Infrastructure

“We know the people of Mount Morgan have been wanting a pipeline for a long time, but we can’t just go out and build a pipeline; unfortunately it’s not that easy" : Mayor Williams ... “It will be one year this month since the Mount Morgan community have been in Level 6 (emergency supply) restrictions. During this time, we have continued to cart water from Gracemere to Mount Morgan, which has cost Council around $4.5 million so far" : Cr Kirkland.

Gabrielle Duykers. Members of the public can now step foot inside the Naracoorte library following the opening of its doors last week. The $2.38 million library, located at 93 Smith Street, has seen the former Naracoorte Herald building transform into a much-needed central community space.

Gabrielle Duykers. The unveiling of a long-awaited phone tower in Keilira last week should have seen the community celebrating, but some residents remain concerned about a lack of coverage ... "There has been concern from the community, particularly those that were affected by the fire, that their coverage hadn't really improved all that much or they're not getting any coverage at all”: Kay Rasheed, Kingston DC Mayor.

Storms which hit Narrandera in January remain vivid in the minds of locals, with flooding still the hot topic of conversation among many who had a first hand experience of the storm disaster ... residents talked about the same things happening back in 2012 and said nothing had changed.

The costs in human and animal suffering, infrastructure, farmland, wildlife, the list goes on, is immense. What makes it so appalling is that, with good planning, both in terms of infrastructure, such as dams, and planning laws restricting development on floodplains, much of this horrendous waste and loss could have been at least mitigated, and, I suspect, in many cases, avoided altogether.

The current flooding in Lismore and Nimbin, and associated power outages, have affected Council’s water supply and sewage systems. Residents are asked to conserve water as much as possible as we are currently unable to replenish water reservoirs. Nimbin has approx. 24 hours of water supply left based on normal usage rates and residents are asked to conserve water.

The current flooding across the Richmond Valley, and associated power outages, have affected Richmond Valley Council’s water supply at Broadwater and Rileys Hill. The council’s water-sewer team is working hard to find the break affecting the water supply.

Manager Water and Wastewater Operations Brie Jowett said the extreme weather had washed soil and debris into creeks and rivers that flow into Council’s water treatment plants and caused power outages at the plants and several water pump stations ... Council has been tankering water into Uki but flooding and no road access is preventing deliveries.

About 1.3 million tyres reach the end of their life each year in Tasmania, most of which ends up in landfill or stockpiles. Some of these tyres are now being processed into crumb rubber and blended with bitumen for use as asphalt in the State road maintenance program.

The Victorian Government has approved the proposal put forward by the Maldon Hospital and Castlemaine Health boards to come together as one organisation ... The new health service will officially commence on 1 March 2022. The integration follows more than 42 years of strong collaboration and partnership between the two health services.

The City of Wanneroo is calling on the McGowan Government to build a new desalination plant in Alkimos by 2028 saying the Water Corporation’s reliance on the Gnangara Mound to supply water for Perth and Peel is unsustainable. The city’s call, which also includes a request for a wastewater recycling plant, is in response to the government’s release of the draft Gnangara groundwater allocation plan (GGAP).

Geoff Helisma. The cost of vital repairs to the rock gabion dam at the foot of the Shannon Creek Dam spillway has blown out from the awarded $1.145 million (ex GST) contract to a “foreshadowed variation” budget of “between $3.16 million and $4.13 million”.

Tracy Jones, Desert Knowledge Australia. A group of local organisations and independent parties have joined forces in Alice Springs, NT, with the support of the Northern Territory Government, to address the town’s water future. The Talking Water Collective delivered a short, intense campaign during October-November 2021 to prompt awareness and build stewardship around the town’s water security, sharing key facts about water resources and consumption, and contributing to the NT's Strategic Water Plan.

Sean Cunningham. Barellan Post Office, which is also the town’s financial centre, is under new ownership. The new owners Fiona Kibble and Cameron Rouse believe that investing in the post office has been the "best decision" they've made in a long time.

The inequalities faced by regional Australians with mobile signal and internet connection need to be fixed. The National Farmers Federation telecommunications committee member and farmer Peter Thompson said far from being a luxury, mobile phone coverage and internet connectivity were essentials in the bush, much like power and water.

Chris Oldfield. Lucindale CFS group officer Patrick Ross last week pointed to black markings on a map in the incident control room of the town’s fire-fighting base. He turned to visiting SA emergency services minister Vincent Tarzia and said: “This is where the fatality happened.”

The most ferocious fires seen in WA, four of them ranked level four bushfires, wiped out 60,000ha across WA with Denmark recording the heaviest losses with four houses.

Responding to the oil spill at the Port of Devonport has been a mammoth task, but years of planning and preparation meant multiple agencies were able to act quickly to contain the spill. The Environment Protection Authority, TasPorts, BridgePro, Tasmanian Divers Group, Marine and Safety Tasmania, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau have all have worked in unison since a commercial vessel collided with two tugboats on January 28, causing fuel and oil to spill into the Mersey River.

Narrandera Shire Council Mayor Neville Kschenka was left "frustrated and heartbroken" as he witnessed the damage Narrandera sustained during the weekend storms. On the edge of Narrandera as the storm broke, Cr Kschenka reached the centre of town as the weather event gathered momentum with lashing rain and strong gusts of wind.