Plus matters of life and death. Welcome to Galah Weekly, our award-winning newsletter keeping you up to date with regional headlines that matter, plus other delightful things from life beyond the city. By Dean Southwell, who loves to see a win for small producers.
Victorian farmer Tammi Jonas says a state government decision that will cut red tape for on-farm abattoirs is a win for small producers, butchers and buyers who want to trace the source of their meat and animal welfare.
The Victorian government has agreed to adjust its planning conditions to make it easier to establish micro-abattoirs in rural and regional areas.
Jonas has spent years trying to establish a small abattoir on her farm near Daylesford. She also represents the Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance, which has campaigned for the planning changes for eight years.
What it means Most small on-farm processors won’t need a planning permit to establish their facilities, although they’ll still be subject to environmental and health laws. Jonas, whose own micro-abattoir has already gone through the more-stringent planning approval, told Galah this week the changes would benefit at least six other Victorian producers hoping to establish on-farm operations.
Why it matters Last year major Victorian abattoir Hardwicks announced it would not take small lots of animals for slaughter, limiting options for small producers. It’s a trend repeated around the country as abattoirs close or centralise, and it means butchers, restaurants and consumers could lose access to meat grown in their region. Jonas says the Victorian example could offer a model for other states with similar planning restrictions.
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Just down the road from Tammi Jonas, chef Annie Smithers and her wife Susan Thompson have also had a breakthrough in a fight that put them on the wrong side of Victoria’s archaic water laws.
The couple have ample water on their Lyonville property but the law said they could not water their kitchen garden if the produce was used in Smithers’ Trentham restaurant. It put Smithers’ whole paddock-to-plate philosophy at risk, even though the restrictions didn’t apply to livestock.
Thompson, who was originally told they were unlikely to get the commercial water licence they needed to resolve the problem, has been granted a licence after applying earlier this year.
Smithers wants to see the law changed to help small producers in a similar situation and her advice to others, explained in Dani Valent’s Dirty Linen podcast, was to “keep being annoying”.
The WA government has signed off on a controversial 800-bed accommodation centre for fly-in fly-out workers at a Kalgoorlie gold mine amid debate about the impact of itinerant workforces.
The mining camp just outside the Kalgoorlie-Boulder CBD will house workers for Northern Star Resources' Super Pit mine, where operations are being extended until 2046. Northern Star said it had exhausted all other accommodation options in the city, which has only about 70 rental vacancies.
Yet the state approval came last week despite more than 140 objections. Critics questioned whether Kalgoorlie businesses would see the benefit of the increased population. The mining camp would have its own facilities such as a gym, wet mess and convenience store on site.
An increasing reliance on a fly-in workforce has also affected the Queensland town of Tieri, where mine closures and a dwindling permanent population have forced sporting clubs to fold.
An Australian space rocket might have flown for only 14 seconds and barely cleared its north Queensland launch pad, but a special payload of Vegemite survived the journey.
Gilmour Space Technologies hailed the brief flight from the Bowen Orbital Spaceport as a significant step on the path to space, even though the 23-metre rocket barely cleared the tower before an apparent engine failure. CEO Adam Gilmour said the test showed much of what his company had built worked, with focus shifting to launching another rocket in about six months.
The company’s social media crew was on the ball, making the most of the survival of a jar of Vegemite, which was relatively unscathed and still tasty.
Edith Cowan University engineering dean Paulo De Souza, who has worked with NASA, said the launch attempt was a major achievement. "It's rocket science,” he said. “It's not easy.”
A bird-loving community that has planted more than 100,000 trees and shrubs in the past three decades to restore wildlife habitat in the NSW Central Tablelands will show off the results of its work next month.
The inaugural Capertee Valley Bird Festival on 19-21 September will offer more than 25 bird and nature-themed activities.
The Capertee Valley, about 135km north-west of Sydney, is considered a key biodiversity area and is home to more than 240 bird species, including the threatened regent honeyeater.
Meanwhile, a former outback station bought by the NSW government in 2023 is expected to open as a national park next year. Aside from developing visitor infrastructure, controlling feral animals such as cats and pigs has been a priority in preparing the 437,000-hectare Thurloo Downs for life as a national park.
There’s no similar good news for the Great Barrier Reef, with an Australian Institute of Marine Science study showing coral cover had dropped dramatically after a 2024 marine heatwave.
Galahs are big readers and explorers. More than 90% of you are women and 63% of you live outside major cities.
These are some of the findings so far from Galah’s reader survey, which could help shape a possible future for Galah.
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While you’re reflecting on Galah and waiting for Issue 13 of the magazine in November, keep an eye out each Sunday evening as editor-in-chief Annabelle Hickson looks back on our stories of people living and creating in amazing places and spaces.
Bega Valley-raised artist Jess MacNeil is known for her multidisciplinary practice grounded in painting and moving images that explore how we relate to our environment. The exhibition includes work developed during a 2022 residency in Mimosa Rocks National Park. At South East Centre for Contemporary Art, Bega, NSW, until 13 September. Read more
Spring Into Art at Newbridge is offering workshops with award-winning Sydney artist Paul McCarthy. Entries for the weekend’s feature event, the 2025 Newbridge Art Show, opened this month, along with bookings for the McCarthy workshops. At Newbridge, NSW, 17-19 October. Read more
Warrnambool-born painter-sculptor Alexandra Peters, whose work often takes the form of installation, returns to her home town for this solo exhibition. At Warrnambool Art Gallery, Vic, until 19 October. Read more
After gaining his photography diploma, Warrnambool photographer Eddie Guerrero spent years working in a range of genres, from shooting portraits and sport to live music events. He says the experience sharpened his ability to sensitively capture emotion, movement and fleeting moments. For the past year he has run After Life Funeral Photography, documenting a significant time of reflection for many families. Guerrero’s Mexican heritage allows him to view death as the continuation of a journey. In Mexico, the Day of the Dead is a celebration of life and memory rather than mourning.
Why did you start doing funeral photography? I attended the funeral of a young person and was deeply moved by the care and love that went into the celebration of their life. I realised that amid the profound pain, the family might struggle to remember the day clearly and also the importance of documenting and preserving memories from such significant events.
Why do people seek photographers for funerals? We cherish memories of significant events such as births, weddings, and sports achievements. From my perspective, documenting funerals is essential for commemorating a person's life, making it just as important as capturing other milestones. It’s an event where people express genuine emotions.
Does it require a different approach to other photography? It's essential to be both respectful and unobtrusive. I typically use large lenses and silent cameras to capture candid moments from a distance without interrupting the service. During the burial and the wake, my approach shifts slightly. I am closer to the family and guests and able to capture more intimate, natural interactions.
What sort of input do you get from families? Families share an overview of how they envision the service, particularly emphasising the moments that hold special significance for them. This information allows me to tailor my approach and to capture those meaningful moments with respect and sensitivity.
What do you think families get out of having you at a funeral? Photography can play a significant role in the healing journey for families during tough times. It acts as a powerful way for reflection, helping families remember and honour their loved ones while staying connected to the meaningful moments they shared. Many families have told me how these images have been priceless in helping them work through their grief.
Do you find yourself affected by the events and the images you take? In my culture, death is seen as the continuation of a journey – a natural part of life. That perspective helps me approach funerals with a sense of calm and reverence. I feel deeply empathetic, especially as I listen to eulogies and personal stories shared by friends and family. Some situations can be more emotionally intense than others but I also see it as a way to offer something meaningful amid loss.
Castlemaine artist Hayley West is another who believes we should discuss death as an inevitable event and regard funerals as a chance to celebrate lives, not just mourn.
She says when people can deal with the subject, it helps them make the most of life.
West is also an independent death worker and end-of-life consultant. She has been discussing that inevitable event on her Dead Air program on radio station 94.9MAINfm for almost four years. It’s not all talk; she also plays listeners’ favourite funeral music.
More recently she’s launched a business to offer services that might go beyond those offered by traditional funeral directors. She describes The Departure as a one-stop shop to help deal with everything from end-of-life planning to personalised funeral services and choice of final resting place. West says people increasingly seek environmentally friendly options for that final resting place.
West supports Dying To Know, a campaign that encourages people to prepare for the inevitable and has the catchline: “We’re not here to whisper about death. We’re here to yell about life.”
She is discussing the subject in two talks, Reimagining Death, at Kyneton Library on Thursday, 14 August at 2-3pm, and at Castlemaine Library at 5.30-6.30pm the same day.
We’d love to hear about the news, events and people that should be making the headlines in the Galah Weekly newsletter. Share what’s new(s) in your neck of the woods with us at newsie@galahpress.com
