The Southern Downs Regional Council says it will “direct the focus” of $1 million in federal bushfire recovery funding announced by PM Scott Morrison last week “towards rural residents and bushfire preparedness” in a submission to the Federal Government.
At a special council meeting held on Tuesday of this week councillors agreed to apply to the Federal Government for “resilience and recovery projects” and will “seek feedback on the eligibility” of the following initiatives under the Bushfire Recovery Funding Program –
• Water tank rebates for rural landowners not connected to any reticulated water supply
• Fire break master plan to identify future fire breaks and address construction and maintenance of additional fire breaks within the region
• Drought and bushfire regional readiness plan
• Expressions of interest from community and sporting groups to undertake maintenance of community facilities such as halls and clubhouses
Mayor Tracy Dobie said “Council has been proactively navigating funding avenues to support the drought and fire affected region”.
“Both the State and Federal Governments have generously supported our region with multiple funding initiatives and grants that have directly benefited our community and economy,” Cr Dobie said.
“Following the Federal Government funding announcement late last week, Council has been quick to address how it can move forward to have the funding directed to where it is urgently needed.
“The rural water tank rebate has been at the top of Council’s wish list for some time.
“Council’s submission will also include resilience projects that will put our region on the front foot with better preparation for future bushfire threats.
“The Federal Government last week committed ‘untied’ funding to 42 local governments affected by bushfire since August 2019.”
At Tuesday’s special meeting councillors also agreed on their submissions for funding under another $1 million in federal money, the Drought Communities Program.
A spokeswoman said councillors “weighed updated proposals as well as suggesting projects for inclusion”.
“Submissions to be sent for consideration include:
• Projects to allow regional community organisations to undertake maintenance to halls, amenities, clubhouses
• High priority community infrastructure projects such as Killarney off stream storage cover or projects identified from the regional Urban Design Frameworks and endorsed Streetscape projects
• Shade structures in Council parks in rural villages
• Pending rainfall and take-up of funding for water carting, supply and delivery of potable water to rural landowners
No timeframe has been provided at this stage for announcement by the Federal Government of the successful project submissions.
