(Photo: SBRC)
Controversy has erupted over a plan by the State Government to introduce water meters on a section of Barker Creek near Nanango.
Under the plan, irrigators drawing water from the Barker Creek aquifer would receive a water allocation and must install $2000 water meters at their own cost.
However, users located downstream from the metered area would be able to continue using water as they currently do without restrictions.
At Wednesday’s South Burnett Regional Council meeting, Cr Barry Green said he thought this was unfair.
“You could have the ridiculous situation where someone in the metered area has used up their allocation and are watching their crops wither, while someone downstream can carry on as usual.”
He said the Council had spoken to the Minister to get a fairer outcome, and in the meantime Barker Creek irrigators had agreed they would sink no new bores providing there were no restrictions placed on the aquifer.
“It’s a very emotive issue,” Cr Green said.
Cr Damien Tessmann agreed, saying he thought the State Government’s current plan was “unworkable” and “not a smart move”.
A series of meetings have been held around the South Burnett over the past 12 months to discuss draft groundwater management plans for Barker Creek and Nangur / Boonara Creek.
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The South Burnett Regional Council will move its meeting dates from the third to the fourth Wednesday of the month from June to November this year.
The change of meeting dates has been caused by conflicts with other meetings that require the presence of the Mayor, Deputy Mayor or Councillors.
The December meeting will be held on the third Wednesday because of the Christmas break.
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The SBRC has given approval to a new medical centre at 53 Haly Street in an area zoned as Residential B under the Kingaroy Planning Scheme.
The new centre will involve “low-scale use” of an existing dwelling house 650m from the CBD.
Councillors heard that several other similar facilities already exist nearby.
This being so, Councillors approved the application subject to the usual conditions that apply to medical facilities.
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Council will partner with Cherbourg’s new Recycling Facility in an effort to introduce some form of recycling into the region, Councillors heard at the May meeting.
Cr Kathy Duff said that because Nanango already has kerbside recycling, the Council will provide 60 cubic metres of recyclable waste to the new facility to help test its capacity.
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Residences in Kingaroy, Nanango and Blackbutt will receive new waste collection bins in June.
Mayor Wayne Kratzmann reported that under the recently signed Shire-wide refuse collection agreement with J.J. Richards and Sons, new bins would be issued to all Kingaroy residences in the second week of June. Nanango and Blackbutt residences will receive their new bins a week later.
Bins will not be replaced in other parts of the Shire at present because they are not as old.
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Landholders who have problems with wild dogs are being encouraged to take advantage of the services of four professional trappers.
Cr Kathy Duff said the trappers have been engaged for a short time through a grant to help landholders deal with a recent expansion in wild dog numbers.
She said 50 landholders had already registered for the program.
Cr Damien Tessmann noted that wild dogs seemed to be getting bigger because they were cross-breeding with pig dogs, and agreed that numbers seemed to have exploded in recent months.
Cr Barry Green said he’d like to see a similar program for feral cats, telling fellow Councillors he’d heard a resident in his division had recently bagged a 46kg specimen.
“There were rumours that a panther had been sighted in the area but it turned out to be just one very, very big feral cat,” he said.
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Council is close to finalising a lease agreement with the Boondooma Homestead Management Committee for the historic property.
The committee had requested a formal lease because it will make it easier for them to apply for grant funding in future.
It has also received an expression of interest for the caretaker’s position at the property but has appointed Rosemary Sallway as acting caretaker until the end of June so the lease can be finalised.
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Council’s Art, Culture and Heritage Management Advisory Committee will engage Jally Entertainment to provide next year’s community stage production after the success of “Calendar Girls” in March, which attracted record ticket sales.
Cr Ros Heit told the May meeting that Jally Entertainment proposed bringing “Gallipoli – A Manual Of Trench Warfare” to the region in 2015 to coincide with the Anzac Day centenary celebrations.
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The Council’s RADF fund will distribute $55,000 to arts projects that meet RADF guidelines in 2014-15.
The Arts, Culture and Heritage committee will do this in three funding rounds in July, October and February.
The July and October rounds will both have $15,000 available, and the February round $10,000.
The Council will also set aside $5000 for “Quick Response” grants, and a further $10,000 for RADF training.
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The RADF committee has approved five projects from Round 4 applications received between March 31 and April 30, which attracted eight applications seeking total funding of $43,759 (exc GST).
The successful applications were:
- Nanango Arts Network Alliance – $1685 to run “Nana’s Circus School”
- Blackbutt & District Tourism & Heritage Association Inc – $2784 to run a workshop entitled “A Journey Along The Upper Brisbane Valley Rail Trail”
- Wondai & District Band Association Inc – $2500 to run a “Letterbox Brass” workshop
- South Burnett Community Orchestra – $3950 to run a “Symphony In The South Burnett” workshop
- South Burnett Senior Citizens Welfare Association Inc – $5250 to run an “SB Care Disability Community Creativity Project” workshop
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The South Burnett’s “Healthy Communities” program will wind up on June 30 after three years of successful operation.
At this month’s meeting, Councillors were told that the program had been funded by a three-year $750,000 grant the Council had received in 2011.
However changes in government that have occurred since that time mean that funding is no longer available and Council will have to discontinue the program at the end of next month.
Cr Ros Heit said she was hopeful that volunteers involved in many of the community health initiatives set up under the program – such as community kitchens, community food gardens, walking and exercise groups and similar initiatives – would keep them operating even after the Healthy Communities program closes.
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The northern end of Parishs Road in Stalworth will be renamed Fitzgerald Road in honour of the late Jim Fitzgerald at the request of his son Darryl.
The unsealed road extends from Boondooma Dam Road for approximately 250m and provides access to the Fitzgerald property and two others.
Councillors heard that neighbours supported renaming the road, and emergency services would also find the renaming helpful when responding to calls in the area.
The cost to Council would be $200 for a new road sign.
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The SBRC and Emergency Volunteering will be jointly running a two-day Disaster Resilient Leadership workshop at the Highway Christian Church at the corner of the D’Aguilar Highway and Edenvale North Road on Friday and Saturday, June 13-14.
The free workshop – which runs from 9:00am to 4:00pm on both days – focusses on the role that community leaders play in building community resilience during disasters like floods and bushfires.
Participants will receive workbooks and certificates of participation.
Further information can be obtained from Michael Hunter or Wendy Kruger at the Council on (07) 4189-9171.
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The Proston Rural Water Supply Scheme may be separated from the region’s other water supply schemes, Cr Barry Green said on Wednesday.
The Council wants a one-tier system but local users have told the Council they’d prefer a three-tier system, and are happy to pay for the costs of maintaining the scheme as a “stand alone” system.
Mayor Wayne Kratzmann said that a meeting has to be held to decide the matter soon, because it would have some impacts on Budget planning.
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Council has spent its 2013-14 budget for road maintenance works, Councillors were told at Wednesday’s monthly meeting, and this effectively meant that no further road maintenance could be carried out until June 30.
However, Council officers warned this was “impractical”.
As a result, Councillors voted to transfer $500,000 from the Road Levy Capital Works program to road maintenance work to cover the shortfall.
The effect of this is that some proposed capital works projects will not be undertaken until the new Budget is handed down in early July.
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Replacement of the roof at the Kingaroy Private Hospital had disclosed the building’s electrical wiring was in need of repair, Councillors heard on Wednesday.
The cost of replacing the wiring is around $80,000, and money for it will come from Council’s Asset Replacement Reserve.
