Two initial charges have been filed, under the Wildlife Act 1975, in relation to the deaths of numerous wedge-tailed eagles in East Gippsland.The charges concern the killing of protected wildlife, being wedge-tailed eagles, through the use of bait impregnated with poison between October 2016 and April 2018.The accused has been arrested, charged and bailed. A condition of that bail is that he...

Bairnsdale’s Sophie Molineux (pictured), a left-arm off-spinner and top and middle order batter, has been selected in the Southern Stars T20 three-match series against New Zealand later this month.The series begins with a blockbuster Saturday night match at North Sydney Oval on September 29. That match will be followed by games at Brisbane’s AB Field (October 1) and Canberra’s Manuka Oval...

Construction of the Bairnsdale Aquatic and Recreation Centre (BARC) redevelopment has reached the halfway point with the project progressing on schedule for anticipated completion by Easter 2019.But with such progress comes the need for a full short-term closure of the BARC. Council and its contractors have scheduled a closure for the September/October school holidays to minimise disruption to...

Minister for Agriculture, Jaala Pulford, visited East Gippsland on Wednesday to announce drought funding, just a fortnight after visiting farms near Bairnsdale.Minister Pulford said $5 million of assistance was available for farmers and irrigation communities to ease the financial burden for those experiencing drought conditions.“There has been a shift in drought policy since the millennial...

Both the Minister and Shadow Minister for Agriculture will be back in East Gippsland this week on drought-related visits, Member for Gippsland East, Tim Bull, has said.“Minister Jaala Pulford will be here on Wednesday as a follow-up to the on-farm visits and community forum we attended together a fortnight ago and then Shadow Minister Peter Walsh will be here on Thursday and Friday,” Mr Bull...