Canyonleigh’s Bush Fire Brigade has been successful in obtaining a $30,000 grant for the emergency tank project as previously reported in The Chronicle. This amount represents some two thirds of the required funding.  We have put in a second application for the full funding however, at the time of publication; we have not received a reply.
Currently, thanks to some very generous donations, we have raised $10,000 so we are still short $5,000. If you haven’t yet donated please call Frank Downes on 4878 9388.
Our timing is to have the tanks installed before the end of October, just prior to the peak of bush fire season.  The tanks will be strategically located in areas where water supplies are either limited or non-existent.

With your help, we can get over the line and make this project a reality.

Should we be successful in obtaining full funding we will use any surplus monies to upgrade brigade communications allowing us to purchase more handheld radios and universal battery chargers. This is of particular importance as currently the Captain (Mark Pearson) and the Snr Deputy Captain (Brett Bannerman) work out of the area and have a delayed response time. Having a radio will allow them to communicate and co-ordinate the brigade’s response while they drive to the fire.

COMMUNITY TRAINING

Have you decided what your fire plan will be? You should have – it should be kept in a prominent place in your home, it is not something you construct as the fire is approaching. When you make this decision remember if you decide to stay and defend you risk your life, that of your family and members of the fire brigade. Making this decision without being fully informed and trained is irresponsible, it must be carefully considered.

Can you answer the following questions.
What is an asset protection zone
Do you have one around your house
How dangerous are gaps around windows/doors
To what distance do you need to have cleared all leaf litter/flammable material away from your house
Do you have a petrol or diesel powered pump
Do you know how to maintain these pumps and how easily they can fail
How big a water source should you have
What do plastic tanks do in a fire
What should I wear to protect myself
What size hose should I have to protect my house 12ml, 20ml, 38ml
What is more dangerous ember attack or direct radiant attack
What can I do about a fire hazard adjourning my property
How useful are mops and buckets
What is the difference between an extreme and catastrophic fire day
Of the 173 people who died in Victoria how many were children and the aged
Should young and old people be part of a stay and defend fire plan
Have you ever been in a life threatening situation and do you know how you would respond
Can I evacuate when I see/smell smoke

If you cannot answer positively to any of the above questions or you are unsure about any aspect of your fire plan, as the above are only some of the issues, then you and your neighbours should take advantage of a Community Fire Training Day to be held on 18 September 2010 commencing 0800 at the Fire Shed. The day is highly experiential and is run by Frances Crown, a brigade member with over 25 years experience in adult education. It is designed to be both fun and informative for both novice or those more experienced. If you only get one piece of information out of this session it may be the piece that saves your life: so come along.

For details please contact Frances Crown on 4878 9272 or
francescrown@yahoo.com

The IMB Foundation has pledged a total of $7000 to the Volwing Outreach Program, run by Volunteering Wingecarribee.  This program aims to visit the outlying villages in the shire to discuss volunteering within the community.

Established in 2003, Volunteering Wingecarribee is the sole Volunteer Centre in the NSW Southern Highlands. It plays and essential role in helping the community across a wide range of services such as disability assistance, education initiatives, health care and environmental sustainability.

“We currently have only one base for recruiting volunteers for our not-for-profit organisations and that is in Moss Vale.  This program and the IMB grant will expand our ability to better meet the needs of community groups,” said Judi Rose, Manager of Volunteering Wingecarribee.

“The work of the committed volunteers in our community is inspirational, and the more people who are able to be helped by their generosity and presence, the better,” said Di Manley, IMB Bowral BranchManager.

The Volunteer Centre will be visiting Canyonleigh on Wednesday 22nd September and would like to invite anyone to come along to the General Store between 10am and 12 noon.  Come and have a chat about volunteering and enjoy morning tea.

We would love to hear of volunteering that goes on in Canyonleigh and also hear from anyone looking for volunteers or volunteer work.  For more information, phone 4869 4617 or email %3

Canyonleigh locals Jenny Stewart, Cindy Pryma and Julie Blanchard are three very special people and they have combined forces with other talented Southern Highlands locals, Mandy Bransgrove, Monique Bastin and Amanda Aitken to bring the production of Olivia to the stage.

No it’s not a typing error, the play is called Olivia and is the story of a young orphan girl that mirrors the story of Oliver Twist and is set in Victorian England. It traces the steps of Olivia, from downtrodden orphan to star of the stage. On her journey to the bright lights of London, she is befriended by Eliza Doolittle and finally becomes a singer, thanks to the unlikely assistance of Fagin and the Artful Dodger!

British composer and playwright Malcolm Sircom wrote Olivia with wonderful humour and colourful songs. Characters include Ebenezer Scrooge, Sherlock Holmes & George Bernard Shaw, to name a few.

Olivia is SHYAC’s (Southern Highlands Youth Arts Council) inaugural junior production for children aged 8 and 14 years. This new initiative will enable SHYAC’s younger members to experience more fully the stage from audition to performance. The SHYAC production team believes that in this way they will be able to nurture the children in a caring, creative and educational environment.

When the call for auditions went out the production team were overwhelmed with 130 interested children of all ages applying. 106 were auditioned for a cast of 60. No easy task. Then rehearsals began!

The production team members bring together a vast range of skills and experience such as a professional television and theatre actor and producer, a high school drama teacher and theatre sports teacher/coach, a songwriter/performer and music teacher, a professional dancer plus a fibre artist and designer. Their combined talent will ensure this production will be of the highest standard and will appeal to audiences of all ages.

Opening night for Olivia will be at the Mittagong Playhouse on Friday 22 October at 7pm. Other performances will follow.

For further information about this production check out the SHYAC website on the special page for Olivia.
http://members.shyac.org.au/OliviaInformationPage

In all, 10 rounds of trivia from the 1980’s produced a tight game and the winning table noticed a trend. If you have the table to the left of the stage you have a very good chance of winning. Grant Blanchard and his team will be looking to make an extra donation to next year’s fundraising just to ensure they get that table again.

With more than 60 people at the event, the evening raised $797 for the Canyonleigh Emergency Aid project, giving the project a vital financial boost to their running costs.
Without the generosity of the following sponsors the evening wouldn’t have been possible. If you are able to use the services of any of these individuals or businesses please consider it in way of a return thanks.

George Barnett
Moss Vale Butcher
Winter Hill Tree Farm
John & Judithe McKindley
Glenfion Wine
Canyonleigh Store
Tomahawk Vineyard
Brondale Park Olive Grove
Rosa Antonio Valley Wine
Video Ezy Moss Vale
Moss Vale Newsagency
BWS Moss Vale
Soul Patterson Chemist Moss Vale
Iris Skin & Beauty Moss Vale
Jim’s Fruit Barn Moss Vale
IGA Supermarket Moss Vale

Tugalong Station has been running for years as a tourism facility with horse riding and accommodation. The proposal details the upgrade of the existing infrastructure such as accommodation and the addition of areas for camping grounds, bike tracks, acoustic earth mounding, fencing and the regeneration of areas previously used as tracks. The application contains reports addressing the management of noise, soil and water, water cycling, flora and fauna assessment, bushfire, refuge and evacuation during bushfire. A separate plan of management for Tugalong Station was also contained in the proposal.

Public viewing of the DA was made available by Council at the Council Chambers in Moss Vale, through Canyonleigh Store and by a public exhibition at Canyonleigh Hall on 10th August. This public display at the hall was an opportunity for local residents to see the development details first hand and to talk to the Council’s planning department about the application detail and the process Council will undertake in making their determination. Residents turned out in force throughout the two and half hours of the exhibition. Even the local paper sent someone out from town.

The application has been lodged under the new LUA as a “Recreation Facility – Outdoor” rather than a “Recreation Facility – Major” as this is not permissible on the property zoning as RU1 And E3 (Environmental Management).
Canyonleigh residents have stated that they are most concerned about the noise generated by the bikes, pollution from dust drifting and settling in dams and tanks, the increased threat of bushfire and problems caused by the increased amount of traffic on the already difficult thoroughfares of Canyonleigh, Tugalong and Inverary Roads. Then there is the additional problem of wildlife on the roads. Concerns have also been raised about the proposed number of riders per day listed at 320 that does not include non-riding visitors. Operating hours have been listed as open from Fridays to Tuesdays, closed most Wednesdays and Thursdays outside of school holidays and operating only through daylight hours, which will vary seasonally.

The Canyonleigh Community Association along with the Southern Villages Group and a number of local residents have lodged submissions stating their concerns and opposition to this development. The closing date for submissions to be lodged to Council was August 16. Council indicated that they have received a large amount of submissions in support of the development from both within and outside the Shire and that they will be assessing each submission on its merit.
Keen supporters of the proposal include recreational riders, families involved in motorbike riding as well as professional bike riding organizations. They all have the same message, this will be a big drawcard for riders of all ages and that there is a real need for a bike park with good tracks and facilities and where safety is a key feature.

Council are now processing the development application, which may include calling for further details from the applicant. Council departments and committees will review the proposal and prepare reports to address specific areas. An example of this will be the WSC Traffic Committee report that will take in the entire length of the journey to Tugalong Station. Other statutory bodies including Sydney Catchment Authority are also involved in processing the application and areas of significance will include regeneration areas, future tracks and fencing to block direct access to the river. The issue of the Wildlife Corridor will be covered under the Illawarra Regional Plan with input from other agencies including SCA and NPWS. Council also indicated that they can put conditions on the approval but these are also subject to appeal and that the appeal process can be lengthy.

So this isn’t going to be resolved quickly or easily.

The second proposal comes in the form of coal mining. Not something unfamiliar to the Southern Highlands or indeed Canyonleigh.

The sudden announcement that long wall coal mining is being proposed on an exploration mining lease at Sutton Forest that is currently held by Anglo American plc brought people out on a cold August night to a meeting convened by Goulburn MP Pru Goward and Sutton Forest resident Peter Martin. Held at Sutton Forest Hall, it was standing room only with around 300 people packed into the meeting. Representatives from Cockatoo Coal Limited, rather than Anglo American, addressed the meeting and faced a barrage of questions from irate residents.

Cockatoo Coal Limited, with mining assets in Central Queensland, has entered into a consortium with KEPCO (Korea Electric Power Company) and POSCO (Pohang Iron and Steel Company) both from South Korea, to acquire the coal development and exploration assets of Anglo American plc which includes the Sutton Forest lease. Through a map titled Southern Coalfield – Current Coal Mining and Exploration Tiles and located on the NSW Department of Planning website, the Chronicle has discovered that the exploration lease covers a large area. The approximate area runs from the boundary with Berrima Colliery at Medway in the north, to as far east as Peppers Mt Broughton, south towards the Shell Service Centre and west towards Foxgrove Road. This proposed coalfield is described by Cockatoo Coal as being in an established coalfield with existing rail infrastructure linking Port Kembla.

Under the terms of the consortium POSCO agrees to acquire 100% of the Sutton Forest development and transfer 30% to Cockatoo Coal. The key conditions to this are approval by the Foreign Investment Review Board. POSCO is one of the world’s largest steel manufacturers and coal consumers. It is also the largest shareholder of Cockatoo Coal. Another large shareholder of Cockatoo Coal, KEPCO is part of the consortium with Cockatoo Coal that will see a similar acquisition arrangement at an additional coalfield near Mudgee. KEPCO is South Korea’s largest power generator and distributor and is a top 10 global consumer of coal. According to Cockatoo Coal’s website this expansion provides the company with enhanced geographic diversity with Sutton Forest providing exposure to a hard coking coal resource.

Cockatoo Coal also state that there are 115 million tonnes of coking coal with a conceptual life time of 30 years at the Sutton Forest site but other reports put this figure much higher at around 300 million tonnes. At the community meeting it was stated that plan was still in early stages and that mining wouldn’t commence for several years. Perhaps this was why the Cockatoo Coal representatives weren’t able to answer many of the questions posed at the meeting. The sheer size of the investment does indicate how seriously they’re looking at this coalfield. The meeting concluded with the establishment of the Southern Highlands Coal Action Group (SHCAG).

Since the meeting at Sutton Forest Hall, the Council unanimously voted to support the newly formed Southern Highlands Coal Action Group. However under current NSW Legislation significant state projects are approved directly by the Minister for Planning and do not provide for consultation with local government.

The effects of longwall mining are well documented and the subsidence produced damages the land, property infrastructure, water supplies and subsequently wildlife. Google “longwall mining side effects” and you’ll get a good idea of threat to our community if this proposal is approved.

To contact SHCAG email pmartin@bigpond.net.au.

Interestingly a number of larger media publications around Australia have run this story highlighting the threat to Nicole Kidman’s Sutton Forest property. It can’t hurt – isn’t all PR good PR?

This training is aimed at those people who need to make a decision whether to stay and defend OR to leave early.  This day will help you to understand what will be involved and how to plan for a bushfire.

The day is very practical and designed to be fun as well as educational. The morning session opens with theory on fire behaviour, personal protective clothing and equipment, preparation of your home, what to take when you leave if that is your plan and on extreme and catastrophic weather days. A guest speaker shares her fire plan and an activity explores stress and operating under stressful situations.

The afternoon begins with simulating what it will be like in a fire before participants move outside to extinguish a number of blazes using common household resources like mops and buckets.

The day concludes with a session on pumps and hoses, each participant gaining practice in starting pumps and using hoses to extinguish spot fires that erupt around them.

The feedback to date on these courses has been excellent with word of them reaching fire control in town who have asked the Brigade to give a presentation on their content.

The course is free and is open to anybody (including weekenders) in the area who think they may benefit from it.
The only course scheduled for this year is being held on Saturday 18 September 2010. It will commence at 0800 and finish around 1600. Lunch is supplied with a gold coin donation requested. All you need to bring is yourself, a pen and notebook and wear the type of clothing you will wear if a fire is threatening your property.

Spaces are limited so please book early with Frances Crown on 4878 9272.

The document link is below:

RFS Proposal Document 2.2MB Download

Download recommended for broadband at 392KB

Click here to see this gorgeous pictorial.

On days where a rating of Catastrophic is declared and residents are urged to leave their properties, the Canyonleigh Emergency Aid service will be suspended until such time as the rating is lifted.
This decision has taken some considerable thought and has not been taken lightly. One of the first rules of rendering first aid is to remain safe. On these few days of threat it is our duty of care as a community to ensure that all CEA volunteers have the opportunity to relocate to somewhere safe, regardless of whether they are on call or not.
If you are in need of emergency medical assistance or with someone who is in need of emergency medical assistance during a period of declared Catastrophic fire rating please ensure you dial 000 for an ambulance as you would normally do.
Once the Catastrophic fire rating has been lifted and it is safe for residents to return, the Canyonleigh Emergency Aid service will be active again.
Remember, if you need emergency medical assistance dial 000 for an ambulance and then dial 0488 789 000 to contact the rostered on call first aid volunteer. Quoting your rural number will ensure that help is able to arrive more quickly.