Penny Sharpe
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Forestry
The government promised a koala national park. Then the loggers moved in
Forests on the North Coast are earmarked for a national park to protect “the best patch of koala habitat in the world”, but the area is still being logged in epic proportions.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
Latest
How you can apply for a subsidised home battery from tomorrow
NSW households can claim up to $2600 towards the cost of installing a battery to store solar energy and as much as $400 to connect to a virtual power plant.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
It has been called NSW’s ‘friendliest city’. The mayor says that might be about to change
Broken Hill has endured 10 days of rolling power outages after a storm cut the outback city off from the electricity network.
- by Christopher Harris
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Farming
‘Lost more than half our forest’: Why NSW is a global hotspot for deforestation
NSW landowners cleared land equivalent to almost twice the size of the Australian Capital Territory over the five years to 2023.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
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Plastic
How the NSW plastic strategy could change your daily takeaway coffee
Forcing cafes to accept reusable cups, banning the release of helium balloons and phasing out plastic lollipop sticks are among ideas the government is considering.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
The path to parliament runs through councils. Here’s why the Liberal blunder matters
The local government nomination debacle has possibly derailed what could have been the next generation of NSW parliamentarians for at least four years.
- by Kayla Olaya
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Energy
Revealed: Sharpe signed off on rewrite that helped keep Eraring power station open
Just months before it announced the deal to extend the life of Eraring, the NSW government asked the electricity grid operator to undertake more conservative modelling.
- by Max Maddison
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Royal National Park
Royal National Park a haven for native species, environmental stocktake shows
The biggest ecological survey to date for Australia’s oldest national park and adjoining areas found previously unseen mammal species.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
Pollie’s submarine joke sinks at Qantas’ Parisian soiree
Labor minister Patrick Gorman’s zinger about French submarines had Australian diplomats in Paris holding their breath.
- by Kishor Napier-Raman and David Estcourt
‘Unpick the damage that’s been done’: Inside NSW plan to rein in rampant land-clearing
The Minns government will tighten land-clearing laws loosened by the Coalition in 2016 and strengthen the contentious biodiversity offsets scheme.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
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Heritage
Ray of hope for beach shack owners in the Royal National Park
The beach communities at Little Garie, Era and Burning Palms in Australia’s oldest national park are heritage listed. Their licences expire in March 2027, and the government is yet to decide what happens after that.
- by Caitlin Fitzsimmons
Original URL: https://www.smh.com.au/topic/penelope-gail-sharpe-6fyb