Rabbit population boom blamed on lack of funding for biological control
By Joanna Prendergast, Kate Forrester, and Rachel Boothman
Landholders across Australia say rabbit numbers in some areas are at levels never seen before.
#Pests #PestsDiseasesandControlMethods #FederalGovernment #GrainGrowing #JoannaPrendergast #KateForrester # #RachelBoothman
Dropping speed limits on unsigned roads 'nonsense', WA senator says
By Andrew Collins, Kate Forrester, and Rosemary Murphy
A Labor senator says it's "stupidity" for the federal government to propose a reduction to the default speed limit for unsigned roads.
#RoadTransportIndustry #RegionalCommunities #Roads #AndrewCollins #KateForrester # #RosemaryMurphy
Hail stones and heavy rain wreak havoc for WA farmers and businesses
By Kate Forrester, Andrew Chounding, and Joanna Prendergast
Severe weather has swept through large parts of the Great Southern and Wheatbelt, causing significant damage to crops during the critical harvest period.
#Storms #WeatherWarnings #Hail #AgriculturalCrops #CropHarvesting #GrainGrowing #KateForrester #AndrewChounding # #JoannaPrendergast
Widow takes prostate cancer fight to federal parliament
By Amelia Searson and Kate Forrester
Liz Heggaton has become an "accidental advocate" for prostate cancer after her husband Craig took his own life while receiving treatment for the disease.
#ProstateCancer #FederalParliament #RuralandRemoteCommunities #MentalHealth #AmeliaSearson #KateForrester
Family of crash survivor who learnt to walk again urges drivers to wear seatbelts
By Kate Forrester and Amelia Searson
After surviving a car crash and a stroke, Laura McKenney was told she may never walk again. Now, she's trekking 50-kilometres to raise money for the service that saved her life.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10-22/seatbelt-warning-wa-road-crash-rfds-fundraiser/105915366
#RoadAccidentsandIncidents #EmergencyCare #RegionalCommunities #KateForrester #AmeliaSearson
Lambassador program teaches international chefs about lamb flavours
By Kate Forrester
A delegation of international chefs from 11 countries have landed in Australia to gain a deeper understanding of locally produced Australian lamb.
Close whale and calf encounter renews calls for boats to keep back
By Rhys Jones , Eliza Kavanagh, Peter Barr, and Kate Forrester
The latest close encounter with a protected whale species has renewed calls for the public to give the animals space.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10-15/boat-approaches-southern-right-whale-and-calf-wa/105893974
#EndangeredandProtectedSpecies #MarineBiology #RhysJones #ElizaKavanagh #PeterBarr # #KateForrester
Regional teens left lonely as social media goes dark
By Madigan Landry and Kate Forrester
Advocates are concerned rural and remote children will experience compounding challenges with the looming social media ban for people under 16.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10-14/regional-teens-left-lonely/105888190
#SocialMedia #DiversityEquityandInclusion #MadiganLandry #KateForrester
Working dog auction with a twist puts sick children at its centre
By Mark Bennett and Kate Forrester
A working dog auction at the Perth Royal Show raises nearly $50,000 for charity Telethon to support sick children.
#Charities #DonationBasedCrowdFunding #Dogs #Animals #ChildrensHealth #Agriculture #MarkBennett #KateForrester
Meet Hayden Eastbury, the 17-year-old visiting every ABC bureau in Australia
By Kate Forrester
Hayden Eastbury lives with fragile X syndrome. He dreams of working for the ABC one day and has made it his mission to visit them all.
#PeopleWithDisability #ABC #DiversityEquityandInclusion #KateForrester
Winemaking music lover to focus on health after blood cancer diagnosis
By Amelia Searson and Kate Forrester
WA vigneron Rob Wignall, who built a legacy of award-winning Great Southern wines and star-studded music festivals, says it is time to move on.
#Viticulture #Agriculture #SmallBusinesses #RegionalCommunities #DiseasesandDisorders #Health #AmeliaSearson #KateForrester
School bus driver fears the worst as untagged cattle roam roads
By Kate Forrester
A Katanning school bus driver and local farmers are calling for urgent action to address a growing danger posed by wandering livestock on rural roads.
#LivestockFarming #LocalGovernment #Laws #Roads #Farmers #RuralandRemoteCommunities #RoadAccidentsandIncidents #KateForrester
Cockchafer worm wreaks havoc WA grain crops
By Kate Forrester
Growers and scientists have teamed up in a bid to combat the rapidly increasing population of the voracious pest, which is devastating crops in WA's south-east.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09-21/cockchafer-pest-costing-wa-grain-farmers-thousands/105783068
#PestControl #AgriculturalPestControl #ScientificResearch #AgriculturalandFarmingPractice #KateForrester
Real time AI monitoring of bee hives hope to stop destructive pest
By Tara de Landgrafft, Kate Forrester, and Madigan Landry
AI-enabled sentry hives will soon line the main route to Western Australia from South Australia, using cameras and 4G to detect varroa mite.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09-09/bee-technology-helps-keep-wa-safe-from-varroa-mite/105738478
#Biosecurity #Beekeeping #PestControl #PestsDiseasesandControlMethods #Pests #TaradeLandgrafft #KateForrester # #MadiganLandry
A honey bee-killing parasite is in SA for the first time. What impact will it have?
By Olivia Mason and Kate Forrester
The "world's worst" honey bee parasite, varroa mite, has been detected in South Australia for the first time. Now in five jurisdictions across Australia, what impact will it have on the agricultural industry?
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09-04/varroa-mite-detected-in-riverland-what-happens-next/105732590
#Beekeeping #Environment #InvasiveSpecies #AgriculturalPestControl #Insects #PestsDiseasesandControlMethods #OliviaMason #KateForrester
Supermarket giants split on beef linked to land clearing
By Joanna Prendergast and Kate Forrester
A conservation group welcomes a pledge from Coles to purchase greener beef, but says it is concerned about a change in policy from Wooworths.
#BeefCattleFarming #Supermarkets #EnvironmentalImpact #JoannaPrendergast #KateForrester
Gold miner's $35m farmland deal 'last piece of the puzzle'
By Kate Forrester
Ausgold's deal includes the 860ha land acquisition, as well as compensation and relocation of the farming families involved.
For the first time, Americans will experience this homegrown WA apple
By Kate Forrester
A homegrown West Australian apple makes its debut in American supermarkets, with the first shipment to China due to leave next year.
Bravo apples hit US shelves but some WA growers not sold on its success
By Kate Forrester
A homegrown West Australian apple makes its debut in American supermarkets, with the first shipment to China due to leave next year.
Service dog helps others heal after giving veteran his life back
By Kate Forrester
A specially trained service dog brought joy back to Gary Crombie's life. Now the veteran is calling for more recognition of the work service dogs do in everyday life.
