The Adviser 1505

lest we forget LOCAL FIRM SWITCHES TO NOVEL FACE MASKS

KEEPING KIDS AMUSED WHILE IN ISO

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AUTUMN EDITION HOUSE & LAND

2020 Adviser Autumn Edition 20 pages of Homes, Design Ideas, Land Releases and Lifestyle Opportunities

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FIVE months ago, the then Minister for Water Resources, David Littleproud commissioned Mick Keelty, the Interim Inspector General of the Murray Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) to undertake an inquiry into the impact of distribution inflows to the southern basin along with the impact of state water shares resulting from the reserves required under the agreement.

After a number of town hall meetings and 345 individual submissions, the final report was submitted to the Minister (now Keith Pitt). That report has now been released to the public with the Federal Government agreeing to all five recommendations included in the report.

Continued on page 18 Letters to the Editor page 19

STANDING PROUD ON BEHALF OF ALL SERVICE MEN‌ Former service man, Paul Blackwell of Numurkah with the Goulburn Valley Veterans Services located at the Shepparton RSL stands before a retired armoured personnel carrier. Photo: Steve Hutcheson

The Anzac spirit lives on

By Steve Hutcheson THE army has a way of changing people. For Paul Blackwell, joining the regular army as an 18 year old at the height of the Vietnam war saw him go in as a young boy and three years later, emerge as a much older man.

Vietnam was one of those wars that impacted on many lives at the time. National service was at its zenith, young lives changed

immeasurably on the fall of a ball.

As a regular, Paul was looking for a career. The army offered that in the signals corp but it also thrust him into a war that ultimately served little purpose. His role was transmitting messages between the battlefields and Canberra and as a cryptologist, coding scripts before the advent of modern computer technology.

Continued on page 10

NEWS

GV Health staff member tests positive to COVID-19

LAST Friday, April 17, GV Health was advised that a former staff member employed at GV Health’s Graham Street Shepparton campus has tested positive to COVID-19. This staff member worked in early April on a temporary basis at the hospital and is now recovering at home in self-quarantine.

This person experienced COVID-19 symptoms following the completion of their last shift at GV Health, and GV Health has commenced a review into the circumstances as to how this person was exposed to the virus, though it is understood the person was exposed before commencing work at the hospital.

GV Health have been contacting people who may have been in contact with this person and follow-up care is being arranged, including if necessary, testing of staff and patients for COVID-19 that had close contact with the staff member concerned. Those who have been in close contact with the staff member are required to self-isolate for 14 days and support is and will continue to be provided to GV Health in the coming days.

The approach GV Health is taking is consistent with guidelines provided by the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services and includes tracing regarding staff and patients, which is ongoing.

GV Health’s main priority is the health and wellbeing of their patients and staff during this time.

Note: Subsequent contact tracing has identified all of those that might have come in contact with this person and had been tested and cleared.

THE BUSINESS OF MAKING MEALS FOR THOSE IN NEED… Little Gourmet Food Company CEO, Ineka Rowe, chef, Aaron Reid. executive officer Fairley Foundation, Amanda McColloch, CEO Greater Shepparton Foundation, Cheryl Hammer, Food Link coordinator, Amy DePaolo. Photo: Steve Hutcheson

Putting business in touch with those in need NECESSITY is the mother of invention. As the pandemic restrictions start to bite into the economy, small catering businesses along with retrenched workers are beginning to feel serious pressure on day-to-day living.

Looking at the anguish descending upon the community, local resident, Amy DePaolo had an idea. What if funds could be raised to pay for meals from these businesses and provide them to families that have had their weekly income cut. Food Link was born.

Amy approached the Greater Shepparton Foundation and the Fairly Foundation who agreed to put up $5000 to get the ball rolling.

Now in its second week, the program has been able to negotiate and buy 100 meals each week. This week, the

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supply business was the Little Gourmet Food Company who prepared more than 100 serves of beef lasagne and vegetable for Food Link.

Food Link provides the meals to various agencies around the city who have access to databases of those in need and were then able to distribute them.

Amy hopes to run the program for at least 12 to 14 weeks with support from community donations. As word has got out, more and more donations have been coming forward.

Greater Shepparton Foundation have offered to manage the collection and payment of the funds.

More information can be found on the Food Link Shepparton Facebook page.

NEWS

CONTACT US: Reception: Telephone: 5832 8900 Fax: 5832 8920 Address: Newspaper House, 219-225 Wyndham St, Shepparton, Victoria 3630 Editorial: editorial@sheppartonadviser.com.au CONTINUED FUNDING FOR THE NEXT YEAR… Prostate care support nurse, Sonia Strachan, support nurse, Nicole Lewis, GV Health CEO, Matt Sharp and chair Biggest Bloke Lunch, Shane O’Sullivan. Photo: Steve Hutcheson

Advertising: melanie.spencer@sheppartonadviser.com.au Classifieds: classifieds@sheppartonadviser.com.au Production: production@sheppartonadviser.com.au The Goulburn and Murray Valleys’ largest circulating newspaper

Specialist prostate treatment nurse funded for another year at GV Health FOR the past 11 years, GV Health has provided a support nurse to assist men who are undergoing prostate cancer treatment. For each of those years, funding support has been provided by the Biggest Bloke Lunch each year. Due to the restrictions imposed under the National Emergency however, the lunch had to be cancelled.

Shane O’Sullivan, the chair of the Biggest Bloke Lunch got in touch with the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCFA) and after a discussion, they agreed to provide all of the funding required for this year’s support, $140,000.

Professor Jeff Dunn, CEO of PCFA said, “The organisation is committed to continuing the role and support for local men and their families affected by the disease.

“We are proud to give back to the Goulburn Valley community to ensure that no man endures a diagnosis of prostate cancer without expert nursing and care.”

The funding will cover the cost of 1.2 full-time equivalent specialist nursing positions for the next 12 months. Sonia Strachan has been that nurse for the last five years. Since the start of this year, Nicole Lewis has been the extra nurse when Sonia is away giving full time coverage for the position.

“As a PCFA nurse, I am there to provide information and comfort for men and families from the point of diagnosis, through treatment and many years beyond into survivorship.” said Sonia.

“It’s a great privilege to make a difference in the lives of local men and families.

“A diagnosis of prostate cancer is a major life stress, and often has long-term impacts on men’s physical and emotional well-being and quality of life.”

Some 700 men attending GV Health have been treated for prostate cancer with approximately 100 new clients coming in each year.

Parking is back on the agenda

By Steve Hutcheson AS we go to press, the Greater Shepparton City Council will sit to deliberate on the issue of free (timed) parking in the Shepparton CBD. In the agenda filed on the Council website, for Tuesday, April 21, Item 10.8 provides a comprehensive summary of the options the council officers considered in arriving at their final recommendation. A vote in the affirmative would be a feather in the cap of the Greater Shepparton City Council and

the Shepparton Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

For several months, the Chamber has lobbied with the Council to adopt free parking as a matter of course.

While the final recommendation by the Council officers is to adopt free (timed) car parking, they have considered that the net $250,000 loss in council revenue, would be greatly offset by the increased demand and activity within the precinct.

A su r vey u nder t a ken du r i ng t he

complimentary parking in December and January was overwhelmingly in favour of free parking. Eighty-five percent of respondents indicated that they were shopping in the CBD due to the free parking.

This issue has been debated over several years by Council without reaching a consensus. It remains to be seen if this latest meeting will comply with the will of the people.

We shall report on the Councillor voting patterns in the next edition of The Adviser.

The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 3

NEWS

Peace of mind for the public

TALENTED LOCAL… Talisman Menswear owner, Paul Jerome with some of the custom masks he has made by hand. Photo: Katelyn Morse.

By Katelyn Morse AS an asthmatic, Talisman Menswear owner, Paul Jerome is no stranger to wearing face masks, but has found they have become increasingly hard to find amidst the current pandemic. So, he decided to make his own reusable and machine washable mask.

Shortly after, he saw someone on Facebook trying to source masks and he offered to hand make some. Since then, his custom masks have taken off thanks to the power of social media and he has now sold around 140 masks to the general public.

The masks Paul makes are not medical grade and are not COVID-19 proof but there is a still a huge demand for them with the current shortage of medical filtering masks such as the N95 mask. People feel a lot safer going out with some form of mask on as it stops them touching their face and something is better than nothing.

“We have to continue sanitisation and social distancing as much as possible. Wearing a mask is just an extra precaution we can take, which has to be better than not wearing one at all.” said Paul.

The masks are made with three layers for

added protection. Paul uses a cotton fabric for the outer layer which customers can supply if they want certain patterns or colours. A polyester fusing is then used as the middle layer and then another cotton layer on the inside of the mask.

By making these masks, Paul is not only servicing a huge demand in the community, but it also gives him something to do and keep his mind off the stress of having to close his shop. Paul added “I’d like to thank everyone who has purchased a mask as it allows me to pay my casual staff member to continue working every Saturday morning.”

With a 24-hour turnaround, customers can expect great service and a contactless pickup or delivery. Paul can also make children’s masks with fun designs such as cartoons.

If you wish to support a great local business and purchase a mask, head to Talisman Menswear Facebook page and send Paul a message. They are $15 per mask and delivery can be arranged for a small fee. Paul can also post them for an additional fee and has already sent masks interstate to New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia, Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania.

Intent of regional funding concerns CPA IN an effort to improve the reporting capabilities of reg ional med ia to adequately present local news, the Federal Government has created a fund to help meet some of the changes required in information gathering and dissemination.

Last week, the Federal Government announced a $50 million Public Interest News Gathering program that is welcomed

by Country Press Australia but is concerned about the expanded criteria and the likely loss of the original intent of the funds.

Much of this amount had already been allocated as part of the Regional and Small Publishers Fund but held in limbo until now.

“Country Press Australia and the 140 independent news media titles it represents, will wait until the funding guidelines are formulated, before assessing what impact this will have in helping to sustain public interest journalism by regional and small publishers in the current crisis”, president Bruce Ellen said.

“We are extremely concerned that

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the original intent of the Regional and Small Publishers Fund when it was first announced in 2017, may be lost and/or significantly diminished.”

Country Press Australia strongly urges the Federal Government to maintain key elements of the original criteria.

“These key criterias include a maximum turnover threshold ($30 million), a set percentage to regional news media companies (75%), and the production of public interest journalism as a primary purpose eligibility requirement,” Mr Ellen said.

“These funds were specifically allocated to small and medium regional publishers of public interest journalism as a result of the impact of the media reform legislation in September 2017 giving significant benefits to the large media companies such as Nine, Seven West Media and News Corp.”

“It would be far from appropriate if these companies now also benefit from these particular funds to the detriment of the small independent media publishers across Australia,” he said

NEWS

SPREADING THE LOVE… The staff at Shepparton Villages are helping their residents to stay connected to their loved ones during COVID-19 restrictions. Photos: Supplied.

Continuing to smile and connect with loved ones LAST week, we ran a story about the residents from Shepparton Villages, who have been able to keep connected with their loved ones through the magic of technology. We had a great response from it, and thought we’d continue to share their stories and messages to their families.

Although they’re keeping connected with their loved ones, residents have been missing the outside world and their usual social outings. The staff at Shepparton Villages have been working hard to keep the residents busy with fun and safe activities. Some of the residents have been busy baking in the kitchens, while others are

catching up with loved ones through Skype and Zoom calls.

Over the Easter break, the residents at Maculata Place were lucky enough to test-drive a Tovertafel. What’s that you may ask? Well it is in essence a magic table, which is the literal Dutch translation of Tovertafel. This ‘magic’ table provided hours of amusement with games and all sorts of activities for our residents.

As we are all faced with at least four more weeks of this new normal of social distancing and isolation, it’s important to stay connected with our loved ones and remember that we are all in this together. Times may be tough, but it will eventually pass.

Citizen Science to aid bushfire recovery PEOPLE-powered science will play a role in Australia’s bushfire recovery, with more than 20 projects underway involving citizen scientists of all ages.

CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, is working with key agencies and community groups to support research underway throughout bushfire impacted areas.

The Citizen Science Bushfire Project Finder website allows members of the public to contribute to projects ranging from air quality, to identifying and confirming animal and plant sightings while maintaining safe social distancing practices.

People can also get involved online by identifying animals in camera images.

Announcing the new website today, CSIRO chief executive, Dr Larry Marshall said it drew on the passion and commitment of scientists and citizens alike to solve bushfire challenges.

However, the model is only as good as the data we feed it, and there is no substitute for the power of the people to keep us firmly connected with reality on the ground,” Dr Marshall said.

The website was developed in collaboration between CSIRO, the Atlas of Living Australia (a National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy capability) and the Australian Citizen Science Association.

The Project Finder also features a geographic filter enabling users to identify available projects in their area. It can be accessed at www.csiro.au/bushfireprojects.

The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 5

NEWS

Local members calls for greater accountability in emergency ANYONE who enters Victoria’s Parliament House is greeted by a quote from Proverbs, inscribed into the floor of the foyer: “Where no counsel is the people fall but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety”.

The principle is a simple one, democracy is threatened if one person or a small group of people take control without any oversight.

On April 23, the Victorian Parliament will return for just a few hours to pass urgent legislation to keep our communities running. The date it will return beyond this is as yet unknown. With a State of Emergency in place until May 11, decision-making is now concentrated in the hands of the Premier and a small handful of people.

My role as a Member of Parliament is to make sure that the community’s voice is heard and that the decisions that are made do not adversely impact our region Steph Ryan Local Member for Euroa, Steph Ryan said, “My role as a Member of Parliament is to make sure that the community’s voice is heard and that the decisions that are made do not adversely impact our region.

“All of us recognise that extraordinary times require extraordinary measures, however the people’s ability to have oversight of this power is still critically important.

That is the role, and the function of Parliament.

“It is for the same reason that I am pushing for changes this week to the Local Government Act to allow councils to hold their meetings via video teleconference, instead of maintaining face-to-face meetings.

“Without government support for this change, councils won’t be able to meet to make decisions.

Some, in fact, have already decided to delegate all their decision-making powers to their council CEO because they feel they have no other choice.

CALLING FOR GREATER TRANSPARENCY… Victorian Government Member for Euroa, Steph Ryan calls for changes to council meeting procedures in face of pandemic. Photo: Supplied

“Through these extraordinary times, we need now more than ever to defend the democratic structures which ensure the people’s voice is not lost. There must be checks and balances in place to ensure all levels of government remain accountable to the public.”

In times of crisis you can give

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The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 7

NEWS

Keeping the kids amused during isolation

By Annabel Adams IF you’re struggling to keep the kids entertained or motivated during isolation, here are some fun activities to try while you’re stuck at home.

HOME SCHEDULE With the kids, create a home schedule.

You could create a clock with each hour a different activity, and every time the kids complete a task they get to move the clock hands to the next activity. It’s ideal to create this together so your child is responsible for keeping to their daily routine as well as use their time efficiently. Examples of activities to set could be arts and crafts, school work, snack and play times.

OUTDOOR PLAY You can create outdoor play cards for your children. These cards can consist of: skipping for two minutes, do 10 star jumps, play catch with siblings or parent, and the list goes on! This is a great way for the kids to stay active and give them brain breaks during the day.

DIY ANZAC DAY POPPIES Anzac Day is this Saturday and it is important to highlight this day with the kids. To create an Anzac Day poppy, all you need is a paddle pop stick, glue, red material (paper, felt, etc) and textas or paint.

For the stem, colour the paddle pop stick in with green texta or paint.

KEEPING BUSY… Keep the kids entertained during isolation with some fun activities. Photo: Supplied.

With your red material, either cut out the petals, scrunch up tissue paper or just cut a simple circle.

In the centre of the flower, draw and colour in a black circle.

Stick the flower to the stem and you’re done. Continue on for a bouquet of poppies.

Community urged to donate to the ANZAC Appeal online THE Shepparton RSL Sub-Branch is encouraging the public to donate to the ANZAC Appeal online this year as restrictions around non-essential travel tighten in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Shepparton RSL Sub-Branch president, Bob Wilkie said, “Australian’s have been purchasing ANZAC badges from RSL volunteers in the lead up to ANZAC Day for almost a century. Buying and proudly wearing an ANZAC Appeal badge is as much an ANZAC tradition as attending a dawn service.”

“If this was a normal year, volunteers from our SubBranch would be out and selling ANZAC badges right

now in support of the annual ANZAC Appeal. However, 2020 is not a normal year, and Victorians need to stay home to help limit the spread of COVID-19.

“Our RSL is doing its bit, and our volunteers will not be fundraising this year. Instead, we are asking our community to support the ANZAC Appeal by making an online donation at www.anzacappeal.com.au. It’s very safe and secure, and it’s easy to do in just three simple steps. Money raised through the online appeal will go where it always has – to fund vital services for veterans and families,” Bob said.

RSL Victoria state president, Dr Robert Webster OAM,

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said that COVID-19 had increased the need for the RSL to raise funds to support veterans and families.

Dr Webster said, “Many veterans are doing it especially tough. They’re struggling with social isolation, physical and mental health problems. The longer this pandemic goes on, the more acute the needs of our veterans become.”

“Please show your support for those veterans who have made sacrifices for us and donate to the ANZAC Appeal via www.anzacappeal.com.au this ANZAC Day,” Dr Webster said.

The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 9

NEWS / OPINION

continued from front page

The Anzac spirit lives on

LETTERS

THE more sober side of the role was to convey details back home about those that had been injured or had succumbed on the battlefields.

Paul spent twenty years in the army, completing two tours of Vietnam and then completed a three year posting to Australian military headquarters in London.

He has continued his links with his former military service, working as a volunteer advocate and running the Goulburn Valley Veteran Services helping the next cadre of former service men and women navigate the department’s changing

regulations.

This Anzac Day will be different in many ways.

The march will not take place, the dawn service will not be attended by former servicemen and women, the older cohorts are being kept confined from another invisible and perhaps even more insidious enemy.

Yet while the tradition of remembrance may not be visible, the community as a whole is acting in the spirit of the Anzacs and we will remember them.

Letters to the Editor

We welcome Letters to the Editor but they are not guaranteed to be included and may be edited for reasons of style or content. Letters will not be eligible for consideration if they contain defamatory material, or information of a personal nature which is not in the public domain.

Dear Editor, I am having difficulty trying to understand why the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) would undermine efforts by agricultural communities to increase farm production for the benefit of national prosperity.

I appreciate that it may not fully support the approach taken by frustrated Southern Riverina farmers, as highlighted on the 60 Minutes program. However, it seems all these farmers are trying to do is convince Governments that water is needed to grow food. If the water is made available for this purpose the farmers in this region will benefit, and as an extension to that, so will national agriculture production. Isn’t that what NFF should be supporting?

Instead it supported the Federal Agriculture Minister’s claims that Australia is producing enough food for 75 million people, three times our population.

What the Minister and the NFF are not taking into consideration is the dramatic reduction in agricultural production in recent years, as has been made clear in the latest ABARE figures.

My theory is that the Minister made his ‘we can feed 75 million people’ claims before this ABARE research was released in what was a genuine attempt to discourage the wider community from panic buying at the start of the

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pandemic. Politically, it was probably impossible for him to retract that statement after the ABARE statistics showed it was no longer the case I suspect the NFF, beholden to its National Party mates in preference to a section of its membership, decided it needed to support the Agriculture Minister. However, I firmly believe this was an incorrect decision.

It also seems to contradict the NFF goal, a “bold vision” is its description, to exceed $100 billion in farm gate output by 2030.

If anyone can explain how this is going to be achieved without a vibrant irrigation sector in the food bowl of southern NSW and northern Victoria, I’d like to hear it. And we cannot have a vibrant irrigation sector if we do not have water.

So may I suggest the NFF spends more time supporting this sector so our nation can return to past days when we produced enough food for 75 million people.

We all know there is enough ‘divide and conquer’ mentality within agriculture; we do not need it being exacerbated by the national organisation that is supposed to be working in the best interests of the industry and food production in general.

Yours faithfully, Jodie Hay, Cohuna, Vic

The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 11

LOCALS HELPING LOCAL BUSINESSES!

DELIVERy or p

Enjoy great fo to your door o contacting the

FAB FOOD D BICARO’S ..............................................5831 8880 BUBBLE CUPPA ...............................4800 3730 CELLAR47............................................... 5831 1882 ENZO’S BURGER ............................ 5891 2488 LAST STRAW .....................................5822 4990 MY MATES PIZZA .............................5822 2226 PIZZA HUT SHEPPARTON ........5822 2378

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pick up guide

ood delivered or pick-up by ese businesses

DIRECTORY SCHNITZ SHEPPARTON ............ 4700 2140 SUBWAY MOOROOPNA ..............5825 2511 SUBWAY MARKETPLACE ......... 5831 2532 TATURA HOT BREAD .....................5824 1267 VERNEY ROAD MILKBAR & TAKEAWAY .......................................5821 2676 WENDYS MILK BAR ........................5891 2444

The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 13

NEWS

Concerns for our children in the digital age NOW, with more than 85 percent of Australian children being taught remotely at home, we worry more than ever about their safety online.

The Gonski Institute for Education at the University of New South Wales has released the first in a series of Growing Up Digital Australia reports, with initial research painting a worrying picture of changed learning conditions in Australian s cho ol s . Wel l b efore t he C OV I D 19 pandemic hit Australia, children’s significant access to digital technology and its impacts on learning and wellbeing had become a major concern for educators.

The first research phase found nine out of ten teachers and principals in Australia have observed an increased number of students with emotional, social and behavioural challenges in school today compared to just five years ago. Three out of five Australian educators have seen a decline in students’ readiness to learn and two-thirds have observed more children arriving at school tired.

“What is happening with our kids now is the biggest educational experiment in history,” says Professor Pasi Sahlberg, the report’s co-author, Professor of Educational Policy and Deputy Director of the Gonski Institute for Education.

“As adults, we have much to learn about their habits and the benefits and pitfalls

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CYBER CONCERNS… The Gonski Institute for Education at the University of New South Wales has released the first in a series of Growing Up Digital Australia reports, sharing worrying data about our children and technology. Photo: Supplied.

of screen-based technologies for them.

Growing Up Digital Australia sets out to do just that.

“Based on our research, it is clear the problems facing young people today are complex. Simply banning devices in schools or homes will not help students navigate the digital minefield.”

You can read the Growing Up Digital Australia report here www.gie.unsw.edu. au /growing-digital-australia-phase-1results-how-screen-based-technologies-areimpacting-school-students

The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 15

NEWS

Home sweet home With the help of Lost Shepparton, we thought it would be a great idea to look back at a collection of photographs from Wendy Pomfret. They depict her childhood, playing in her backyard in the 1960s.

Since the COV ID-19 pandemic is currently forcing us to stay home, we thought we’d take a look at the different ways children used to keep themselves entertained. Back in the 1960’s some of the fun outdoor activities included hide and seek, hopscotch, jump rope, four square, frisbee, tag and red rover. As parents may be struggling to find things for their children to do for hours on end, we recommend trying some of these fun games in your own backyard.

With the rise of technology, isolation in 2020 may include a lot of screen time for some children. From gaming consoles, to social media, streaming subscriptions such as Netflix or Disney Plus and iPad games, is it easy to get caught up spending long periods of time online. However, the positive of this is of course the accessibility of education and learning from home.

Snapshots of Greater Shepparton’s Past is made possible by Lost Shepparton. For more great snapshots of the region’s history, visit Lost Shepparton’s Facebook page. You can also support the incredible work they do at www.patreon.com/lostshepparton

ABOVE: FAMILY FUN… Wendy and Julie Bamford with cousins, Jacqueline, Daryl and Michelle Moss. Playing in the backyard, Isabella St Shepparton.

BOTTOM LEFT: OUTDOOR ENTERTAINMENT… Wendy and Julie Bamford playing with prams and teddies in the backyard.

BOTTOM RIGHT: CATCHING UP WITH THE COUSINS… Wendy Bamford with cousins Lynette and Robert Clarke having an outdoor tea party.

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NEWS

LOCAL MEMBER ANNOUNCES WATER REPORT… Local Federal Member for Nicholls, Damian Drum on the water report. Photo: Steve Hutcheson

Water report published continued from front page AFTER a number of town hall meetings and 345 individual submissions, the final report was submitted to the Minister (now Keith Pitt). That report has now been released to the public with the Federal Government agreeing to all five recommendations included in the report.

Those recommendations are: The MDBA should undertake further analysis of the causes of reduced inflows from the northern Basin and the extent to which this is affecting State water shares.

To increase trust in and transparency about water-sharing, the MDBA should provide clea r and easily accessible information about Special Accounting measures, including the circumstances under which they are applied and how they are used to determine State allocations.

The MDBA should clearly communicate the results of its examination of underuse of allocations and compare them with the submissions made to this inquiry so that accurate feedback can be provided to the community.

The Basins Officials Committee (BOC) should consider implementing a single authoritative platform that combines information currently available on the various Commonwealth and State websites, to provide higher levels of transparency and trust and to improve water literacy.

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The BOC should consider ways through which States and agencies could work together across their respective jurisdictions to include water literacy in high school and higher education curriculums, including VET, in regional areas.

The report itself comprised 55 pages where all contributing aspects have been discussed at length.

In making an announcement of the repor t, local Member for Nicholls, Damian Drum said, “ This is the inquiry the irrigators involved in the ‘Convoy to Canberra’ were calling for. They were desperate for this work to be done by someone highly respected and they wanted Mr Keelty to do the work.

“It is obviously a problem when someone as capable as Mick Keelty can spend five months investigating the flow regime within the Lower Basin and one of the major recommendations is a call for more data, more transparency and more accountability. “ Mr Drum said.

While the report identifies all of the problems associated with the MDBA, it does not address the single biggest issue facing the plan, that all states act under different sets of rules and regulation that frequently are to the disadvantage of the Victorian irrigators.

The report in full can be seen at https:// www.igmdb.gov.au/reviews

LETTERS

OPINION

Letters to the Editor

We welcome Letters to the Editor but they are not guaranteed to be included and may be edited for reasons of style or content. Letters will not be eligible for consideration if they contain defamatory material, or information of a personal nature which is not in the public domain.

CALL FOR RICHARD ANDERSON’S TO RESIGN Perhaps it is time for the Victorian Fa r m e r s’ Fe d e r at io n Wat e r Pol i c y Chairman Richard Anderson to stand down, because if there was ever any doubt he has lost touch with the industry it was highlighted in the Weekly Times this week.

In effectively refuting claims that poor water policy is threatening Australia’s food supplies, Mr Anderson has shown poor understanding of what is happening in our irrigation regions.

His claims SunRice “had been reliant on imports in the past” and that “we’re still producing enough food to feed 70 million people” totally misses the point that irrigation communities are trying to make about the threat to food supplies. Quite simply, we are not producing volumes like we did in the past because there is insufficient water being allocated to food production. That is indisputable.

Has he not read recent reports from ABARE that paint an alarming picture of food production decline in recent years, which has been an ongoing trend during most years of Murray Darling Basin Plan implementation?

He should also take note of comments

by SunRice chief executive Rob Gordon who said Australia was not able to meet its rice commitments due to drought and water supply issues crippling production.

The VFF vice president Emma Germano, responding to concerns about food security, stated “saying we’re going to run out of food is dangerous and stupid”.

That is a dangerous and stupid comment showing an ignorance to the present levels of waning staple food production in the North of Victoria. She is not living our reality; no irrigation water means no food or fibre production.

No-one has said we are going to run out of food. What various organisations in irrigation communities are stating quite correctly is the latest evidence shows that claims by our peak advocacy groups echoed by their mates in the National Party we are growing enough food for 75 million people are false. It may have been the case in the past, but with reduced water being made available for food production it is not the case any more.

T he reason ma ny fa rmers a re so fr ust rated w ith ou r peak advocac y organisations and their leaders is their inability or refusal to adequately highlight the problems we are facing to our political leaders, perhaps because they want to be friendly rather than adversarial. As a result, they are not getting the results our irrigation communities need.

Mr Anderson has consistently shown of late he is not effectively representing irrigators’ interests, which is why other advocacy groups are being formed to try and get our messages heard, with positive results.

He should resign, in the best interests of our irrigation farmers and the communities which heavily rely on Mr Anderson and others in similar positions to properly portray the present plight of our industry on our behalf with staunch representation that is fully researched and informed.

Yours sincerely, Geoff Kendell - Kerang Dr Megan Appleby - Cohuna Heather du Vallon - Cobram Ken Wood - Byrneside Bridget Goulding - Katunga

KEELTY REPORT MISSED THE MARK The Keelty Review can best be described as a waste of taxpayers’ money that must be embarrassing for our Federal Government.

Concern was recently expressed that Murray-Darling Basin Interim InspectorGeneral Mick Keelty did not have the background or experience to address c omplex wat e r p ol i c y i s su e s , a nd unfortunately the review has done nothing to appease this fear.

The five recommendations provide very little in the way of solutions and the review appears to be another delaying tactic by the Federal Government. The only conclusion we can draw is that the government is hoping for substantial winter rains so there is water in abundance this spring and the problems will go away. But we need to get the fundamentals of flawed water policy fixed, and this wasted review will not achieve that.

Yours sincerely, Shelley Scoullar - Chair Speak Up Campaign

The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 19

Page 20 – The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020

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CONTACT US: Reception: Telephone: 5832 8900 Fax: 5832 8920 Address: Newspaper House, 219-225 Wyndham St, Shepparton, Victoria 3630 Editorial: editorial@sheppartonadviser.com.au Advertising: melanie.spencer@sheppartonadviser.com.au Classifieds: classifieds@sheppartonadviser.com.au Production: production@sheppartonadviser.com.au www.sheppartonadviser.com.au facebook.com.au/SheppartonAdviser

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The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 21

Big Vac Waste chalks up 15 years service IF your business, farm or worksite has liquid waste that you need removed, Big Vac Waste is here for you. Big Vac Waste, alongside Goulburn Valley Liquid Waste and Tocumwal Liquid Waste, is a family-owned business, operating for over 15 years in the septic tank and liquid waste disposal industry throughout the Goulburn Valley and North East Victoria.

With a 4WD and two 12,000L trucks all with high-pressure water on board, Big Vac Waste can come to your need and remove your liquid waste, no matter how big or small.

Big Vac Waste, Goulburn Valley Liquid Waste and Tocumwal Liquid Waste owner, John Allen

Page 22 – The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020

WASTE REMOVAL EXPERTS… Big Vac Waste has been servicing the Goulburn Valley for over 15 years. Photo: Supplied. said, “We specialise in industrial and domestic vacuuming of liquid and solid waste throughout the Goulburn Valley. If you need your septic tanks, sludge pits, oil interceptors, grease traps, portable toilets or stormwater pits emptied, give us a call, and we will provide a quick and professional service for all your needs.”

Call Big Vac Waste on 0428 590 466 for more information.

The Adviser. Australia No. 1:1505 Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – Page 23

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