Rural reporter, ABC Far North
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Articles by Renee Cluff
Family forges cane future
General News Andrew (left) and Luke Apap - Andrew followed his instincts when he moved from Sydney and bought a cane and banana farm 30 years ago. Picture: Supplied “There’s no greater satisfaction than seeing my kids, whatever they choose to do in life, going forward, doing their thing,” he reflected. That family includes wife Maree, the “other half” of the business, and the couple’s four children Kayla, Luke, Josh and Maddison, and grandchildren Arlo and Zahlia.
Farming through innovation
General News Babinda sugarcane pioneers Rose and Steven Destro. Picture: Renee Cluff/Canegrowers In the shadow of Queensland’s two highest mountains, the story of the Destro family is as deeply rooted in the Wet Tropic’s soils as the sugarcane they’ve farmed for generations. It’s a story of a fierce commitment to both innovation and family.
Cane farmers rise above
For more than 80 years, the Cini family has grown sugarcane in the rich, rain-soaked soils outside Innisfail. Today, under the guidance of Joe Cini’s stepson Barry Sultana and grandson Lachlan Urquhart, the farm is embracing new approaches as part of a wave of innovation across the Johnstone catchment. Their 120ha farm is one of 30 involved in the Johnstone sugarcane practice change program, funded through the Queensland Government’s Queensland reef water quality program.
Exacting farming practices
General News Brendan Calleja is among the most productive sugarcane growers in the South Johnstone Mill region, the result of his adaptability, enthusiasm and persistence. The area he farms spans fertile, flood-prone river flats to red-soiled ridges and his operation is a patchwork of multi-generational knowledge, a solutions-focused mindset and a readiness to embrace change.
Young cane grower future focused
Latest News A CANEGROWERS FEATURE: A philosophy of continual improvement has set young grower Liam Wallace on a course to becoming one of the Tablelands’ best performing cane growers. BY RENEE CLUFF - CANEGROWERS The 27-year-old has had a steep learning curve in growing sugarcane, but he’s fast becoming one of the industry’s rising stars.
Urban heat seminar in Cairns advocates for more trees and carefully designed development
##MP## Cairns residents would be paid for planting trees on their properties under a set of policy priorities agreed to at a seminar about mitigating urban heat. Around 50 delegates representing architecture, landscaping, planning, building, conservation, medicine and social services attended the Cairns Urban Heat Seminar late last week.
4.3-metre estuarine crocodile removed from Mowbray River near Port Douglas
28 Oct 2021, 12:41 Credit: Qld Dept Environment & Science ##MP## A large ‘iconic’ crocodile has been captured and removed from the Mowbray River near Port Douglas after it was deemed a threat to both livestock and humans. The 4.3-metre male reptile came to the attention of Queensland’s Department of Environment and Science following reports it had taken several calves.
Engineering academic named as the next Vice Chancellor of James Cook University
##MP## An internationally acclaimed researcher in particle, colloid and interface engineering has been appointed the next Vice Chancellor and President of James Cook University (JCU). Professor Simon Biggs will succeed Professor Sandra Harding, who is retiring after almost 15 years in the role.
'The one bloody time' this banana farmer needs assistance, she's not getting it
An Innisfail banana producer says growers are not receiving enough support six weeks after freak winds devastated the region's farms.
Orange capsicums help combat blindness but you won't find them easily in shops
Introducing orange capsicums to the menu would address deficiencies of a chemical compound which helps prevent Australia's leading cause of blindness — but hardly any Australian farmers are growing them.
Cairns' Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park shuts for good as COVID wreaks tourism havoc
A pioneering Far North Queensland Aboriginal tourism attraction, which was once the scene of a controversial visit by the Queen, has become the latest COVID-19 victim and will close its doors for good.
China's plan to build a fish processing facility in the Torres Strait raises alarm over fishing, border security
Community leaders in North Queensland fear China's plan to build a fish processing facility on their doorstep will jeopardise border security and the commercial fishing sector.
Calls for escaped saltwater crocodiles to be removed from Far North Queensland waterway
A Far North Queensland council is calling on the State Government to remove a population of saltwater crocodiles found living far from their natural habitat before they reproduce.
'A massive achievement': Captive-bred coral trout on fish farming menu for first time
A new candidate for commercial aquaculture has emerged with a Cairns hatchery creating history by successfully breeding and rearing highly prized coral trout.
Search underway for missing Brisbane man who disappeared while swimming at notorious Babinda Boulders waterhole in Far North Queensland
A major search and rescue operation is underway after a Brisbane man went missing while swimming at a waterhole near Cairns that has claimed the lives of 20 people in the past 50 years. Emergency services were notified around 8:00pm on Monday, two hours after the man disappeared at Babinda Boulders, south of Cairns. The man was on a camping trip with a friend and the pair were swimming in a restricted area when the 37-year-old disappeared behind a large rock.
Stabbed Cape York teacher Rachel Middleton's brave vow: 'I want to go back'
There's a new benchmark for successful investors - and it has little to do with money Not quite Howard v Latham, but leaders set to 'bump elbows' in Townsville Miners' civil war a mystery - but attack on Greens to go ahead Tax cuts a step closer after breezing through house Katter signs preference deal with One Nation Statewide A young teacher who was victim of an alleged stabbing attack in Lockhart River on the Cape York Peninsula has expressed her intention to return to the community.
Teacher Rachel Middleton 'wants to return' to Cape York community after alleged stabbing
A young teacher who was victim of an alleged stabbing attack in Lockhart River on the Cape York Peninsula has expressed her intention to return to the community.
Cape York female teacher stabbed in alcohol-fuelled attack
Lawyer narrowly avoids prison after offering drunken bribe to police Sniffing the wind: Tropical seats offer a whiff of victory or the stench of defeat Police arrest man they allege used power saw to steal town's only ATM Governments step in to cover projects too risky for insurers Matt Canavan: What's more important - the past four months or the next four years?
Teacher stabbed and punched in Cape York community
© Provided by ABC Health The man was remanded in custody after his case was mentioned in the Cairns Magistrates Court. (ABC News: Brendan Mounter) A 25-year-old woman has been stabbed and punched repeatedly in an allegedly unprovoked attack in Lockhart River, on the Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland. Police said the woman, who is a teacher at the local state school, was at her home at 9:30pm last night when she was approached by a man seeking medication and a glass of water.
'It's dirty and ugly': Residents say old tank welcoming visitors to their town must go
An old molasses tank welcoming visitors to Babinda, south of Cairns, has become a source of frustration for the town's residents who want the "eyesore" gone.
Renee Cluff
'On alert the whole time': Death adders invade couple's kitchen, laundry and dining room Posted August 27, 2020 06:42:58 | Updated August 27, 2020 07:51:35 Daily household chores have become potentially deadly tests of nerves and reflexes for this couple trying to cope with a mystery invasion of toxic death adders.
'On alert the whole time': Death adders invade couple's kitchen, laundry and dining room
Cooking dinner and doing the laundry have become nerve-wracking chores for Sally Gray and Graham Woods because they have to be constantly on the alert for highly toxic death adders.
The must-have Australian designer accessory ... pumpkin
A designer pumpkin, the first new variety to hit the Australian market in 20 years, promises to end an eternal kitchen struggle: Cutting the notoriously impenetrable vegetable. The Orange Glow variety was naturally bred by a Far North Queensland farmer hell-bent on acquiring attributes such as high beta carotene content, a vivid colour, fewer seeds and perhaps most importantly, thin skin. Creator and Lakeland grower Shaun Jackson said he wanted the vegetable to be user-friendly.
Far North Queensland farmer cultivates easy to cut neon pumpkin variety from 'field of thousands'
A designer pumpkin, the first new variety to hit the Australian market in 20 years, promises to end an eternal kitchen struggle: cutting the notoriously impenetrable vegetable.
Animal sale bans on Facebook, Gumtree behind increase in dumped puppies, group says
A Queensland pet rescue organisation is concerned efforts by a social media giant to improve animal welfare is having the opposite effect. Key points: According to Facebook's policy introduced in 2016, the promotion of the sale of all animals is forbidden Animal rescue groups say they're seeing more newborn puppies being dumped Gumtree allows the sale and adoption of certain species and breeds, but there are minimum age requirements for young animals and fees apply.
Pedigree stallion Wolf of Wall Street killed in 'heinous' shooting on Burlington Station in Far North Queensland
The owners of a pedigree stallion that was shot in the heart on a Far North Queensland cattle station have expressed shock and devastation over the loss of their beloved animal.
Award-winning Cairns builder celebrates 20 platinum years
23/04/2020 - 13:28 (AEST) It was the end of a century but the beginning of a new era for Karl and Felicity Maxa when they formed Maxa Constructions in 1999. Early on, the husband and wife team quickly earned a reputation for quality craftsmanship, design proficiency and excellent client communication, which has only strengthened as the decades have passed.
Dining precinct not included in Cairns Council’s project fast-track plan
22/04/2020 - 15:05 (AEST) Cairns Regional Council will take advantage of the quiet time in the CBD by bringing forward a range of construction and maintenance projects, but the Esplanade Dining Precinct has been excluded. The city has resembled a ghost town since covid-19 movement restrictions were enforced last month.
Cairns rental market flooded with former holiday homes
“We have for some time seen vacancy rates at under 2%,” he said. “What we have seen in the past weeks is a en-mass cancelling of holiday bookings and we are fielding a lot of calls from owners of holiday properties. “You can already see a flood of fully furnished apartments becoming available.” According to figures from realeastate.com.au , the number of available rental properties has jumped from 677 to 861 between March 25th and the 16th April.
Home schooling woes continue on day two of online education
Students and their parents are still struggling to log in to Education Queensland’s home schooling Learning Place website today. The site crashed yesterday on the opening day of online education. Parents today are reporting that username and passwords they’ve been given by their respective schools aren’t working. Students who have been able to gain access are having trouble negotiating the site to find their relevant work.
Tropic Now covid-19 news: 5 people linked to Cairns Hospital cluster
Five people have now been confirmed to have contracted coronavirus at the Cairns Hospital pathology laboratory. Queensland Health is now screening all Cairns Hospital workers for the virus and is urging anyone else in the community who is feeling unwell to get tested. As Tropic Now exclusively revealed, a laboratory worker tested positive to the virus last week. Queensland Health has today announced the initial case in the cluster was a laboratory technician who traveled from Brisbane.
TROPIC NOW REGIONAL HISTORY: The outbreak of Spanish flu in Cairns
16/04/2020 - 11:46 (AEST) As Cairns deals with the current covid-19 pandemic, Tropic Now takes a look at how the city fared during the previous global pandemic almost 100 years ago. CULTURAL WARNING: This story contains an image of an Aboriginal person who has died. At the beginning of 1919, Spanish Influenza had already wiped out millions of people across the northern hemisphere and had just made its presence felt in Far North Queensland.
Amy Eden ousts Richie Bates for a spot on Cairns Regional Council
Social worker Amy Eden has toppled incumbent division five Councillor Richie Bates in the tightest race in the Cairns Local Government election. While the declaration of the result is yet to be officially made by the Electoral Commission Queensland (ECQ), Mr Bates has conceded defeat following a recount of votes yesterday. “While I am no longer the Division 5 representative, I look forward to staying in touch with you all and remaining active in local issues,” he told voters.
Cairns light display to pay homage to frontline health workers
Justin Ogge from Jam Productions told Tropic Now he will be sending light into the sky from his Smithfield warehouse. “The whole country is getting involved to show their support for all the people that are on the frontline and having to deal with it first hand,” he said. “The audio visual companies across the country have sort of banded together.
Real life action man’s fast and furious leap to stop thieves stealing his ute
Mr Hamill said it was just the beginning of a terrifying experience. “Joy ride lasted about 20 minutes and they probably hit 200 kilometres per hour with me in the back,” he said. “Between yelling at them, kneeing and punching the driver’s side passenger window, dodging them trying to stab me and throwing stuff, we came to an agreement where they'd ditch the car and bolt and none of us would get hurt. “It was a pretty heated discussion while they drove crazily around the suburbs.
Construction of Botanica Lifestyle Resort begins
13/04/2020 - 13:01 (AEST) In a rare good news story for the Cairns region during the Covid-19 pandemic, construction has begun on a $90-million lifestyle resort. Botanica Lifestyle Resort for the over 50s is full steam ahead at Caravonica. Botanica Property Group director Robert Wallace told Tropic Now the first two display homes are scheduled for completion in just a few months. “We have both our builders and civil contractors onsite working simultaneously,” he said.
Neck-and-neck Cairns Council election result could be contested
A declaration could be made today for the closely contested division five Cairns electorate, however any result could still be challenged. As the local government election count enters its 11th day, Amy Eden is leading incumbent Division 5 Councillor Richie Bates by four votes. Just over half of the ballots have been counted. At the same time, the validity of the election is under a cloud due to low voter turnout, while Richie Bates has told Tropic Now he may request a recount.
Cairns among worst hit amid concerns covid19 job losses are being underestimated
“Then there’s a flow-on effect through other industries. We’re still in this surreal state, the impacts really haven’t been felt yet. “We’re in a situation now where it doesn’t matter how good or hard a worker you are, it’s no good, there are no jobs and it’s going to have a severe mental impact on people. “If we can’t get people back into jobs longer term, it’s distressing to think what that means.” The gloomy predictions come as Cairns records it’s sixth and seventh COVID-19 victims.
Get flu jab now, there's not enough for everyone
He’s told Tropic Now that while everyone in the country is being urged to be vaccinated during the current COVID-19 pandemic, national stocks won’t cover everybody. “There will not be enough for everyone in Australia that needs one. “You should go and get it done now,” Mr Twomey said. Highest risk groups are eligible to be vaccinated for free under the National Immunisation Program (NIP). However, the Australian Government recommends everyone aged six months and over get immunised.
Health check reveals coral recovery on the southern Great Barrier Reef is faring worse than northern areas
11/07/2019 - 10:46 (AEST) Studies on coral cover on the Great Barrier Reef have shown mixed results, with growth recorded in the northern area but reductions in the central and southern regions. Thy're the findings of the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) in its Great Barrier Reef Condition Update handed down today.
Trawler tragedy family says new boat safety rules requiring self-deploying emergency beacons are unlikely to save lives
Joel Feeney says there is no guarantee a float-free EPIRB would have saved his brother Zac (pictured). The brother of one of the six men who died in a trawler tragedy says new safety measures for boats would not have saved the fishermen's lives. Joel Feeney lost his brother Zac and several close mates in Queensland's worst maritime tragedy involving the sinking of the commercial fishing trawler Dianne off the central Queensland coast in October.
New mandatory float-free EPIRBs on boats fails to satisfy critics of Australia's maritime safety record
Joel Feeney says there is no guarantee a float-free EPIRB would have saved his brother Zac (pictured). A new maritime safety standard making it compulsory for boats to carry a self-deploying emergency beacon device has been described as a "knee jerk" reaction to recent tragedies at sea.
Mossman Mill sale gathers steam, but could Mackay Sugar be running out of puff in search for new owner?
Mackay Sugar is looking to offload assets, including Mossman Mill, and reduce its crippling debt. Australia's second largest miller Mackay Sugar has confirmed it has moved a step closer to offloading the country's most far northern mill, Mossman. The beleaguered Mackay Sugar has not commented publicly about the latest developments.
Separating ripe and unripe fruit eases the squeeze on avocados in supermarkets, resulting in higher sales
Ripe and unripe avocados were separated in the supermarket trials. A new initiative to stop shoppers squeezing avocados to test the fruit's ripeness has resulted in a halving of bruised fruit and higher avocado sales. Research conducted earlier this year had found 97 per cent of customers gave avocados a squeeze to test ripeness before buying, which was leading to brown marks on the flesh once the fruit was cut open.
Brazilian food forests take root in Australia, helping growers save water and control pests
Move over biodynamic and organic farming — there is a new farming technique on the block, in which fruit and vegetable crops are grown in conjunction with trees. Known as syntropic farming, it is a regenerative agricultural cropping method developed in Brazil that aims to mimic the way forest plants work symbiotically to grow in abundance. Jane Hawes and her husband Neil are among about 20 syntropic growers in Australia.
Korean backpacker Joohee Han spent four days in waterfall ravine before co-worker raised alarm
A Korean backpacker's disappearance has raised questions about how a 25-year-old woman could go missing for four days without anyone noticing. Joohee Han had been working in the town of Tully, south of Cairns, for about two months, but a major communication breakdown meant none of her friends at the Tully Hostel realised what had happened.
Beeswax demand leaves beekeepers stung by shortage
An increase in global demand has seen the price of Australian beeswax skyrocket in recent years, with local beards and beekeepers among the victims.Australia’s honey bee industry remains the only one worldwide that does not have the destructive varroa mite, which has caused extensive colony losses in the US and Europe.That means local apiarists do not need to use chemicals to deal with the parasitic pest, so their beeswax is pharmaceutical grade.It is so sought after, particularly in Europe...
Beeswax global demand surge has beards in a frizz and leaves beekeepers stung by shortage of Australian product
A leap of $5 per kilogram to $30 for Australian beeswax could lead to a legion of scraggly beards. An increase in global demand has seen the price of Australian beeswax skyrocket in recent years, with local beards and beekeepers among the victims. Australia's honey bee industry remains the only one worldwide that does not have the destructive varroa mite, which has caused extensive colony losses in the US and Europe.
JCU scores poorly in student dropout rates
A deputy vice-chancellor at James Cook University (JCU) in north Queensland says there are a number of factors contributing to its high dropout rate. In the Good Universities Guide, JCU scored a five-star rating for graduates getting a job and four stars for teaching quality but it only received one star for student retention rates. JCU was rated in the bottom 20 per cent of Australian universities for student retention. Professor Sally Klift says the university is working to address the issue.
Federal Government keen for private investment in northern roads to build on $600m allocation
The Federal Government is seeking private investment in the northern Australia roads program. The Member for Leichhardt, Warren Entsch, said the $600 million the Government allocated was only ever intended to be a catalyst for work to start and would not go anywhere near covering the full cost. He said the roads that needed upgrades were remote and did not suit tolls but private companies could invest to facilitate their own projects.
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