Students In Parkes: Some of the country’s brightest young engineers are doing student placements with Parkes Shire Council for the fourth year. They are participants in the University of Sydney’s Engineering Sydney Industry Placement Scheme (ESIPS). During the six-month placement students undertake high-level investigative research. The two students are Hassi Al Kabanchi and Anjana Hariharan. Hassi is studying a combined Bachelor of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering and Bachelor of Science and was placed at the Parkes Water Treatment Plant to develop tools for water resource management. Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering student Anjana’s research project characterised the chlorine decay in the Parkes Recycled Water Distribution Network to identify the chlorine residual at end user sites.
Tidy Towns Finalist: Parkes is one of 11 NSW towns to be named as a finalist for the 2019 Tidy Towns Sustainable Communities Award. An assessor will be visiting Parkes to inspect our sustainable infrastructure and assess the overall presentation of the town. The results will be announced at the much-anticipated Tidy Towns Awards Weekend in Cessnock, from 1 – 3 November. CEO of Keep Australia Beautiful NSW Val Southam said: “The submissions received continue to show that many towns are developing innovative and resourceful ways of being sustainable in the face of a host of financial, environmental and social issues.”
Grants For Schools: Schools in the Central West are encouraged to apply for a share in up to $200,000 in funding under the Local Schools Community Fund. Schools will be eligible for funding from $1,000 to $20,000 that includes anything from a small-scale refurbishment or extension to a classroom, playground equipment and sports facilities to mental health and counselling services, new computer facilities and library resources. Applications opened on 25th July, and are to be submitted through the Department of Education’s SchoolsHUB portal at https://schools.education.gov.au by 5pm on 30th September.
Cash Prize For Best Float: CMOC-Northparkes Mines will continue to sponsor the Elvis Street Parade for a further three years, and once again offer a $1,000 cash prize for the Best Float in the 2020 parade, to help schools, sporting and community groups. The 2020 Festival theme is from the 1966 movie Frankie and Johnny where Elvis stars as a riverboat gambler and performer with his girlfriend Frankie. The Street Parade will take place on Saturday, 11th January with registrations opening in September.
Tiffany Steel, Elvis Festival Sponsorship and Marketing Coordinator with Parkes Mayor Ken Keith and Northparkes Managing Director Hubert Lehman.