Clean sweep for mayor’s minutes

BY TIM HOWARD

Commemorating war sacrifices and a community tragedy and securing the region’s water supply were the subjects of a clean sweep of mayoral minutes at the latest council meeting.

Mayor Ian Tiley brought the three minutes to the Clarence Valley Council meeting last Tuesday and wrapped up all of them with unanimous support In around five minutes.

Firstly he secured support for the council to support and publicise the centenary of the cenotaph in Memorial Park, Grafton, which will be celebrated on Remembrance Day, November 11.

The mayor brought a similar minute to allow council involvement in the 80th anniversary of the cubs drowning in 1943.

Plans are afoot to hold a commemoration of the tragic events on December 11, 1943 when 13 cubs scouts drowned after the boat carrying them back from a picnic on Susan Island overturned in the Clarence River.

Once again the vote was unanimous.

On a more contemporary note, Cr Tiley’s third mayoral minute sought to maintain pressure on the new government to ensure water security in the region.

He moved the council should make representations to the Minister for Water, Rose Jackson, to ensure ALP election promises of draft water security for the Clarence, were met, particularly water filtration.

Cr Tiley said although the Labor candidate had not been successful in Clarence, it was still important to ensure the government honoured the commitments its candidates made.

In a separate item at the meeting, council awarded the tender for the preparation of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a filtration plant at the Rushforth Road Water Treatment Plant.

The EIS, to be carried out by Epic Environmental Pty Ltd, signals the start of the planning approval process for future construction of a filtration plant.

An EIS does not commit council to undertake future works, but once approved