Health
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TAKE THE MESSAGE SERIOUSLY
Authorities are urging people to take the self-isolation message seriously as Victoria steps up measures to flatten the curve in new cases of coronavirus. Victoria has entered stage three of its response, with people facing fines of more than $1600 for breaching social-distancing rules. Gatherings will be restricted to no more than two people except…
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‘Declare a climate emergency’: XR
Local Extinction Rebellion protesters last month launched coordinated protest actions across the Macedon Ranges to demand immediate action on climate change. The actions took place as part of the statewide XR Rural Day of Climate Change Action on February 21 in the lead up to the Climate Justice Alliance’s Climate Crisis National Day of Action…
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Walk for wellbeing
Castlemaine-based suicide prevention charity HALT (Hope Assistance Local Tradies) is gearing up for its second annual HALT Community Wellbeing Walk and is inviting interested participants to join in the 2020 challenge. Registrations are now open for the 2020 walk which will take place over six days from March 30-April 4. In 2019 the inaugural walk…
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A conversation can save a life
Melanie Jorgensen is starting the conversation. She is making it her mission to encourage talk around mental health, after losing her 15-year-old son Lachlan to suicide in October 2017. Described as “a lover of all things sport”, Lachlan was a national 400-metre sprinter and talented footballer who had battled depression and anxiety for more than…
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Join the campaign for No Packet November!
No Packet November encourages families to reduce their consumption of packaged food for one month and make a stand against the billion-dollar food manufacturers that are selling us mass-produced factory food in plastic. It’s a win for our health and the environment. Kyneton’s Kate Coleman, a personal trainer and health advocate, created NPN to inspire…
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Yandoit beekeeper has something to buzz about
Yandoit beekeeper Craig Terrell reckons he’s onto something. The local apiarist practises what he calls holistic beekeeping to produce resilient bees. “I don’t require antibiotics or supplementary feeding of bees,” says Mr Terrell who use to work as a bricklayer until, about six years ago, he got stung by the beekeeping bug and hasn’t looked…
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Kyneton Water Reclamation Plant upgrade works to begin
Coliban Water has announced the first phase of planned works to improve trade waste and treatment processes at the Kyneton Water Reclamation Plant to help protect the Campaspe River. In June the water authority was forced to undertake daily unauthorised wastewater releases to the river to ensure lagoon embankments at the plant were protected, triggering…
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HEALTH SERVICES JOINING FORCES
CHIRP Community Health and Castlemaine Health will conduct a year-long trial to see if combining their community health services in a joint working arrangement can deliver better health outcomes for local people. But it’s not a merger – at this stage, Castlemaine Health CEO Ian Fisher and CHIRP CEO Di Couch say. “Not at this…
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Ready, set … Run The Maine
This Friday public holiday is a big one for Castlemaine as the town hosts hundreds of runners for the annual Run The Maine. Event director Gavin Krasner says the half marathon course has been particularly hitting the mark with strong registrations from runners keen to tackle the 21km distance that will follow the Maldon to…
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Kyneton local saving lives with 700th blood donation
Kyneton local Paul Ruff has the distinct honour of having potentially saved more than 2000 lives. Paul made his 700th blood donation last Tuesday at the Australian Red Cross Blood Service’s Melbourne CBD Donor Centre. He is just the fifth Victorian to reach this milestone and the 18th Australian … making him part of a…
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Castlemaine Seed Library seeks volunteers
Castlemaine Seed Library is keen to secure some more volunteers. While some multinational corporations might like to patent the stuff of life for shareholder profit, in Castlemaine this local grassroots service aims to ensure local people always have free access to local food seeds just as nature intended. The Castlemaine Seed Library is part of…
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Cuts to home support services in Macedon Ranges
Macedon Ranges Shire Council will scrap at least three home support services in response to ongoing Commonwealth reforms across the aged care and disability services sector. Meals on Wheels and the Home and Community Care Program for Young People will cease by mid-2020, and supported home maintenance and home modifications will end by July 2021.…