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Famous orca Split Fin excites South Coast residents by returning with new family member

With distinctive characteristics, Split Fin and Bent Tip are part of an orca family that has thrilled South Coast residents since being spotted more than 20 years ago.
two orcas pop out of the water with cliffs in the background

Council decides to leave Robe's famous obelisk at the mercy of the sea

The local council in Robe, in South Australia's south-east, has decided to not spend ratepayers' money to investigate saving the town's famous obelisk from falling into the sea.
A red and white pyramid-shaped obelisk on the edge of a rocky cliff.

As late fungi season blooms in mushroom 'paradise', foragers are urged to be wary

Fungi enthusiasts in SA's South East say there's a lot of interest in this year's season, despite recent cases of suspected mushroom poisonings.
White, yellow and red fungi

Boutique brewer launches beer made with camel dung

Breweries are increasingly turning to unusual and sustainable products and production methods to stand out in a competitive market.
Updated
Man with short hair and wearing dark glasses smells smoked grains

Researchers seek help from local beachcombers for clues about Dutch ship 'beaten to matchsticks'

Residents of a town in South Australia's south-east are being enlisted in research into a shipwreck that killed 16 Dutch sailors in 1857 soon after offloading 400 gold miners from China.
Updated
A painting of an old wooden sailing ship

Chocolate prices continue to rise ahead of Easter amid worldwide cocoa shortage

Problems in Africa are leading to big increases in the prices of cocoa and chocolate — but consumers are still stocking up on eggs and bunnies for Easter.
Chocolate prices up for Easter

Chocolate prices up for Easter

Robe chocolatier Lisa Ruffell explains why chocolate prices are high ahead of Easter and how she and consumers are responding.
ABC News Current
Duration: 1 minute 18 seconds

Hours in the car or move house: Cancer patients in this regional town face tough choice

Mount Gambier woman Anelia Blackie has for the past three years had to make an uncomfortable five-hour car trip to Adelaide for treatment of the cancer in her spine.
A woman wearing a black jacket looking away from the camera.

Beach monument marks most significant but misunderstood event in Robe's gold rush history

More than 16,000 Chinese gold prospectors landed in Robe in the 1850s and 1860s on the way to the Victorian gold fields, but records are scarce on what really happened. 
A red sign displaying Chinese characters on the beach at Robe, South Australia

Whyalla is on the brink of a hydrogen and green-steel boom, but its council is in financial deficit

The council operating the town on the cusp of a renewables boom is struggling financially and one of five SA councils deemed potentially unsustainable in a recent review.
A sign noting the entry to Whyalla with Arrium's steel operation in the background.

Rock lobster industry 'getting nervous' in SA as abalone disease control area is extended

Control measures have been extended for a deadly abalone disease in SA's South East, but the benefits of protecting that industry could be surpassed by the damage to lobster fishers.
Updated
A man holds up a rock lobster after pulling it out of a tank

Large lobsters are considered inferior to their small counterparts in taste. But this variety may be different

This fisherman's catch of large southern rock lobsters is just as popular as the small ones.
A man with grey hair holding a large live lobster

Race to save 169-year-old obelisk left teetering on cliff edge by coastal erosion

The red and white obelisk is a must-see for visitors to the South Australian tourist town of Robe, but it's at risk of plunging into the water below.
A red and white pyramid-shaped obelisk on the edge of a rocky cliff.

SA councillor told to apologise after tabling motions that led to CEO's resignation

The Robe councillor had a conflict of interest when he tabled motions which led to the council's chief executive being investigated and later resigning, an ombudsman's report has found.  
A man wearing a blue shirt smiling at a camera.

Worries about bushfire safety and drinking water supply in marina development that never took off

Residents and property owners in a town in South Australia's south-east are growing increasingly frustrated at services being reduced in what they had hoped would be an idyllic place to retire.
Houses next to water with some boats

Drone surveillance to be ramped up after two shark attacks in regional SA

More Surf Life Saving volunteers will be trained up to operate shark-spotting drones over patrol popular beaches this summer, to help protect swimmers after recent attacks.
A drone photo of a Tiger shark.

Chance meeting with Dulux boss inspires small town recycler's waste fix

A South Australian recycling business says it has a world-first solution to transform the waste from powder coating production into plastic used in construction.
A woman and a man holding a small black plastic object with lots of them behind them

Coastal protections for breakwaters, jetties and dunes a top priority in council mitigation plans as climate warms

Councils along South Australian coastlines will meet in a bid for planning consistency to mitigate sea level rise and effects of a warming climate.
An aerial photograph showing a breakwater and jetty near a sandy bay

A new league is coming for South East SA football as major restructure planned for 2025

After an earlier recommendation was widely rejected, a new proposal to restructure football in South East SA has been put forward. 
A football team celebrating a premiership win.

'Noxious' seaweed found in SA for first time by uni student doing an assignment

Dredging is halted at a South Australian marina after the discovery of wakame seaweed, regarded as one of the country's worst marine pests.
Updated
Wakame seaweed in Tasmania

A farmer set a trap to catch whatever was killing his chooks. He caught a quoll not seen in SA for 130 years

When farmer Pao Ling Tsai set a trap to catch the predator that had been killing his chooks, he expected to catch a feral cat or fox. Instead, he caught a species that was thought extinct in South Australia more than 130 years ago. 
Updated
A brown quoll sits in a red and blue crate

Federal government working to restore lobster exports to China

South Australian lobster farmers are entering a new season, hoping the return of the lucrative China market could be on the horizon. 
ABC News Current
Duration: 1 minute 24 seconds

Lobster season underway in SA, but Chinese trade woes still unresolved

Fishers are eyeing a promising season and the federal government is continuing in its efforts to improve relations with China, which is still refusing to import Australia's catch.
A man smiles at the camera holding a live lobster.

'Any dog can bite' is the message behind a new campaign to reduce dog attacks

More than 500 people were admitted to SA hospitals for dog bites in the past 12 months, but it's hoped a new public safety campaign will bring that number down.
A woman stands in a park with two dogs

Subdivision halted by native plants, wombats, where houses are in short supply in seaside Robe

A subdivision in a South Australian town with a severe housing shortage is stopped by the Native Vegetation Council because of the diversity of plant species on the property. Three rare animals may also live there.
Updated
Wombat walking on grass