Articles Archives - Page 261 of 406

Assistance To Offset The Ravages Of Drought

March 7, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

The state’s peak business organisation, the NSW Business Chamber, says there is urgent need to help offset the devastation of the drought on the farming and regional business communities in NSW.

A report released this week by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences, shows that in NSW, broadacre farm incomes are set to fall by 51 percent in 2018-19, with farms expected to lose $69,000 on average.

“This is the worst performance of any state in the country,” said Western NSW Business Chamber Regional Manager, Vicki Seccombe.

“The effect of the drought is particularly bad in the Far West of NSW. Broadacre farm incomes are expected to be just $3,000 for the year, with the average farm set to lose a shocking $276,000 because of the impact of the drought. That follows a loss of nearly $90,000 the year prior.

“In the central west of NSW, farm income is expected to drop nearly 60 percent in 2018-19, with the average farm set to lose $81,000 for the year after losing about $30,000 the year prior”.

“This is a natural disaster on any definition, not just for the farmers themselves, but for our entire community. These types of events have a catastrophic impact on regional businesses impacting regional employment and small and local businesses.

The NSW Business Chamber is calling for immediate action to help provide relief,” said Vicki.

The NSW Business Chamber is calling on the next government of NSW to:

• Establish a Natural Disaster Recovery Fund to assist businesses and communities to mitigate the ravages of natural disasters.

• Abolish stamp duty on insurance premiums for commercial and business premises to increase insurance coverage.

• Allow flexible payroll tax payment arrangements for businesses impacted by natural disasters.

From Gliding In The Air Down To Dancing In Trundle

March 7, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

If you are in the Trundle district and look skywards in the next couple of weeks, you may see flying objects! No you are not dreaming!

Trundle is about to become the epicentre of Australian paragliding!

The extraordinary Wings Out West Paragliding Competition and exciting Trundle District Bush Dance will be held from the 13th to 17th March.

Forty pilots from around Australia and overseas will be tow launching from a paddock near Trundle to fly around a course anywhere from Condobolin to Dubbo and surrounds, to compete for flatland paragliding glory.

The Trundle community is hosting the paraglider pilots at a community Bush Dance on Friday, 15th March at the Trundle Showgrounds from 7:30pm. All dances will be taught on the night with music supplied by the renowned Kelly Gang Bush Band. It is one of the highlights of the Paragliding Competition, so come along and meet these crazy folk.

Tickets at the door are $15 per adult, $5 per child or $35 per family including a light supper. For more information contact Jen Kelly on 0417 697 770 or see the ad on Page 7.

Also, stand a chance to win a family pass to the Wings out West Paragliding Competition Bush Dance by entering our competition on Page 6. Entries close Wednesday, 13th March at 2pm. Don’t miss your chance to be part of this exhilarating event!

Up And Dancing Like It’s 1979!

March 7, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

Friday on My Mind – Falling in Love Again – Down Among the Dead Men – Love Is In The Air – Pasadena – Yesterday’s Hero – It’s a Long Way To The Top… all written by some of the most extraordinary songwriters of our time Harry Vanda and George Young, while John Paul Young was at the heart of their hit making era.

John Paul Young and The Allstar Band The Vanda & Young Songbook is a concert celebrating this incredible song-writing duo’s creations.

The songs that gave Australia it’s unique soundtrack during the 60s, 70s and the 80s and still to this day.

With hits written for The Easybeats, AC/DC, Grace Jones, Ted Mulry, Vanda & Young’s own studio unit “Flash and the Pan” to the wealth of hits written for John Paul Young, this show will have you up and dancin’ like it’s 1979.

John Paul Young & The Allstar Band will travel you through the decades of mega hits and John’s own behind the scenes stories about the songs and their making, at a time when music was king.

John Paul Young is one of the most iconic artists in Australian music’s history, with over 4 million world-wide album sales and numerous awards which garnered him an induction into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2009. In 2012 John received an Order of Australia (OAM) for his services to charity and the music industry.

The Allstar Band features two of the original members in Warren “The Pig” Morgan who cut his teeth in the original Aztecs, and Ronnie “Rockwell T James” Peel, of The Missing Links and La De Das fame. Both have been with John since the beginning and have been joined over the years by Greg Plimmer, Juan Gonzalez and Michael “China” Walker and this outfit has been together since the early 80s.

This performance is on at Bathurst Panthers on Friday, 29th March and Dubbo Regional Theatre on Saturday, 30th March. To book tickets head to www.abstractentertainment.net.

Commercial Precinct Given Green Light To Build A Better Forbes

March 7, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

A new commercial precinct is set to add life and entertainment to Forbes thanks to almost $870,000 in funding under Round 3 of the Federal Liberal and Nationals Government’s highly successful Building Better Regions Fund.

Deputy Prime Minister and Federal Member for Riverina, Michael McCormack visited Forbes last Sunday and said that the precinct would create an exciting community space for visitors and locals to enjoy.

“With over five locations, we’ll be building new gardens and green spaces, upgrading signs, installing new banners and line-marking. Bicycle stands will be added along with new seats, public toilets and drinking fountains,” said Michael.

“I’m particularly excited to see a new popup café coming to town, as well as a pergola and playground with a soft fall surface to make sure all children have fun but most importantly they can play safe.

“It is projects such as the Forbes Commercial Precinct that make our regional communities even better places to live, work and raise a family and I’m excited to see the positive difference this funding will make to the community.”

“We are supporting our regions through investing in important local infrastructure, as well as great community-building and planning initiatives under the Building Better Regions Fund and other Government priorities such as the Regional Growth Fund and our decentralisation agenda.

“We have seen fantastic outcomes from the first two rounds, and today’s announcement continues our commitment to unlocking the economic potential of regional Australia and ensuring our regions continue to thrive.”

By Gizell van Wyk

Flood Proofing The Newell

March 7, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

The Forbes community is brimming with excitement over the announcement last Thursday by Deputy Premier, John Barilaro to commit $200 million in new funding to flood proof the Newell Highway between Forbes and West Wyalong.

The economic value of this grant is significant and Mayor of Forbes Shire Council, Phyllis Miller says the community is very grateful to the Deputy Premier and the government for this commitment and looks forward to the commencement of this project.

This major arterial road sees over 3,000 vehicle movements a day, and is the highway life-blood between Melbourne and Brisbane, and one of the most productive freight corridors in Australia. The impact of the 2016 flood is still being felt by businesses in both of these towns. Estimated productivity losses for the 2016 flood stand at $150 million.

This major project will improve safety for motorists as well as build resilience against future flood events and will address the need for government to spend vast amounts of money in road maintenance and flood detours. State and local roads suffered with over $1 million worth of repair work required after the last flood.

SNIPPETS…

March 7, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

RAISING FUNDS AND HOPE… Kylie Spice (right) presented a cheque to John Schrader from CanAssist recently. The cheque was made up from half the proceeds raised from the recent Ladies Night Fundraiser. The proceeds were shared between CanAssist Forbes and the Northside Chapel.

Work continues to develop options for the future of Warroo Bridge: Development work is progressing on the upgrade of Warroo Bridge across the Lachlan River. The NSW Government has committed $10 million in funding from Bridges for the Bush program to upgrade the bridge. Parliamentary Secretary for Western NSW, Rick Colless said Warroo Bridge was built in 1909 and due to its age is in poor condition. The bridge is 63 metres long and has one Dare timber truss span and only a width of 4.5 metres between traffic barriers, and is limited to general mass limit vehicles. “The bridge is narrow and does not meet current load standards and limits options for freight and local farmers moving equipment within the region, we need to develop a plan to provide a longer lasting and safer bridge for all road users,” said Rick.

Australia’s Climate Report Card: Newly released figures from the Environment and Energy department show there’s been a 0.9 percent increase in greenhouse gas pollution in the year to September 2018. Greenhouse gas pollution has now been rising for more than three years. “There’s been no leadership on climate change and this is the result,” said Climate Council CEO, Amanda McKenzie. “Last week we’ve seen the Federal Government recycling a failed policy, the Emissions Reduction Fund. Today’s data tells a very clear story. Without effective policy, Australia’s pollution will keep rising. We are further away than ever from meeting our 2030 Paris climate commitments,” said Amanda. “Australia has great opportunities to tackle climate change, but we have had no effective Federal policy,” she said.

Milk price index review: The Milk Price Index will face a thorough examination with a review into how well it meets the needs of farmers and processors. Minister for Agriculture, David Littleproud said: “I’m not convinced the index is working as well as it can for farmers so I want to know if that’s the case and what can be done to make it better. The Milk Price Index is to let farmers compare farm gate prices, to encourage competition among processors. I encourage all dairy farmers and processors to take part in the review.” The review runs until April with a report due after Easter. To take part in the Milk Price Index review visit: https://haveyoursay.agriculture.gov.au/ organisation.

The Senior’s Week Concert held last week, completed this year’s Senior’s Festival in Forbes and saw 150 guests attending the event at the Forbes Town Hall

Catch of the Week

March 7, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

Henry Mattiske caught a Mahi Mahi fish off the coast of Honolulu, Hawaii during February.

Catholic Schools Week – 3-9 March 2019

February 28, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

Red Bend Catholic College

Red Bend Catholic College is a co-educational day and boarding school situated in Forbes. Red Bend has a proud heritage. Prior to 1977, the Catholic education of students in this region was provided by three secondary schools; Our Lady of Mercy College, Forbes; Our Lady of Mercy High School, Parkes; and Marist Brothers’ College, Forbes.

In February 1977, these three schools combined to form one co-educational high school, with the name of Red Bend Catholic College. Since that time, the college has expanded in numbers, in teaching areas and in facilities. The boarding residences, the swimming pool, the Multi-Purpose Hall and Performing Arts Centre, and the Design and Technology Centre have complemented the strong characteristic features of the main college building.

These days the College educates 740 students and offers 150 boarding places.

Red Bend Catholic College will hold their annual Open Day on Sunday, 10th March from 10am to 1pm. Guided tours will be running on the day. For more information call 6852 2000.

Diocese Celebrates Catholic Schools Week

Wilcannia-Forbes Diocese invites everyone to see first-hand the many good things happening in their 18 parish schools during Catholic Schools Week from the 3rd to 10th March. ‘Seeking the True, the Beautiful and the Good’ is the theme for this year’s Catholic Schools Week and Director of Mission and Religious Education, Dr Gerard O’Shea explains the meaning behind the tagline.

“Any sound education must pay close attention to the needs of the person being educated. Since the time of Plato and Aristotle, the consensus about the deepest desire of the human heart – the search for the True, the Beautiful and the Good. The integrated pursuit of truth, beauty and goodness underpins everything of value that our school system offers,” said Gerard.

He said that those who work in Catholic schools, whether or not they belong to the Catholic faith, share this perspective in virtue of their common humanity. “In presenting the religious dimension of a Catholic school, there are further dimensions to be added. Truth will lead us to a truth beyond our intellectual capabilities – faith. Beauty will be perfected by the incomparable harmony and perfection to be found in God – it is the wellspring of hope. Human goodness will be enabled by God to go beyond itself to the most perfect kind of supernatural love,” he said.

Director of Catholic Education, Anthony Gordon said, “Catholic Schools Week is one of the most exciting weeks of the year. Our schools share with their local communities the wonderful learning that is taking place. It is also an opportunity for the community to see the strong values that are offered to each student in a Catholic school.”

“Our dedicated teachers have the opportunity of demonstrating that the best contemporary teaching that personalises learning for each of our students is occurring in our classrooms. The use of technology to assist student learning is also a feature of our schools with every student having access to a Chromebook.”

“Our schools are looking forward to welcoming as many visitors as possible next week and I encourage all parents, grandparents and members of the community to see all the good things happening in their local Catholic school,” said Anthony.

Forbes Agricultural Strategy First Of Its Kind

February 28, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

Farmers in the Forbes community will benefit from the launch of an Agricultural Strategy made possible through $70,000 funding received in round one of the Building Better Regions Fund – Community Investments Stream.

Forbes Shire Council is the first Local Government in NSW to launch an agricultural strategy, which was unveiled at the Central West Livestock Exchange on Monday.

In 2017 Forbes Shire Council identified the need for a strategy to manage how the shire moves forward in the Agricultural sector.

The Forbes Shire Council Local Government Area is one of the most productive agricultural areas in NSW, with the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing sector our largest industry in terms of output, valued at $183 million and provides approximately 18 percent of the local employment opportunities.

Forbes Shire Council engaged the services of professional service company GHD to work with local producers and key stakeholders in the rural industry to develop a long-term strategy to grow agriculture in the region.

Attending the launch was Riverina MP, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development, Michael McCormack whom secured the funding through round one of the Building Better Regions Fund – Community Investments Stream. He commended the milestone event.

“Our farmers are the best environmentalists in the world, make no mistake about it,” said Michael. “Today’s launch of the Forbes Agricultural Strategy is an important step to tackle a number of important opportunities and challenges which face the rural community.

I commend Forbes Council for taking the initiative to organise this important guideline which was made possible through this Federal funding.”

The Agriculture Strategy covers many sectors in the industry, including all livestock, dairy, hemp, forestry, horticulture and agritourism.

“It also focuses on other challenges,” said Mayor of Forbes Shire Council, Phyllis Miller.

“The Strategy is multi-faceted in its approach; considering land-use planning, land capability and water availability.”

“Supply chain impediments need to be removed to increase productivity. Transport infrastructures including commodity routes are among the key areas we need to look at in the near future,” said Phyllis.

The Strategy also addresses the fact that Inland Rail will open up access to other ports for the Agriculture industry in the Forbes District with direct access to Brisbane and Melbourne via rail.

“The Central West Livestock Exchange has enjoyed ongoing capital improvements recently. The $3.9 million extension of the cattle yards, B-Double and road train parking areas make the facility one of the largest modern selling centres in NSW,” said Phyllis.

“Continued focus on improving efficiency and profitability will ensure maximum returns in the future. This is all part of the strategy.”

Change Starts With You

February 28, 2019 by Maggi Barnard

Clean Up Australia Day registrations are now open, so challenge your friends and family to make 2019 the year when, ‘Change Starts with You’. Forbes residents can register to take part in this great event on Sunday, 3rd March. Registration takes place at 8:30am in Victoria Park where participants will receive their clean up kits, some cold refreshments and teams are then sent off to the designated registered sites around Forbes.

Participating in these events is the perfect opportunity to join with family, friends, neighbours and colleagues to remove all the rubbish accumulating in your local park, bushland, beaches and waterways before it kills our wildlife. Online registrations are free and now open at www.cleanupaustraliaday.org.au.

Urging individuals and groups to continue the impetus that Clean Up founder, Ian Kiernan AO created, Terrie-Ann Johnson, Managing Director of Clean Up Australia, is keen to remind us that every Clean Up volunteer is Ian’s successor – and that, like Ian, ‘Change Starts with You.’

“Clean Up Australia Day is the nation’s largest community mobilisation event and 2019 is the perfect time to band together in Ian’s honour, celebrate what has been achieved, show your support for his vision and continue his dream to Clean Up Australia,” said Terrie-Ann.

“Ian firmly believed that every single one of us can and should make a difference.

Volunteer action was his amazingly simple idea, his dream and his inspiration.

“There are so many actions every one of us can take. So why not book-mark today in your journey and join us for a 2019 Clean Up.”

If picking up Rubbish is not your thing, you can still be involved by making a donation.

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