Irrigator Anthony Barlow is fined well below the maximum for pumping water from the Barwon River during an extreme water shortage in Broken Hill.

Yet more rain in recent days in western Queensland has meant the rivers are flowing. But sadly the latest downpours, linked to the snow in Western Australia on Good Friday, hasn't been enough to get more than a dribble into the Darling.

As the Federal election draws closer, disability advocates call for changes to ensure people with disabilities have a better voting experience.

After years of funding cuts, many arts organisations will struggle to survive the COVID-19 pandemic without more government support. Playwright David Williamson and arts academic Jo Caust, discuss what needs to happened to ensure the sector survives.

Academic and former Singaporean diplomat Kishore Mahbubani argues that the coronavirus pandemic will accelerate a power-shift, from west to east.

Cuban doctors and nurses have been working in some of the most challenging emergencies around the globe for many years including the Ebola crisis in West Africa and the aftermath of Chernobyl. Now they are working to treat patients with COVID-19 in 22 countries including Italy.

Conservationists are hoping the coronavirus pandemic will force governments to take action against the wildlife trade. But will stricter legislation push wildlife traffickers deeper underground?

Despite encouraging signs of a slowdown in infection rates, we’re still in the middle of a global pandemic. The economic and social effects of Covid-19 will be far-reaching. On the other side of this pandemic will there be a new world order? How is the virus affecting the US-China relationship, South-East Asia and the global balance of power?  

Wildlife parks have a long road back to financial buoyancy after coronavirus restrictions stripped them of their sole source of income; visitors, and some operators are dipping into personal savings just to keep their animals fed.

Australia's mineral exploration industry has warned up to 600 full-time jobs are at "immediate risk" and potentially thousands more under threat as mining companies respond to the coronavirus outbreak.

There are fears important wildlife habitat is being destroyed as a developer tries to enact a 1984 site approval on the New South Wales north coast.

Semi-retired Keith and Glenda Drake, both in their 80s, will donate the proceeds of their seaside penthouse to help researchers develop a treatment for coronavirus.

The southern Queensland town of Yelarbon is the latest to put itself on the map with a large-scale silo mural, but visitors will have to wait until COVID-19 travel restrictions are lifted.

Driving 50km will be permitted, members of the same household will be able to go for picnics, and shopping for non-essential items like clothes and shoes will be allowed.

Just as Australia was about to confirm its first case of coronavirus in Australia in January, Sunshine Coast health figures were given a grim briefing.

A North West Queensland mine has spent $45,000 on a COVID-19 testing machine for the community — despite the area having no cases of the coronavirus.

By the end of April there has normally been regular fire crew training, inductions, and planning, but social distancing has made that near-impossible.

This holiday hotspot has the potential of having zero active coronavirus cases by early May, but with fine weather and loosening restrictions the situation could prove otherwise.

International seafarers pose little risk to the public and port access restrictions imposed by some states are not in line with national recommendations, an industry lobby claims.

Queensland mother Nina Hensley says the jumping castle has helped her daughter with Angelman syndrome cope with coronavirus restrictions.

Mount Isa's Nev Power said fixing windmills and tractors prepared him to chair the COVID-19 Coordination Commission.

A survey conducted by the Gladstone Chamber of Commerce finds 35 per cent of respondents fear they won't be solvent by the end of June, due to the coronavirus crisis.

A 14-week coronavirus drug trial involving volunteer military personnel has resumed despite previous concerns from doctors and veterans about its ethics.

The Mount Isa Medical Centre is taking over the testing service to ensure people with respiratory symptoms are checked, despite no cases being recorded in the city.

Sam Neill says he's in the "cheering-up" business. Acting is his profession, winemaking is his passion and now in times of COVID-19, the 72-year-old is delighting the masses on social media.

MORNING BRIEFING: Photos shared on social media appear to show two NRL players defying coronavirus restrictions on a camping trip on the NSW Mid-North Coast, while aged care homes say the PM's advice on visitors is "cavalier and careless".

NSW has recorded two new coronavirus infections with 4,400 tests conducted. It is the lowest number of new cases recorded in the state since March 8.

Australia's COVID-19 death toll rises to 88 after four more fatalities at a western Sydney aged care facility, bringing the total number of coronavirus fatalities at the centre to 11.

There have been five new cases from over 4,112 people tested in the last 24 hours in NSW.

Coronavirus survivor, Jayson O'Brien has thanked medical staff at Western New South Wales Local Health District for saving his life.

NSW Chief Medical Officer Dr Kerry Chant has declared Lithgow to be a COVID-19 hotspot after an untraceable case emerged over the weekend.

Police charge Latrell Mitchell and Josh Addo-Carr with firearms offences after a weekend getaway as the NRL fines the pair and two other players for "putting the game and community at risk".

Jeered in more conservative times for ordering a swimmer "wearing nothing but a smile" to cover up, lifesaving legend Warren Young now looks to call it a day.

Given only weeks or months to live, Gail Baker's dying wish is for her sister to travel from New Zealand to care for her toward the end of her life. But red tape is preventing her from doing so.

The Illawarra union movement pays tribute to a Dapto man who has not missed a May Day march in 88 years.

The number of positive coronavirus diagnoses have fallen dramatically since the end of March.

While no Australian state or territory has made the call to release inmates early because of the coronavirus, COVID-19 is being considered in bail applications, including in the case of Chantelle Baker.

Last week the ABC published the story behind a tiny 66-year-old handprint found in a garden shed. After seeing the story, family and friends have now filled in the details about the life, and tragic death of Ian Redman.

A 76-year-old woman died in Nepean hospital yesterday after contracting the virus.

Businesses in the Mudgee and surrounding region say they'll bounce back from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, using resilience built during years spent in drought and recent and devastating bushfires.