eNews #17

Date: 26 November 2020

Time: 9.30 am - 12.30 pm

Download the flier here

1st December 2020, Parliament House, Canberra

The Landcare Youth Summit is an online conference event for 20 high schools from across Australia. This is a small pilot online conference event for young adults aged between 14 and 18 years.

Thursday, 10 December 2020 at 12.30pm (AEDT) - Interventions to Improve Soil Health in Australia

Click here to register

Date: 10 & 11 December 2020
Location: "Marinka", Walcha NSW
Trainer: Chook Kealey
Contact: Chook Kealey on 0428 418 795

• Increase productivity
• Be more efficient
• Improve management
• Create a safe working environment
• Have quiet stress free stock
• Learn to work confidently

Next year, RuralBiz is offering the Diploma of Agriculture, with face-to-face learning in Armidale. For eligible students it will be fee free! 

Read More

New “Additional Support” grants from Red Cross, will be delivered in two rounds:

• Round 1 – 6 November to 27 November 2020
• Round 2 – February 2021

Available: $5,000 – $1,000,000

Closing: 29 November 2020

The purpose of the program is to provide funding to support wildlife rehabilitators (including community wildlife carer organisations, veterinarians, animal hospitals, zoos, local shelter operators and foster carers), to rescue, treat and rehabilitate wildlife impacted by bushfires and return them into suitable natural environments or otherwise take care of them. It will also support actions to preserve at-risk populations of threatened species impacted by destruction of their habitat through bushfire. The investment will also build organisational and carer capacity and preparedness to respond to future emergencies. More information here

Business Funding: $200,000 and $20 million

Community Funding: $20,000 and $300,000

Closing date: Friday, 11 December 2020

Businesses and communities in Armidale, Glen Innes Severn, Gwydir, Inverell, Tamworth, Tenterfield, Upper Hunter, Uralla and Walcha local government areas, can apply from 27 October, 2020 for grants co-funded by the Australian and NSW governments.

Funds: $50,000 - $170,000

Closing: 3pm 14 December 2020

The NSW Environmental Trust is now inviting applications to the 2020/21 round of its Restoration and Rehabilitation Grants Program. A total of $4 million is available for projects that assist in the ongoing sustainable management and stewardship of significant environmental assets and services in NSW.

The Program Guidelines, Developing Your Application guide and a range of other resources are available on the Trust's Restoration and Rehabilitation grant program webpage: https://environmentaltrust.cmail20.com/t/t-l-xirithk-sikthktp-r/.

Closing 23 December 2020

The Australian Government is inviting applications to deliver services under the Future Drought Fund: Drought Resilience Research and Adoption Program – Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hubs (Hubs).

This program will establish eight regionally-focused Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hubs. The Hubs will be located in regional areas that reflect the key agricultural and climatic zones across the country. The regions targeted are:

The NSW Government has announced the Drought Assistance Fund has been increased to $100,000. This interest-free loan has a term of seven years, with no repayments in the first two years. 

Available to primary producers for the implementation of systems & management practices that enhance the sustainability of their farm business. The loan can fund:

• NEW: Restocking purposes.
• The transport of stock, fodder and water
• Genetic banking of breeding herds
• Installation of on-farm fodder and water infrastructure
• Activities that promote profitability and resilience as a result of the on-farm investment

For more information, visit the Rural Assistance Authority here.

Private landholders who share a boundary with public land and were impacted by the Northern and Southern fires of late 2019 and early 2020 are eligible to receive up to $5,000 per kilometre to contribute to the replacement of damaged boundary fences.

Do you have native vegetation on your farm? Could you benefit from some additional income to manage this land? The newly-established Biodiversity Conservation Trust (BCT) has a new program that could be of interest. BCT are calling for expressions of interest (EOI) from people interested in earning annual payments to conserve biodiversity on their property.

Download the Conservation Tender Fact Sheet here. For more information, contact the BCT on 1300 992 688 or by email: info@bct.nsw.gov.au