Gunnedah Shire Council
Background
Gunnedah Shire Council is situated in the heart of the Namoi Valley, New South Wales, Australia approximately 440 km by road from Sydney. The Shire is bordered by the Shires of Parry, Quirindi, Manilla, Barraba, Narrabri and Coonabarabran.
Gunnedah, the largest town in the Shire, is the service hub of the Shire and offers its residents a blend of a relaxed quality lifestyle within a resilient economic area. Outlying villages include Curlewis and Breeza to the southeast, Carroll to the east and Tambar Springs and Mullaley to the southwest. It is serviced daily by air, rail and road having its own airport, being on the North-West rail line and having easy access to main highways.
Agriculture and coal mining are two important industries in the Shire. These are complemented by many light industries and by tourism. Together they provide wealth and the rare opportunity for secondary and tertiary industry to establish close to both sources of energy and a wide variety of raw materials.
Education and health needs are well catered for along with care for the disabled and excellent aged care facilities. The community has access to and participates enthusiastically in a wide variety of sporting and cultural activities.
Many annual events occur through the year, such as the Ag-Quip Field Days, Mitre 10 Week of Speed, Two Rivers Festival and the National Tomato Contest, helping to promote Gunnedah and drawing large crowds.
Sustainability Initiatives and Achievements
Gunnedah Shire has the best of all worlds when it comes to the environment. The Shire has adequate rainfall, clean water, a climate that has moderate temperatures, plenty of sunshine, and a diversity of fauna and flora.
The people of the Shire put the preservation of the environment as one of the important issues affecting them. Gunndah Shire Council acknowledges its role to lead its community in environmental management and as a consequence develop a culture within its community of sustainability.
The implementation of various major strategies throughout the last decade or so has supported this approach. The Gunnedah Waste Management Strategy adopted in 1999 has resulted in a 60% reduction in the amount of waste material being disposed of to landfill. Inherent within the strategy is a reduce/reuse/recycle philosophy that has led to economic benefits. The strategy is ongoing with further improvements in waste management methods currently being applied.
The use of effluent from the Gunnedah Sewerage Treatment Plant has removed discharge to the Namoi River, resulting in improved river water quality, and the effluent being used for agricultural irrigation with a positive economic benefits.
Currently significant environmental improvements are underway to the Namoi River Parklands. This will see improvements to water quality through treatment of stormwater discharge, bank stabilisation, willow removal and better management of access to the riverine zone.