From the Mayor's Desk

Traprock bare ground project

The Queensland Government's Natural Resource Recovery Program is investing $2.1M into three areas of Southern Queensland, including Traprock, to address bare ground concerns. Southern Queensland Landscapes is seeking to work with land managers who register their property in the program to improve pasture productivity, land condition, and rehydration. This initiative aims to promote soil health across environmental, grazing, and cropping assets. Land managers can collaborate with key stakeholders by verifying if their property is located within the project focus area, registering it, and adopting sustainable practices that can help reduce the amount of bare ground occurrences.

Register your property: https://www.sqlandscapes.org.au/natural-resource-recovery-program#NRRPRegisterNow

Texas ordinary meeting

During my regular monthly meeting in Texas last week, I had the opportunity to talk with the former Mayor of Inglewood and Goondiwindi Regional Councillor Joan White. Joan is deeply passionate about ensuring that our elderly population can remain in their communities with the assistance of their families or carers. She has been a dedicated advocate for many years, and it was encouraging to learn that she is implementing a home care solution within the Texas community called Mable which is contracted through Trilogy Care. Mable is a support network of carers who can assist older people and those with a disability within our community. I want to extend my heartfelt congratulations to Joan and all the diligent advocates who have played a pivotal role in making this possible. Such services are invaluable in our region.

LGAQ Bush Council

My fellow councillors and I look forward to welcoming over 200 delegates to the upcoming three-day Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) Bush Council Convention in Goondiwindi at the end of July. Our regional community is a wonderful example of progress and innovation.

There are 77 local governments throughout Queensland, and we look forward to hosting the majority of them and showcasing why we're known as 'Regional Australia at its Best'.

The Bush Council convention is hosted every two years at a different regional location and is known to inject around $100,000 into the hosting region, which is great news for our local retailers and hospitality businesses. We look forward to discussing matters of shared interest, including regional roads, maximising ongoing benefit into our community from the renewable energy projects and future infrastructure requirements.

Prepare now for fire season

Due to three years of above-average rainfall, our region now has an abundance of grass and vegetation cover and ironically the same ongoing moist conditions has suppressed the immediate risk of fires. However, it's important to keep in mind that with drying conditions, which are always inevitable, our region is at serious risk of fires. So, it's important to prepare for fire season now and with the amount of retained drying vegetation, it is highly probable that these fires could be more serious than we have witnessed for a long time. The one thing that we can control, is our alertness and readiness, please try reducing excessive vegetation and debris and have a plan. By doing this we can all make a significant difference.

Tie Up the Black Dog and Care Goondiwindi event

Ex-NRL great Darius Boyd and Care Goondiwindi are hosting the first of three mental health events at the Cinema and Theatre Complex on Wednesday 19 July. These events are important because they raise awareness and support for mental health, a growing concern throughout Queensland. My fellow councillors and I applaud Care Goondiwindi for bringing Darius Boyd to speak to the community as he brings a unique perspective on men's mental health and shares his personal experience. I encourage everyone in the community to attend the event. Tickets can be booked online through the Cinema or through Care Goondiwindi.

The cinema complex has undergone a variety of upgrades over the last few years including the replacement of the screen projector last year and more storage capacity. It’s a great asset for the community and I encourage residents to get on board and support events at this venue.