melbourne Royal Wine Awards, further  cementing Gralyn Estate as a preeminent name in Australian fortified winemaking.

Following on from the disappointment of cancelling last year’s show, Act-Belong-Commit Darkan Sheepfest is all set to navigate double vaccination entry requirements for events in regional Western Australia and is aiming for show success.

"During COVID, supply chains almost ground to a complete halt and exposed Australia’s reliance on the import of key inputs including urea. Many Australians would be shocked to learn the nation imports 90% of its urea, the most commonly used fertiliser in agriculture. Without urea, crop production would fall 30-40%" : National Farmers Federation Chief Executive, Tony Mahar.

The Australian Government’s Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) has committed $255 million for critical infrastructure supporting the Perdaman Urea Project in Western Australia. The $4.3 billion project located 20 kilometres north-west of Karratha will convert Australian gas into approximately two million tonnes of urea per year.

Strike Energy Limited has been granted Major Project Status for Project Haber, its $3 billion urea manufacturing facility in the Narngulu Industrial Area, near Geraldton, Western Australia. The project will produce up to 1.4 million tonnes per annum of urea from clean hydrogen and natural gas.

Ali Bohn interviews Bill Revill, now settled in Barham after a full and remarkable life ... "Our new place was in Rhodesia, which happened to be at the beginning of a very nasty guerrilla war. As we arrived, so did the terrorists. It was expected for you to be in the armed forces, so I decided to join the police reserve as I could farm at the same time."

Fortescue Future Industries is acquiring an interest in Sparc Hydrogen Pty Ltd, a company which has an exclusive licence to develop and commercialise next-generation green hydrogen technology created by the University of Adelaide and Flinders University. Sparc Hydrogen is researching technology which would see green hydrogen produced by only sunlight and water (photocatalytic water splitting coupled with solar radiation), instead of renewable energy and electrolysis.

The WA State Government has endorsed a revised Port of Port Hedland development plan to support proponents' throughput aspirations and maximise exports from Australia's busiest bulk export port.

The Wiradjuri Sisters exhibition is an exciting collection of works in acrylics, collage and printmaking by Indigenous artists Naomi Grant and Krishna Heffernan. The show is a combination of the creative passion of sisters who live on opposite sides of the country.

After an oversubscribed capital raise, Australia’s leading-edge envirotech company, Patriot Hydrogen, is working full steam towards installing the first-ever Patriot unit in mid-2022 at Kimberley Clean Energy’s Kilto Station project near Broome, Western Australia. The modular hydrogen production unit will form part of Kimberley Clean Energy’s fossil fuel substitution strategy, with plans to add a hydrogen system in the next stage.

Western Australia's clear skies are ideal for high-quality astronomical observation and have long been a destination for both scientific and recreational stargazers. The policy sets out to preserve and protect the night sky through limiting light and dust pollution, while signalling support for astrotourism - an emerging niche within the local tourism market - with countless opportunities across the State.

In August last year the new managers, Belgravia Leisure, said major upgrades would transform the Guilderton General Store into a clean, fresh and modern beachside café and general store offering essential grocery and travel supplies for Guilderton residents and tourists visiting the region.

Serena Kirby. Denmark Senior High School is one of only 11 public schools to make it onto WA’s list of top 50 performing schools for ATAR results. DSHS principal Katherine Ward said the results of all students over ATAR, general and VET pathways were the product of the hard work put in by students and staff.

“Denmark Baroque is about making live music in Denmark and the Great Southern. We’re about creating high-quality musical events and opportunities, normally not available outside the metropolitan areas, specifically for local and regional residents” : Vicky Wilson, Denmark Baroque chairperson.

Trevor Whittington. Last week the Minister asked in the Farm Weekly, what more could they have done to consult with industry on the outbreak of BJD. For WAFarmers and the Minister to end up exchanging letters in the Farm Weekly it is a clear sign of a breakdown in communications between industry and the Department.

Western Australia’s hard border will stay in place for now with Premier Mark McGowan saying it would be irresponsible and reckless to ignore the problems the omicron wave was causing in the eastern states. But Mr McGowan said some changes to the border settings to start on February 5 would allow for more safe compassionate travel and the return of Western Australians.

As I have consistently said, science, facts and non-emotive debate are what is needed when it comes to making the big decisions about the future of our primary industries – or indeed any public policy decision. Unfortunately the same view is clearly not held by anti-forestry ideologues, including those Labor governments in both Victoria and Western Australia who have decided to shut down their sustainable forest industries without any discernible evidence to do so.