Minutes/Actions Environment & Waterways Alliance Reference Group Meeting Wednesday 18 May, 2016 – Council

Present Murray Wood – Dubbo City Council Stevie Armstrong – Bathurst Regional Council Dianna Watkins – DPI Biosecurity Deborah Taylor – Bathurst Regional Council Satendra Kumar – DPI Biosecurity Catriona Jennings – Dubbo City Council Meredith Brainwood – Applied Ecology Cassie Liney – Mid-Western Regional Council Jeremy Winer – Weed Technics Andrew Francis – Parkes Shire Council Colleen Farrow – Central Tablelands Local Michael Chambers – Parkes Shire Council Land Services Heather Nicholls – Neville Collins – Central Tablelands Local Land Warwick Doulman – Cabonne Council Services Kayla Volka – Council Cherie Hughes – Central West Local Land James Cleasby – Council Services Melinda Jeoffries – Council Diana Kureen – Central Tablelands Local Land Laurie Thompson – Lachlan Shire Council Services Kelli Robertson – Mick Callan – Environment & Waterways Council Alliance Lynton Auld – Dubbo City Council Melissa Ward – Shire Council Brian Parker – Council Craig Flemming – Contamination Central Brad Perera– Council

Apologie Jon Francis – Orange Shire Council Ashley Wielinga – Warren Shire Council Wayne Gailey – Orange Shire Council Chris Schumacher – Oberon Shire Council Wayne Beatty – Orange Shire Council Ian Tucker – Oberon Shire Council Damon Cupitt – Lithgow City Council Roger Smith – Orange City Council Paul Cashell – Lithgow City Council Mark Riley – Dubbo City Council Brad Cam – Mid-Western Regional Council Julie Prout – Gilgandra Shire Council Sean Richardson – Mid-Western Council Guy McAnally-Elwin – Gilgandra Shire Council Bethany Greenfield – Mid-Western Council Julie Prout – Gilgandra Shire Council David Waddell – Orange City Council Donna Galvin - Cabonne Council Brian Parker – Blayney Shire Council Nathan Skelly – Blayney Shire Council Kayla Volka – Bogan Shire Council Greg Lamont – Council Liz Densley – Mid-Western Regional Council Guy Marchant – Narromine Shire Council Chris Schumacher – Kerry Murphy – Narromine Shire Council Grant Baker – Blayney Shire Council Phil King – Lachlan Shire Council Felicity Taylor-Edwards – RDA Council Peter Gall – Chris McCulloch – Central Tablelands LLS Andrew Cosier – Wellington Council Jane Chrystal – Central West LLS Reg Kidd – Central Tablelands LLS Paul Devery – Shire Council

66 Corporation Ave | Bathurst NSW 2795 T: 02 6333 2323 | www.cwcewa.com.au

Presenters Dianna Watkins & Satendra Kumar – Biosecurity & the Peri Urban Plan Colleen Farrow – Targeted Ecosystems Cat Tracking Project Neville Collins – Urban Fox Control Dr Meredith Brainwood – Planning Waterways Rehabilitation Projects Jeremy Winer – Alternative Weed Control

Copies of most guest speaker presentations can be found on the Alliance website: http://www.cwcewa.com.au/

Chair Facilitator Murray Wood Diana Kureen

Agenda Item 1 Welcome

 Meeting was opened at 10am  Acknowledgement was made of the Traditional Owners of the Land and their Elders past and present  Welcome to Parkes from Andrew Francis  Introduction of participants  Introduction to the meeting and outline of the content  WHS considerations for the meeting  Actions and Agreements from last meeting discussed

Motion: Minutes from the previous meeting be accepted Moved: Lynton Auld Seconded: James Cleasby

Agenda Item 2 Alliance Update Mick Callan  7 Councils – Bogan, Lachlan, Parkes, Mid-Western, Cowra, Warren and Dubbo - stated that they had put the Report to Council, as prepared for all member Councils at the last meeting. The other Councils were encouraged to ensure the report went to their Council ASAP. ACTION  An update of all the Alliance activities for the 2015-16 year was given, as this was the last meeting before the end of the financial year. All the Project Support Officer reports can be viewed on the Alliance website. It was determined that there would only be a brief review of the Alliance 5 Year Plan at the end of the financial year, as the full review was only undertaken in 2015.  The Alliance Facebook page has received 180 likes. Member councils are encouraged to send Mick any case studies/reports that they would like on Facebook or the website. The website has been accessed by over 2000 people. ACTION  The next training event will be held in September and will be a workshop on Restoring Native Wildlife conducted by the TAFE - Western Sydney Institute – venue to be confirmed.

66 Corporation Ave | Bathurst NSW 2795 T: 02 6333 2323 | www.cwcewa.com.au

 Diana outlined changes to Biodiversity Legislation and the new Biodiversity Act. Lynton Auld had attended an information session held in Dubbo by OEH and reported back on this meeting as well as handing out material to the group distributed at the meeting. Concerns were raised by the membership, and it was decided to further teleconference the issue on 16 June, after another meeting, specifically for Local Government, has been held by OEH. Motion from Murray Wood that the Alliance should submit a response to the reforms. All Councils should provide feedback, so common threads can be pulled together. ACTION  Central Tablelands LLS will be running out projects with the Green Army in the next financial year, any Councils wishing to partner with projects in their LGA should let Diana know – remembering that the Green Army teams will only travel within 100kms of their base. ACTION

Agenda Item 3 Central West Local Land Cherie Hughes Services Update  Central West LLS has 6 new Landcare Facilitators in their region, including one at Coonamble. Cherie commented it would be good for Local Government to work with them. Cherie will send out the Landcare Facilitators contact details to the relevant Councils. ACTION  Central West Local Land Services Local Government Incentive Funding for 2016-17 will be funded by NSW Catchment Action (CA), so projects will have to support outcomes identified by CA.  Another “Hollows for Habitat” workshop will be held at Taronga Western Plains Zoo on 23 June. Both the Zoo and Central West LLS will be supporting this free workshop.  The Central West LLS Regional Weeds Committee, has elected Cr Peter Shilton from Warrumbungle Shire as its Chair, and Andrew Cosier from Western Plains Regional Council (Wellington) as its Deputy. A Statewide Draft Strategic Plan is being prepared. Meanwhile the Central West Committee is undertaking risk assessments to determine their Priority Weeds List.

Agenda Item 4 Contamination Central Craig Flemming Update  Update on the Contamination Central project, with Craig informing the group that training for Council staff was now underway. This will take 5-6 months of in-house and regional training on such topics as how to run the record keeping system, how the policy works, wording for 149Certificates etc. More information on the EPA’s guidelines in regard to Excavated Natural Material and Virgin Excavated Natural Material will also be distributed.  Responsibility for UPSS will be passed to Councils on June 17. This will directly affect Councils with underground storage at their depots.  Although the Policy Template has been completed, new Policy adoption by Councils has been fairly slow with only three on exhibition so far. Another four are ready to go on exhibition shortly, but Council amalgamations are creating some problems.  Contamination Central/ALGA State Conference to be held in Dubbo on 31 May. All participating Councils have free entry to Conference. Craig has sent out email with details on

66 Corporation Ave | Bathurst NSW 2795 T: 02 6333 2323 | www.cwcewa.com.au

how to join ALGA (already paid for) and register for conference - 76 delegates have so far registered for the Conference.

Agenda Item 5 Biosecurity & the Peri Dianna Watkins & Urban Plan Satendra Kumar

Biosecurity Reform Program  DPI released the Biosecurity Strategy in 2013 and are now reforming the legislation to enact it. This will streamline 10 Acts and part of another 4 Acts into the Biosecurity Act. Supporting regulations, policies and procedures are currently being developed.  Rather than re-inventing the wheel the process is drawing on the Queensland legislation – already in place. This will also help create harmony between the two jurisdictions.  It will include the duty to mitigate or manage a threat if it is known.  Responsibilities for Local Government will continue for Pest Animals and Weeds, with Weeds Officers being Authorised Officers in respect to weeds only.  The Department recognises the need to get Biosecurity, and what it means, out to the wider community any innovative suggestions are welcome. Peri Urban Program  This program is currently being run-out in the Greater Sydney LLS region where 25% of food production is produced on just 3% of landuse. The aim of the project is to improve biosecurity threats by demonstrating how the legislation works.  Weeds are seen as a general biosecurity issue.  Any questions or suggestions on the reforms can be directed to: - Animal Security and Welfare – Lisa Martin - 0428 623 471 - Plant Biosecurity and Weeds - Karen O’Malley - 0428 103 665 - Invasive Animals – Jamie Maddocks – 0429 924 365 - Project Manager – Ray Willis – 0429 910 132

Agenda Item 6 Targeted Ecosystems – Colleen Farrow Cat Tracking Project  Colleen detailed the results of a Cat Tracking Program, originally developed in South and which has recently been run out in Lithgow by Central Tablelands LLS. A number of domestic cats were fitted with radio monitors and then tracked.  The results showed that, contrary to what their owners believed, on a daily basis the cats were travelling long distances, often into areas of known wildlife habitat – 7kms in the case of one cat – and posed a significant threat to wildlife, including Threatened Species.  Councils were encouraged to become engaged in the program, which will be extended to other LGAs in the 2016-17 financial year. Central Tablelands LLS Councils should contact Diana, in the first instance, if they are interested in becoming involved. Central West LLS Councils should let Cherie know if they would be interested in being part of such a program so Central West LLS can try and seek funding for the project. ACTION

66 Corporation Ave | Bathurst NSW 2795 T: 02 6333 2323 | www.cwcewa.com.au

Agenda Item 7 Urban Fox Control Neville Collins  Neville outlined the fact that it has been identified that foxes cost the environment $190 million across Australia every year.  The peri urban area is generally about 4kms from the town centre or where the 60 km per hour zone ends.  The use of 1080 to control foxes requires a Pesticide Control Order and must meet the obligations of this order and address all risks. This includes contacting all neighbours within a 1km zone of where the bait is to be laid, so in a peri urban zone this could involve contacting most of the town.  A canid pest injector – which is a fixed control device for dispensing pesticide – is also now being used to deliver 1080.

Agenda Item 8 Planning a Waterways Dr Meredith Brainwood Rehabilitation Project  Meredith is a consultant with Applied Ecology and gave an interactive talk on what to consider when planning a waterways rehabilitation project.  As well as sharing plans and photos of some of the projects she has been involved with, Meredith also directed the group to the Australian Streambank Rehabilitation Manual – Volumes 1 & 2 for useful information.  Meredith showed the group the shell of a Freshwater Mussel, which filters between 15-20 litres of water a day, so plays a key role in filtering out nutrients and sediments and improving water quality.

Agenda Item 9 Alternative Weed Control Jeremy Winer  Jeremy, owner of Weed Technics, gave the group background information on the machines he has designed, using saturated steam weeding technology, to efficiently kill weeds.  Jeremy also detailed why a number of Councils are moving away from herbicide control and adopting steam weeding as an alternative.  The group then went to PAC Park for a demonstration of the machinery.

Agenda Item 9 Site Visit Michael Chambers  Michael showed the group green infrastructure solutions that were used to rehabilitate a badly eroding table drain, adjacent to the new hospital at the entrance to town on the .  Michael then took the group to PAC Park to see the rehabilitation works to control erosion and sediment and enhance the habitat potential of the creek that runs through the park. This creek ultimately drains into , which is listed Key Fish Habitat.

Agenda Item 10 Any Other Business  The group was reminded that the consultation for the Natural Resources Commission Pest Animal Review closed on 25 May. The review covered such things as cat confinement areas; a potential reduction in area down to 2 hectares to be rated by Local land Services; plus

66 Corporation Ave | Bathurst NSW 2795 T: 02 6333 2323 | www.cwcewa.com.au

proposals for deers to be declared pest animals, the formation of Pest Animal Committees and Council Weed Officers to become Pest Animal Officers. Due to the short timeframe, Councils were encouraged to make individual submissions if they wished to comment.  Those present at the meeting expressed their support for a 1.5 day meeting in August which would include tour of the Macquarie Marshes.

Next Meeting – Wednesday 17 August in Warren followed by a tour of the Macquarie Marshes on Thursday 18 August 2016.

The meeting closed at 4:15pm

Key Actions/Agreements from this meeting Key Action/Agreement Responsibility Priority Status Due By/Notes ACTION: ACTION: All member All High ASAP Councils which have not yet reported to put Report, prepared by Project Support Officer, together with the Alliance 5 Year Plan to their next Council meeting and report back once this is done. ACTION: Councils to provide All Medium Ongoing August 2016 information to Alliance Project Ongoing Support Officer for distribution on Alliance website and Facebook page ACTION: Councils to provide All High No Mid-June 2016 feedback on any concerns in regard feedback to proposed Biodiversity Act, for received, joint Alliance submission so no submission made ACTION: Central Tablelands LLS Diana Kureen Medium July 2016 Councils to let Diana know if they would want to partner in Green Army Projects for 2016-17 ACTION: Provide contact details of Cherie Hughes Medium July 2016 Landcare Facilitators to Central West LLS region Councils ACTION: Councils to indicate if they Diana Kureen High July 2016 wish to join in Cat Tracking Program Cherie Hughes

Key Actions/Agreements from the previous meeting Key Action/Agreement Responsibility Priority Status Due By/Notes ACTION: All member Councils to put All High Complete May 2016 Report, prepared by Project Support d by Officer, together with the Alliance 5 7 Councils Year Plan to their next Council meeting and report back once this is done. ACTION: A letter from the Chairman Diana Kureen High Complete April 2016

66 Corporation Ave | Bathurst NSW 2795 T: 02 6333 2323 | www.cwcewa.com.au

to be written to the General Murray Wood Managers outlining the agreement at the meeting to extend the current Alliance membership for one year to June 2017, due to the uncertainties surrounding Fit for the Future and proposed amalgamations. ACTION: Documents to be uploaded Mick Callan Medium Complete April 2016 onto Alliance website: - CRC Summary of Tranche 1 projects - OEH Frog Identification pamphlet - Policy and Guidelines for Fish Habitat Conservation and Management - The Blue Book - Living and Working on a Riverbank ACTION: More research on reports Mick Callan High Complete May 2016 of glyphosate as a carcinogen to be Diana Kureen undertaken and brought back to the All next meeting ACTION: Demonstration of steam Lynton Auld High Complete May 2016 weed control to be arranged for the Diana Kureen next meeting ACTION: Paperwork for Central Cherie Hughes High Complete March 2016 West Local Land Services incentive projects to be finalised

66 Corporation Ave | Bathurst NSW 2795 T: 02 6333 2323 | www.cwcewa.com.au