Draft Pedestrian Access and Mobility Plan and Draft Bike Plan Project: HAVE OUR SAY!
We’re excited to let you know that the Draft Pedestrian Access and Mobility Plan (PAMP) and Draft Bike Plan is now on public exhibition. We invite you to review and provide comment on the proposals and actions identified in the planning documents.

WHAT IS IT?
The purpose of the Pedestrian Access and Mobility Plan (PAMP) and Draft Bike Plan is to provide greater long term strategic focus for the development of accessible pedestrian routes and coordinated cycling infrastructure in the shire.

You can view the Draft Pedestrian Access and Mobility Plan and the Draft Bike Plan Project here.

Gunnedah Shire Councils former Director of Planning and Environment, Mr Mike Silver, was farewelled by some fifty family, friends and staff - both present and past - at a function held at the Gunnedah Rugby Club on Saturday evening.

Mr Silver had been a long-standing member of Gunnedah Shire, having served some 43 years as an officer of both the Gunnedah Municipal Council – commencing on 4 June, 1973 - and the amalgamated Gunnedah Shire after 1979.

Mr Silver was joined by wife, Glenda, and sons William and wife, Gaby, with their three children Baxter, Hudson and Carter, along with son David and friend Laura Knapman. David read a letter of tribute from third son, Peter, who was not available to attend the event.

During the formal part of the evening many speakers spoke of Mr Silver’s significant contribution to the Gunnedah community both in his professional capacity as well as his community roles particularly as a member of APEX and as an administrator of the Gunnedah Cricket Association.

Speakers included Mayor Owen Hasler, Deputy Mayor Gae Swain, General Manager Eric Groth, former engineer Rod Green, former Shire Clerk Ian Horwood, former fellow Apexians and sports administrators Don Ewing and Terry Curran and son William.

Councillor Hasler spoke of Mr Silver’s distinguished career in Local Government.

“Mr Silver became an important Senior Officer in terms of his role in mentoring and managing staff, developing teams within the organisation and also as a respected adviser and counsel to elected members”.

“Mike was a strategic thinker who always focused on improved outcomes for our community based upon a strategic vision which had been workshopped with Councillors and which had involved considerable community consultation.”

“Mr Silver has been involved in many important community projects spread across the breadth of community impact, from tourism to cultural facilities, to child care, to aged care, to public housing, to recreational and sporting facilities, to emergency services, to floodplain management, to urban design and streetscape planning as well as in the development of strategic policy in town planning, environmental management and community embellishment” stated Gunnedah Shire Mayor Owen Hasler.

These projects included:-

• Sugargums Childcare Centre;
• The establishment and expansion of the former VIC now the headquarters of the Dorothea Mackellar Society and home of the Jean Isherwood Collection;
• The Nursing Home Redevelopment - two stages;
• Community Housing including Favell Court and Vi Robinson Place;
• Donnelly Fields, Wolseley Park Upgrade, Junior Cricket Fields and the Riverine area;
• The Bill Clegg Building - SES Headquarters;
• Upgrade of the Waste Management Facility;
• Raising of houses in Carroll and Gunnedah, the levee bank issue, and Blackjack Creek proposal;
• The upgrade of Conadilly Street and concept design;
• The development and adoption of two LEP's which focussed on strategic policy in town planning, environmental management and community embellishment.

“Mr Silver's contribution to the Gunnedah Community has not been limited to his professional role.”

“Mr Silver is an extremely active citizen in a number of other ways not least been his involvement in a number of community organisations.”

“The first of these was his long standing involvement in the Gunnedah Apex Club where he was integrally involved in a number of their projects including the development and construction of the former VIC building.”

“However, Mr Silver is also remembered for his involvement in the sporting community, particularly the Gunnedah and District Cricket Association, as both a player and an administrator.”

“It is not surprising, therefore, that the cricket facilities in Gunnedah are second to none in rural NSW with the Wolseley Oval grounds and pavilion an outstanding result of his determination to have a first class cricket ground. Similarly with the junior cricket grounds in the Riverine area which spearheaded development in that part of our community.”

“We thank Mike and wish he and Glenda well in retirement,” Concluded Mayor Hasler.

Councillors Hasler and Swain, together with General Manager, Eric Groth, made two presentations to Mr Silver on behalf of Council in recognition of his considerable years of service.

Mr Silver responded by indicating how much he had appreciated the opportunities and challenges provided him, including the opportunity to participate as a member of the Australian Cricket Board, during his time at Council.

He also thanked his mentor, Peter Clark, for his early years of assistance when a trainee.

Mr Silver also spoke of how much his family had enjoyed their time in Gunnedah and looked forward to their continued residency in the community during retirement.

In conclusion, Mr Silver thanked his wife Glenda, and family members for their love and support during his career in the community.

ENDS

Contact: Lisa Davis 02 6740 2100

Budding young poets from all over the nation attended the Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards Presentation Ceremony last Friday in Gunnedah, celebrating the crème de la crème of modern poetry and prose.

Over 11,7666 entries from young Australian poets were received this year with competition judges Sophie Mason and Stephen Whiteside set the difficult task of selecting the 2016 winning submission for each of the eight categories.

The presentation ceremony was held at The Civic in Gunnedah and was attended by Dorothea Mackellar Memorial Society patrons Margaret White, Mark Vaile and Peter Shergold as well as renowned ABC Journalist and keynote speaker Heather Ewart.

At the conclusion of the presentation ceremony, winners, their families and dignitaries attended the official opening of The Mackellar Centre - the new home base for the awards and gallery for the Jean Isherwood “My Country” Watercolour Collection.

The Mackellar Centre has been a major project of the society and Gunnedah Shire Council with support of funding partner BHP Billiton and many local businesses.

Head to www.dorothea.com.au or contact the Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards Head Office on 02 6742 1200 to find out more information.

For more details and photos please see the Media Release: Winners Announced at 2016 Awards Ceremony.

ENDS

Media Contact: Pip Murray 0427 426 722

Final Check Count of first preferences is now complete. Therefore the quota will be 719 and as a result 4 candidates have been elected. Counting will recommence on Tuesday.

Gunnedah and Narrabri Shire Councils have called for the immediate installation of an Air Quality Monitoring System similar to the Upper Hunter Air Quality Monitoring System, following further criticism of the present limited system by Mr James Whelan, a researcher with Environmental Justice Australia.

Gunnedah Shire Mayor, Owen Hasler, raised the matter in a Mayoral Minute at the August Ordinary Council meeting stating "Mr Whelan has analysed the last seven (7) months of air quality tracking data from the Maules Creek Whitehaven mine as well as the neighbouring Idemitsu Boggabri Coal mine and the results are concerning."

"Mr Whelan found evidence that little or no data had been collected on some days and for the period between May 23 to May 29, about 40 per cent of readings showed negative levels of PM 2.5 (a gauge of the amount of small particulates some 2.5 micrometers in diameter), which are known to lodge in people's lungs and potentially cause illness."

"During another five-day period in June, readings of the larger PM 10 particulates were also consistently negative, which Mr Whelan believes to be an impossibility."

"More disturbing was the fact that the data also included spikes to high levels of PM 10 concentrations, while 24 average PM 2.5 levels were at the maximum levels recommended by the Environment Minister last year."

"According to Mr Whelan, the data is wildly inaccurate causing serious questions to be asked about the actual levels of air pollution near the Maules Creek monitor and if these levels meet standards."

"It is time that the Government required the EPA and mining companies to install a system similar to that operating in the Upper Hunter," claimed Mayor Hasler.

"The new EPA Regional Director, Adam Gilligan, has been quoted by Fairfax media as suggesting that the present four (4) monitors in the Namoi area is a ‘interim solution' while it considers the feasibility of a public system as run in the Upper Hunter."

"However, of real concern is the fact that Mr Gilligan claims that the EPA does not presently have the funds to install the equipment despite the significant Royalties that the Government is receiving from the mines operating in the area,” concluded Mayor Hasler.

Gunnedah's call for such a system was supported by Narrabri Shire Mayor, Councillor Conrad Bolton who stated "Narrabri Shire Council has repeatedly stated that there is no reason why the health of residents in the Namoi Basin should have less priority than those people living in the Upper Hunter area of the state."

"Our residents feel that their health is as important as that of their colleagues in the Hunter Region.” 

“The justification for a similar system is supported by the same reasoning and evidence that saw the installation of the real time, independently operated air quality monitoring system in the Upper Hunter.”

“Whether it's one person or a hundred, the State Government has an obligation to the surrounding Communities to ensure health and well-being is maintained on the back of approving developments of State significance.”

"We are pleased to be working with Gunnedah Shire in this regard and it will be a priority for our Councils in forthcoming meetings with our respective local members and Minister Speakman," concluded Mayor Bolton.

Gunnedah Mayor Owen Hasler has called on residents and businesses to “Dump Illegal Dumping” following the completion of costly clean-ups around Gunnedah in recent weeks.

An estimated 90 tonnes of illegally dumped waste have been collected and disposed during the works, with the bulk having been collected from bushland within the travelling stock reserve located on Wandobah Road.

“Council has spent close to $30,000 removing garbage, demolition waste, car bodies and even had to deal with asbestos that had been illegally dumped” said Mayor Hasler.

“A significant proportion of that money was used to repair fences and build access restrictions which should make it much harder for dumpers to get to their regular dumping ‘hotspots’” Mayor Hasler continued.

“Because illegal dumping is unsightly and reflects really poorly on our region, Council’s efforts to catch those responsible has now been stepped up after the installing a number of portable surveillance cameras at different places across the region” said Mayor Hasler.

Council’s Manager of Building and Environment, Blake O’Mullane, confirmed that ”the surveillance cameras are small, yet are able to record high quality images, day and night, which definitely increases the likelihood that anyone illegally dumping on Council lands will be caught and fined”.

Gunnedah Shire Council is not just relying on cameras to catch dumpers.

Council is also urging residents for their help to report locations where regular illegal dumping has occurred along with any details of actual dumping they may witness.

Illegal Dumping Reports can be made by calling 131 555. The information received will help Council track down and ensure penalties are handed out to those responsible for dumping in the region.

“Preventing illegal dumping is better for the local environment but will also mean the costs Council normally spend on cleaning-up dumping hotspots could instead be spent on our facilities and improving services” Mayor Hasler continued.

“Our message to residents and businesses that may not have disposed of their waste properly in the past is simple. It’s time to ‘Dump Illegal Dumping’” Mayor Hasler concluded.

This project is a NSW EPA Waste Less, Recycle More initiative funded from the waste levy. 

Images - Gunnedah Moves to Dump Illegal Dumping

ENDS

Media Contact: Eliza Gallen 6740 2100

Listed below are the various Water & Sewer application forms required water and/or sewer services.If you are looking for a consolidated list of application forms, please visit our All Council Applications Forms page.

Acclaimed national affairs correspondent, Heather Ewart will deliver the keynote address at this year’s Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards presentation to be held on Friday 2 September in Gunnedah.

Ms Ewart is considered one of Australia’s most experienced and skilled reporters in political and federal affairs with postings in London, Washington and Brussels during her lengthy career.

Ms Ewart has also been a recipient of the prestigious Golden Quill award for her story about skin cancer victim Clare Oliver, which resulted in tougher regulation of the solarium industry in Australia.

“We were thrilled when Heather accepted our invitation to present the keynote address at this year’s awards ceremony and know her story, as a journalist and writer will be a huge hit with the award finalists”, Dorothea Mackellar Memorial Society Chairperson Philippa Murray said.

These days, Ms Ewart has put politics aside and embarked on a new adventure with the ABC’s Back Roads series launched this year. This series seeks to unearth some of the country’s most remarkable and inspiring and remote communities.

Back Roads airs on ABCTV on Monday’s at 8pm.
Head to www.dorothea.com.au or contact the Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards Head Office on 02 6742 1200 to find out more information.

ENDS

Media Contact: Pip Murray 0427 426 722.

Listed below are the various Development, Planning and Building application forms required for building and development work. If you are looking for a consolidated list of application forms, please visit our All Council Applications Forms page.

Below is a consolidated listing of all Council's Application Forms. For assisstance or more information please contact our Customer Serivce Team on 02 6740 2100.