Brisbane Team Kicks Off Space Program with Rocket Launch

A Brisbane based aerospace company has launched an historic rocket, kicking off Australia’s newest space programs.

Black Sky Aerospace launched Sighter 150, making it the first rocket to be designed, built and powered in Australia in 40 years.

Director Blake Nikolic says the rocket is a success setting a good precedent for future launches and says the company is working with the Australian government to advance Australia’s space industry.

 

Lobbyists looking to QLD Government to Tighten Leash on Dangerous Dog Owners

Lobbyists are setting their sights on the QLD state government to impose tougher punishments on owners of dangerous dogs. 

The Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) is set to lobby the government this week after a woman and her dog was attacked on the gold coast .

Gold Coast City councillor Hermann Vorster says the dog attack incident aren’t isolated and that is “a real entrenched problem in our public open space” with the Gold Coast City Council has received 547 dog attack complaints in 2021 so far.

 

QLD Government Says to be Aware of DV this Holiday Season

The Queensland government is reminding Queenslander to be aware of domestic violence as the holidays season nears with expected rates of domestic violence to heighten during the Christmas period.

The Minister for Women And for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Family Violence Shannon Fentiman says the Christmas and New Year holiday period is linked to an annual spike in rates of domestic and family violence. 

NT Moves Ahead with Border Opening Despite Health Services Asking For Delays

The Northern Territory plans to push ahead with reopening border despite calls from Aboriginal health groups to delay changes due to lower remote vaccination rates.

Quarantine requirements are set to be scrapped altogether from December 21st for travellers with the NT government asking for more stringent testing instead. 

With 55 remote communities with vaccination rates below 70 percent, Central Australian Aboriginal Congress Chief Medical Officer Dr John Boffa says the current vaccination rates will not be sufficient in protecting communities across the state.

Tensions Prompt Further Protest in Burkina Faso

Tensions are high in Burkino Faso with tyre burnings and government building pillaged by protestors after police fired tear gas to disperse crowds. 

The protests which are calling for the country’s president to resign, are angry at the government’s inability to stem terrorism linked to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State group. 

Mobile internet was cut and the demonstrations went  went unauthorised, with further tensions arising from French forces firing warning shots at Protestors in Kaya following a blockade by protestors. 

 

Queensland Government criticised over renewables targets

The Queensland Government is being criticised for its transparency on its progress towards its renewable energy targets. 

An Auditor-General report criticised the State Government for its lack of detail on how it will reach its fifty percent renewable energy target by 2030.

The Auditor-General has warned Queensland may fail to achieve this target if early stage targets continue to stall as they have for the past four years.

 

Queensland Central Highlands Flooding

The Central Highlands region of Queensland experienced flash flooding last night, causing great damage to residents' homes. 

In the past forty-eight hours, the catchment experienced an average of a-hundred-and-fifteen millimetres of rain, with areas such as Theresa Creek receiving up to two-hundred-and-seventy millimetres of rain.

This is the second time this year that the Gemfields has experienced flash flooding, and locals say the cost of these floods has put them at a breaking point.