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RARE PHOTOS: Broken hill | Vintage Vibes

Funding boost to protect kids from city's toxic legacy

A record multimillion dollar boost has been announced to tackle an outback city's lead crisis by doubling home cleanups, education and testing.

AAP

NSW Health continues to use machine known to produce inaccurate results to test child blood lead levels

LeadCare II offers point-of-care testing but the equipment has had recalls globally due to the potential for inaccurately low readings

The Guardian - AU

Introducing dystopia tourism – my city break in Broken Hill

TRAVEL INSIDER: In his latest newsletter, Simon Calder explores “dystopia tourism” in Australia, visiting the outback towns of Silverton and Broken Hill – desolate landscapes that served as the backdrop for Mad Max 2 and Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

The Independent UK

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NSW Health resists lower blood lead guidelines for children in Broken Hill, documents reveal

Greens MP condemns ‘pathetic’ level of funding to deal with lead contamination in state’s far west

The Guardian - AU

Underground mine explosion kills two people at Cobar in western NSW

Woman and man confirmed dead and another woman airlifted to hospital after blast at Endeavour mine

The Guardian - AU

‘We are horrified’: proposed lead mine in wine region has community living in fear for children’s health

After revelations the environment watchdog buried a report on lead mining, parents wonder if they can ‘trust that our children’s safety is coming first’ over mining interests

The Guardian - AU

Community fights lead mine near primary school as report highlights Australia’s failure to protect children

Report commissioned by Mudgee health alliance suggests mine’s health and environmental assessments accepted by NSW government contain errors and outdated evidence

The Guardian - AU

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Environment watchdog buried report on lead in children’s blood to placate mining companies, emails show

Documents tabled in NSW parliament show state agency took four years to publish report and told miners it would be put online ‘quietly’ but EPA says it was released to community earlier

The Guardian - AU

Sound no barrier for bands and fans at outback festival

With no neighbours to annoy as far as the eye can see, performances at Australia's largest outback music festival are loud and proud.

AAP

The canary in the concrete jungle: how polluted towns make sparrows frail, anxious and old before their time

Living in cities exposes people to all sorts of chemical pollutants. Many are harmful even at low concentrations. But it is hard to know what the risks and consequences might be.

The Conversation

Mystery, outback horror and a wandering protagonist propel Gail Jones’ The Name of the Sister

A side plot in one of Gail Jones’s most celebrated novels, The Death of Noah Glass (2018), involves a film-loving man who has recently lost his sight. Benjamin is desperate to enjoy thrillers again. He remembers watching, before his vision faded, the silhouette of James Bond, as iconic as a…

The Conversation

Wrecking ball for mouldy old school as plans unveiled

Plans for a new school in an outback mining town are being released amid preparations to knock down the decades-old facility after a mould outbreak.

AAP

'Scary': town could not call triple zero after storms

An outback town is still "flat out" recovering months after rolling power outages, which shut down a major mine and cut off phone services.

AAP

A local’s guide to Broken Hill: ‘Chances are, someone will spark up a chat’

Artists are drawn to this historic outback mining town where creative energy meets red dirt, says the former director of the Broken Heel festival, Esther La Rovere

The Guardian - AU

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AAP

Moves to firm power after blackouts wrack outback town

Further compensation could be paid to residents of an outback town after a week of power outages as their network operator faces the prospect of fines.

The Guardian - AU

Dick Smith’s ABC radio rant against renewables overflows with ill-informed claims

Millionaire points to Broken Hill’s blackout to attack the energy transition but experts say he should look at South Australia and Europe

AAP

Reconnection close after extensive power outage

Federal support payments are being offered to people in far western NSW following power outages, with reconnection to the grid expected within 24 hours.

AAP

Bill relief on way as region feels heat from power loss

A regional centre is getting closer to power security with broken transmission lines set to be fixed and re-connected to the main grid by Saturday.

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AAP

Workers build Broken Hill towers in power outage fix

The massive build to fix Broken Hill's damaged transmission lines is gathering momentum as the region looks to avoid further major power outages.

AAP

When the lights are off, but everyone's home

As thousands of Australians again live through an annoying energy blackout, the nation is reminded of more widespread supply vulnerabilities.

The Guardian - AU

Transgrid under pressure as NSW inquiry examines how failed backup generators left Broken Hill in the dark

NSW premier Chris Minns says state’s far west let down by privatisation after region’s only working large-scale emergency generator failed

AAP

Olympian out, premier in: angry locals to grill leader

A major power outage has halted swimming legend Kyle Chalmers' visit to Broken Hill but locals will get a chance to grill the NSW premier over relief.

The Conversation

How a little brown bird could sound the alarm on lead poisoning in Australian children

Recent public health threats such as COVID, and the current bird flu outbreak in Victoria, show we can’t separate human health from the natural environment. Our research examining the link between lead exposure in house sparrows and children is another sobering reminder of this shared health burden.

The Guardian - AU

Home alone with bad internet: why online university students in regional Australia are turning to study hubs

From Broken Hill to Cooktown to Port Hedland, the centres support people who may not otherwise be able to pursue higher education

The Conversation

Turning the outback into post-apocalyptic wasteland: what Mad Max films tell us about filming in the Australian desert

The Mad Max films are set in an arid, barren, post-apocalyptic world known in the movies as “the wasteland”. This is a world of environmental and civil collapse caused by humans. Resources like water are scarce. Clothes, food and transport – such as the film’s famous customised cars – are…

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