THE chance of large-scale flooding in a specific catchment area can increase by as much as 700 percent if widespread deforestation has occurred. That is the finding of a new paper by academics who analysed decades of flooding data from regions in Australia which frequently suffer forest fires. The loss of forest canopy has long […]

SOME regional Australians may get a reprieve from the housing crisis as councils are offered interest relief to build more drains, roads, and other infrastructure. Though many parts of regional Australia have ample residential land, it often isn’t ready for development due to a lack of funding and planning for critical infrastructure, a 2024 national […]

The car’s roof safely peeled down, with sharp edges protected against accidental contact. Photo: Thomas O’Keefe. SES and RFS volunteers safely extract the ‘casualty’ from the well-lit wreck. Photo: Thomas O’Keefe. SES Deputy Commander Greg Snape demonstrates how to safely shatter side-window glass using a special SES tool. Photo: Thomas O’Keefe. One of the many […]

The plan includes extra bus services across the Hunter. Photo: Transport for NSW. The area covered by the Hunter Strategic Regional Integrated Transport Plan. THE Hunter needs more public transport. That’s the key takeaway from the NSW Government’s just-released Hunter Strategic Regional Integrated Transport Plan, which sets out 49 short and medium-term actions across public […]

LIVING in one of Australia’s fastest growing regional areas, Anna Noon was watching in despair as nature made way for sprawling housing developments. “There was a lot of land clearing happening,” she says of her home at Lake Macquarie in the rapidly-expanding Hunter region. “I knew that was leading to habitat loss, species extinction and […]

NEW data released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows that in the period 2023–24, more than 6000 children across NSW without a parent or guardian, sought help from a specialist homelessness service. More than 80 percent of these children did not receive support. In addition to those who are without guardianship and […]

AS bat season nears in the Hunter, health authorities are warning residents to take extra care and avoid all contact with flying foxes or microbats. A spike in sick and distressed bats arriving at wildlife hospitals across Northern NSW and Southern Queensland in recent weeks has prompted the alert. Historic monastery opens its doors Authorities […]

DUNGOG Day Care Centre was the venue for the August meeting of the Dungog branch of the United Hospital Auxiliaries of NSW. On the third Wednesday of each month from March through November, the group gathers at 1.30pm for a cuppa and chat before the meeting begins at 2pm. At present the Auxiliary currently has […]

REPRESENTATIVES of local businesses and community groups recently met online for a workshop covering the Australian Tourism Data Warehouse (ATDW). These workshops, or webinars, are being run by Arts Upper Hunter, led by Susannah Jones, in collaboration with the Dungog Visitor Information Centre. The ATDW is a nation-wide database for the tourism sector. It distributes […]

PARENTS and advocates say reforms to improve working-with-children checks are a step in the right direction but they want more action to keep kids in childcare safe. Fast-tracked reforms unveiled on Friday will ensure that by the end of the year, anyone prevented from holding a working-with-children check in one state or territory will be […]