Harden

Issue: Resource Use

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In the 2004 Regional State of the Environment Report (RSoER) two issues papers covered community wellbeing and resource use for each Council. Previous ’Community Wellbeing‘ indicators have not been reported on in this RSoER following a decision by the RSOER workshop in July 2007 as these indicators are now covered in the Council’s Social Plan .

Under the requirements of the New South Wales (NSW) Local Government Act 1993, reporting of Heritage (both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal) and Noise is mandatory in State of the Environment Reports.

What changes took place during the reporting period?

Strongly affected by drought with level 4 restrictions and use of recycled water on sports fields
Continued drinking water quality of a high standard
Population is reducing in number but growing in age
The main noise complaint problems were in relation to barking dogs
Harden Waste Strategy 2008 adopted with 50% reduction to landfill target
Little change to the listed heritage estate.

Table 1. General apparent emerging trends in Harden Shire Council area from the 2008 RSoER
Council Locations	Coastal Councils Eurobodalla Bega Valley	Alpine Councils Tumut Tumbarumba Snowy River Bombala Cooma/Monaro	Major Regional Centre Councils Queanbeyan Yass Goulburn/ Mulwaree	Inland Councils Young Boorowa Upper Lachlan Cootamundra Harden Gundagai Palerang
Population Size change	Increased population	Declining population	Increased population	Declined population
Population age change	Aging population	Aging population	Aging population	Aging population
Heritage	Spending on heritage programs	Spending on heritage programs	Spending on heritage programs	Spending on heritage programs
Noise	Main complaints - barking dogs. Improved noise compliance outcomes	Main complaints - barking dogs. Improved noise compliance outcomes	Main complaints - barking dogs. Improved noise compliance outcomes	Main complaints - barking dogs. Improved noise compliance outcomes
Waste	Good initiatives/ reduction strategies in place Improved data collection	Good initiatives/ reduction strategies in place	Good initiatives/ reduction strategies in place Improved data collection	Good initiatives/ reduction strategies in place
Water Quality	Consistent High Water Quality	Consistent High Water Quality	Consistent High Water Quality	Consistent High Water Quality
Water Availability	Higher potential evaporation Water restrictions	Higher potential evaporation Water restrictions	Higher potential evaporation Water restrictions	Higher potential evaporation Water restrictions

Source: The information in this table is collated from data supplied by Councils (collated by OCSE)

Water

Harden Shire is fortunate to have an assured water supply coming from the Murrumbidgee River. This supply is part of a large drinking water supply system operated by Goldenfields Water County Council, which is fully treated at the Jugiong drinking water treatment plant. This water is then supplied by pipeline providing water to Cootamundra, Young, Harden and other communities

The application of Level 4 water restrictions to domestic use in 2007-08, together with the watering of town sports fields by recycled water, has cut overall water consumption by about 25% since 2006-07.

The Harden Shire drinking water supply is of excellent and consistent quality. The Jugiong water treatment plant has full treatment facilities, and uses chlorine disinfection for the supply. The Shire supply is fluoridated. The supply provides water for 2,700 people in Harden Shire.

Population

Harden Shire population remains relatively static with only a small percentage fall in growth observed. According to the 2006 Census there were 3,725 residents in the Shire with an estimated 3,683 in 2007. Since the end of the previous State of the Environment Reporting period, the population of the shire is estimated to have fallen by 0.6% or 35 persons.

Compared with NSW as a whole, Harden Shire has a higher aged population, a comparative Indigenous population and a small increase in the proportion of persons born overseas which is similar to the level observed for the State as a whole.

The composition of households has continued the trend noted in the 2004 report with a further reduction in the number of households comprising couples with children and a consequent increase in couples without children and also lone person households. These are similar to trends observed in other councils. Harden’s Social Plan is committed to addressing these issues.

Noise

Barking dogs continued to be the small yet main source of noise complaints received by the Shire Council in this reporting period. In all instances Shire Council negotiated a result with the complainant and the dog owner without having to resort to the use of orders or referrals to the Community Justice System. As mentioned above the main noise complaints to Shire Council were in relation to dogs followed by noise complaints for noisy rooster, and mini bikes. Shire Council did not undertake any ambient noise monitoring in the period of this report therefore it is not possible to report on trends.

Reducing solid waste

Harden Shire Council recently adopted the Harden Shire Waste Strategy 2008, which forms the framework for waste management in the shire, and sets a target of a reduction in waste to landfill of 50% by 2010. It is difficult to get an accurate picture of progress in this period as data collected by Shire Council shows wide variation from year to year, and Shire Council notes that this may reflect previous errors in data collection methods. Data collection improved towards the end of the reporting period and with the use of weighbridges at the Jugiong landfill site and the collection of kerbside recyclables data will become more available and accurate in the future. Figures from this reporting period show a drop in total waste generation of 6% over the period, with a rise in waste to landfill being countered by a large drop in materials recycled from 2004-08.

Despite the difficulty in gathering a clear picture of waste generation patterns in Harden Shire Council has ensured that residents can maximise their recycling by providing town residents with a kerbside recycling service in addition to the kerbside garbage collection. Rural residents have access to the shire’s transfer stations using a voucher system, and all residents can freely access drop off points for recyclables.

Harden Shire Council no longer operates any landfill facilities. Like several other Councils in the region, they use the privately run landfill facility at Jugiong for all landfill needs. This enables access to a quality of waste management and data collection which is sometimes difficult to achieve individually with the small scale of many rural Councils.

Heritage

Changes to the listed heritage estate for Harden Shire over the past four years show that all 26 places reported in the 2004 RSoER as being on the draft Local Environment Plan (LEP) are no longer included as the 1999 draft LEP did not proceed. This means that there have never been any heritage places subject to the protection of the Harden Shire LEP. However Shire Council is currently undertaking a Shire wide Heritage Study to identify items for inclusion in the upcoming comprehensive LEP.

As far as the other heritage registers are concerned, there have been no changes to the number of places protected since 2004.

The future what does this mean for the Shire Council?

For water

The application of Level 4 water restrictions to domestic use in 2007/08, together with the watering of town sports fields by recycled water, has cut overall water consumption by about 25% since 2006/07.

Good consistency data collection should be continued to ensure that direct comparisons on water quality between differing reporting periods can be continued.

For population

Along with many other jurisdictions in Australia, Harden Shire Council will need to consider the impacts of an ageing population on its economy, and infrastructure. As noted above the composition of households has continued the trend noted in the 2004 RSoER with a further reduction in the number of households comprising couples with children and a consequent increase in couples without children and also lone person households. These are similar to trends observed in other Councils. Harden’s Social Plan is committed to addressing these issues.

For noise

The Shire Council in this reporting period embarked upon an education program with the owners of domestic animals reminding and advising them that consideration should be given to the impact of noise o the quiet enjoyment of neighbouring properties.

The Shire Council may wish to consider developing a system for keeping statistics on mechanisms for resolution or time taken by staff on resolving these noise issues. These statistics could assist the Shire Council in further planning for resolving noise complaints especially with regard to time management and resources outcomes.

The Shire Council should also consider measuring ambient noise.

For waste management

Harden Shire Council’s target of 50% reduction in waste to landfill by 2010 is admirable, but more complete and accurate data is needed to assess progress towards it. Further reduction of the waste stream is possible through a number of smaller actions such as education campaigns, and increasing the variety of items residents are able to recycle in the Shire. Large reductions in waste to landfill would be possible if organics were also collected and recycled by the Shire Council but economies of scale may make this unfeasible.

For Heritage

No information is available on the condition of heritage sites during the reporting period and little information on condition prior to the reporting period either. It would be beneficial for the Shire Council to address these gaps to develop a future benchmark from which to work.

The Shire Council has had neither a heritage grants program nor heritage advisory service since 2005. During this reporting period, no resources were allocated from the Shire Council budget for heritage identification and/or management. However, a recent grant from the NSW Heritage Office is funding a community based heritage study. Continued access to these grants should be a priority.

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Regional State of the Environment Report 2008