The United Wambo coal mine in the NSW Hunter Valley gets the go-ahead, but on the condition that its coal can only be exported to countries that have ratified the Paris climate agreement.

Homicide detectives say 29-year-old Danielle Easey, whose body was discovered wrapped in plastic in a creek near Lake Macquarie at the weekend, had become involved in drugs and was likely killed in mid-August.

One family has been dairying for 100 years and another is getting back in the game. What is it that keeps them so keen in a struggling industry?

Findings from a probe into alleged cover-ups of child abuse within the Catholic Church in NSW have identified credibility issues among members of its upper echelons.

While the search continues for five missing people who are feared dead off the NSW coast, one male has been confirmed by the Australian Defence Force as Warrant Officer Gregory Miller.

What would you do if you were told you had 16 months to live? That was the harsh reality for Jill Emberson when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. With the survival rate of the disease half that of the breast cancer survival rate, she's using her last moments to make a change.

A Newcastle pub has apologised for promoting a Wolf of Wall Street-style "midget-tossing" game during a casino-themed night later this month, saying they only planned to throw a doll, not a real person.

A court has heard Border Force and NSW and federal police officers formed a human chain to unload hundreds of bricks of cocaine from a catamaran linked to an international drug syndicate.

The former Silverchair frontman sues the publisher of Sydney tabloid The Sunday Telegraph for defamation over a report claiming he frequented a brothel called The Kastle.

Michelle is calling for ADVOs to be enforced amid fears she will be killed by her ex-partner.

A New South Wales woman says apprehended domestic violence orders are a joke and she fears she will be killed if her ex-partner keeps breaching them.

The parents of an Australian man detained in Bulgaria are calling on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to intervene and help secure his release.

It was a piece of rope in the middle of the ocean that ultimately led to their boat filling with water and sinking. But the three men, who all have 40 years of boating experience, say it hasn't stopped them from wanting to get back on the water.

Up to 100,000 litres of water is being used each weekday by a regional New South Wales council to keep drivers safe on its gravel roads all 954 kilometres of them.

The National Party wants urgent changes to the NSW Independent Planning Commission, fearing there is little certainty for investors following the rejection of the proposed Bylong Valley coal mine.

The NSW Government admits "safety risks" exist at a light rail intersection in Newcastle where a cyclist died earlier this year, while also raising questions about tram projects in Sydney's CBD and Parramatta.

If you suffer from trypophobia, or an aversion to the sight of clusters of small holes, you might want to take a deep breath before laying your eyes on a Suriname toad.

It's 5:30pm on a Friday and I've received the location of a mysterious music gig. Are you coming?

The Independent Planning Commission will be reviewed after a 21-year mining lease near Singleton was approved before public submissions closed a blunder the Opposition says will call the system's integrity into question.

A leading surgeon fears a gravely-ill convicted murderer could die within a year if he is deported to Papua New Guinea.

A transport company seeking lucrative contracts to run Adelaide's public transport networks has shared fake quotes of former Labor ministers in an apparent bid to assist the South Australian Liberal Government press its case for rail privatisation.

The NSW Parole Authority is set to grant parole to convicted paedophile and disgraced former government minister Milton Orkopoulos.

The former Anglican Dean of Newcastle Graeme Lawrence is sentenced to a maximum of eight years over the rape of a 15-year-old boy in 1991.

People living with disabilities in regional Australia say having their own cars would make a huge difference to their lives but access to a vehicle is simply too expensive.

Social media went into meltdown after images emerged of a power pole in the middle of a Newcastle street.

Generations of Australia's prime breeding cows are heading to slaughterhouses as a lack of water and feed sees more producers opt to "cash in and get out".

A recent Harvard study found Australia's economy is less complex than Kazakhstan or Uganda, but is the assessment fair? And, if it is, what can be done to diversify the economy away from its mining dependence?

The Aboriginal language Gathang largely disappeared when its last fluent speaker died in the 1960s, and now the task of revitalising it has begun.

Running on a wedding day is normally a sign something has gone very wrong but not when you are running together, at a parkrun event.

A monitoring program to survey bleaching is underway at Lord Howe Island Marine Park with researchers performing underwater assessments and aerial mapping.

A dairying heritage in northern NSW, dating back to 1863, is coming to an end as farmer Bert Bradford hangs up the cups.

Zohara and Celia wanted to give back to their community, but they found it hard to find the time around their studies. Until they found pop-in volunteering.

Port Macquarie resident Kim Dahler was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in her 40s and wants others to know life can still be fulfilling.

With a rapidly ageing population, few Australians have been left untouched from navigating the vast and often complicated aged-care system be it for a parent, partner or themselves.

Have you ever wondered what happens to lost and stolen items when the police can't find the owner?

An estimated eight million tonnes of plastic rubbish enters the world's oceans each year and an Australian invention called a Seabin is doing something about it.

The Nationals are hoping to cling on to their seats, including a few held on very slim margins, and add to their tally by winning a three-cornered contest. But the country-based party has problems, and some say they're at risk of losing a handful of seats.

Early figures from Surf Life Saving Australia show that 53 people drowned on Australian beaches over summer.

A food technology company has patented a process it claims can keep 100 per cent natural milk fresh for at least 60 days without additives or preservatives.

A joyride along a NSW beach in a stolen vehicle has ended in irreparable damage to a century-old shipwreck. As police search for the culprits, locals are fuming over the wanton destruction of the iconic relic.

When Bennett Powell was a child, doctors thought he might never walk but now he's running, cycling and swimming as part of his third Ironman Australia race.