From drought to floods, we're living in a time of weather extremes - and that comes with extreme impacts for our community, Council's operations and Council resources.
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Everyone involved in junior sport is well aware of the ground closures keeping our kids off the field more than on, and Council's Parks team busier than ever tending to our open spaces by hand because it's just too boggy for mowers. Continuous rain combined with traffic volumes is also taking a toll on the road network across our local government area. Since the La Nina weather event was declared by the Bureau of Meteorology, there has been a 61 per cent increase in road-related customer requests for the period from November 2021 to May 2022, compared to the same period in 2020/2021. Phone calls regarding road-related maintenance issues have also increased by 61 per cent for the same period.
We also need to consider that the Singleton local government area experienced three natural disaster flooding events in the past year - March 2021, November 2021 and March 2022. During the March 2022 emergency, phone calls regarding road maintenance increased by 167 per cent compared to March 2021. Council officers are still compiling data relating to this natural disaster, including the cost of this emergency event to our road network.
Council has a proactive system of inspection and maintenance for road defects and encourages people to report any incidents of defects or concerns via the Customer Request Management (CRM) system or our Customer Service team. But, like most regional councils, we have a very large road network that places significant pressure on our available resources. This in turn impacts our ability to respond during sustained wet weather periods, like the one we are experiencing at the moment.
In the meantime, Council appreciates your patience and encourages everyone to drive to the conditions for your own safety, and other motorists. That said, the impacts of drought and water restrictions are not so long ago and we want your feedback on the draft Drought Emergency Response Management Plan which is currently on exhibition.
You can find the document on Council's website and make a submission, or head along to a drop-in session at Singleton Library on Thursday 30 June from 5.30pm to 6.30pm. Submissions close on 5 July 2022.
