Coffea arabica HOW long could you go without coffee? With the recent climate change induced flooding shocking everyone, how resilient are our supplies, really? If the trucks stopped for a while the shops would be empty of essentials very quickly and I imagine coffee could be a rare luxury. In good news, coffee grows

  DEAR News Of The Area, I RECENTLY used the public toilets at Woolgoolga Beach Reserve and I am concerned and dismayed at the fact that these toilets, for men and women are located within the children’s playground. It is common knowledge that the favourite haunts of paedophiles are children’s playgrounds and public

  DEAR News Of The Area, ANGLICAN Church Aged Care. What a wonderful, caring, compassionate organisation. Purchased Bulahdelah Nursing Home from the local community in 2017 for the princely sum of $1.00. Now they move away, dumping the residents and loyal staff without a thought for the community…except for the big dollars they will get

  DEAR News Of The Area, HANDS up all those who believe Australia is a democracy? Hands up all those who do online shopping, go to your local bowls club, and play bingo. Before my research into the LNP Indue Card (also known as the Healthy Welfare Card or Cashless Debit Card which started

  DEAR News Of The Area, REGARDING the sale of 109 Foreshore Drive Salamander Bay - there's still time to stop this shameful and unnecessary sale of community parkland and koala habitat by certain Port Stephens councillors. There are funds available elsewhere despite what they maintain is the case. They are obliged to listen

  DEAR News Of The Area, THESE past days, thousands of people in Lismore have lost everything in record breaking floods. Three months ago, households across our own region suffered thousands of dollars’ worth of damage from a freak, supercell hail storm. A week before that, Armidale was ripped by a tornado. Is there a

  DEAR News Of The Area, WHEN the Toormina shopping centre was severely damaged by a devastating hail storm last October (it's still not fully operational) our local Federal MP Pat Conaghan suggested this was not the result of climate change, it was nothing unusual. He reiterated that his objective is to protect

  DEAR News Of The Area, ‘GRANT’ season has commenced and of course conveniently coincides with 'election' season. This fortnight, funds appear for planting trees on newly cleared land for a 25-year future harvest. There is (NSW) flood money for Council to better understand flood risk and management. Renewable Energy grants were received

  DEAR News Of The Area, I READ with interest, a recent article (‘Landmark State-Federal Agreement To Build Dozens Of Local Affordable Homes’, Paul Fogarty, p9, February 11 Edition) regarding new low-income housing in our local area. State Member for Oxley Melinda Pavey said the State and Federal governments would jointly fund the

  DEAR News Of The Area, I WAS privileged along with other folk to attend the memorial service for the late Miriam Rullis on Friday 4 March at the C.ex Club. At the entrance we were presented with a gift which contained sunflower seeds, a bookmark, a cross for her faith and strength,