A motion to address community and business concerns following the 2021 and 2022 floods that devastated the region has divided councillors at the May 23 Clarence Valley Council meeting.
The motion was moved by Cr Novak and seconded by Cr Alison Whaites before Climate Change Committee CCC chair Cr Greg Clancy asked Cr Novak how many meetings of the committee she had attended.
When she replied she hadn’t attended any CCC meetings but does read the minutes, Cr Clancy asked whether she was aware of the terms of reference for the CCC prior to the councillors pre-meeting briefing to which Cr Novak replied ‘No, I wasn’t’.
Next Cr Clancy asked Cr Novak why she had particularly focused on the Climate Change committee’s membership, when there are a lot of other community committees, and the Climate Change committee membership is open to all community members.
“I’ve had quite a number of people on the back of your Nom (notice of motion) from last month asking questions about the Climate Change committee and they weren’t aware that it existed,” she said.
“Businesses, famers and other sectors of our community, so I went ahead and had a look at who was actually on that committee, and it could possibly do with some other voices from our community, from the business community, farming community and those sectors might be able to support you in what you’re doing in giving a broader voice to what the Climate Change committee is and doing.
Cr Novak said the motion was “to provide confidence to our community and staff that we are taking on board the feedback that’s being given to us.”
“We’ve been inundated since February/March last year with lots of questions, lots of feedback, lots of concerns and based on these concerns this is the Nom that I’ve come up with to show our community that we are actually out there doing things,” she said.
“This notice of motion is truly there to support what our community has been asking for through lots of contact with us.”
Cr Novak told the meeting she had included another three items to the motion listed in the May 24 CV Independent:
- Write to the Prime Minister, The Hon Anthony Albanese MP and NSW Premier the Hon Chris Minns MP seeking advice and clarification about building on floodplains after their 2022 media comments.
- Write to the Chairman of Flood Plain Management Australia, Ian Dinham and invite him to give feedback on the Lower Clarence 2023 Flood Model update.
- Call for community submissions (citizen scientists) from residents for inclusion in the Clarence Valley whole of catchment flood study.
Cr Clancy described the motion as long and said while a number of the 10 points ‘had merit’ he couldn’t support the entire motion.
“That is implying that we as councillors are going to continue to support filling on the floodplain, and I for one do not support filling on the floodplain,” he said.
Cr Clancy also questioned the motion’s focus on the CCC, which he said includes an alternative energy specialist, an engineer, environmentalists, people from the agricultural sector and community members.
“I think it’s a little bit out of order to try and change the terms of reference for the CCC when the terms of reference are already broad enough,” he said.
Cr Karen Toms said she couldn’t see anything in Cr Novak’s motion not to support and Cr Steve Pickering said the items in the motion were ‘great ideas’ and what the community had been asking for since before the 2022 floods.
Councillors voted six to three to support the motion with Cr’s Clancy, Bill Day and Peter Johnstone voting against.
This article appeared in the Clarence Valley Independent, 31 May 2023.
