Maggi Barnard

Silos around Australia are becoming canvases for regional creativity and expression and also act as a magnet for tourists with over 40 communities reaping its benefits so far.

There has been a push by several members in the Parkes community to get the grain silos in May Street painted. Local resident Csaba Belley is extremely passionate about this and has done a lot of research into the benefits this could hold for our town.

According to Csaba there were 44 painted silos in Australia in December last year with six more planned for 2021. The Silo Art Trail website has 65,000 members and an average of 622 comments per day.

“The Silo Art Trail has been mentioned in National Geographic, in Ripley’s Believe it or Not, on the Back Roads television program and has featured on a series of Australian stamps,” said Csaba.

He said Dr Amelia Green from Griffith University explored the capacity of the Silo Art Trail in empowering communities, activating places and supporting tourism. Her findings reinforce that the value of the trail is multi-faceted on a social, cultural and economic level.

“In two to three years the Parkes bypass is going to take a lot of potential visitors from our town,” said Csaba. “The silos in Parkes are in a perfect location with a long list of businesses within a 1km radius, including hotels, clubs, restaurants, shops, Cooke Park and the brand new Cooke Park Pavilion.”

Csaba had spoken to a representative of the Bland Shire Council about the effect of the magnificent murals on the silos at Weethalle. The silos have been featured on postage stamps and received over a million vires on Facebook. “What a great promotion for a township of a mere 300 people!”

Another example Csaba found was that since the water tower was painted at Gunne-dah more visitors have passed through the town’s museum doors in a month than in a whole year.

Csaba has been in contact with and has sent a proposal to Parkes Shire Council, but according to Council it could not be considered at the moment. The silos belong to Grain Corp, and the company is revamping its community program, which includes silo art. “Submissions for new silo art projects are currently closed, while we work through several projects in 2021 and 2022. We are working towards relaunching our program in late 2021,” according to Grain Corp’s website.

Csaba feels Parkes should be more proactive and start planning in order to be ready once the Grain Corp program is up and running again.

“I’d like nothing more than seeing this project happen.” He thanked all The Parkes Phoenix readers for taking an interest in the project following several letters from readers with suggestions over the past month.

“Low-carbon economies present multiple benefits to ecosystem resilience, trade, employment, health, energy security, and industrial competitiveness.”

This is the view of Parkes Shire Councillor, farmer and climate action advocate Neil Westcott as Parkes prepare to host an online forum with a focus on Activating the Low Carbon Economy in Regional Australia on Thursday, 19th August.

Local businesses, farmers and community members are encouraged to attend and learn more about this developing industry and its opportunities.

The one-day forum will bring together key local and regional stakeholders to collaborate, share ideas and explore how the low carbon economy is being activated to spur innovation in regional Australia.

Speakers will discuss issues and case studies that demonstrate how regional industries (including agriculture) can benefit from a low carbon economy.

“Parkes Shire Council is committed to supporting the development of a low carbon economy in Regional NSW and is excited by the opportunities arising for local businesses and our regional community from the Special Activation Precinct (SAP),” said Neil.

Topics will include the role and impact of renewable energy in the regions, the nature and benefits of a circular economy and what this means, the importance of a low carbon economy to regional and rural Australia, and how all of these will combine to embrace new industries and create local employment in Parkes and accelerate the transition to a prosperous low carbon future.

“Parkes is already one of the biggest and earliest adopters of rooftop solar, a founding member of the Climate Council’s Cities Power Partnership and is advocating for future local development to be responsible and sustainable,” said Neil.

The SAP will be a ‘green’ place to do business with targets set by the NSW Government for Parkes to become Australia’s first eco-industrial precinct built on the UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organisation) framework.

“This changing world presents not just challenges, but significant opportunity, particularly for regional and rural areas. We are part of the answer. It’s not about the present, it’s about the future. We have got so much to gain out of being proactive,” said Neil.

Given the current COVID-19 outbreak in NSW, the forum has to be delivered online. Tickets are available for $30. For further information and tickets, visit https://www.parkes.nsw.gov.au/low-carbon-economy-forum.

This year is the 55th anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan, which will be commemorated at the Vietnam Memorial on Memorial Hill Drive in Parkes on Wednesday, 18th August at 11am.

This is the day that the Vietnam Veterans remember and commemorate our dead. Australian casualties in Vietnam included 521 fatalities and more than 3,000 wounded, many more suffered as a result of their service.

We must never forget the price our Vietnam Veterans paid for service, especially in the marking of the 55th anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan. A battle that saw 18 Australians killed and 24 wounded.

The action was indeed a monumental battle in which our soldiers exhibited extreme bravery in the face of a numerically superior and well-trained enemy force.

The Battle of Long Tan saw Delta company of the Australian 6th Royal Australian Regiment receive the United States Presidential Unit citation.

Notwithstanding these facts, we should also remember all who served in the Vietnam War regardless of the tasks which they were allocated to perform. We remember our infantry, armour, artillery, field squadron engineers, signallers and their support services in the Battles of Coral, Balmoral and the Bo Ho Woods, Long Hai’s, Binh Bah, Baria and in numerous other battles and contacts of this protracted war.

Vietnam Veterans Day is a day to commemorate the service of all Vietnam Veterans. It also celebrates the spirit of mateship and mutual assistance that characterises the self-help attitude we now share. It also honours those who served in Vietnam and those who did not come home.

Of course, those difficulties did not end with the fighting. For our Vietnam Veterans, life after the war could never be the same. Thousands of our servicemen have developed long-term health problems associated with what they were exposed to in Vietnam.

Tragically, they are over-represented in statistics on respiratory disorders, cancer, depression and suicide. Community attitudes at the time of their return home meant our veterans were denied the recognition they rightfully deserved.

After all, they had put their lives on the line for our country.

Thankfully, over the past 50 and more years, community opinions have changed. Australia has become a more enlightened place. The courage and selfless service of our personnel who served in Vietnam is now recognised on this day each year.

We come together not to glory war but to acknowledge the sacrifices and remember the dead, including three locals namely Anton Danilenko, Denis Donnelly and Doug Powter.

State Member for Orange Philip Donato MP will officially open the renovated Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Parkes. The memorial celebrates not only Australia’s involvement, but also the local personnel who served in the Vietnam conflict in the period 1962-1972.

Members of the community are invited to gather at the Vietnam Memorial on 18th August at 11am.