Peter and Marlene Grant with the 1953 XK120 Jaguar. Jaguars lined up outside the Gloucester Rec Centre. DRIVERS travelling along the Bucketts Way on the morning of 22 May may have passed a unique convoy of Jaguar cars. Every second year the Jaguar Drivers’ Club of Australia (JDCA) holds its Mountain Rally, and this time […]
Magpies are Australia’s most-seen bird according to the latest national count. Photo: Kim Duggan.
THE results of the 12th national bird count are in, with the Australian Magpie taking out top spot. The Aussie Bird Count was held last October and saw a record breaking five million birds counted over one week. Organiser, Birdlife Australia, said 64,000 citizen scientists took part in the event. Half of all surveys included […]
An endangered Manning River Turtle being released into the Barrington River by Aussie Ark in February. Photo: Aussie Ark.
NEW research indicates Manning River turtles are being recorded at pre-flood numbers, twelve months after one of the region’s worst floods on record. Waterways in the Hunter and Mid North Coast were battered in the floods of May 2025, with serious concerns held about the long-term effects on fish and animals living in the rivers, […]
THE Koala Friendly Carbon Initiative is keen to hear from local landholders interested in having koala habitat trees planted on their properties. The initiative is a collaboration between the World Wide Fund for Nature Australia (WWF-Australia) and carbon farming service provider, Climate Friendly, supported by the NSW Government and HP Inc. This first-of-its-kind carbon farming […]
Vehicles queueing at the Bucketts Way/Pacific Highway intersection in early 2026.
A SERIOUS accident on Friday 15 May has brought safety issues at the Bucketts Way/Pacific Highway intersection into sharp focus once more. In April, News Of The Area reported on the strong concerns held by former Roads and Traffic Authority senior engineer Gordon Chirgwin about the dangerous state of the intersection. “I believe that the […]
NATIONALS Member for Lyne Alison Penfold has called the Labor Government’s Federal Budget a “bloodbath for regional Australia”. In her response to Labor’s Federal Budget, delivered by Treasurer Jim Chalmers on 12 May, Ms Penfold said regional and rural communities like those in Lyne had been left behind. “Budgets can make or break the ability […]
Ben and Kristen Nicol at the Gresford Show. Photo: Allynview Farm. Kristen Nicol placed third in the Food and Beverage category of the Women Changing the World Awards. ALLYNVIEW Farm’s Kristen Nicol has been recognised on the global stage, placing third in the Food and Beverage category of the Women Changing the World Awards. It […]
Chichester Dam, April 2026.
Chichester Dam, April 2026. Grahamstown Dam, April 2026. HUNTER Water is urging customers to make smart water choices as the Lower Hunter records its highest April water usage in 20 years, alongside declining dam levels and ongoing dry conditions. Residential water use topped 3.7 billion litres in the month, equating to 189 litres per person […]
FOR many in our community, hard work in industries like timber, farming, power generation, construction and mining has been a way of life. But for some, that work has come at a hidden cost. Diseases caused by asbestos and silica dust often take decades to appear. By the time symptoms develop, the connection to past […]
Evidence seized during investigations in the Hunter region. Photo: NSW Police.
NSW POLICE have charged over 900 people following a four-day statewide operation targeting offenders with a history of domestic violence. Operation Amarok XIII ran from Wednesday 13 to Saturday 16 May. The operation is described as an “intelligence-led, offender-focused operation that aims to ensure the safety and wellbeing of domestic and family violence victims and […]
