Number of e-scooters on Brisbane streets to rise

Council has approved an e-scooter expansion, ahead of the release of its e-mobility strategy next month.

The number of e-scooters on Brisbane’s streets are set to jump from 1000 to 1500, and roll out to more areas of the city.

Public transport committee chairman Councillor Ryan Murphy says its e-mobility strategy will help Brisbane adapt to new technology.

“Our e-mobility strategy will be the first of its kind in Australia and is expected to be released in June 2021," he said.

Woman begs PM for help

A woman has fallen to her knees crying in front of Prime Minister Scott Morrison as he toured Rockhampton’s Beef Week expo yesterday.

The woman was  asking Scott Morrison  to intervene in a violent conflict in the Central African nation of Cameroon that she said had claimed the lives of much of her family.

A report from Human Rights Watch said armed groups and government forces in the nation committed “widespread human rights abuses, across Cameroon’s Anglophone regions throughout 2020.”

 

Aboriginal cultural heritage preserved

Aboriginal  cultural heritage has been preserved after a go kart track was blocked from being built on Mt Panaorama-Wahluu in Bathurst, NSW.

Federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley announced a protection order for the site that will  last for ten years and explicitly outlaws earthworks or construction of any track.

Wiradyuri  Traditional Owners Central West Aboriginal Corporation, publicity officer, Yanhadarrambhal Jade Flynn said they were initially in "shock" at the decision, followed by a sense of "elation".

 

Australia's first net-zero hybrid power station

Australia's first net-zero hybrid power station has gotten the green light and will be built in Illawarra, New South Wales.

The power plant will be capable of running on both hydrogen and natural gas with the NSW and federal government eighty three million dollars towards the build.

The project is predicted to be operational by 2023 to 2024 as the Liddell coal-fired plant sets to close.

 

Beef Sustainability report

With Rockhampton's beef week underway the Sustainability Steering Group has released a Beef Sustainability Report for 2021.

The report  shows that the percentage of cattle lands set aside for conservation increased but trends in ground cover, deforestation and conservation management of grazing country were not quantified by the report.

The report also showed improvements in the percentage of farmers using pain relief systems in animal husbandry

 

Giant moth found at school

A giant wood moth has been found at the Mount Cotton State School, south east of Brisbane.

The Giant Wood Moth is the heaviest species of moth in the world and has a wingspan of up to 25 cm.

Students used the Giant moth as inspiration for their creative writing class.

 

New federal agency for natural disasters

Half a billion dollars will be spent by the federal government to establish a new agency overseeing the national responses to major natural disasters 

The National Recovery and Resilience Agency or NRRA will provide relief to communities and advise it on how to mitigate the impacts of future weather events.

The NRRA will also help bushfire and cyclone-proof houses, build levees in disaster-prone areas, and improve telecommunications infrastructure.

 

Uncontrolled space debris heading to earth

Space debris possibly weighing several tonnes is currently on an uncontrolled re-entry phase with earth with parts expected to crash on earth over the next week.

The debris is part of the Long March 5B rocket that recently successfully launched China's first module for its proposed space station.

The uncontrolled entry means that scientists can not predict where pieces will land or if they will burn up on entry.

 

BCC ethics committee meet

During a Brisbane city council meeting of the local government’s ethics committee the council labour opposition raised concerns about the censorship of elected representatives’ views.

The meeting was held to discuss Greens Councillor Jonathan Sri’s comments about a NSW police officer’s alleged assault of a 16-year-old Aboriginal boy last year.

Yesterday the NSW police officer was charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm and common assault.

 

Cashless welfare cards new job program

The federal government's cashless debit card program is set to roll out a job ready program at Bundaberg and Hervey Bay in Queensland.

The controversial program holds 80 percent of a person's welfare payments to only be spent on food from participating supermarkets.

Monash University researcher Luke Greenacre says that the trial research has only shown minor outcomes.