REVISED LEVEE AND DRAINAGE STUDY AIMS TO IMPROVE FLOOD RESILIENCE

Calling all residents of Murwillumbah! Tweed Shire Council invites you to actively participate in shaping the future of our town by sharing your thoughts on the draft addendum to the Murwillumbah CBD Levee and Drainage Study.

Manager Roads and Stormwater Danny Rose said the draft study was an opportunity for Council to work towards creating a safer and more food-resilient community.

“The original study, conducted in 2018, helped us to understand the food risks and devise mitigation strategies for Murwillumbah. However, the 2022 food event and the degree of business and residential losses in the CBD catchment prompted us to re-evaluate and expand on our initial plans,” Mr Rose said.

“We have already secured the support of the National Emergency Management Agency, through tranche 1 of the Northern Rivers Recovery and Resilience Program, to fund pump station upgrades in Murwillumbah.”

The draft addendum study will be used to guide investment under this program by recommending a series of food pump station upgrades. This will boost the capacity of the drainage systems behind the town levees while the river is in food, to reduce the impacts of inundation.

“While we can’t make the town food free, these measures will improve the town’s resilience and is a proactive step towards addressing worsening food risk with a changing climate,” he said.

“The draft study thoroughly assesses these options, using new data and modelling of the 2022 food.

Recommended upgrades to the existing pump stations at Lavender Creek and Wharf Street will signifcantly improve performance and reduce economic losses.

“However, we need your perspective to ensure that these recommendations properly refect the needs of our town. Your involvement is important in shaping the future of Murwillumbah.”

The draft addendum to the Murwillumbah CBD Levee and Drainage Study is open for public feedback now until Wednesday

20 September 2023.

To have your say, make a written submission in one of the following ways:

• Online: Visit yoursaytweed. com.au/addendummurwillumbah-cbd-leveedrainage-study

• Email: Send an email to tsc@tweed.nsw.gov.au with the subject heading: Addendum to the Murwillumbah CBD Levvee and Drainage Study

• Mail to: Murwillumbah CBD Levee and Drainage Study General Manager

Tweed Shire Council PO Box 816 Murwillumbah NSW 2484.

FASCINATINGLY, the first expression coined for Europeans over 230-years ago by the local indigenous community of Sydney was the word ‘berewal-gal’, which translates, “people from afar.” The connotation is one of almost unbridgeable distance, removal even; people that were somehow very much out of place, if not displaced in a very discernible sense.

Sadly, little has changed over the years as we head towards a referendum pertaining to a topic – The Voice – that has been rounded, if not abruptly paraded and then pounded into a wooden chest that might as well be destined for a delivery by mode of tall ship.

I personally hope we seize the opportunity as a country to celebrate, embrace and enshrine the presence and importance of our indigenous history; one that stretches over 65 thousand years into the past, a past that backdates all other ‘ancient’ cultures many times over. Relatedly, the pyramids were erected a mere 3 thousand years ago, which puts into stark perspective why the voice of our nation’s original inhabitants ought to be given the focus and paramountcy that it deserves.

Once upon a time human beings were creatures of their word, we gave it and it was in turn a given that whatever we agreed to, albeit stated, would be done. In time, the scribbled ink of our signatures would seal deals and assume an almost sacrosanct importance that our word should’ve always been enough to ensure. Or as Maya Angelou once reflected, “Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with deeper meaning.”

Traditional cultures the world over tended to be more inclined to function orally, which is why notionally, an initiative titled ‘The Voice’ taps into a way of interacting, respecting and communicating along lines that have been all but lost, if not rendered obsolete through our obsession with the primacy of the written word.

What our country stands to gain through saying ‘yes’ is a mechanism whereby we can have mature discussions; a platform that ensures we can all have a say (regardless of our race or background) and be heard via the merits of what we each have the courage and thoughtful conviction to raise. By saying ‘no’, we are in turn “saying” nothing more can be said, we are giving up on our past and more importantly our future, and accepting that neither can be used to learn lessons that will help us unite in ways we couldn’t otherwise imagine.

While no one alive today can personally be held responsible for the outrageous ‘principle’ of “terra nullius” (or “nobody’s land”), we can all take issue to the fact it should never have been utilised to displace and ultimately try to eradicate a way of life that had prospered for many thousands of years. Thus, here and now, it is our time to show responsibility and attempt to create a mechanism that will help to heal, promote and deepen our awareness – through discussion, of what makes our indigenous culture so unique and worthy of vigilant preservation.

The offcial Bushfre Danger Period will start from midnight this Friday, 1 September 2023 across the local government areas of the Clarence and Richmond valleys as warm, dry conditions increase the risk of fres, Clarence Nationals MP, Richie Williamson has announced.

Mr Williamson said we are bracing for what could be a challenging bushfre season coming hot on the heels of three years of high rainfall and vegetation growth.

“We are already seeing fres active across the Clarence and Richmond valleys because of hot and dry conditions, so it’s really important local communities are prepared for the bushfre season and are aware of the need to get fre permits as we enter this offcial Bushfre Danger Period,” Mr Williamson said.

“It is imperative that anyone intending to light a fre on the ground and in the open obtains a fre permit from their local Fire Control Centre.

“It’s also really important that everyone starts preparing their properties like taking simple steps to reduce vegetation and cleaning gutters to reduce the amount of fuel.

“It’s important to take heed of the permit requirement and property preparation to minimise danger to yourself, your property and your community.”

Mr Williamson said it is also a requirement to let the Rural Fire Service and your neighbours know 24 hours before you light up on your property.

“I want everyone to do the right thing as substantial fnes and prison terms of up to 12 months may apply to persons found to be in breach of the Rural Fires Act 1997 and its regulations.

“With the fre season here, I would encourage everyone to download the ‘Hazards Near Me’ app which has a range of features to keep people informed and safe during an emergency.” https://www.nsw.gov.au/ emergency/hazards-nearme-app.

For details on acquiring a free fre permit in the Clarence or Richmond valleys, contact your local fre control centre below:

Clarence Valley Richmond Valley Address: 15 Coldstream St, Ulmarra Address: 40 Neville Bienke Memorial Dr, Casino Phone: 02 6644 5135 Phone: 02 6663 0000 A Fire Permit is required for burning activities during the Bush Fire Danger Period at all times.

From 1 September, the following LGAs will begin their Bushfre Danger Period: Muswellbrook, Singleton, Kempsey, Nambucca, Mid-Coast, Port MacquarieHastings, Clarence Valley, Ballina, Byron, Tweed, Bellingen, Coffs Harbour, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley, Gunnedah, Liverpool Plains, Upper Hunter, Bega Valley, Eurobodalla and Shoalhaven.

This is in addition to the six LGAs that commenced the danger period on 1 August –Armidale Regional, Walcha, Uralla, Glen Innes Severn, Inverell and Tenterfeld. Further information about hazard reduction burning, obtaining permits and required notifcation is available on the RFS website here - https://www.rfs.nsw. gov.au/fre-information/ BFDP.