NEWS DESK
Clean-up time: Volunteers who helped collect rubbish from Dromana beach. Picture: Supplied
Litter busters’ make heavy haul at beach PICKING up 27 kilograms of rubbish from Dromana beach was either a good thing or a bad thing, depending on how you look at it. Good because that’s 27kg less rubbish than there was before, but bad because it shouldn’t have been there in the first place. Organiser of Beach Patrol Safety Beach/ Dromana Gary Robertson thanked the 42 volunteers who turned up on a chilly Friday 29 September with their gloves and litter bags to collect rubbish at the beach and foreshore. Much of the rubbish consisted of small pieces of plastic and cigarette butts.
“What a great first-up day it was and a huge thank-you to the volunteers,” said Mr Robertson, who is about to start campaigning for temporary bins to be placed on the beach over summer. The group’s next litter collection is 9am, Sunday 15 October, at Dromana pier. The group’s email address is 3936@beachpatrol.com.au
Waste in China MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire’s Cr Hugh Fraser and chief operating officer Niall McDon-
agh will speak about their recent visit to China to study alternative waste and waste-to-energy technology at a Waste Forum and Expo, 11am3pm, Sunday 29 October, at Dromana Hall. The event aims to give people an insight into dealing with waste through a series of presentations and workshops. Stalls will showcase local initiatives to reduce waste, avoid plastics and manage litter. The free forum and expo aims to teach residents how to apply waste reducing strategies at home and work, and learn about the future of waste management. There will be prizes,
giveaways and handy hints on starting a “war on waste” at home. Stalls will demonstrate handson activities, including composting and worm farming, how to recycle (almost) everything, eco living, decluttering and beach patrol. Other features will be the Dame Phyllis Frost winner: Josie Jones, as well as Boomerang Bags, Best Bite Food Businesses and Responsible Cafés. Dromana hall is at 2 Verdon St, Dromana. There’s free entry and parking. Details: mornpen.vic.gov.au/waronwaste Stephen Taylor
A council on the move Keith Platt keith@mpnews.com.au MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire is continuing to look far and wide for innovation and inspiration with two councillors and its top executive preparing to pack their bags for overseas and interstate travel. In November, CEO Carl Cowie and Cr Simon Brooks propose being in Germany for an international climate change conference and Cr Julie Edge wants to be in Brisbane for a forum on disasters. If approved by councillors at last
night’s meeting (Tuesday 10 November), before arriving in Bonn for the United Nations’ COP23 conference, Mr Cowie will have already been to Sweden and plans to later head south for another conference in Malta. Closer to home, Cr Edge has sought permission to attend the Fire, Cyclone and Flood Disaster Management and Recovery Forum in Brisbane from 29 November to 1 December. The total cost of the three journeys is about $25,500. This amount may rise as a report to councillors by Mr Cowie’s executive assistant Bianca Hubble states that the “CEO, potentially with other repre-
sentatives” of the shire will meet and speak with people “who are all working towards the same goals at the shire”. The shire’s communications and media manager Mark Kestigian said he was unable to provide names or details of the shire representatives who may be going overseas with Mr Cowie until after tonight’s council meeting. If the conference attendances are approved, the councillors’ costs - $8000 for Cr Brooks and $3000 Cr Edge will be deducted from their $16,000 a four-year term training, conferences and seminars allowance. Mr Cowie’s expenses ($14,500) will be the first to come out of his $30,000 study tour al-
lowance approved by council in September 2016. In February, the mayor Cr Bev Colomb said the study tour allowance was “an offer that may or may not be taken up by the CEO” (“CEO study deal revealed” The News 27/2/17). This latest round of overseas and interstate travel follows the September study tour to China by Cr Hugh Fraser, chief operating officer Niall McDonagh and waste services team leader Daniel Hinson. The trio investigated technologies being used in China to generate electricity from rubbish to lessen the amount going to landfill is part of the shire’s bid to
attain carbon neutrality by 2020. It cost about $7000 to send Cr Fraser, Mr McDonagh and Mr Hinson to China for seven days. Cr Fraser’s $2500 share of the cost was the first deduction this term from his $16,000 conferences, training and seminars account. The climate change conference being attended by Cr Brooks and Mr Cowie is the 23rd in a series being held by the United Nations. Cr Fraser and the then mayor Cr Graham Pittock, at a cost of about $7000 each, attended the 2015 conference in Paris. Renewable resources team leader Jessica Wingad also attended the Paris conference. Continued Page 11
Southern Peninsula News 10 October 2017
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