Health alert: Sydneysiders are being urged to avoid outdoor exercise.

A health alert has been issued for some Sydneysiders to avoid outdoor exercise because of high pollution levels. (Read on …)

A senior family planning official in China has warned that a child is born with physical defects every 30 seconds due to the country’s high levels of environmental pollution. (Read on …)

Dairy farmers across Gippsland can expect farm effluent audits to continue this autumn with a new round underway by EPA. (Read on …)

One of Australia’s biggest cases of illegal land clearing has resulted in a $408,000 fine for a New South Wales landowner. (Read on …)

Prime Minister John Key has today announced a range of roading, state housing and school upgrades worth about $500 million. They will be projects that can be started almost immediately. (Read on …)

Greater Wellington is reminding water consent holders to be aware of the conditions of their consents, after an Environment Court Judge fined Masterton District Council and Master Roads & Services for breaching consent conditions associated with the operation of Henley Lake. (Read on …)

The long summer dry spell is beginning to bite and, with dropping water levels, the Marlborough District Council is preparing to restrict water take from the region’s rivers. (Read on …)

“The measures proposed to improve the effectiveness of compliance mechanisms include:

• Raising the maximum fine for committing an offence under the RMA from $200,000 to $600,000 for corporate offenders and to $300,000 for private individuals”

Section 7 : Improving workability and compliance (Read on …)