National Awards for Innovation in Local
Government 1999 Winners
Environment
Sponsored by Westpac
Category Award
Newcastle City Council NSW
Australian Municipal Energy Improvement Fund (AMEIF)
Newcastle Council has saved $593,000 on its electricity bill
through its Green Energy Project. Savings from this project are
re-invested through the AMEIF to buy products and services that
further reduce the Council's energy consumption. Council has
successfully trained other councils in establishing similar energy
funds.
Rural Award
Southern Midlands Council TAS
Lake Dulverton Wetland Rehabilitation Project
Previously known for its sandstorms and dry and lifeless
landscape, Lake Dulverton now supports a growing bird population. The
Lake was reclaimed by community volunteers in a project coordinated
by Southern Midlands Council. Fifty-one hectares of the Lake was
reclaimed by building a 460m dam wall and laying pipe to bring excess
water to the Lake from other water sources.
Information Technology and Organisational Practices
Sponsored by Online Australia
Category Award and National Award
Ipswich City Council QLD
GIS Development Application Tracking System
Prior to this system, Ipswich Council relied on textural data,
manual filing systems and site inspections to assess and track
development applications. Using existing GIS software, council
combined spatial data with textural data to enable staff to view and
assess proposed development sites at the desktop. The system also
allows staff to display and discuss applications with customers, as
required by the new Queensland Integrated Planning Act 1997.
Rural Award
Buloke Shire and Wimmera Regional Library Corporation VIC
Convergence of Services Project
As one of the first library services to offer internet access via
a mobile library, the Wimmera Regional Library Corporation is
extending the capacities of its mobile library to include online
service delivery, including Centrelink and Medicare services. After
extensive background research into the viability of the concept, the
Wimmera Regional Library Corporation is preparing to test the service
with stakeholders and rural communities in the area.
Community Services
Sponsored by the Department of Family and Community Services
Category Award
Brighton Council TAS
Bridgewater-Gagebrook Urban Renewal Project (BURP)
Identified as the community with 'Australia's lowest level of well
being', the Bridgewater-Gagebrook community presented a real
challenge to Brighton Council. The Council developed and implemented
the Bridgewater-Gagebrook Urban Renewal Project (BURP) to improve
quality of life and living environments and to raise the self esteem
of people living in the area. BURP has improved media coverage of the
area, raised occupation rates in public housing, reduced the costs of
vandalism by 60% and created over 397 jobs.
RURAL AWARD
No entries received in 1999
Sport, Recreation and Physical Activity
Sponsored by Active Australia
Category Award and Rural Award
Calliope Shire Council QLD
Turtle Way Signage and Public Promotion Strategy
Having constructed more than 15km of bikeway linking schools,
shops and community facilities, Calliope Shire Council promoted the
bikeway using a unique signage and promotion strategy. The Strategy
used the principles of orienteering and 'discovery' as an incentive
for participants to explore the bikeway. Users are invited to
discover the 'Turtle Way' via a series of puzzles and poems. Local
Teachers were involved in designing signage to ensure that they met
the learning needs of a wide range of users, including adults.
Innovation in Emergency Management
Sponsored by Emergency Management Australia
Category Award
Maroochy Shire Council QLD
Counter Disaster Committee Communications Vehicle
Maroochy Shire Council converted a mobile library bus into a
mobile communications centre to provide a facility that would
integrate two-way radio communications for emergency services such as
the police, ambulance, fire and rescue and the State Emergency
Service. The bus was divided into workstations for each of these
services, at minimal cost. A generator was bought to ensure that the
facility was self-sufficient. The vehicle is a major component of Y2K
disaster plans and has already been used by police on several search
and rescue missions.
RURAL AWARD
No entries received in 1999
Regional and Economic Development
Sponsored by Telstra
Category Award
Maroondah City Council VIC
Leadership Maroondah - Municipal Leadership Development
Programme
Maroondah City Council's has demonstrated its commitment to
community leadership and change by establishing Leadership Maroondah.
This community leadership development program is run each year and
attracts up to 15 community participants, from all walks of life. The
program features a range of speakers, selected for their achievements
as leaders in the community. Graduates of the programme aim to
establish a network of community leaders for 'achieving a better
world, beginning in our neighbourhood'.
Rural Award and National Rural Award
Cabonne Council and Cabonne Country Development Group NSW
Cabonne Country Small Towns Development Project
In 1997, Cabonne Council undertook a small towns development
project. As part of its community consultation process, the Council
conducted a photographic survey, asking people from eight small towns
in the region to photograph their villages&emdash;showing six things
they liked about the village, and six things they didn't. The survey
results were displayed and discussed in each of the villages and
provided the foundations for the 'Vision 2007 Strategy', which was
formally adopted by Council in 1998.
Bushcare
Sponsored by the Natural Heritage Trust and Bushcare
Category and Rural Award
Johnstone Shire Council QLD
Voluntary Conservation Agreements
Through their Voluntary Conservation Agreements, Johnstone Shire
Council offers discounts of between 45% and 95% on rates to
landholders who take a proactive role in protecting or enhancing
their land. The voluntary agreements have improved community-council
relations, and to date, 38 new landholders over 1210 hectares have
participated in the scheme.
Engineering, Infrastructure and Urban Design
Sponsored by AusIndustry
Category Award
Rockhampton City Council QLD
Modular Family Grave System
This Modular Grave System uses a web of concrete cells to maximise
the efficient use of land in cemeteries. It is also enables
cemeteries to be placed on poor quality land. Council has established
Rockele Pty Ltd to market and sell the system to local and overseas
markets.
Rural Award
Bellingen Shire Council NSW
Bellingen Bridge Deck Gantry
Designed to minimise the use of large lifting equipment in bridge
maintenance, this bridge deck gantry safely supports bridges during
maintenance projects. It is well suited to small, environmentally
sensitive and high traffic sites.
| 
