Monitor OPINION The
EDITORIAL By Ryneisha Bollard
Where to go from here? This is a question that is likely to be on the minds of many Roxby Downs locals, in light of the sad news circulating the town. The death of BHP Billiton employee Brian Partington at Olympic Dam last week has hit the community hard, just days after learning that 90 workers would be losing their jobs.
Brian’s workmates rallied together to mark his passing on Tuesday, including gatherings at Roxby Village, the tavern and the community club. It is important that locals continue to support each other through this difficult time. The influx of tributes to The Monitor in recent days demonstrates the impact that Brian had on those around him. It is clear that he will be dearly missed. An investigation is currently under way regarding the circumstances of Brian’s death,
but rumours are already circulating as to how it happened. We must be careful in how this is discussed, as it could be upsetting for those close to him to hear about the various interpretations of what went wrong. Instead, our attention would be better focused on keeping an eye on those around us, and making sure they are okay. We will always need a reason to carry on, and helping each other out is an important part of that.
Little Lizards
Byron celebrated his 10th birthday at the Lions Park on Sunday, February 15.
Local children can now have their birthdays highlighted in The Monitor with the launch of the Little Lizards section as of next week. Children celebrating birthdays on the week of publication will have their names listed in The Monitor, with one picked at random to
be the Little Lizard of the week and have their photograph appear in the newspaper. To participate, The Monitor is inviting local parents to submit their contact details and their child’s date of birth via phone (8671 2683) or email (editor@themonitor. com.au).
If you would like to share your opinions in The Monitor, send us an email (editor@themonitor.com.au) or a letter to PO Box 72, Roxby Downs SA 5725
Monitor NEWS The
INVITATION TO TENDER PROVISION OF HORTICULTURAL AND GENERAL OPERATIONAL MAINTENANCE SERVICES CONTRACT NO - MW 048/15 Tenders are invited from suitably qualified Contractors for the Provision of Horticultural and General Operational Maintenance Services in the Roxby Downs Municipal area at the sites as set out in the specification for an initial contract period of Three (3) Years. Copies of the tender documents may be obtained by download from the Tenders SA Web Site, the Council Web Site www.roxbycouncil.com or, from the Council Office.
AR has all the trappings Arid Recovery General Manager Kylie Piper with one of the traps set around the reserve fence line.
Tenders close at the Council Offices, Richardson Place Roxby Downs 5725 on Friday 27th of March, 2015 at 4pm. The tender must reach the Principals Tender Box or at the above mailing address before the closing time for placement in the tender box. Tenders must be submitted In hard copy (original plus 1 copy) in two separate envelopes marked; (Envelope 1) Contract NO MW 048/15 “Provision of Horticultural and General Operational Maintenance Services” accompanied by all supporting documentation but excluding the financial sections, (schedule 11 and Annexures A and B) which is to be submitted in a separate sealed envelope (Envelope 2) marked Financial Schedules. An electronic version of both the general tender documents and the financial submissions must also be submitted separately on a USB in each of the nominated envelopes to facilitate independent evaluation of the financial aspects of the tender. The Principal will not consider a tender given orally, by open letter, email or fax or a tender received after the closing time and date. A tender that does not comply with the requirements of the conditions of tendering is non-conforming and may not be considered by the Principal. The Principal may however, having regard to the tender evaluation criteria, choose to accept a non-conforming tender for evaluation purposes.
WRITTEN BY PATRICK GLOVER This red light will turn on when a trap is triggered.
Interested Contractors are encouraged to attend a pretender contract briefing, explanatory meeting to be held at the Council Offices on Tuesday 3rd March, 2015 at 2pm. The Principal is not bound to accept the lowest nor any tender submitted and may seek to clarify points of qualification with the lowest or any Tenderer before acceptance of the tender. All communications in respect to this tender will be directed to the Council Officer named in the Request for Tender document. Canvasing in support of any tender with unauthorised Staff or representatives of the Roxby Downs Council may lead to disqualification of the tender. BILL BOEHM ADMINISTRATOR
Page 6 -- Wednesday, February 18, 2015
The new detection device has a screen display that shows where traps have been set off. www.themonitor.com.au
T
he days of having to regularly check every feral animal trap around the Arid Recovery reserve are over, thanks to a new detection device. Arid Recovery has installed a digital detection device that allows staff to see when a trap on the reserve’s 70km fence line has been set off. The monitoring system was specifically designed for the reserve and went online last week. “It is really fantastic,” Arid Recovery general manager Kylie Piper told The Monitor. The old system, which had been in place for 10 years, failed to identify which trap had gone off, meaning the perimeter would need to be canvassed every time an alert went off.
Staff and volunteers are able to type their mobile numbers into the new system so they receive a text message when a trap is triggered. “It will allow us to do a whole lot more,” Ms Piper said. “I love it.” “We are currently upgrading the northern fence line, so that will be done in a few months, and it will free up time for us to spend with the Green Army as well.” Ms Piper said she was grateful for BHP Billiton’s community funding donations, which helped make the new system a reality. Cowell Electric and ODT Australis donated a combined $20,000, including an antenna in the reserve’s northern section to transmit the trap signals back to headquarters. Meanwhile Arid Recovery had to cancel this month’s annual native animal trapping and monitoring because of the hot weather.
THE MONITOR - Your Community Newspaper