State Matters - 7 April 2025
- Dave Layzell MP
- Apr 7
- 6 min read
TRUCKS IN FOCUS
TRANSPORT FOR NSW is undertaking a one-week traffic survey at Sandy Hollow as part of the planning for a proposed Heavy Vehicle Rest Area.
Survey cameras began operating last Friday to monitor heavy vehicle movements on the Golden Highway in and through the town and at school pick up and drop off times.
Transport is investigating the formalised rest area as it improves the quality of facilities across the state to address safety and fatigue management for truck drivers.
The project will provide an off-road parking area for heavy vehicles to stop and rest in the Sandy Hollow township and enjoy the town amenity.
The cameras are located just to the east of the service station and opposite Sandy Hollow Public School.
Transport will keep the community informed about the project as planning continues
with more information available by calling the dedicated project line on 1800 763 353.
CONSTRUCTION CLOSER
Construction of the Central-West Orana Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) transmission project will formally commence within months after the NSW Government awarded ACEREZ the contract and reached financial close.
ACEREZ is a consortium of ACCIONA, COBRA, and Endeavour Energy appointed by EnergyCo to design, build and finance the Central-West Orana REZ transmission project then operate and maintain it for the next 35 years.
Australia’s first declared REZ will establish critical infrastructure that will connect solar and wind farms and energy storage to the NSW electricity grid.
Early works on the project started in February and construction is scheduled to start mid-year supporting more than 5,000 construction jobs at its peak.
The project will deliver at least 4.5 gigawatts of new network capacity by 2028, to connect 7.7 gigawatts of wind and solar projects, which is enough to power more than 2 million homes each year.
TRAVEL ADVICE
NSW Health is advising people planning to travel overseas during the April holiday period to ensure they and their family are fully protected against measles, as cases of the disease continue to rise.
While measles is rare in Australia, it is still a common illness in many parts of the world, with large outbreaks currently in many countries including Vietnam and other parts of South-east Asia.
Eight people in NSW have already acquired measles this year while travelling in Vietnam and were infectious after arriving home.
Some of these cases have spread the disease to family members back in Australia.
The measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine is free from pharmacists for people over five years of age, or from a GP for people of all ages.
Babies can have their first dose of the MMR vaccine from six months of age if they will be travelling overseas to a country with high risk of measles activity.
If you, or a loved one, are experiencing measles symptoms, or have questions about measles, please call your GP or healthdirect on 1800 022 222.
More information on measles can be found on the NSW Health measles factsheet: www.health.nsw.gov.au/infectious/factsheets/pages/measles_factsheet.aspx
BRIDGE NEWS
Dungog Shire Council has announced initial site works on the new Clarence Town Bridge are set to begin early next month.
Council’s Infrastructure and Assets team is working with contractor, Bridgeworks, to deliver the new structure.
Bridgeworks is finalising the bridge and road approach design plans ahead of the initial site works which include the setup of the site compound, tree removal, earthworks and initial bridge piling activities.
Motorists are being told to be aware that during construction, traffic flow on Durham Street and Limeburners Creek Road will be affected.
Speed limits will be reduced to 40km/h and traffic may be reduced to one lane at times.
Dungog Council will provide further updates on its social media feed and the council’s website.
ROTARY AWARDS
The Rotary Inspirational Women’s Awards are calling nominations to recognise outstanding women, who are unselfishly making a considerable and meaningful contribution to the community.
Open to all non-Rotarian women, over the age of 18, the awards acknowledge and celebrate community service performed by women through their vocations and selfless gifts of their skills and their time, in various activities and endeavours.
The categories are Inspirational Woman of the Year aged 30-plus and Young Inspirational Woman of the Year aged 18-30, with awards for Rural and Urban/City women as well as Healthcare workers.
Members of the public are encouraged to recognise the ‘quiet achievers’ who are in harmony with Rotary’s motto “Service Above Self” by submitting online nominations at: https://riwa.awardsplatform.com
DRUG SUMMIT REPORT
Drug Summit Co-Chairs the Hon. Carmel Tebbutt and John Brogden AM have delivered their report to the NSW Government.
The Drug Summit brought together those with lived and living experience, frontline workers and experts in addiction and illicit drug use.
The summit received 3,600 written submissions and listened to over 400 participants over four days across metropolitan Sydney, Griffith and Lismore.
The Tebbutt-Brogden report has put forward 56 recommendations across key areas including prevention, early intervention, community support, stigma, workforce and reform.
The Government will now carefully consider the findings before responding in due course.
The Drug Summit Co-Chairs report is available on the NSW Drug Summit 2024 web page: www.health.nsw.gov.au/aod/summit/Pages/default.aspx
SERVICE RETURNS
Service NSW Mobile Service Centres will return similar services to the physical sites when they visit three Upper Hunter Electorate communities over coming weeks.
Cowper Street Stroud is Service NSW’s first stop on Friday 11 April between 8.30am and 12.30pm.
Murrurundi hosts the Mobile Service Centre on Tuesday 29 April, 9am-3pm when Service returns to 113 Mayne Street.
Driver testing by appointment will be undertaken during Service NSW’s return to Upper Hunter Shire Council in Liverpool Street Scone on Wednesday 30 April and Thursday 1 May, 9am-4pm both days.
The range of services available from Mobile Service Centres includes Driver Knowledge Tests, Hazard Perception Tests, Driver licence and photo card applications and renewals, Working With Children Check applications and applications for birth, death and marriage certificates.
Further details at: www.service.nsw.gov.au/mobile-service-centres
TICKETS NOW AVAILABLE
Tickets have gone on sale for the Newcastle Magic Round weekend when all 12 NRLW teams compete in the historic event.
The inaugural matches at Newcastle’s McDonald Jones Stadium on 2-3 August are part of a three-year deal between the NSW Government and the NRL.
The partnership celebrates women’s rugby league and the next generation of players while supported the NSW Government’s Make the Move campaign to showcase why regional NSW is a great place to settle, prosper and play.
An estimated 60,000 footy fans are expected to travel from across the State through the Hunter Valley to Newcastle, spending money at local businesses, restaurants and accommodation providers.
Single-day passes for the NRLW Magic Round are available from Thursday 17 April.
MENTAL HEALTH STRATEGY
A new mental health and wellbeing strategy for first responders has been launched by the NSW Government.
It now recognises forestry workers, national park employees, and road and transport workers in addition to emergency services personnel including Ambulance NSW, Fire and Rescue NSW, NSW Police, NSW State Emergency Service and the NSW Rural Fire Service.
The new strategy sets out fifteen priority actions that agencies are implementing to improve the mental health and wellbeing of these workers and help them to better manage the psychological challenges associated with their vital work.
The Government is taking immediate action to support employees at key NSW agencies including Forestry Corporation of NSW (FCNSW), National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), and Transport for New South Wales (TfNSW).
The response includes introducing measures such as Psychological First Aid (PFA) Training, Referral to Clinical Care and Peer-Support Services.
The First Responders Mental Health Strategy can be found on the NSW Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy for First Responders web page: www.nsw.gov.au/departments-and-agencies/premiers-department/mental-health-and-wellbeing-strategy-for-first-responders-2025-2029
EVENTS SHOWCASE
Expressions of interest have opened for the 2025 Business Events NSW Showcase in Sydney during June.
Destination NSW’s fresh approach to growing the business events sector in regional NSW will be brought to life by the showcase.
Business event visitors are a high-yield sector of the state’s visitor economy with domestic overnight conference visitors to NSW spending on average $547 per night, which is 130.7 per cent higher than domestic leisure visitors who spend $237per night.
The showcase will provide a unique opportunity for visitor economy operators and destination representatives to raise awareness and consideration for what their destination and businesses can offer and build a network of potential clients and industry partners.
More than 100 influential business event planners will be invited to the showcase at Machine Hall in Clarence Street, Sydney on Wednesday 25 June from 5-8pm.
For more on the 2025 Business Events NSW Show go to: www.destinationnsw.com.au/events
WATER UPDATE
The Water Group of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water will hold its April Water Engagement Roundup on Wednesday 16 April at 11am.
The department has recently revised the metering rules after getting feedback from water users and other stakeholders.
If you take water in NSW from a river, creek or bore, the rules tell you what kind of metering you need to have, and when you need to have it installed by.
Speakers from the Water Group for the April Roundup include the Manager of Metering Implementation David Andersen and the Water Engagement team’s Belinda Hanly.
To make sure you are measurement ready register for the session at:
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