Local news for local people
General and miscellaneous articles - Page 2
There are miscellaneous stories in the archives.
Things that don't fit anywhere else.
Some news about those closed roads.
Media release - Restoring Jenolan Caves Road
July 25, 2024 in General News
There's still a lot of work to be done on the Hampton section of Jenolan Caves Road, with a new problem discovered while doing the planned work. There will be continuing road closures, but fortunately on fewer days than originally predicted.
See the media release here
Media release - Fixing Two Mile
July 25, 2024 in General News
Work will be commencing shortly to repair the currently closed section of Jenolan Caves Road known as "Two Mile" between Jenolan Caves and the intersection of Edith Road and Kanangra Walls Road.
See the media release here
 | Another winter driving hazard to worry about Black ice isn't the only danger when driving in cold weather, however. There is another phenomenon called "freezing fog" that can be just as dangerous. This is when fog can cause a layer of ice to suddenly form on the windscreen. |
A moment of science, please There's a new organisation in town, and its objective is to raise the profile and awareness of science. It's Oberon Citizen Science Network, and if you have any interest in science at all you need to have a look at what they are doing. |  |
 | Possible reprieve for the Calare electorate The Australian Electoral Commission conducts a periodical review of all the federal electorates in Australia to ensure that they meet the legislated criteria for population. For some time there has been speculation that the Calare electorate which includes Oberon could be drastically changed, and even go completely. |
Media release - Forestry Corporation to assess fossicking sites near Oberon
April 25, 2024 in General News
Two popular fossicking sites in Vulcan State Forest near Oberon are being assessed by Forestry Corporation to ensure the areas are safe for visitors. Forestry Corporation has recently noticed increased disturbance by fossicking activities near Blue Hill Quarry and Sapphire Bend. Excessive digging has destabilised plantation trees, while tunnelling into vertical rock faces poses a safety risk.
Read the full release here
Will your mobile phone work after July 1? Telstra will be closing the 3G mobile phone network on June 30, 2024. This is being done to free up bandwidth to allow better 4G and 5G services. TPG/Vodafone made the switch at the end of 2023, and Optus will be doing it in September this year. If you have an old 3G-only phone you won't have any option except to replace it. The change will also affect some things other than phones which rely on the 3G network, such as some EFTPOS terminals, back-to-base security systems, some agricultural equipment and some medical monitoring systems. If you use one of these you will need to contact your supplier (if they haven't contacted you yet) to see what needs to be done. |  |
 | A great big thank you! I want to say a great big "Thank You" for the support that this site has been getting since it was launched on February 1 this year. The number of visitors keeps going up, although it will take some time before a regular pattern of visits matches the schedule of updates. But it will come. This site has an associated Facebook page that is also gathering likers and followers at an encouraging rate. So once again, thank you for coming here, reading the local news and making it worthwhile to keep the site going. |
Beware the scams. The price of safety is eternal vigilance. Scams and conmen have probably existed since the invention of writing. At one time the major export industry for Nigeria was sending out letters saying that some billionaire wanted to give some money away, and all you had to do was send a few dollars to start the process. In 2000 a spokesperson for the US Postal Service told me that as the letters used fake stamps there was no need to deliver them and the USPO was pulping about a tonne of the letters every month. |  |
Housekeeping This web site is a work in progress and things will change from time to time. Some of these things will be invisible to site visitors but help with the management of the site. One visible change this week is the introduction of archive pages for various categories of articles. Pages are created when there are two or more relevant articles, so more will be added as time goes by. Another related change is that a link to the archive index is now in the menu at the top of each page. One of the background things is a database which keeps the What's On page up to date with events happening over the next few weeks, generates the article counts used on the archive pages and creates a file that tells the major search engines about any new or changed pages so they don't have to crawl the whole site. Eventually the database will maintain the archive pages but that's a low priority until the site has more content. Also, the Advertising page has been updated with the rates for displaying advertisements. We have to make a living somehow. |
 | Did you go to the markets? One of the nice things about living outside the big cities is the availability of Farmers' Markets. The regular markets closest to Oberon are at the Oberon Showground on the first Saturday of each month (except January) and at the Tarana Fire Shed on the fourth Sunday (except December). At both you can see and buy a range of locally produced goods, have something to eat, meet your neighbours and generally have a good time. |
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