Chinese interest returns to the Ballarat goldfields, which may provide job security for more than 200 people in the town, but there is concern about how new royalties will affect businesses.

Global uncertainty has sent gold prices soaring, resulting in a boom for miners. But it has also had the effect of drying up traditional markets where exploration companies raise cash to explore for rich new discoveries.

Some regional Australians argue they should see social-distancing measures wound back first because there is less risk of COVID-19 spreading, but a leading health expert is not a fan of the idea.

Trees damaged by recent bushfires are used to restore Upper Murray River with the hope of saving the endangered trout cod.

The warm weather is about to end in Victoria, with the state set to be hit by a deluge of rain, hail and snow from today and temperatures set to hang around the low teens all weekend.

One day, future generations will look back at the history we're living right now, captured in these photos of a nation in shutdown.

Police oppose bail for an IT expert accused of directing the importation of more than a billion dollars' worth of drugs into Australia, after prosecutors alleged he was part of a sophisticated plan of cyber coverup and stolen identities.

Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas says Victoria has recorded 17 new cases of coronavirus overnight with 11 of them linked to meat processing plant Cedar Meats in Broolyn, May 5, 2020.

Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas also announced additional tax relief for families and businesses impacted by pandemic lockdown measures, May 5, 2020.

A Lifeline volunteer counts her work as a privilege and urges more people to volunteer, as calls to the support line jump to record highs.

Due to a decline in the number of frogs, operating on the amphibian was deemed worthwhile to give it the best chance to thrive.

Sex, politics, and religion are traditionally avoided as dinner conversation, but in Queensland there's the emergence of 'rain guilt' — where you got some but your neighbours missed out.

A woman who says she has only been a fan of the iconic rock band Queen for about a year sets the Guinness World Record for clocking up approximately 240 hours, or 10 consecutive days, watching Bohemian Rhapsody in cinemas.

A sighting of a sea creature not usually found in Tasmanian waters has surprised onlookers, but could become more frequent, experts say.

A contentious ecotourism project on Kangaroo Island has been approved and could lead the way for similar projects that will open up South Australian national parks currently "under lock and key".

NSW identity fraud victims want more done to stop imposters from using drivers licences to lodge bogus loan, credit and debit card applications.

Health authorities in Newcastle, NSW, have developed a vaccine safety tracking system, now a world-leader in monitoring the rollout of vaccines in Australia.

A man who had half his face shot off in a 2017 home invasion has fought back tears after a second man pleaded guilty in relation to his violent home invasion.

A controversial plan to reopen a 'mothballed' coal mine in the New South Wales Upper Hunter Valley is approved, but a five-year extension on the mine's life is denied.

MORNING BRIEFING: NSW Police arrest a man in Guildford over the shooting murder of Parramatta FC soccer player John Odisho, while Barnaby Joyce leads an anti-abortion rally in Martin Place.

A study reveals a visit from a rare bird to a tiny NSW town generated hundreds of thousands of dollars for the economy, highlighting the untapped potential of birdwatching tourism.

A police taskforce is set up to investigate the alleged misconduct of gynaecologist Emil Gayed, following complaints made by almost 200 women to a NSW public inquiry about health care including the unnecessary removal of organs.

A University of Melbourne academic and a little school in NSW are stressing the importance of students learning a second language as the school hosts the Indonesian Consul General.

Honey from Australian native stingless bees is not technically honey and moves are buzzing around to change that.

Today the Macleay Valley is suffering unprecedented drought, but 70 years ago it was inundated with "mighty waves as high as telegraph poles" that flooded the region and left 2,000 people homeless.

The number of whale entanglements in ropes and floats has reached an unprecedented 35 incidents off NSW so far this year, so commercial fishers are meeting to discuss better practices.

A common struggle for Aboriginal elders is how to make their language and culture appeal to young people in order for it to be carried on.

The honey industry is facing hard times along with other producers, having taken a battering over recent years from the drought and a string of natural disasters.

The suicides of two young Indigenous women in two months have sparked calls for immediate action.

A piece of land formerly part of the Durack pastoral empire handed back to traditional owners.

At least 80 people were killed in a Japanese attack on Broome in 1942, and now the search is on for the wrecks of the flying boats where they died.

WA and NSW cane toads are bigger, stronger and can travel further, but they lag behind Queensland toads in one significant feature testicle size.

The changing media landscape has meant former electrician Brodie Moss has an audience of more than 1 million, a comfortable full-time income, and the freedom to go fishing whenever he wants.

Some Broome tourism businesses hope a parliamentary inquiry will lead to a crackdown on accommodation websites, while others say 'the sharing economy' needs support.

Lou Brown used meditation and shear effort to clip about one sheep a minute for eight hours and claim the new world record.

Catching a glimpse of snow at the top of Bluff Knoll is a highly sought after WA bucket-list item, but this history of snowfall in WA spans Geraldton to Southern Cross.

From electronic pet trackers, paying cyclists to commute to work and driverless cars, Hobart City Council is floating some innovations to make it a smarter city. And, strangely, that could also mean Wi-Fi free zones.

Tasmania's Electoral Commission has determined the newest member of the state's House of Assembly is Madeleine Ogilvie.

Bereft of vineyards a couple of years ago, Forcett in south-east Tasmania, will soon have more than 200 hectares of wine grapes in the ground.

Wombat researchers at the University of Tasmania have won an Ig Nobel Prize for unexpectedly discovering the "quite incredible" reason the animal's scat is cubed.

DAILY BRIEFING: The majority shareholders of Hobart Airport have sold a 70 per cent stake in the facility, and concerns surround the rejection of the Constitution Dock extension.

A Tasmanian council has not yet decided whether it will appeal a decision giving a green light to a luxury helicopter-accessed fishing camp at Lake Malbena, saying the process has "put the council under a lot of stress".

DAILY BRIEFING: More Nazi Nazi memorabilia goes under the hammer, and Tasmania becomes the second highest performing state in the country economically.

These creatures can make some strange sounds and the Australian Museum wants you to record them to help monitor populations.

If you thought it was hot last year, you're not wrong. The Bureau of Meteorology is warning there is little relief on the cards, with 2018's high temperatures and severely dry conditions expected to persist until at least March.

A severe heatwave threatens to break all-time records in South Australia and Victoria today including the maximum of 46.1C in Adelaide set in 1939 as experts warn that "nowhere is going to escape the heat".

Phoebe is your average 13-year-old, except that when she's not at school, she cares for her mum. She is among one in eight Australians who are unpaid carers, but are "largely unrecognised", something a new awareness campaign hopes to change.