The Parkes Shire will remain on Level 1 water conservation measures, and residents are encouraged to maintain good water saving practices.

While the brick pit is a welcome source of additional water for many during dry times, Parkes Shire Council reminds residents that the water is only suitable for limited purposes. The water is untreated and not suitable for human consumption.

The former brickworks site on Powter Street was repurposed as a stormwater storage basin several years ago and water is freely available to residents to supplement their own supplies.

Parkes Shire Council’s Director of Infrastructure, Andrew Francis, said Council had been monitoring the brick pit water quality.

Recent analysis shows the water is moderately saline, making it unsuitable for a wide range of uses.

“Our most recent electrical conductivity tests show that the water has 0.219% salinity, which is enough to put it outside the tolerable range for a lot of uses.” Andrew said.

“The water is suitable for sheep, and can be used on lawns with caution as long as the area is irrigated with other sources of water between applications.” He said though that while it was currently suitable for horses, pigs and beef cattle, it was reaching the maximum salinity limit for those livestock.

“It is not suitable for drinking, and is also unsuitable for poultry, dairy cattle, and ornamental gardens.”

Drinking water would ideally have salinity of 0.012%, with the upper limit being no more than 0.16% salinity. In contrast, the salinity of ocean water is 3.5%.

“Residents should use the brick pit water with caution and avoid watering solely with it if they’re unsure.” Andrew said.

Further information on stock and crop salinity tolerance can be found on the Department of Primary Industry website at dpi.nsw.gov.au

For tips on how to save water around your home, visit parkes.nsw.gov.au

Tomorrow is Vietnam Veterans Memorial Day at 10:45am at Memorial Hill when Australians have the opportunity to share in the pride felt by Vietnam veterans.

It is not a memorial about issues, about glorification of war, or the justification of political decisions. Rather it recognises sacrifice and suffering and the honour and sense of duty carried out by 50,000 young men and women. Over 500 gave their lives and some 3,000 were wounded in the biggest conflict in which Australia has been engaged in over the past two generations.

In part because of the divisiveness of the war, and the anxiety of government to put it all behind them, there is a widespread feeling that those who served in Vietnam have and were treated shabbily in the years since. It was a major effort, achievable only by conscription (itself very controversial in Australian history) but the scale never reached anything like that of World War 1 and 2: not every household was profoundly affected, not everyone knew someone who had gone or who had been killed and wounded; the economic and social activity  of the nation was not mobilised around prosecution of the war. Life simply went on.

The conflict was a strange one of fighting an often unseen enemy. The war initially commanded support, but over 10 years became increasingly unpopular at home with some actively campaigning against it.

Those who returned were not welcomed as heroes, instead people were somewhat embarrassed and keen to have it all forgotten.

That indifference left a scar on the psyche of many. Some found it extremely difficult to adjust, while others re-joined the community but remained pained by the want of recognition. The belated “Welcome Home” parades of 1987 signalled a reintegration and the beginning of a reconciliation which should have begun much earlier. Today’s dedication of the Vietnam Forces Memorial should and will continue the healing process.

By Paul Thomas

The inaugural open day of the NSW SES Parkes Unit last Saturday was a huge success with a large crowd turning up to learn more about the services on offer.

“We are very happy with the turn out and support of the community,” said Phil Snow, Local Controller. He was even happier that six new volunteers have signed up filling out applications forms, with another four interested in joining up.

“We are about 18 volunteers at the moment, and could do with at least another ten,” said Phil. “I would be happy with whatever number we get.”

He said all volunteers would have to undergo basic training, but there were different roles for different people. “Whatever your fitness level, background, skills or training, you can always contribute in some way,” he said.

Different fields of interest include operations management, communications, logistics, community education, catering, maintenance or planning. These are all valuable skills that support the more visible field and response work. “Each volunteer puts in how much time they are able to, and take the opportunities they would like to,” said Phil.

Visitors last Saturday were treated with show bags, sausage sizzles, displays on preparing your property for storm damage, flooding and general rescue techniques, while the rescue demonstrations proved to be the highlight of the day. Volunteer Matthew Hando’s vertical rescue demonstration was not for the faint hearted.

After the success of the inaugural day, the Parkes SES Unit is motivated to make it an annual event.

 

August is Pet Dental Health Month of the Australian Veterinary Association (AVA).

This year’s theme is Quality dental care is good medicine. Four out of five dogs and cats over the age of three years have some form of dental disease and it will often become more severe with age. Dental care is not only important for dogs and cats, but also smaller pets such as rabbits and guinea pigs. Pets may not show signs of dental issues and it is often missed or forgotten about by owners.

Periodontal disease, a bacterial infection of the mouth, is one of the most common problems in pets. If it goes untreated, severely affected teeth need to be removed and can lead to other serious problems such as infections in the kidneys, heart and liver.

In its early stages it is reversible. However, it can often go undetected until it is quite severe as pets often won’t show signs of pain.

Signs of periodontal disease to look out for include: bad breath; tartar build up on teeth; swollen, reddened or bleeding gums; broken teeth; reluctance to eat harderfoods or evidence of pus near the gums.

If you notice any of these signs in your pet it is best to get into contact with your veterinarian. Conducting an oral exam during your pet’s routine annual check-up can help identify any emerging dental health issues.

Just like we brush our teeth twice daily, preventative dental care is also important for all animals. (Source: www.ava.com.au)

Visit Parkes Pet Barn at 6 Bogan Street for a good variety of items to choose from for your pet’s dental health.

This National Science Week, we are asked to think about “Game Changers & Change Makers.” There is no better example of this than what we can find in our own backyard – the CSIRO Parkes Radio Telescope.

The telescope has stood quietly in the middle of a sheep paddock for nearly six decades – a fixed landmark for those used to its existence, a wonder to those who visit, and a powerhouse for scientists across the globe. Since 1961 the telescope has been evolving and is now more than 10,000 times more sensitive than it was when it first opened its radio eyes.

Although the Dish may be best known for its role in the Apollo missions and helping broadcast mankind’s first steps on the Moon, the telescope has played pivotal roles in numerous scientific breakthroughs.

Parkes has time and time again been called on by the likes of NASA and the European Space Agency to help track some of the most successful space-based missions.

In 1973, Parkes was the first telescope to discover a stream of material trailing our nearest neighbour galaxies, the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds. This formed a more complete picture of the “neighbourhood” in which our galaxy, the Milky Way, resided.

In 1998, observations taken with the then new multibeam receiver proved that our Milky Way was responsible for the destruction witnessed between the Magellanic Clouds.

The multibeam receiver is considered by many to be the single most productive and successful astronomical instrument the world has ever seen. In addition to mapping out our local neighbourhood, the dynamic duo of Parkes with the multibeam receiver have discovered more than half of a specific type of star known as pulsars.

Pulsars behave like cosmic clocks and observations of them allow us to test some of the most extreme physics – including gravitational waves and Einstein’s general relativity.

Earlier this year, Parkes had another upgrade with the installation of a receiver called the Ultra-wide Bandwidth Low (UWL). In the past, most telescopes either studied objects as they changed over time, or recorded how they change with wavelength, or “colours”.

The new receiver will make Parkes the first telescope in the world able to do both at the same time opening up an entirely new window through which we can study the Universe.

The CSIRO Parkes Radio Telescope stands as an icon of Australian scientific achievement – constantly looking out for the next big discovery.

* CSIRO hosts and manages a wide range of science-ready national research facilities that are used by thousands of Australian and international researchers each year. This includes Parkes radio telescope, part of the Australia Telescope National Facility, which is funded by the Australian Government.

By Jane Kaczmarek

A record number of people made use of the Parkes Visitor Information Centre (VIC). Almost 30,000 visitors were welcomed through the VIC’s doors in the 2017/18 financial year resulting in a 24% increase in visitor numbers compared to the previous year. The number of visiting tour groups also increased by 19.04%.

Tourism Team Leader Jaimee Timmins said a number of small improvements to onsite amenities and customer service products had resulted in the biggest and best year to-date in terms of visitation.

“Last year we introduced volunteer support to assist with customer service, revitalised both the indoor and outdoor seating areas, introduced new information touch screens and a V3 booking widget, and refreshed each of the four museums.”

“More recently we have introduced new operating hours in an effort to provide the best possible visitor experience, while maintaining our service standards and becoming more cost efficient,” said Jaimee.

The new operating hours are Monday to Friday from 9am to 4pm, and Saturday, Sunday & Public Holidays from 10am to 3pm.

During busier times, like the Parkes Elvis Festival, the Visitor Information Centre will extend its hours to open 9am to 5pm daily.

The Parkes Visitor Information Centre was recently recognised as a finalist in the Visitor Information Services category, for its quality customer service and commitment to enhancing the visitor experience.

The Parkes Elvis Festival keeps on rocking and rolling in accolades taking home a second gold in as many weeks.

The festival won gold at the Local Government R H Dougherty Awards in Sydney last week as joint winner with the Flavours of Mudgee Festival of the Innovation in Special Events (Division A) category.

“Each year we aim to make the festival new, exciting and unique, and in 2017 we introduced new elements including the Heatbreak Hotels and misting fans, free water refill stations, Elvis public art, live streaming of events, and an innovative PR campaign that achieved a media reach of 200+ million worldwide,” said Parkes Elvis Festival Director Cathy Treasure.

Parkes gained a second award with Brand and Marketing Manager, Katrina Dwyer winning the R H Dougherty Award for Outstanding Individual Contribution for the significant role she plays in the successful delivery of Council’s internal and external communications.

“Katrina is so deserving of this accolade, having dedicated herself to the organisation and our community for over 10 years,” said Parkes Shire Mayor, Cr Ken Keith OAM.

Member for Orange Philip Donato MP extended his congratulations to Parkes on its well-deserved achievements making it stand out as one of the best and brightest.

“I’m thrilled Parkes was mentioned not once, but twice in these prestigious awards.

It’s fantastic when the efforts of our smaller cities are acknowledged on a larger scale,” he said.

An uplifting comment from a family member was all it took for a seed to be planted that would grow into a flourishing community fellowship café.

Last Saturday the Soul Café celebrated its fifth anniversary with more than 40 people enjoying not only good conversation but excellent home-made slices and other organic delicacies, freshly ground coffee and of course birthday cake.

When Carole Corbett saw how churches were being converted into cafes and eating establishments on her last pilgrimage to the British Isles, a spark was ignited to do something similar in Parkes. “I’ve been cooking since childhood, and used to invite the sheep shearers for a daily lunch in our home in Trundle.”

She also remembered a comment by her aunt that she had a gift for organising and she should use it to the benefit of the ministry. She had no trouble getting the green light from the parish council to start a café in the St Georges Church Hall and on 3rd August 2013 the Soul Café opened its doors.

Twice a month, on the first two Saturdays, the Soul Café offers patrons a delicious and very reasonable menu, all made by Carole, but also a convivial atmosphere where people can relax and chat for as long as they want to. “The beauty of it is that even if you come alone, there will always be someone to talk to.”

Central West farming families will get help following an announcement on Sunday by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Federal Member for Riverina and Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack.

They announced additional drought support measures of $190 million including additional support for mental health services and community organisations.

Michael said immediate additional financial support was available to those who need it most. Also announced were further significant changes to the existing Farm Household Allowance scheme which will provide two lump sum supplementary payments worth up to $12,000 for eligible households. The Government is also changing the assets test to allow thousands more farmers to access support.

“I strongly urge farmers to seek help, to not self-assess, to make sure they find out what assistance they can be eligible for,” Michael said.

Big W in Parkes has joined up with Rural Aid by making up hampers for farming families. Rural Aid supplied a list of specific items available at Big W. The items are flagged in the shop with the Rural Aid sign and customers can choose to buy individual items or a whole hamper for a total of $165.75. The aim is to make up 100 hampers over the next 50 days, which will be distributed by the Country Women’s Association.