Mayor Clare Stewart
Council has voted to negotiate an extension of its partnership with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to allow state permits to be finalised and the Noosa River oyster restoration work to begin.
While I respect the decision of the full council, I voted against this project being renewed for the following reasons that are solely my opinion and not that of the full Council.
The Alliance and Funding Agreement between The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and Noosa Shire Council, ratified by the previous council in 2019, outlined funding of $1.2m towards the initiatives from TNC and a matching investment from Council of $1.2m over a period of three years.
I felt we were betting ratepayer money on a project where we had no guarantees and therefore, when dealing with public monies, we must always err on the side of caution.
Since this Council was formed in April 2020, the Oyster Reef Restoration Project has come before us on occasion.
Nearly two years ago, I requested all documentation and correspondence between the TNC and the State Government regarding the state approvals required for this project.
According to the agreement, it was the requirement of TNC to ‘obtain all required State Government permits/authorities for installation of oyster reefs’ and this was to be completed within 12 months, which would mean state permits should have been achieved by 1 July 2020.
After nearly two years of delay, we were advised verbally that the State had issued conditional permits.
This council had not been able to undo the signed contract but it had the opportunity to review the agreement and argue as to whether we should enter a new agreement, partnership, alliance or contract with the same party going forward.
I believe the hard-earned monies of our ratepayers could have been better allocated to projects that could be delivered and results achieved in the near future.
The funding quarantined and allocated for this project could have been realigned on others, which could have been instigated and implemented right here right now with little or no risk to our community and be of great benefit to our community and our waterways.
As well as the alternate motions, I also put forward an amendment to garnish further openness and transparency in regard to the project.
This amendment would allow Council to review the procurement process to instigate the project, risks associated with the project and how these are to be mitigated and incorporated into key performance indicators and any other matters that the council should be made aware of in entering into the agreement.
Majority of the Council voted in favour of the project at Council’s Ordinary Meeting last Thursday, authorising the chief executive officer to negotiate the extension of the three-year alliance agreement due to end in September this year and I respect their decision.
