Clarence Valley NSW: a timely reminder as widespread rain again hits the Australian east coast

Australian Bureau of Meteorology probability forecast for 19 May 2017 as of 18 May here.

The Daily Examiner, 8 May 2017, p.3:

THE flood protection around Grafton is not as robust as many people believe warns a local emergency management specialist.

The Clarence Valley Council’s emergency management officer Kieran McAndrew said up-to-date modelling showed Grafton levees capable of withstanding a one in 25-year flood.

“Many people are under a misunderstanding the levees provide one in 100-year protection,” he said.

“They don’t. They were designed to provide that level of protection, but better modelling in the 50 years since they were constructed shows they only ever provided on one in 25-year protection…..

Mr McAndrew said recent major flooding in the Tweed and Richmond and moderate flooding in the Clarence had revealed the lack of understanding of flood protection in and around Grafton. He said there was a danger of complacency in the community……

“If there was a prolonged overtopping event in Grafton it would be much more serious than Lismore because in Lismore there are hills people can reach from the CBD. We don’t have that luxury in Grafton. And because of the volume of water in the Clarence, flood heights fall much more slowly. It means the city would be inundated for much longer.”

He said the Clarence Valley Council had applied to the NSW Government for a grant for a project to determine the floor heights of all properties in flood-prone areas around Grafton. The data would help residents understand the potential impact of a levee overtopping on their property.

Mark Your Calendar: 40th Grafton Truck Show on 10 June 2017

Clarence Valley Council, media release, 11 January 2017:

Big rigs for big 40th show in 2017

The Grafton Truck Drivers Social Club has been going strong since 1977 and therefore this year will be the 40th Grafton Truck Show.

Club president Adrienne Dentler said, "the club was very happy to receive funding from Clarence Valley Council's Community Initiatives Program at the end of 2016."

"The funds will be used to help pay for the annual parade at the Grafton Truck Show on June 10, 2017 and this year will be a big one. The day will include the usual free kids activities and judging with some exciting changes this year including entertainment by country music legend, Adam Eckersley", Adrienne said.

For information about the Grafton Truck Drivers Social Club, please contact Adrienne Dentler via email graftontruckclub@gmail.com or phone 0407 815 026.

Any not-for-profit organisations or individuals wanting more information on funding opportunities through the Community Initiatives Program are welcome to contact the Community Projects Officer by email sammy.lovejoy@clarence.nsw.gov.au or phone 6642 0957.

The next funding round opens on February 13, 2017 for projects/initiatives from July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018.

Release ends.

Community anger over South Grafton asbestos contamination not allayed by public meeting

On Thursday 1 December 2016 Clarence Valley Council held a public meeting on the subject of its asbestos removal strategy during site remediation prior to re-development of the site as a 'super depot'.

Asbestos removal will reportedly add an est. $2.5 million to the re-development $13.3 million cost. 

The Daily Examiner, 5 December 2016, Clarence Valley Council depot site plan

The Daily Examiner, letter to the editor, 5 December 2016, p.12:

Inquiry needed

Last night I attended a meeting at the Clarence Valley Council chambers, where the public was invited to be updated about the asbestos that has been uncovered at the site of the new council depot in Tyson St.

The overwhelming emotion at the meeting was one of anger, as council's director of works attempted to explain away what many see as criminal culpability.

Last year, council management was warned by a former employee that over a long period of time broken asbestos material had been buried at the site. However, rather than properly address the issue, council opted to deny there was any problem, accusing those who spoke up on the matter of being trouble-makers, scaremongers and liars.

In an attempt to quell rising concern, council instructed a firm of specialists to undertake investigations at the site. However, those instructions were to test samples from stockpiles, omitting any request to search for buried material.

Of course nothing was found, which allowed council to release a media statement which your newspaper reported (March 8), under the banner headline "Council depot site clear of asbestos".

That story contained the unequivocal statement that: "Further testing of the site has reinforced earlier findings saying it poses no risk from asbestos."

Ultimately, of course, some two weeks after excavation work had commenced, asbestos was uncovered, and during those two weeks dust was observed rising from the works, while high school students carried on activities as usual just across the fence. Nearby residents also reported the dust settling on their homes and yards.

The general public learned of the asbestos discovery with the release of papers for council's November meeting, where we read the extraordinary admission that, "A quantity of asbestos containing material was always expected to be encountered on-site" - finally acknowledging that they knew it was there all the time.

The acknowledgement that they deliberately misled the public, potentially exposing residents and many hundreds of students to deadly asbestos is, in my opinion, criminal.

After discovering asbestos at the site, workers began sieving and stockpiling what the EPA later confirmed is contaminated material. The fact that the EPA didn't inspect the site until almost two weeks after the asbestos was uncovered should also be investigated.

During those two weeks, there was no public statement made, no warning signs were erected, and contrary to assurances by council that nearby property owners and the high school had been told, many residents claimed they had received no such advice.

An assurance at the meeting that air quality is now being monitored, and that levels of whatever is floating around in the air are within guidelines, is hardly comforting, and there was no explanation of what particulate matter is being inhaled by those unfortunate enough to live or study in close proximity to the works.

One thing is certain, that anger will remain until digging up more polluted material is halted, the contaminated material is safely removed as required under the law, and a full inquiry held into how this whole shameful debacle was ever allowed to occur.

John Edwards

The Daily Examiner, 5 December 2016:

WORK on the Clarence Valley Council's $13 million super depot should stop immediately following the discovery of about 900kg of bonded asbestos on the site, say South Grafton residents.

At a public meeting on Thursday, called to discuss the issue, South Grafton resident Mark Butler said work should cease until further extensive testing on the site was done.

Mr Butler, who can see the depot 500m from his house in Moorehead Dr, said there needed to be deep core drilling of the entire site to discover the amount of asbestos that had been dumped on the site.

He described the initial testing as flawed because it was only done on selected parts of the site.

"Basically the council was saying drill here, drill there and, when they didn't find anything, they went ahead with it," Mr Butler said.

"But anecdotally lots of people knew there had been asbestos dumped at the site for more than 40 years.

"And now they've been proven right."

Mr Butler said the council should consider closing the site and completely sealing it, if it turned out there was more asbestos there than had been uncovered.

"Basically (the) council does not know what's there and, until they do, they should stop work and do more testing to find out.

"There's always been problems with the way the council pushed this depot through, but we've got to this point.

"Now they have to make sure what they do from now on does not create a medical emergency."

Mr Butler was critical of the way the council ran the public meeting, but said it did give residents a chance to have their say.

"The feeling I got was the council was trying to control it and tried to shut down any difficult questions," Mr Butler said.

Clarence Valley Mayor Jim Simmons was at the meeting and shared the concerns of residents, especially the worries about the proximity to South Grafton High School.

"At least we should look at stopping work until the start of the school holidays," Cr Simmons said.

The mayor was also surprised to learn the contractors, Hutchinsons Builders, had not installed air monitoring stations beyond the boundaries of the site on the corner of Rushforth Rd and Tyson St.

"I don't understand why they haven't done that," he said.

However, Cr Simmons was confident the contractors had the expertise to deal with the find.

Cr Simmons said the absence of the Environmental Protection Agency from the meeting had concerned him.

"I understand they had their reasons ... but I plan to get in contact with them," he said.

He was also surprised spokespeople from other government agencies, like WorkSafe, did not have more input at the meeting.

The mayor said the council owned the site and was obliged to remediate it.

"We would have had to fix it up whether or not there was a depot going on it," he said.

"There was a lot of emotion at that meeting, perhaps rightly so.

"Council needs to address their concerns about the asbestos on the site and also the dust which is blowing onto the properties."

BACKGROUND

WorkCover NSW, Fact Sheet, Bonded Asbestos:

WHAT IS BONDED ASBESTOS?

When asbestos fibres are bonded to another material, such as a cement or resin binder, it is known as bonded asbestos. It cannot be crumbled, pulverised or reduced to a powder by hand pressure when dry. Common uses in buildings include: flat (fibro), corrugated or compressed asbestos-cement (AC) sheeting; water, drainage and flue pipes and floor tiles.

If fire, hail, or illegal water blasting damages bonded asbestos, it may become friable asbestos material. A WorkCover licensed friable asbestos removalist must always carry out the removal of friable asbestos. They must also obtain a site-specific permit from WorkCover to carry out this type of work.

A WorkCover asbestos licence is required to remove 10 square metres or more of bonded asbestos (the size of a small bathroom). The reduction will result in more situations where a licence is required to remove bonded asbestos in NSW. The requirements for friable asbestos are unchanged….

A licence holder with a bonded asbestos removal licence can remove any amount of bonded asbestos provided they notify WorkCover at least seven days before commencing work. Bonded asbestos licence holders are not allowed to remove, repair or disturb any amount of friable asbestos.

Clarence Valley Independent, 9 November 2016:

The map provided to John Edwards, which purports to be a representation of a map given to Clarence Valley Council (CVC) by a former employee, who raised concerns that broken asbestos pipes were dumped within the top red circle and in other areas (not marked) at the site of the new CVC depot at South Grafton. Image: Contributed.

Clarence Valley Council (CVC) has released a map that marks where asbestos was allegedly buried at the site of the new ‘super’ depot under construction at Tyson Street, South Grafton.

The Clarence Environment Centre’s John Edwards was given the map after an appeal against CVC’s rejection of his formal GIPA (Government Information (Public Access)).

A former employee alerted the council, last year, regarding his concerns that fill placed at the site following the decommissioning of the sewerage treatment plant (STP) may have included broken asbestos pipes.

The man told the Independent that he had given the original map to council; and his main concern was the STP’s former sludge lagoon, which is marked on the map given to Mr Edwards.

The former employee said the lagoon was filled over an 18-month to two-year period in the late 1980s or early 1990s.

He said many truckloads of fill, which may have included broken concrete asbestos pipes, building waste and other rubble, were put into the hole, which was then covered with “two to three foot of top soil”…..

Looking at the various public documents – the site’s remediation action plan and supplementary soil investigations prepared by consultants WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff – it’s not clear where or how deep test holes/pits were dug.

A letter and map advising of supplementary soil investigations does not appear to concur with an email (obtained via Mr Edward’s GIPA) from the council’s water cycle manager, Greg Mashiah, to WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff.

Mr Mashiah’s email requests that “four additional test pits to be sampled; 2 in each circle”, which are marked in red with a cross on the supplied map – the one beneath the ‘former sludge pond’ was concerned with possible buried jars of mercury…..

SOUTH GRAFTON ASBESTOS REMOVAL STRATEGY: Clarence Valley Council holding public meeting 5.30pm 1 December 2016 at Grafton council chambers

Any Clarence Valley resident concerned about the amount of asbestos and contaminated landfill found on the old council depot site at South Grafton now being redeveloped by Clarence Valley Council should note this date in their diaries as this is likely the only chance the community will have to sort through the claims and counter claims that have circulated about this site for years.

Clarence Valley Council, media release, 16 November 2016:

Public meeting on depot development

In order to keep members of the public fully informed about the development of a new works depot in South Grafton and how it is dealing with contaminants found there, the Clarence Valley Council will hold a public meeting in Grafton on December 1.

The council’s works and civil director, Troy Anderson, said the organisation was keen to allay any concerns the community might have about how asbestos and other contaminants found at the site were being handled.

“It’s fair to say we have found more there than any of our independent pre-work reports indicated,” he said.

“But now it has been uncovered, we will deal with it and that will be done according to all relevant safety guidelines.

“During excavation of the site about 900kg of bonded asbestos has been found.

“It is a substantial amount, but to put it into perspective that is about 0.015% of the material on site and will all be dealt with in a safe and controlled manner.

“Our contractors have installed air monitoring stations around the boundary of the site, some site staff carry individual air monitoring devices, there has been increased watering and, as a precautionary measure, stockpiles on site have been treated with a polymer spray to provide an increased level of safety.

“The contractors have also kept the neighbouring South Grafton High School and residents informed of developments.”

Mr Anderson said it would add to the cost of the depot project, but it should be remembered the rehabilitation work would be required regardless of whether a depot was going to be built.

“We have to fully decommission that sewer treatment plant and that involves cleaning up the site,” he said.

“This is just something we have to do.”

The meeting will be held in the Grafton chambers of the council from 5.30pm on December 1. Representatives of the contractors and government agencies will also attend.

Release ends.

************************

BACKGROUND

Clarence Valley Independent, 16 November 2016:

December 2015: John Hagger, convenor of Facebook community discussion group, The Clarence Forum, writes to Clarence Valley Council (CVC), advising that a former CVC employee had told him that fill and rubbish, including asbestos cement pipes, had been dumped at the former sewerage treatment plant (STP); Mr Hagger asked CVC for a meeting “to outline and describe the nature of Council’s dumping and assist Council with the actual locations” of the material.
CVC’s works and civil director Troy Anderson responds and notes that the former employee “was heavily involved in the contaminated land surveys…
“… I am expecting that [his] advice … will be in line with … existing information and data…”

January 2016: ABC North Coast and the Independent report on alleged asbestos at the site. Safework NSW inspects the site and advised it is “working with CVC to develop safe systems of work for the remediation”.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) advised that “CVC is the appropriate regulatory authority and is responsible for any asbestos issues on the site”.
CVC’s general manager, Scott Greensill, advised that “all necessary actions in regards to possible asbestos … are being managed in the appropriate and responsible manner.
“…The ongoing raising of this issue is considered to be nothing more that irresponsible scaremongering.”
CVC declined to answer the Independent’s list of questions.

February 2016: CVC issues a media release titled, Warning of misleading claims from petitioners, which alleged that someone had been petitioning nearby residents. Scott Greensill said that “some of the reports [about the petitioner] we have had are disturbing.
“One resident told us the petitioner … made a number of false claims…
“She said he told her the council was going to dump asbestos waste near the [adjacent] South Grafton High School … that is a completely irresponsible claim.”
At the February council meeting, Cr Karen Toms asked the general manager if the remediation budget was adequate, given the alleged asbestos.
Responding, Mr Greensill said that “there is no identified asbestos on the site”.
“Now, if it turns up … we’ve said on multiple occasions that we will manage it…”

March 2016: CVC issues a media release stating that the site “poses no asbestos risk”, following further testing of the site, and that a new report “backs up findings of a report prepared in 2013”. The release states that “an asbestos pipe was identified at the southwest portion of the site” and that “if a significant amount of suspected bonded asbestos is encountered all works must cease and the appropriate additional controls implemented.”

March 2016: Greens MP David Shoebridge lodged questions in the NSW Parliament, regarding the alleged “illegal dumping of asbestos”, asking: “What actions is the Minister taking to ensure that Clarence Valley Council is taking appropriate steps to inform the community, honestly and transparently.”
His questions were answered in June and the Minister assured him that everything was in order and that CVC was working with Safework NSW and the EPA.

June 2016: The general manager writes to John Hagger, telling him that he “did not intend to waste any more of [CVC’s] time and resources addressing allegations, which I believe have already been addressed”.

July 2016: At the July council meeting, Cr Toms asks if she can have a copy of a map that marks the location of alleged contaminated fill, as indicated by the former employee.

She said the council had not been “open and transparent” about the issue. Previously, Mr Greensill had invited Cr Toms to submit a formal GIPA (Government Information (Public Access)) and pay the associated fees “as a member of the public”.
The following comment was published, with her permission, on The Clarence Forum: “The reason he has given me is the issue of alleged asbestos has been dealt with and is not a matter that is before Council.”

September 2016: The Clarence Environment Centre’s John Edwards was given a map of where the alleged asbestos was buried, following an appeal against CVC’s initial rejection of his formal GIPA, on the grounds that “the information that you seek access to was provided to Council in confidence”.
The former employee tells the Independent that the map CVC released was not the same one he had given the council; however, he said his main concern was material dumped in the former STP’s sludge lagoon, as marked on the map given to Mr Edwards.

November 2016: Documents showing that 900 kilograms of asbestos pipes had been discovered during the sieving of 4,000 cubic metres of fill, along with “large pieces of concrete, tires and car parts, chain wire fencing and road markers”, are tabled at the November council meeting.

Clarence Valley Independent, 16 November 2016:

Investigations by Hutchison Builders, the contractor in charge of the project, have revealed that the “stockpiles detailed in the RAP and previous reports provided to Council have grown since the reports and, in many instances, are on top of existing stockpiles.

“This means that what has been assumed to be natural ground is actually uncontrolled fill.

“….The high level of organic material in the fill sifted thus far indicates risks with re-use of the material below the stockpiles and the significant amount of waste in the material will make it difficult to work with.

“In addition there is likely to be further asbestos in this material.

“…In accordance with their obligations the 3rd Party Auditor has notified EPA of the uncontrolled fill and asbestos materials that have been dumped on the site.

“EPA has contacted Council with regards to this and an initial response provided.

“The response was high level and further information is likely to be required by EPA.”

These ‘discoveries’, the PCG minutes state, could result in a variation to the contract of “$1million to $1.4million” if the ‘cleaned’ stockpile is retained and buried on site, however, “this option may not be acceptable to EPA and further advice from EPA may be required”.

“The potential costs for removing all of the uncontrolled fill and bio-solids will be in the order of $2m to 2.5m,” the PCG minutes state.

However, these costs would have had to have been met by CVC in any case, as it is bound to remediate the former sewerage treatment plant irrespective of a depot being constructed or not – and will be paid for out of the council’s sewer fund.

Meanwhile, the report to council states that “discovery and rectification of latent conditions will have an approximate 3 month delay to the overall construction programme”.

Four weeks of this delay was a result of the Parsons Brinckerhoff “RAP report and Technical specification reports [having] not been completed in accordance with EPA requirements”.

The report to council notes: “There remains a risk that NSW EPA may take action toward Council with regard to uncontrolled waste being placed at the site.”

And: “It is proposed that Council assess its options at a future date with regard to the suitability and validity of the RAP … there are numerous discrepancies and inadequacies associated with the document…”

Clarence Valley Independent, October 2016:

The Independent sent a long list of questions to Clarence Valley Council following The Clarence Forum’s allegations that there is asbestos contamination at the proposed ‘super’ depot site at Tyson Street, South Grafton.

However, the general manager Scott Greensill, who described the forum’s convenor John Hagger’s allegations as “irresponsible scaremongering”, chose to answer the questions with the following statement:

“Council takes matters of community and workplace safety very seriously.
“All necessary actions in regards to possible asbestos at the proposed new depot site in Grafton are being managed in the appropriate and responsible manner.

“During the course of the redevelopment project Council is legally obliged to appropriately deal with any waste related matters, including asbestos, and these are encompassed in a site remediation action plan.

“Council has been in discussion with the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) and SafeWork NSW who are both in concurrence with council’s current management and proposed actions.

“Council is aware that anonymous complaints were made to the EPA and SafeWork NSW late last year and these have been adequately attended to.

“Recurrent attempts of raising this matter appear to be emanating from one person, despite Council clearly demonstrating on numerous occasions to relevant authorities that the required protections and plans are in place.

“The ongoing raising of this issue is considered to be nothing more that irresponsible scaremongering.”

The questions posed by the Independent are below:

• SafeWork NSW has advised the Independent that it has “directed Council to ensure the site remains secure and that no unauthorised individuals or workers have access to the site” and that it has “also advised Council to update their asbestos register to reflect that asbestos is present at the site”. Has this occurred?

• How can I access the council’s asbestos register?

• SafeWork NSW has advised the Independent that it “is working with Council to develop safe systems of work for the remediation of the site set to start in early 2016”. How and when do you envisage that this will take place?

• If asbestos was known to be onsite (as reported by the ABC), why was this information omitted from the State Environment Planning Policy checklist – marked as not relevant – regarding Table 55 in the Managing Land Contamination Planning Guidelines, SEPP 55–Remediation of Land, when the planning proposal was exhibited?

• The planning proposal comment, however, says that “Council is in any case stepping through a ‘remediation action plan’ (RAP) process in respect of the contamination that has been detected at the site. If it’s not Table 55 contamination (eg asbestos); what are the specific contaminants referred to in the RAP?

• The EPA has publically stated that “asbestos on the site would require remediation before the land is developed”. However, director Troy Anderson stated in the ABC report that, “Council has a remediation action plan for the entire site which has identified a certain area which may have asbestos materials and we’ll be dealing with that as we move through construction.” Your statement is contrary to what was stated by the EPA [remediation before the land is developed]. What is the council doing regarding this apparent conflict?
• Will the site be remediated before any construction commences?

• The council’s asbestos policy states: “It is illegal to dispose of asbestos waste in domestic waste bins or to recycle, reuse, BURY or ILLEGALLY DUMP [the Independent’s emphasis] asbestos waste.” The council appears to have breached this policy, what is your response to that?

• Is the asbestos onsite regarded as friable or non-friable?

• What are the products onsite that contain asbestos?

• It has been alleged that some of the material dumped at the site has subsequently been removed and used elsewhere – has this occurred?

• If so, does CVC have a record of where this material has been used?

• It has been alleged that local residents may have removed material from the site, which may be contaminated by asbestos – what is CVC doing to manage this?

• What action does the council plan to take to advise and/or protect its employees regarding the asbestos, in accordance with the council’s asbestos policy?

Clarence Valley Council, media release, 10 February 2016:

Warning of misleading claims from petitioners

CLARENCE Valley residents, particularly those in the South Grafton area, have been advised to be cautious about information they might get from petitioners operating in the

area.

Clarence Valley Council general manager, Scott Greensill, said residents had contacted the council’s customer service centres saying they had been approached to sign a petition

opposing the possible development of a new works depot in Tyson Street, South Grafton.

Mr Greensill said council had no issue with people expressing their opinions about developments or council activities, but encouraged those approached to seek more

information about any proposals before signing petitions.

“Some of the reports we have had are disturbing,” he said.

“One resident told us the petitioner refused to give his name and made a number of false claims about the possible depot development.

“She said he told her the council was going to dump asbestos waste near the South Grafton High School and that children were going to die from it. That is a completely irresponsible

claim.

“She also said there would be lights flashing all night, there would be machinery going at all hours and her property value would drop.

“She refused to sign his petition.

“People have a democratic right to voice their opinions about council and its operations, but they need to do that based on factual information – not on the basis of something someone

who refuses to identify himself has told them.

“If any residents or ratepayers want any factual information about this or any other proposal they should contact our customer service team.”

Release ends.

Well, you did open that particular door Mr. Editor.....

This is what happens when an editor opens his mouth about a subject about which he knows very little……

The Daily Examiner, letter to the editor, p. 9:

Diverse communities of interest

Your reference in your editorial (9/9), "The divisions and jealousies between the different area's - particularly the up river/down river divide have to be dealt with decisively" by the new Council, is dripping with hypocrisy.

Many people may have been justified in believing there was a "division" when the DEX received the CVC's block advertising at the expense of the Independent.

You may find it "stunning" that rates balance between different area's still lingers after a dozen years, but it demonstrates profound ignorance of the diverse economies and different communities of interests that exist within the shire that demand contrasting services and facilities.

The driver of the lower Clarence Airport Shuttle will tell you the services to the Ballina Airport are far greater than to Grafton Airport. The market therefore suggests the lower Clarence is paying for a Grafton Airport it does not require.

In fact the Grafton Airport was in the Ulmarra Shire and it too saw no need for it. It was Grafton and its business economy that needed it, so it took over its costs. However, since amalgamation, it has been able to offload these costs onto communities that have no need for it.

Similar arguments can be put for the expensive services provided by the Grafton Regional Gallery and Library from which Grafton enjoys the direct benefit. Are our kids really expected to skateboard down the Pacific Highway, enjoy these services and then ride back for tea?

The then State Government forced four councils of rural, urban and coastal communities, each with their differing economies and communities of interests, into one council to cover a massive 10,440sqm, under the delusion there would be tremendous savings from economies of scale. In fact the only one that gained savings was the State Government in its allocation of Financial Assistant Grants.

Having spent a day at a Yamba polling booth, I experienced first hand the white hot anger directed at the CVC and it's up river centric governance. And they have every right to be angry. The Maclean Shire Council lived modestly within its means, paying rates 200% lower than the "City" of Grafton which had no bridges and only 180km of roads to maintain in its tiny 80sqkm area. For the past decade this rate burden has progressively been transferred down river to pay for questionable services it does not need.

With great respect, these services are not "jealousies" as you refer to them, they are economical facts.

As is the fact that the DEX received the CVC's lucrative block advertising at the expense of the Independent, suggesting the DEX is no more than an instrument of CVC propaganda to influence public opinion.

Ray Hunt

Yamba

Memo for Kevin Hogan (The Nationals) Member for Page

Yesterday, Thursday 19 May, a regular at the table of knowledge at the local watering hole reported on a visit to the city of Grafton, which is in the federal electorate of Page that's currently held by the National Party's Kevin Hogan.

A short walk along the western side of the main block of Grafton's main street (Prince Street) between Fitzroy and Pound Streets at 10.30am, revealed six vacant business premises. A sad sign indeed! And the eastern side wasn't much better.

And if that wasn't bad enough, our mate decided to visit the premises occupied by the local federal Member for Page, which is also located in that same, sad western section of Prince Street, to express concerns about the state-of-play in the economy of the southern end of the electorate of Page. However, that wasn't possible as the MP's office was closed until 12.30pm. That, according to our mate, said it all. 

Our mate couldn't help but notice a plethora of signs featuring the National Party member's face plastered on fences and walls around the Jacaranda city with the vast majority of them on vacant blocks and premises. What does that say!?Is the incumbent Member for Page specialising in empty spaces?

Footnote: our mate also reported seeing a sign outside a Grafton business informing potential customers of its "speicals" [sic].

The riotous history of Lismore, New South Wales

Papers Past:

Snake! Snake! Snake!

The Daily Examiner 22 March 2013:

EIGHTY-seven-year-old bingo enthusiast Una Walters responded to the cry of "snake" faster than she could say "house" at South Grafton Ex-Servicemen's club last week.

A red-bellied black snake interrupted the weekly meat raffle on Friday by crawling up a lady's leg.

As the club's secretary manager Col Green panicked and scrambled for a handbag to capture the metre-long intruder, one of his most loyal customers leapt into action.

"I turn around, and here's Una standing there with the snake in one hand," Mr Green said.

"I'm not scared of the bastard!" Una shouted as she held the snake near its head.

It was about 6.45pm last Friday and the meat draw was well under way when someone from a table in the centre of the room yelled: "Snake! Snake! Snake!"

Commotion ensued and people scattered from their chairs as the red-bellied black slithered its way between the feet of scurrying patrons and club staff.

"He (the snake) had crawled up a woman's leg and tried to curl around it," Mr Green said.

"I grabbed a lady's handbag, hoping to get the snake in there so we could send him on his way."

The perpetrator evaded being caught for some time until Una intervened.

"I turn around and here's Una standing there with the snake in one hand," Mr Green said…..

Glenugie Coal Seam Gas Protesters in Grafton Court

Eighteen persons charged with offences associated with the protest against Coal Seam Gas at the Glenugie site to the south of Grafton appeared in Grafton Local Court today. Pleas of not guilty were entered in relation to the vast majority of the charges.

Protester Benny Zable

It was somewhat ironic that an over-full court house necessitated about a dozen of the accused persons to be seated in the jury box. Supporters of the protesters packed the court room to the rafters; both the ground floor and upper level public galleries were chock-a-block with a crowd estimated to be about 100.

Magistrate David Heilpern ordered the prosecution to prepare briefs of evidence in relation to the accused persons by Monday 4th March and adjourned the matters until Monday 11th March at the Grafton Court when they will be listed for mention. The Magistrate excused those with legal representation from appearing in person on March 11th.

Most of the defendants' court appearances were relatively brief. However, two had somewhat lengthier appearances. 

John Wyborn, who appeared in custody as a consequence of refusing to sign bail forms, was released after Magistrate Heilpern acknowledged the protest site at Glenugie was no longer active and revised Wyborn's bail conditions.

Another protester Benny Zable, who represented himself, told the court the charges were lies and distortions and he had DVD evidence to support his claims. He told the court that he is a performance artist with performances existing on the world stage and the charges were damaging his work.

Magistrate Heilpern explained to Zable how he (Zable) could make representation to the police to have the charges against him dropped. However, Magistrate Heilpern advised Zable to obtain legal advice about taking that course of action and providing the DVD evidence to the prosecution because it could impact detrimentally on other matters associated with the protesters that are before the court.

Sadly, some things never change

Letter to the Editor,
The Daily Examiner,
Grafton

This is a letter that asks a stark, grim question and is addressed, in part, to whoever left two little kittens on the street on New Year's Eve. Why did you dump two little kittens, just putting them in a box and leaving them in the street, not caring if they had shelter or food? There's a skinny dog that prowls by the garbage bins and around the park seats and if he finds a bone or a crust he is having a lucky day. If you are worthy to own a dog, it is your decent duty to feed him and give him the best you can.

Mrs D Rowlands,
RSPCA

Source: The Daily Examiner, 6/2/1963

(reprinted in " Backward Glances: From The Daily Examiner, Fifty Years Ago",

compiled by Chris Nield, 6/2/2013)

Clarence Valley less than impressed by Stoner's jobs announcement

The NSW Nats just can’t take a trick since they failed to support an electorate which made the mistake of voting for one of their candidates.

The Daily Examiner Editor Jenna Cairney on the 21^st July 2012:

"YESTERDAY'S news of supposed new jobs was greeted with a wave of valid criticism from readers.

In the next seven weeks (one week is already up) I predict we'll be faced with a wave of creative accounting, press releases, spin and nonsense as the NSW Government tries to silence the courageous and dissatisfied people of the Clarence Valley.

Apart from the fact it seems the 30 jobs were already planned as part of the Pacific Hwy upgrade, the fact is the temporary positions do little for the long term and even less for the families of the jail workers.”

In June 2012 the NSW unemployment rate was 5.1%. Because Clarence Valley’s unemployment rate is usually 1 to 2% higher than the state rate, depending on where in the valley you live (youth unemployment is much higher and in double digits), many locals were also less than impressed with this jobs announcement.

Here are just a few quotes from the online comments:

"A state government listening to us"? These thirty jobs have not changed my view of how O'Farrell & Stoner handled the Grafton gaol affair. The 30 jobs on offer are in the thimble and pea group, that are there for a while and then just disappear.”

“This announcement is cheap government propaganda... the decimation of the public service in regional NSW is not over yet... don't forget Sydney is the centre of the universe and all services need to be within a comfortable 2 hours of this mecca. Bring on the election!”

“The Nationals scrambling to save face and trying to disprove the idea that a vote for the Nationals is a wasted vote. Not convinced.”

“These future jobs with the RMS are all very well to be bandied around with such spin; they probably were already in the pipeline pre the prison job cutbacks. However, how many displaced prison employees can fill the criteria for being a project manager, surveillance officer or engineer?”

“This piece of news from Stoner really is an insult to the intelligence of all those who call the Clarence Valley home.”

Moving Grafton Town

I may have a cunning plan to save Grafton before the NSW Government closes us down altogether; it came to me while watching an old episode of Monster Moves.

Why don’t we pack up the city and move it into Kuring-Gai National Park (on the northern border of Sydney).

This has many advantages:

·    Coalition politicians may know where this is, therefore they may visit and listen to us;

·    when the rest of the services in Grafton are shut down (public hospital etc.) we will already be living near alternative facilities;

·    when more jobs leave the town, we will all be closer to new sources of employment;

·    the state government saves money by not having to build a new bridge across the Clarence River, if in fact they ever were;

·    moving into such a centrally positioned park will create a great place for a new call centre or gaol to replace the latest jobs lost;

·    it opens the current site of Grafton for coal seam gas production, and as more and more people left the Clarence Valley there would be no-one to object to heavy metal contamination from antimony mining;

·    those now unemployed Grafton Gaol warders could collect bush tucker and hunt feral animals for food;

·     we would be in the electorate of the Premier of NSW Hon. Barry Robert O’Farrell and therefore(unlike our current member Mr Chris Gulaptis) it would be impossible for him to say that he didn’t know what was happening to us;

AND the very best thing

·    we could then vote Mr. O’Farrell out of office if he refused to notice our concerns.

Grafton punters want to know where they collect their "winnings"

A sub-editor at The Daily Examiner provided a bit more than a ripple of laughter at the table of knowledge at the local watering hole today. The feature event at the Grafton races yesterday, the Ramornie Handicap, was taken out by the favourite Howmuchdoyouloveme, so why did the Examiner print the photo, with its accompanying caption, below?

For the record, Prost ran  second, so perhaps the Examiner can point punters who backed it in the direction of a benevolent bookmaker who'll pay out on it.

Credit: The Daily Examiner, 12/7/12, page 29

The reason Nats Chris Gulaptis MP was not at Grafton Gaol when prison transfer vans arrived - he expected manufactured confrontation!

The Clarence Valley at its best in defence of community....

Robertson at the Grafton Gaol picket line 10-11 July 2012

The Daily Examiner’s Debrah Novak films Opposition Leader John Roberstson

at the Grafton Gaol picket line 10-11 July 2012

 

 

"The mass sackings announced at Grafton Gaol today is a huge broken promise from the O'Farrell Stoner Government......During the Clarence by-election, Mr O'Farrell, Mr Stoner and Clarence MP Chris Gulaptis promised there would be no cuts or closure of Grafton Gaol. Now, we are seeing massive job losses that will quite simply devastate the local community." [NSW Opposition Leader John Robertson,29 June 2012]