Western Plains Rural Report
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Latest Report
1. Farmers dry up and get on with harvest
Murray Wilkinson Graincorp.
Many headers stayed put across the region as farmers were forced to stop harvesting due to the recent rains.
Harvest is now starting to get back underway.
Central Division manager with Graincorp Murray Wilkinson says the weather has had an impact ot the quality of the grain.
2. Water watch
Damon Cusack western CMA
Fancy yourself a bit of an amateur hydrologist?
Well the western catchment management authority is utilising individuals and groups who are keen to help monitor their local water ways, and learn a bit about the science of water along the way.
The first group on board are a group of students from Trangie Public school.
They joined what's called "water watch" in late October and have since become regular collectors of data and specimens for the CMA.
3. Kevin Rudd: Christmas elf or phoney Santa?
It might be 24 days until Christmas, but Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was playing Santa a little early on the weekend, handing out around $15 billion dollars to the states.Rural Australia is hopeful it will see some of the dollars delivered to rural schools and hospitals, but is also worried about the Government's talk that the Federal Budget could go into the red.
3. Markets and commodities
Wheat in Chicago overnight: The December contract fell 34 and a half US cents a bushel to finish on $5.08
Cotton on the New York Board of Trade: The December contract rose 11 points to finish on 45.86 US cents a pound.
The Eastern Young Cattle Indicator saw no change, finishing on 328.75 cents a kilo.
New South Wales Features
A long fight for the long paddock
New South Wales' travelling stock routes and reserves (TSRs), provide land that drovers and apiarists rely on for their living and that many of us use for a dip in the river or a picnic in the scrub.
Anger grows over Alstonville closure
Rallies, posters and committees are being set up to stop the closure of the DPI's Centre for Tropical Horticulture on the NSW North Coast.
Home owner advice on managing locusts
NSW DPI provides valuable information to urban dwellers as locusts swam start to move into urban areas of Southern NSW.
Dorrigo turns out for annual ag fair
If horses, cattle and woodchopping weren't enough then the vintage tractors, whipboxing and bush dog trials certainly helped make this local show a success over the weekend.
Macdonald defends DPI cuts
The NSW Primary Industries Minister has defended cuts to his department in the state's minibudget, saying they will save millions of dollars.
Forbes fights for its golf course
The town of Forbes, in the central west of New South Wales, looked set to lose its golf course this summer, but locals have come to its rescue.
Overweight dads lead family fitness campaign
Who talks the most about eating healthy food in your home? A program underway in Newcastle encourages dads to lead the way.
Stellar cast of campdrafters at Gladstone
Throw in a bit of dirt with the saddles and spurs, add some good cattle worked by the best riders and horses around and you've got yourself a mighty fine weekend of campdraft action.
Worm farm near Broken Hill reducing waste and fighting aphids
You may have seen a worm compost in someone's garden before, working to break down their garden scraps into rich, healthy mulch.
Well, imagine a worm farm doing that for a whole town's green waste, and you'd see something like Australian Vermiculture in Broken Hill.
Men shed weight in the Hunter
An on-line program to help men lose weight in the Hunter region of New South Wales is so successful men are lining up to join.
