FRIDAY FEBRUARY 2
SWAN Hill Council wrote to a various transport bodies urging a review of safety and improvements around the Nyah bridge that spans the Murray River.
Cr Nicole McKay moved a notice of motion at the December council meeting to write to the Cross Border Commissioner, the Victorian Department of Transport and Planning, Transport for NSW and respective minister responded to concerns.
SWAN Hill Rural City Council’s Young Citizen of the year Shannon Polglase was recognised for his “exceptional resilience, extraordinary courage remarkable leadership and outstanding contribution to the local community”.
Shannon’s effort to turn his life around makes a remarkable story.
However, the natural leader was caught off guard when the award was announced in February at Swan Hill town hall.
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 6
WHO is Ivy Black and what is the connection to Swan Hill? It’s not a person, but a band.
And the members of the up-and-coming alternative funk punk group originally hail from the Swan Hill region.
The high energy group joined a line-up of 14 other acts that featured at the Summerwave 2024 music festival held at Atkinson Park in Kerang.
SWAN Hill police warned of the dangers of sharing explicit images, as locals continued to be targeted by sextortion scams.
The scams usually target young people with more than half of people aged 14 to 18 reported sending sexual photos, according to a La Trobe University survey published in 2021.
FRIDAY FEBRURAY 9
ENVIRONMENTALISTS rejoiced at the news that the proposed Murray-Darling Basin Plan water-saving project was rejected, but irrigators were concerned about the impact the move would have on water buybacks and basin communities.
The Burra Creek Floodplain, about 50km north of Swan Hill, was one of nine Victorian Murray Floodplain Restoration Project sites.
DRAINAGE works began on a Swan Hill residential street repeatedly voted the worst local road.
The road upgrades and drainage improvements on Butterworth Street were scheduled.
Swan Hill Council director of infrastructure Leah Johnston said the project helped to ensure the long-term viability of the area.
TUESDAY FEBRURARY 13
FEBRUARY is historically the second hottest month of the year, but so far this year February has proven this summer keeps getting warmer.
And it’s only gotten hotter, after a string of sweltering days and oppressive temperatures.
Maximum temperatures since earlier in the month have been in the mid to high thirties with a maximum of 40 degrees set to continue that heatwave.
REGIONAL Victorian lived were being put at risk by Labor’s state and federal policies, according to member for Mallee, Anne Webster.
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler urged the Victorian government to review its controversial GP payroll tax, while the Victorian Government were concerned about Mr Buttler’s plans to take more than $2 billion in health funding from the states and territories over the next five years.
FRIDAY FEBRUARY 16
SWAN HILL Council has rejected a planning application in the southern end of Swan Hill after more than 30 objections.
The council received the application to develop a 1.91ha narrow, tri-angular parcel of land on the eastern side of the Murray Valley Highway, to the south of land occupied by Swan Hill Trailers, for a service station, convenience restaurant.
More than 30 people objected to the application, the majority being residents of the River Oaks estate to the east of the subject site.
NYAH West businesses were forced to close due to maintenance on the town’s electricity supply.
The scheduled works included replacing a cross arm and other maintenance, affecting 350 customers.
The pharmacy and supermarket were forced to close, while the primary school had contingency plans in place.
“The heat was our biggest concern”, Nyah District Primary School Luke Dalton said.
He said the school had a bus on standby with plans to move students to Beverford Primary School for the day should they be impacted by the heat.
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 20
MEMBER for Murray Helen Dalton claims the Federal Government’s water-buyback program has failed to find enough farmers who were willing to sell their water to the government.
The Water Amendment (Restoring Our Rivers) Bill 2023 lifted the coalition-era cap on water buybacks, allowing the federal government to recover more water for the environment through the voluntary purchase of water entitlement.
BOTH Shane Dickenson and Member for Mallee Anne Webster know first-hand the life-changing effects of organ donation, and they are encouraging people to start a conversation with family and friends.
Mr Dickenson was born with cystic fibrosis – an inherited, life-threatening disorder that damages your lungs and digestive systems.
FRIDAY FEBRUARY 23
SWAN Hill drag racing club is seeing red after the Swan Hill Council tore up its spectator mound and dumped it at the start an end of the club’s quarter-mile racing strip.
Club president Gary Rovere said he was “stunned and appalled” at the unprecedented “bureaucratic vandalism’ without, he claimed, any consolation or warning.
THE NSW Government released the NSW Alternatives to Buybacks Plan, hoping to minimise the impact of voluntary water buybacks on Murray-Darling Basin communities.
While supporting the delivery of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan in full, the NSW Government’s plans was designed to maximise water recovery and environmental outcomes through non-purchase measures such as infrastructure and rule changes.
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 27
SWAN Hill residents were being targeted by scammers accessing their MyGov accounts.
Michelle Glen told The Guardian that she and her mother had both been scammed more than once over the past couple of months.
They first became aware something was up when Ms Glen’s mother received a legitimate letter from Centrelink inquiring whether her bank details had been changed.
NEW vehicles are set to cost thousands of dollars more under the government’s planned vehicle efficiency standards, and buyers in the regions will be hardest hit, it has been claimed.
According to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, SUVS and Utes will be among the cars most affected by offset penalties.
