“Any new gas is likely to be more expensive than what we have now, because the cheap-to-extract gas is gone.”
Climate
+1
Solar, batteries and efficient heating were on the agenda at an information night helping locals navigate home upgrades.
Colac Otway
Codrington Wind Farm near Port Fairy is set to test Australia’s plan for retiring renewable energy infrastructure.
Pub Chat
Local producers have questioned the free-trade agreement, but their concerns extend beyond quotas to the climate policies that could shape their access to overseas markets.
Agriculture
+2
The soft plastics collection initiative has saved tens of thousands of kilograms of waste from landfill.
Ballarat
“It used to be consistent, we knew when the rainfall would come and when it wouldn’t."
The rare golden-rayed blue butterfly, a species only found in the Wimmera, has been spotted.
Wildlife
Communities relying on tourism could see decreased visitation as summers get hotter.
Great Ocean Road
Wind farms and transmission line installation in Western Victoria is a major topic of debate in farming communities.
Agriculture accounts for almost a third of local employment, with councillors warning water insecurity could threaten the shire’s farms, food production and rural communities.
“We’re not just supplying Melbourne, we’re hooking up South Australia to Melbourne, to Sydney, to everywhere. We’ve got to look bigger than just our back paddock.”
Tree seedlings in Victoria’s northwest did not survive January’s bushfires, but revegetation project workers say there’s an opportunity amongst the destruction.
Wimmera Mallee
“Larger systems are what you need on a farm to be economically viable.”
An announcement from the federal government last week has outlined a way for Ballarat businesses to expand their use of renewable energy.
Business
The city is backing projects it says will cut emissions and save money.
“We’re trying to make our farm strong for the future, they’re trying to get reelected.”
The mining company sought to extract the equivalent of 600 Olympic-sized swimming pools from local groundwater each year.
Mayor Kate Makin described the process as “not good enough”, pointing to Berrybank Wind Farm as an example of how to do it better.
The new system in the Grampians will create compost and reduce transport emissions.
Grampians
A regional advocate says councils should help communities to set clear expectations about what they want from renewable projects.
Creswick Neighbourhood Centre and Clunes Neighbourhood House have been given funding to continue work on the ground preparing their communities for extreme heat.
Creswick
Councils say they are increasingly carrying the financial burden of repairing roads, drainage and public assets after extreme weather events.
“The wind is coming from the north, and you want to stop [it] from taking the moisture out of our soil.”
Profiles
“The combination of rotational grazing and changing animal management has surprisingly helped us build soil carbon.”
“These animals are already on a knife’s edge of survival. They're skinny, their immune system's low, they're not getting enough to drink or eat.”
