A weekly re-cap of the events that have made news in Cairns over the past week.

Monday March 12, 2001 5th Edition

This week sees a variety of news stories including everything from the announcement of a new, locally invented power source that could revolutionise the energy industry to a nursing shortage on the Cape York Peninsula. This is typical of Cairns and North Queensland in general, a place as diverse culturally as it is socially.

Building industry set to rocket
The recent announcement by the Federal Government to introduce a $14,000 grant for first home buyers when purchasing new homes is expected to give the entire building industry a major shot in the arm. The industry has suffered since the introduction of the GST and the general slowing of the economy as a whole. The announcement is expected to result in hundreds of extra homes being built in North Queensland and up to 750 new jobs being created in Cairns alone.

Cairns TAFE in the midst of a boom
Cairns TAFE (Tertiary and Further Education) has experienced a record 141% increase in enrolments in the beginning of this year. This dramatic increase is the highest in the state and represents the result of three years hard work by the organisations management and marketing team. Operations Manager Ann Ellis stated that the increase proved that the Cairns Campus of TAFE was no longer considered a "second-rate" higher education option.

Clean Up Australia Day lacking in rubbish and regional support
The annual "Clean Up Australia Day" campaign was held on Sunday the 4th of March and the good news for the Cairns region is that there was not as much rubbish to be collected as in past years. The bad news was that not a lot of volunteers turned up on the day. The aim of "Clean Up Australia Day" is for volunteers to visit as many public areas around the Country as possible and collect rubbish in areas where traditional rubbish collecting does not occur. Organisers are blaming the poor turnout in regional Queensland on inclement weather and a lack of awareness about the event.

Kuranda youth run over whilst asleep on the road
A fifteen year old youth was run over whilst sleeping on the main road near the small town of Kuranda on Sunday 4th March. The boy was with several relatives who were also asleep on the road and local authorities believe that alcohol was involved in the incident.

Noxious fish being run out of town
The introduced fish, Tilapia, has the potential to cause huge damage to fish stocks in water reserves around North Queensland. Tilapia are predatory fish that can destroy native fish stocks quickly and efficiently. They can live in both fresh and salt water and their potential to destroy commercial and recreational fishing areas is awesome. Tilapia are considered as large a threat in North Queensland as Carp in the Murray River. Electronic fish barriers are being introduced to curb the species and a public relations campaign is being developed to increase awareness of the noxious species.

Kerbside sellers being sold
People selling used cars on the side of the road could soon be a thing of the past with Cairns City Council looking to introduce by-laws that would give them the power to confiscate cars being sold in this manner. The main problem area is the Cairns Esplanade which is a popular place for backpackers to sell their cars before heading home.

Baby basher given four years jail
A man who shook a baby hard enough to cause blindness and brain damage was sentenced to four years jail in the Cairns District Court last week. The Mareeba man had been looking after the 11 month old toddler for nine days when the baby was rushed Mareeba hospital with serious injuries. The incident occurred in April 1999, shocking the small community.

Workers finish the "missing link"
Work has been completed on the "missing link" stage of the Cairns Esplanade redevelopment. This has involved the transportation of an additional 2000 cubic metres of sand to the site, extending the City east by several hectares. The sand will be left to settle for up to 6 months before any building work can commence. Once the settling process is completed work will commence on the lagoon style swimming area, walking paths, bike tracks and general recreation areas.

Nursing shortage on Cape York
State nursing services are facing a sever shortage, particularly on Cape York with the region having the highest turnover of nurses anywhere in Queensland. The regional average for nurse leaving the industry is 50% higher than any other centre. Much of this high turnover has been allocated to nurses being overworked. Mr Oliver from the Nurses Union stated that whilst the high turnover was partly a seasonal issue, it was a cause for concern as there was a lack of a work pool to take up any slack as demand for nurses increases.

Outdoor films given to go ahead
The newly developed Courthouse Hotel will be showing outdoor films as of April. A giant movie screen will be erected in the courtyard area of the popular venue to show a variety of movies including classics as well as contemporary movies. The Cairns climate provides the perfect opportunity for people to enjoy a meal, a drink and a movie in an outdoor setting.

World first - a new power source developed in Cairns
In what has been hailed as an invention that "could be worth tens of billions of dollars", the announcement of a potential new power source was made in Cairns last week. Two local inventors have been working on the idea for several years with the main principal being an electricity generating device that incorporates magnetic energy and batteries. The units have the potential to be installed in all households and cars to produce green energy with virtually no side effects or pollutants. The invention has an international patent pending and whilst the announcement has been received with a degree of caution all agree that if the product can do what the inventors say it can it is going to be worth a lot of money.

Kuranda Steam Train being put through its paces
The relaunching of an old service is just about due to begin with the Cairns-Kuranda steam train due to begin commercial services in the next few weeks. The train is currently being tested on the route to ensure that everything is working perfectly when the service is introduced. It is expected to prove very popular with the 900,000 people who visit Kuranda annually.

Big weekend of sport
Sellout crowds at the Cairns Radisson Taipans NBL game on Friday night and at the ARL North Queensland Cowboys rugby league game on Saturday night provided Cairns with one of the biggest sporting weekends on the year. Unfortunately the local favourites lost on both fronts but the games were a success in every other aspect. The basketball has sold out for the last three games in a row and this support is definitely having an influence on the success of the team. The large crowds did cause some problems at the Bundaberg Run stadium however it is expected that these will be ironed out for future games, with most problems stemming from the fact that the numbers exceeded all expectations.