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ABC News
10-07-2025
- Climate
- ABC News
Storm damages historic causeway but farmers still await 'miraculous recovery'
Wild weather across South Australia has damaged coastal infrastructure but farmers will need far more rain in coming months if the state's current grain crop is to secure a "miraculous recovery", a leading grower says. A cold front pushed across South Australia on Wednesday, causing a storm surge and bringing strong winds and rain over agricultural areas. The front was part of a more protracted burst of wild weather that has kept emergency services busy this week. The weather has damaged powerlines and brought down trees, including at Williamstown, where a 70-year-old man had to be cut free from a ute on Tuesday. In the past three days, rainfall totals have exceeded 30 millimetres on Eyre and Yorke peninsulas and in the Mid North, 40mm on Kangaroo Island and 80mm in the Adelaide Hills. But the Riverland and Murraylands received far less — with the Bureau of Meteorology recording totals of only a few millimetres in the former, and just over 10mm in the latter. Along the Fleurieu Peninsula, the stone causeway leading to the heritage-listed Second Valley jetty received significant damage on Wednesday. "It's now got a hole through the middle of it so people can't get out to the jetty itself," Yankalilla Mayor Darryl Houston told ABC Radio Adelaide. "The jetty stood up well but the causeway is now badly damaged and being fenced off so people can't access it." It is not the first time the causeway has been impacted by storms — Mr Houston said it had been "slightly damaged" earlier this winter, and a similar hole appeared in 2023. Several South Australian jetties have been destroyed by storms this winter, and Mr Houston said repairing the Second Valley causeway would be a "quite a big job". "The Department of Transport were out there last week looking at it and are on it already but now there's been further damage," he said. "Because it's heritage-listed, of course, with the stonework — that's another complication. Only certainly people can work on it." Jetties and roads have been closed along parts of Eyre Peninsula, and the Far West Aboriginal Sporting Complex was surrounded by saltwater as huge tides rolled in. "At Port Lincoln wharf we got up to about 2.4 metres at high tide," the Bureau of Meterology's Christie Johnson said. "The normal highest sort of tide we would get without the storm surge is about two metres, so we got 40 centimetres above that." The road leading to the Smoky Bay boat ramp has been cut off, and water has inundated local oyster sheds. "Last night I was made aware there was some trouble down at Smoky Bay down at the oyster leases in their sheds," Ceduna Mayor Ken Maynard said. "It flooded and caused a concern with electricity." While the rain may have been music to the ears of some of the state's farmers, Grain Producers SA chair John Gladigau said the patchy falls were "widespread but not huge in quantity". Mr Gladigau said subsoils were mostly dry, and that the strong winds that had accompanied the rain had been "devastating to emerging crops". "In the Mallee, my farm only had three millimetres of rain to the 28th of May, for the year, and then had 18 millimetres for June and literally as that crop was emerging got the horrible dust storms of two-to-three weeks ago. "A week followed and it re-emerged again and then got hit a second time this week." Mr Gladigau said some farmers were already having conversations about whether to treat the current season as a write-off. "If we had above-average rainfall for the next three-to-four months — and I'm talking significantly above — there's a chance, a very slight chance of getting average crops in some places," he said. Earlier this year, the state government announced drought relief funding for $55 million would flow to communities in desperate need of support. The funding came on top of $18 million announced in November. SA Dairyfarmers' Association president Robert Brokenshire said that the arrival of winter had not led to an end of the dry spell, and that farmers were now contending with a "green drought" in which accessing fodder would be a big challenge. "The feed won't grow when it's this cold, even though it's wet," he said. "We need our grain growers as well because we buy a lot of grain off of them and also we buy a lot of hay off of them. "I'm just not sure where the fodder supplies are going to come from, and that's unprecedented."
Times
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
Gill Hicks, 7/7 survivor: ‘The pain reminds me this is my second life'
Hicks, 57, was on the Piccadilly Line, on her way to work as head curator at the Design Council in London, when the July 7, 2005, terrorist bombing took place; she was the last surviving victim to be rescued. Her body was so damaged her identification tag read, 'One unknown — estimated female'. She got divorced and moved back to her native Adelaide in 2012 with her new partner, Karl, a designer; they had a daughter, Amelie, in 2013. Hicks is now a peace advocate, having founded the not-for-profit organisation MAD (Music Arts Discussion). I'm obsessed with the early light in the Adelaide Hills, so I'm always up at five. I love the brief flash of ultraviolet that signals the start of the day. There's often a chorus of birdsong, which, though I've only got one working eardrum, feels like immersion in a sound bath. As well as the eardrum, I lost a lung, damaged my oesophagus and had a set of keys embedded in my skull. Plus, I lost both legs. I've had 20 years to get used to the prosthetics, but when I'm at home I usually crawl. Even into the shower — I feel more stable. Karl works in the day and our daughter is at school, but I'm very independent. If I'm not wearing my legs it means I need my breakfast ingredients — plenty of fruit and a cup of coffee — at a lower level. If I've forgotten something I'll build a ladder out of books or towels. The question I always get asked is, was there a bang? Nothing like that. I remember being late for work — a rarity for me — and getting on the train at King's Cross. People trying to squeeze in and, as I was only 5ft tall, someone breathing on my head. Then, darkness. No noise. No pain. I thought I'd had a heart attack. Gradually I became aware of these other voices and figured I couldn't be dead. I could tell some of the other voices were full of pain and some people were dying, but I still had no idea what had happened. I also heard a very beautiful, clear woman's voice telling me I had no legs. I felt down there and, sure enough, no legs. At the same time, my mind was playing all these snippets of my life: hugging my mother as a child, running on hot sand. It seemed someone was showing me what really mattered. Not that report I'd finished the night before, just these moments of joy. I wondered if that beautiful voice was God but it was countered by a much deeper, angrier voice, which I decided was the voice of life. It said, 'You've lost your legs, but you're still you. What are you going to do?' I said out loud, 'I am not going to die!' I had to use my scarf as a tourniquet on my legs. When I realised the rescue services had risked their own lives to save me, I felt so loved. That sense of euphoria has never really left me. Doesn't matter if I'm painting, doing a talk on stage, making soup for lunch, I feel charged with energy. Everything over the past 20 years has been geared towards living the right life. I do it for the people who rescued me — they have become my second family. I do it for the people who didn't make it, such as Adrian Johnson, the man standing in front of me who probably saved my life. Adrian is with me always; I use him as a marker to make sure I honour every day. [Johnson, a married father of two who worked for Burberry and lived in Nottinghamshire, died aged 37.] • 7/7 as it happened — by the reporter who covered it for a month There are days when things don't feel so cheerful. Watching Amelie splash around at the beach as a little kid was tough; I can't really move on sand. The breakdown of my marriage hurt. And every time I read about another incident, like those little girls in Southport, it reopens old wounds. Do I feel any hatred towards Germaine Lindsay, the man who did this? Hatred, no; anger, yes. Anger can be useful. It helped during the four months I spent in hospital learning to walk again and learning to talk because my oesophagus was all burnt up. I had to get those bloody keys taken out of my skull. There is still a lot of pain — phantom pain in my legs, terrible sores from where the prosthetics rub on my stumps — but it reminds me this is my second life. I refuse to take painkillers. Meeting Karl and becoming a mum was a big part of that too. We don't have a telly but Amelie's very engaged with what is going on in Ukraine and the Middle East. After she has gone to bed I'll have a cheeky G&T while I watch EastEnders on the laptop, but I'm rarely in bed before 12. • 7/7: 'There was a white light. I looked around and saw bodies' I try to wring every moment out of every day because every one of those seconds counts. A second earlier or later getting on that train and I wouldn't be show Still Alive (and Kicking) is at Wilton's Music Hall, London E1, on July 9; Best advice I was givenBelieve in yourself. It's what the physios told me when I was learning to walk Advice I'd giveThis too shall pass What I wish I'd knownI used to smoke 40 fags a day. What the hell was I doing to my body?
ABC News
30-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Fair Work non-compliance rife among farm labour providers in Adelaide Hills and Riverland
A Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) report into horticulture compliance has found several South Australian labour hire providers had not paid workers superannuation and were allegedly operating without a licence. The report, released last week, details investigations in 15 "high-risk" Australian regions where non-compliance was reported to the FWO. From December 2021 to April 2024, the FWO inspected 360 sites across the nation, issuing $760,405 in fines to employers who failed to meet pay slip and record-keeping obligations. Properties were inspected in South Australia's Adelaide Hills and Riverland regions. Investigators found 92 per cent of the audited labour hire providers in SA were non-compliant, with strawberry and citrus producers having some of the highest non-compliance rates in the state. According to the FWO, workers interviewed at a South Australian strawberry farm told inspectors they were paid in cash and did not receive pay slips. The employer was a labour hire firm that "didn't provide any employee records to the FWO" and was issued with multiple infringement notices amounting to more than $12,500. Speaking with Narelle Graham on ABC SA Regional Drive, Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said it was common for labour hire providers to not supply wage records or pay slips and to be uncontactable. "Labour hire is, unfortunately, notorious for the kind of breaches that we found," she said. The investigation also uncovered 10 labour hire providers operating at one South Australian strawberry farm. Of those, three refused to engage with the FWO when it asked for records. Workers, the report says, were paid between $19 and $25 per hour in cash. Six infringement notices totalling $28,860 were issued to five labour hire providers operating at the property. The FWO also made unannounced site inspections in SA involving a network of labour hire businesses suspected of illegal phoenix activity. According to AUSTRAC, illegal phoenix activity occurs when a company liquidates its operation to "avoid paying its creditors, taxes and other regulatory payments", only to later reappear as a newly created company with the same directors. Workers and managers in the Adelaide and Riverland region had accused "various enterprises" of failing to meet taxation obligations and not paying superannuation on behalf of employees. The FWO report says it was also tipped off about three suspected phoenix labour hire providers in the state's Riverland region operating without a licence. Citrus Australia chief executive Nathan Hancock said illegal phoenix activity had been occurring "for a long time". "I think it's wrong and we need to get it out of our industry," he said. Mr Hancock said many horticulture industries wanted a national labour licensing scheme that protected all labour hire workers from "bad actors". "The loopholes that are created by the lack of such a regulation mean people are getting away with exploiting their fellow man, which is really disappointing," he said. Employment and Workplace Relations Minister Amanda Rishworth said the federal government remained "committed" to implementing national labour hire reform. "[We] will continue to work with state and territory governments on pursuing a national approach," she said. "National labour hire reform will be on the agenda for the next meeting of state and territory ministers, which will be convened as soon as practicable." Ms Booth said while the "very high" breach areas would be prioritised and revisited during the next two years, it will continue to stamp out bad behaviour across Australia. "If we get any intelligence or any referrals from any other regulators with whom we work with, or we get any workers ringing us up, we will be there," she said.
ABC News
26-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
SA ban on plastic produce stickers on hold as growers struggle with costs
Shoppers might loathe them but Australian growers have welcomed a delay in banning plastic stickers on fruit and vegetables. South Australia was due to become the first state to ban non-compostable plastic produce (PLU) stickers from September. That ban is now on hold with the state government opting not to impose an extra cost on SA producers during tough times. Australian Fresh Produce Alliance chief executive Claire McClelland said the stickers allowed easy tracing of any fruit's origins, a requirement for producers. The second key reason is easy variety identification and scanning at supermarket checkouts. "If you consider, as a consumer buying a red apple, many varieties of red apples all look a bit similar and those PLU stickers actually help consumers at the check-out identify what fruit they're buying," Ms McClelland said. "That's really important from a production and sales perspective and being able to manage stock and understand what fruit is popular." Producers have been exploring more environmentally friendly PLUs, including laser etching. But according to Ms McClelland, the best option now is to stick with stickers. "Laser labelling is where the skin of the fruit is etched with the same information or similar information [as stickers]," she said, but that created issues of quality control, especially with produce that has an edible peel, and the speed of labelling. "For industry, compostable stickers make the most sense in the long term." Adelaide Hills apple grower Joseph Ceravolo has already invested in compostable stickers. He said price was a challenge, with only a handful of Australian suppliers, and SA being a smaller producer of fresh produce nationally. "The amount that was going to have to be produced for SA was so small it's almost like a boutique item, which means that the cost of it was going to go up substantially," Mr Ceravolo said. "For us, it's almost twice the price." Mr Ceravolo found challenges using the new stickers in existing machinery and said more were falling off due to adhesives used to comply with composting standards. He welcomed a more national approach to a ban. "Plastic stickers will become a thing of the past — it's a matter of time," he said. "Being in a cost-of-living crisis and the cost of goods continuing to move up … primary production is a really difficult industry to be in. This does add an extra cost and layer of complexity. "This is the next logical step to take in terms of reducing plastic in the industry, but it needs most of the major states to shift at the same time to make a level playing field for everybody and so we can guarantee supply." SA Environment Minister Susan Close said the state would work with NSW to implement a ban at the same time, potentially reducing the cost of alternative stickers in a bigger market. "NSW already had a commitment that they would get rid of these plastic fruit stickers and move to compostable by 2030 — our discussion will be how much sooner than that can we go," Ms Close said. She said the pause would also mean less disruption for growers and shoppers. "We've recognised that food producers are doing it pretty tough and are very concerned that the additional cost is going to make it difficult for them to continue to provide to SA markets," she said. "We will be able to get rid of these [stickers] which, admittedly, everybody hates … but I didn't want to cause disruption in supermarkets for people wanting to buy products and I didn't want to cause too much harm to our local producers either."
ABC News
25-06-2025
- General
- ABC News
SA landscape boards crack down on illegal dams in Mount Lofty Ranges
Aerial imagery has found hundreds of illegal dams have been built or enlarged in the Mount Lofty Ranges in the past 10 years. About 400 new dams have been built and about 300 have been significantly enlarged in the past 10 years without approval. This has occurred despite a moratorium on building new dams in the Mount Lofty Ranges since 2013. Hills and Fleurieu Landscape Board general manager Michael Garrod said the organisation was aware of some illegal dams, but he was surprised by the scale of the problem. "Many of the catchments in the Mount Lofty Ranges were already over-allocated and under some stress, so these new dams that have been built without authorisation will deny water getting to those legitimate dam owners," Mr Garrod said. There are 22,000 legitimate dams in the Mount Lofty Ranges. Mr Garrod said, despite the drought putting pressure on water in the Adelaide Hills, there had not been a particular uptick in illegal dams in the last two years. The landscape board has been working with landholders to either reduce the total volume of water being captured on a property to the amount before the illegal dam was built or require them to remove it. Mr Garrod said with drier and more variable conditions, fair and responsible water management was more important than ever. "We have to find new and better ways of storing and using water, building more dams and losing more to evaporation is just a recipe to less water for everybody," he said. Given the need for landholders to be resilient to the changing climate, Mr Garrod said using groundwater more might be an option. "Our groundwater resources are in much better shape than our surface water resources, so that would be a logical change," he said. Kangaroo Island (KI) was the other hotspot with about 350 unauthorised dams also detected, after changes were made to dam building in 2017 when the current water plan came into force. AgKI chair Peter Cooper said the organisation was aware of the issue. Mr Cooper said before 2017, dams on Kangaroo Island that held less than 5 megalitres did not require approval, so some people had built dams not realising that rule had changed. "So this process has been a lot about the education about how the regulations work and what needs to happen into the future," Mr Cooper said. Mr Cooper said given the lack of groundwater, dams were vital for primary production on the island. The Kangaroo Island Landscape Board has written to landholders who built dams that were not authorised but would have been if they had sought approval to explain what they should have done. However, the 10 landholders who built dams that would not have been approved have not yet been contacted. "We (AgKI) have asked that that be delayed until we have an opening to the season to reduce the stress farmers need to have upon them in the season that we've had," Mr Cooper. Sustainable landscapes manager Jo Sullivan said the landscape board had never intended to start any compliance work until the season had broken. She said the main motivation for the work was to improve the understanding of the rules. "We really encourage the community to contact us if they have questions or concerns about construction of dams or water availability on their property," Mr Sullivan said. Compliance officers are continuing to review dams, and an automated change detection system is being developed to allow the landscape boards to identify new and enlarged dams more easily than in the past.
