Macedon Ranges
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Pop up garlic farmers program
With its aim to give Australians hands-on experience and to grow a new generation of Australian farmers, Farmer Incubator has announced the return of its sought-after Pop Up Garlic Farmers program. Kicking off in February, people have the unique opportunity to participate in a program that teaches you how to plant and nurture a market…
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Sparks fly over fireworks
Demand for greater restrictions on fireworks in the Macedon Ranges has sparked a petition that’s garnered more than 4500 signatures. Springfield Equestrian Park’s Emily Bannister launched the petition in December in a bid to ban noisy fireworks on private properties in rural areas. Ms Bannister said the Macedon Ranges and Mitchell Shire areas were known…
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Rubbish dumped in Kyneton
Macedon Ranges Shire Council is investigating the dumping of hard rubbish in Kyneton last week. Local residents discovered a hot tub and a generator among items dumped on land at the intersection of Kyneton-Springhill Road and Sebastopol Road last Friday. The residents regularly check the site and said the rubbish must have been dumped overnight…
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Legalised ‘rally driving’
Angela Crawford A Cherokee resident is calling for a speed limit reduction on roads through vulnerable wildlife hotspots in the Macedon Ranges. John Power said several roads with 100km/h default speed limits could be found at Cherokee, Riddells Creek and other locations east of Mount Macedon. “There are no signed speed limits throughout extensive networks…
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BlazeAid on the job
Bill West At the weekend, BlazeAid volunteer teams began the massive task of replacing/clearing up fencing damaged by severe flooding on properties along the Deep Creek, from Lancefield to Darraweit Guim. Precisely how long the work will take is unpredictable at this stage, and there is a need for more volunteers to join the BlazeAid…
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Laps for Live4Life
LAP it UP has made a splash for Youth Live4Life raising $38,926. The fitness and fundraising challenge encourages people to swim laps for youth mental health awareness and suicide prevention in rural and regional communities. This year’s event on November 20 saw an incredible 25,028 laps made – that’s 625 kilometres! Youth Live4Life CEO Bernard…
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Writers celebrate place, story, nature
The inaugural Mountain Writers Festival was a draw for booklovers and nature-lovers alike. Held earlier this month, the festival was the flagship event for the Macedon Ranges Literary Association and carried the theme ‘Place Story Nature’. It was the first Australian literary festival to solely focus on environmental and ecological writing, and the impact literature…
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Flood damage widespread
Roads were closed across Mount Alexander and Macedon Ranges Shires as last Thursday’s rain event saw local creeks and rivers burst their banks and flood roads, footpaths, parks, reserves, and impact homes and businesses. Falls of 50-94mms were recorded around Castlemaine and Kyneton and surrounds. In scenes reminiscent of the devastating 2011 floods, Gingell and…
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Braemar meets ‘the Blockheads’
Braemar College students have had a brush with The Block fame. With the current season being filmed and produced in Gisborne South this year, Braemar College was thrilled to have the historic, iconic main building of their Mount Macedon Campus, Braemar House, feature as the façade for ‘Block HQ’. The college also accepted an opportunity…
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Legal action over creek
A group of landholders have threatened legal action over the discharge of Class B recycled water into Deep Creek in the Romsey area. Greater Western Water began controlled releases from Romsey Recycled Water Plant last month attributed to a rise in storages from sustained heavy rainfall. The release has contaminated the creek which those fronting…
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Bridge closure disrupts
Malmsbury’s Ross Road residents have been denied access over the street’s historic bluestone bridge until safety repairs are made. Many residents were left frustrated last week with no notice or explanation of the closure, and forced to re-route using what some describe as “pot-hole-ridden dirt roads that pose more risk than the bridge”. The bridge…
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Moo-ving rescue
Firefighters helped to save a cow stuck in mud up to its neck in Kyneton on Thursday. Four CFA units from Arthurs Creek, Tylden and Kyneton were called to the scene at a Greenway Lane property about 11.51am. Macedon Ranges Shire Council was also on scene and made heavy machinery available for any potential rescue…