Two men on trial over a 700kg cocaine importation racket used encrypted mobile phones to help arrange for the drugs to be sailed from Tahiti to Australia, a court hears.

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 multi-million-dollar Bylong Valley coal mine is refused development consent by an independent planning panel, citing concerns about "long-lasting environmental, agricultural and heritage impacts".

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.

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 man who denied knowing anything about $245 million worth of drugs onboard a catamaran he skippered from Tahiti faces life in jail after being found guilty of the crime.

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

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.

Greg Inglis's rugby league retirement brings down the curtain on a remarkable NRL and State of Origin career that will see him remembered as a legend of the game, writes Zane Bojack.

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.

Robot in cabinet

The company proposing a coal mine for NSW's Manning Valley, refused by an environment court on the grounds of its contribution to climate change, will not appeal the decision.

MORNING BRIEFING: Former Newcastle Knights star Jarrod Mullen is charged over his alleged role in a cocaine ring in the Hunter region and Australia's country music industry is in shock after singer and producer Glen Hannah dies.

Following the recent Hendra virus outbreak, an equine vet is encouraging horse owners to vaccinate their animals against the deadly bat-borne disease.

Emergency services are keeping a close watch on large blazes at Middle Creek Road, Kangaroo Creek north of Coffs Harbour, and at Verges Creek north of Crescent Head in northern NSW, after residents were warned to seek shelter.

It's home to as much biodiversity as the Great Barrier Reef, but this remote area of Western Australia has been largely a mystery to scientists, until now.

More than 40 sawfish die in the Fitzroy River catchment, known to be the world's last stronghold for the species.

The WA Government has ordered Zenith Australia Investment Holding to stop clearing land at Yakka Munga station after a blockade by the area's native title holders.

Many Australians regard the beach as a place that belongs to everyone, where no-one can be excluded. But the truth of that notion will now be tested by the High Court.

Conservation groups want harsher penalties for illegal land clearing, as the WA Government investigates a Chinese-owned company over the mysterious clearing of 120 hectares at a cattle station.

Diamonds so rare they never reach the open market are unveiled by Rio Tinto in a historic preview at the Argyle mine in Western Australia's far north.

The Browns Range pilot plant in remote Western Australia has been touted as a project that could have global significance, particularly if the US-China trade war escalates.

A network of oil wells that involve fracking in the Great Sandy Desert, connected by pipelines to new and existing ports, may become Australia's biggest oil-producing project, according to traditional owners negotiating with the private company.

The harvest is underway at one of Australia's most remote pearl farms and its new owners are excited by what they see.

More than 2.7 million Australians live in a house with a swimming pool and with growing environmental awareness, residents across the country are converting their pools to ponds.

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

A Chinese company has been given until the end of November to remediate land it cleared at a cattle station in the Kimberley, following a blockade by Aboriginal native title holders.

Residents of northern Western Australia have issued a desperate plea for help, saying it is only a matter of time before a resurgent youth crime wave sees a child killed.

Two of the world's biggest gold mining companies have merged in a $14 billion deal. What does it mean for the Kalgoorlie Super Pit and other Aussie gold mines?

Australia was built on gold rushes a century ago, but there is a warning it could slip from second to fourth on a list of the world's biggest gold producing nations by 2024.

A man and a woman are dead after they were hit by a truck overnight on Brookton Highway in Jelcobine, almost 100 kilometres south-east of Perth, with police closing the road to investigate the crash.

Amid international efforts to find a vaccine for the deadly pig virus, Australian authorities and industry are bracing for an outbreak that some pig farmers fear is "inevitable".

This online community is reaching out to asylum seekers, providing friendship and support.

The owners of the mothballed Ravensthorpe nickel mine in WA's south-east, say they will move to re-open the site if surging demand for the metal continues.

Modern consumers want to know more about the story of their food where it came from, how it was produced and farmers in WA are taking advantage of the trend.

Concerns have been raised in Australia over the online sale of accessories that turn handguns into automatic weapons.

African swine fever has depleted China's pig herd, creating a protein shortage that is benefitting Australian sheep farmers.

A master wine producer whose riesling is the reigning Australian wine of the year bows out of the industry, citing age and the desire to hand over to a new generation for the decision.