The story of how since 2000 Noosa Council has been paying for free holiday buses and then - after extensive work, expense, public consultation and approval of a comprehensive strategy to address traffic, parking and transport issues - the Council continues to mainly offer free buses.
Someone asked me recently why I am so interested in this subject of oyster reefs and "bringing back the fish".
Right from the very beginning I questioned the absolute need for this investment. This was because of what I was...
Judie Barrass gives a great overview of the proposed New Noosa Plan relating to Short Term Lets and why it is scaring major players like Stayz. She believes it’s a brave move and hopes it comes off. What do you think?
Things are starting to move at the Sunrise Beach Blue Care development with Glossy Bob reporting the start of electrical infrastructure for the site. This post give an update on a response Bob received from Noosa Council and subsequent communications with Lendlease, the company appointed to manage community engagement.
Bob followed up with Conor Neville from Noosa Council - he does Ecologist Development Assessments for the Environment and Sustainable Development department. Here's his response:
NIMBYism has got a bad reputation, and rightly so. In this post, Desi makes the case for NIMBYism and a community's rights to stand up for NO EXTINCTIONS in our back yards. Save our Sunrise Glossies!
We’ve just had the first electric vehicle expo in Noosa and it was a real treat to finally see some of these legends in the flesh. However, if you are serious about buying a car right now what are the realistic options? Tim did his homework and was happy to share his insights. You are welcome :)!
Attending a recent screening of 2040 caused some serious reflection on whether we really can engineer our way out of this mess humans have created. With Council elections approaching, it's the perfect time to ask what sort of future Noosa we are heading for. Open Noosa invites future scenarios for this place we call home.
From the Australian perspective we often think places like Germany, or indeed the whole of Europe, might be ahead of us in environmental and public health measures, but I’m beginning to think we just don’t know how lucky we are.
In April we had written an open letter to our mayor Tony Wellington about our concerns with regards to a renewal of a funding deed for the Noosa Biosphere Reserve Foundation (NBRF). So naturally I was waiting for the deliberations to begin. Before council hands over any more public funds to the NBRF it would be great to find out a few things. These are my top 5 questions for the NBRF.
THIS SUNDAY! 1. September at the Perigian Digital Hub. Start up EarthTech is proud to bring the first free screening of 2040 to the Noosa Region.
As controversy continues to swirl around the Noosa Biosphere Reserve Foundation, a major recipient of funding from Noosa Council, KEITH JACKSON reveals his experience of trying to make the organisation more transparent and accountable.
The Noosa Biosphere Reserve Foundation certainly...
Adventure takes many forms. For some it must involve mountains or wrestling bears, for others it comes from shopping at a different supermarket chain.
I count myself in neither camp. Instead I sit somewhere between. This is in part because...
Can "Tactical Urbanism" help us see a different future in terms of the way we get around in Noosa? Other cities across the globe are giving it a go - and it seems sensible that we do too...
Short term letting – and Noosa Council’s attempts to design a policy to control it – are hot topics in Noosa right now. And the Future Noosa group, which has three councillor candidates standing for March’s election, is concerned about the policy’s impact on residents. Councillor Candidate Andrew Squires warns not to throw the baby out with the bathwater – the baby being the best interests of residents.
The current funding deed under which Noosa Council wholly finances the Noosa Biosphere Reserve Foundation (NBRF) terminates on Saturday 30 June and the next day, 1 July, a new three-year agreement will kick in.
The sale of bags made by Boomerang Bags Noosa volunteers has over the years funded movie screenings and other educational programs, including $500 seed funding to establish the Plastic Free Noosa initiative, but lately the group has decided to focus their financial assistance on one group, with Ocean Crusaders selected as the worthy recipient.
I wrote recently about the need not to react with alarm to scaremongering about the claimed poor state of Noosa River's biodiversity from NBRF and Noosa Council. That was exaggeration, not science.
NBRF and the Council need to develop an...
The interest and appetite for tiny houses is infectious. It’s a much talked about topic. Popular lifestyle TV shows and magazines have featured them. Stories about local examples make their way into the mainstream news and they’re a regular...
The Periodic Review could have been a good opportunity to show insight, honesty and, yes, courage in addressing the truth of the matter. The Noosa Biosphere has failed women just as it failed the community at large.
As a big fan of Shaun Micallef’s Mad As Hell and especially the traffic updates from Lois Price in the Mad As Helicopter, Desiré Gralton gives her very own Mad-Ass and slightly cranky perspective on the impact the Blue Care development is going to have on traffic in the Sunrise Beach area.
The following letter was written by Spencer and his mum Maxine and sent to the Uniting Church President Deidre Palmer, who has referred their concerns to the Synod of Queensland. The quote "Killing the planet is against our religion” referred to in the letter was found on the Uniting Church Australia Facebook page and we totally agree that killing the planet is not okay.
