Issues Paper Mallee South Country Cabinet, 11 - 13 September 2016

On 11 to 13 September 2016, the South Australian Cabinet visited the Mallee South region, covering the District Councils of Tatiara, Southern Mallee and Karoonda East Murray. Over three days, the Premier and Ministers travelled across the region to speak with local people about the issues that concern them most.

This document summarises the issues, listed by topic, that were raised with the Government by the local community during the Mallee South Country Cabinet visit:

Transport, roads and infrastructure

Infrastructure  Inadequate power supply to the region is preventing industry expansion. The single power line and its fragility of supply during peak load presents a financial risk to businesses.

 The cost of power is noted as being detrimental to industrial expansion, with opportunities being lost to Victoria due to their significantly lower power costs.

 The area has more than 50 registered mobile black spots. Limited broadband coverage impacts the economic output and wellbeing of the community. The community understands it is an unrealistic expectation to obtain 100% coverage, however, consider it important to have coverage along all major roads.

 The economic impact of poor mobile coverage is felt by primary producers. This loss to the producers also has a flow-on impact to the local community and to the state’s economy. There are also the safety concerns of not being able to easily contact someone in the case of an emergency.

 The three Councils have allocated funding towards tower development as part of their applications for Round 2 of the Federal Government’s Mobile Black Spot Program. The community is grateful that the South Australian Government has committed $2m in co-funding for Round 2. Announcements are due at the end of October 2016.

 It is suggested that a Mobile Back Spot baseline assessment could be done across the state, as done in other regions of Australia to assess where towers are most needed rather than where they give best commercial advantage to mobile providers.

 Concern was expressed in regards to the state of the Government Radio Network (GRN) and mobile black spots and their impact on the effectiveness of emergency services.

Roads and Transport  There is a concern at the condition of the Bordertown to Naracoorte Road and the Francis to Naracoorte Road which were built for 10 tonne trucks, and now support an average of 30 B-Doubles a day.

 Some transporters are so concerned about the state of some roads in the region, they are now directing their drivers to use other roads, including some managed by the Council. This is placing a burden on the Tatiara District Council’s maintenance of these roads.

 The Karoonda Highway and are facing increased heavy vehicle traffic following the decision by Viterra to conclude their rail transport contract. The high yield anticipated for the 2016 harvest will only increase this anticipated load volume on these highways.

 Interest was expressed in the development of a road from Murray Bridge to Gepps Cross, or further north of Adelaide, that bypasses the Adelaide metropolitan area. This would allow trucks to move freight to major depots north of Adelaide without having to descend the treacherous and will avoid traffic congestion.

 Both the Mallee and Karoonda Highways have few safe straights for overtaking and it would be desirable to have dedicated overtaking lanes on these roads. It is requested that funding be allocated to help seal the remaining exposed shoulders of freight transport corridors.

 Clarification was sought as to whether or not rail infrastructure in the region might be re-opened as this could potentially reduce freight costs for local export producers.

 Councils raised the Rubble Royalty as a key concern. Councils note that they were yet to see any of the royalty returned despite their understanding that 75% of this funding is meant to come back to local Councils.

 Users of multiple heavy vehicle licences are frustrated on the need to carry these licences on them at all times and are interested to hear when electronic licences will be available.

 Access to transport is reported to be a significant barrier for isolated carers in the region.

Planning  Clarification is sought as to how the proposed new planning system will treat applications, such as the development of a new waste depot in the Tatiara District Council region. A private developer proposed the project several years ago but it was refused by the Development Assessment Commission. Council remains supportive of this project.

 Unused Government assets provide opportunities for the local community and local economy, if they are repurposed. There is interest in the process for the sale of unused Crown Land. In Bordertown, the old Bordertown Railway Station and a strip of Crown Land that runs parallel to the Adelaide to Melbourne Rail line, could be utilised for other purposes.

Health, Wellbeing and Community

General Health Services  The community does not want to see any reduction in services in the region, which is currently home to five hospitals. All hospitals are on major transport routes which can increase patient numbers.

 Access to medical services, including general practitioners (GPs) is an ongoing issue. There are concerns regarding the risk surrounding the inability to recruit and retain health professionals across a range of disciplines.

 Clarification is required for residents who are deemed ineligible to access the Patient Assistance Transport Scheme (PATS) if they are visiting specialists in Adelaide rather than Mount Gambier.

 The community is interested to hear of the outcomes of the South Australian Social Development Committee’s Review of Country Health Advisory Councils.

 Relocation of services away from the Repatriation General Hospital is a concern of the broader veteran community.

 Bordertown’s health infrastructure is ageing, with the Tatiara Community Health building needing replacement. There is strong community support for the plan to build a purpose-built health centre next to the existing hospital.

 There is a desire from the community to maintain the Level One Theatre, 24/7 service to enable visiting specialists to practice at Bordertown.

 It was reported a patient was turned away from the Bordertown Hospital, as they had no capacity for the patient.

Mental Health Services  Limited provision of mental health, drug and alcohol support services are a concern, with many patients required to travel to Mount Gambier or Murray Bridge to access these services. There are also reports of a lack of help for veterans with PTSD.

Aged Care  There is increasing demand for Aged Care Services in the region. In Bordertown there are 43 Commonwealth funded aged care beds, which are all currently full, with a waiting list.

 There is a projected need for 20 to 30 more aged care hostel beds in the Tatiara region (currently 62 beds in the aged care hostel).

Keith Hospital  There is continued community interest in the future of Keith Hospital. However, the current short-term funding arrangements are not enabling the hospital to implement long term planning, impacting its ability to attract and retain staff.

 There is concern for residents with no private health cover at Keith who are not able to access the services of the hospital. These patients have to be admitted to hospital in Bordertown, Mount Gambier or Murray Bridge with their families unable to be close by to support them. It is estimated that up to 50% of the Tatiara community doesn’t have private health cover.

 Keith Hospital is reported to be charged for ambulance transfers for patients to other hospitals. It is the understanding of the hospital that this cost is the responsibility of the patient and would like the issue followed up. There was also concern about the impact of rising ambulance costs and whether there was an opportunity to collect a levy for this service similar to other states.

Community Services  Clarification is sought as to how the child protection reforms and proposed improvements for Families SA will impact rural areas.

 Concern was expressed over falling membership and retention levels within the Country Fire Service, particularly in the Mallee.

 Current levels of police services are meeting most of the region’s needs, however, there is reported to be a need for additional staffing in the Southern Mallee area.

 There was a report that volunteers for multiple organisations were required to pay for separate police checks for each role. It was suggested that the rules be changed to enable one police check to be adequate, for all volunteer roles an individual undertakes.

 There is a need for better succession planning for leadership in shrinking regional communities. There is reported to be a good program on the Eyre Peninsula working with sporting clubs that could be expanded to other areas.

 The cost of insurance for activities in which older citizens participate such as dancing, is making the cost for participants too high.

 The region is home to a significant migrant population. It has been reported that services for the migrant community in Tatiara have been reduced and that additional funding recently provided by Multicultural SA has not filled the gap. Migrants play an active role in these communities, including filling vital volunteer roles (e.g. CFS, SES).

 There is a perception that regional areas do not receive an equitable amount of funding from the Office of Recreation and Sport (ORS). Southern Mallee Council advised that the Lameroo Sporting Club is a joint venture of the Lameroo football, netball, cricket and tennis clubs. The Club has raised $200,000 to upgrade its facilities, but has been unsuccessful in its application to ORS for funding in the past three rounds.

 There have been numerous trials run over the years to resolve the childcare services gap in the region. Karoonda East Murray Council is providing ‘Childcare on the Go’ three days a week in the Karoonda town hall. The Council reported this is proving to be an excellent model that could be replicated in other regional areas.

Education

 It was reported that the quality of teachers in regional areas affects the quality of education that regional children receive. Parents will remove children from underperforming regional schools, contributing to the cycle of funding/service reduction.

 Bordertown High School reported that ageing infrastructure (transportable classrooms and asphalt) is affecting the school’s budget. Ageing infrastructure is inefficient and directly impacts the school’s budget due to higher running and maintenance costs.

 The Karoonda community swimming pool is located on DECD property. The pool has been closed for three years following its assessment as non-compliant. The community consider the pool a key community asset and local sentiment is that a cheaper solution is possible, but this is prohibited under existing policies.

 Enrolments at some schools are being affected by a school bus route regulation that does not allow South Australian public school buses to travel on Victorian roads. Yet this rule does not apply to private school buses. Competition for enrolments is coming from Murrayville Community College, a Victorian private school 22km east of the South Australian Border, whose bus route takes in .

 Bordertown High School reported that intensive support funding for students who are recent arrivals to Australia from non-English speaking countries was, in many instances, insufficient and the school was having to self-fund ongoing support for students. This reduces funding available for other initiatives.

 A lack of reliable internet service also impacts regional students’ learning, with some senior high school students undertaking lessons by phone rather than video link. It is reported that an increasing number of families are enrolling their children in schools out of the region to reduce the disadvantage they experience due to poor internet connectivity. This can have a snowball effect, as the local population diminishes, the availability of government services reduces and so the cycle continues. This can also impact family wellbeing if children are sent away or the household splits.

Economic Development

Workforce  Despite having very low unemployment (4.2%), the region reports ongoing difficulty in attracting and retaining skilled and semi-skilled workers. The region is heavily reliant on backpackers, immigrants and visa holders to fill employment gaps. The community would prefer to be hiring locals who will remain in, and contribute to, the local community.

A lack of reliable internet and mobile coverage, and declining health and community services has been a deterrent to people relocating to and remaining in, the Mallee South area. There is also limited quality housing available in the region to attract long term residents.

 Current workforce gaps are being filled by backpackers on short term employment. The short term nature of their employment, however doesn’t allow for up-skilling these staff to meet industry standards for WHS and Food Safety Standards, like employment of a long term employee would enable.

 The community is seeking support to develop policies/programs to promote and support internal migration of skilled workers to regional areas.

Livestock Red Tape

 Currently Electronic Tags/RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) are only compulsory in cattle in South Australia and optional in sheep and goats. Victoria has just introduced compulsory RFID tagging on sheep and goats. This may reduce the markets available to South Australian producers, as they wouldn’t be able to sell to Victorian producers without the RFID tags. There is also potential for RFID tags to be adopted in other states which would further reduce markets.  There is concern about a proposed cattle transition levy in addition to the current Cattle Industry Fund Tag Levy.

Small Business grants  Funding similar to grants available for starting small businesses in northern Adelaide should be extended to small rural areas like Tatiara to boost the region’s economy.

KPIs for Foreign Ownership  There is concern for the management practices of some olive groves in the region. Orchard neglect has a flow-on effect to the industry with less levies being collected, less olives and oil being sold and is a potential biosecurity hazard.

 There is a desire for the Government to insist on KPIs being developed for prime agricultural land that is sold to overseas companies. The KPIs would help to ensure horticultural/agricultural businesses are operating in accordance with good management practices and achieving reasonable production KPIs.

Drought Relief Funding  Limited access to drought relief funding and restrictions on drought relief service delivery are two key concerns. It was reported that only six farms in the Upper South East were deemed eligible for drought assistance despite many more being affected, and that the reasons for this determination are unclear. Frustration was expressed at the lack of services for drought affected families and the restrictions placed on service provision.

 It was suggested that the State Government lobby the Federal Government for a tax relief package for drought affected farmers.

SA Motorsport Park  The development of the SA Motorsport Park and the anticipated additional intra and interstate travellers that it will attract provides growth opportunities for the region’s tourism and hospitality sectors. The region is seeking support to make the most of this opportunity.

Environment

SE Drainage system maintenance  There is concern over how the South East Drainage Network is going to be maintained. The Upper South East system is relatively newer than the Lower South East system, but sandier soil conditions means ongoing maintenance is needed. Natural Resources Management (NRM) Levy  Councils have noted that the NRM Levy is scheduled to double and in one case increase six-fold in the 2016/17 financial year compared to 2015/16. The community does not have a good understanding of how the levy is spent.

 It was also noted that the current NRM levy collection method negatively impacts local government budgets. Councils are required to pay the levy to the State Government irrespective of whether they have recouped the cost from rate payers.

 Concern was expressed that the State Government has increased the NRM levy, but capped local council rate increases.

National Parks  Feral deer and goats in South Australian national parks and private land are of concern to landholders trying to meet pest management requirements and the landholder’s responsibility to humanely remove them from the landscape. There was the suggestion for more funding to be made available for landholders to help overcome this issue.

 Concern expressed about the level of maintenance of fire breaks/fire control and access tracks.

Water  There is concern to the impact of the new water allocation plans on productivity in the area. Clarification sought as to why unused water allocations cannot be carried over from one year to another.

 Agricultural producers in the region who do not have access to ground water are reliant on water. The price of Murray River water can vary dramatically and can make it difficult for business planning.