You’re invited to a Community Gathering at The Channon Hall
Saturday 19 September, from 12pm
Hosted by The Channon Resilience Inc, this gathering is a chance for our community to come together and discuss the proposed CSIRO mega detention dams in our backyard.
We’ll start with a free BBQ hosted by The Channon RFS, followed by a presentation from Annie Kia, who will bring us up to date with the latest information on the proposed detention dam project.
We’ll then open the floor for community discussion and feedback. Your questions, concerns and comments will be collated to help inform submissions to the relevant stakeholders.
Come along, listen, ask questions and have your voice heard. Everyone is welcome – we want to hear from you!
The Channon Resilience Inc is a group of community members working to strengthen resilience within our community.
On 27th August The Channon Resilience Inc hosted a flood safety meeting for our community. The well-attended meeting had people from across our sub-catchment…from the headwaters at Terania, Tuntable Falls and Whian Whian to the southern end of Keerrong valley. We thank everyone who presented and volunteered on the day.
We had presentations on Rocky Creek Dam (Rous County Council); the new SES warning system (Joanna Jones & Janet Petit); flood history (Ed Bennett Lismore SES); Anna Conley on our Flood Observations project; and Annie Kia on the Terania-Keerrong flood safety project. Lismore City Council had people on hand to provide information, including flood recovery officers Nikki Treanor and Justin Webb, and Strategic Planning Coordinator Andy Parks. You can view the presentations on The Channon Resilience YouTube channel.
One of the reasons we needed this meeting was widespread confusion about Rocky Creek Dam alerts. We need to be clear that these are not flood warnings.
We have just updated the Floods section on The Channon Hub webpage thechannonhub.org/disaster-response/floods/. We invite everyone to have a good look – you’ll find lots of useful information, including on the new capacity of SES to issue flood alerts for our community, using data from our excellent citizen rain and creek sentinels.
During the workshop some of those impacted by flood in Keerrong valley shared that they felt neglected in flood recovery efforts in our council area. We strongly encourage everyone who needs information and support to contact Nikki Treanor, Flood Recovery Officer at , phone 02 6625 0571. Nikki is very keen to work with people in our rural communities, so please contact her. Also check out links in the recovery section on our website.
We would like to thank the Northern Rivers Community Foundation for a grant that enabled our Flood Observation project, and this community event.
An important workshop will happen on the 27th August at Keerrong Hall, where we will review a System For Flood Safety for The Channon & Keerrong.
Following the 2022 floods, The Channon Resilience Inc. has been working to improve flood safety for residents in the Terania-Keerrong catchment.
As we documented local community flood knowledge and observations, we gained a better understanding of our vulnerabilities and the deficiencies in flood warnings for our rural community as well as for Lismore.
Plans to develop a community driven flood intelligence network are well underway, enabling us to provide accurate and timely information to the SES to improve safety for those downstream.
We invite you to register for a community event on 27th August at Keerrong Hall to learn about a System For Flood Safety for The Channon & Keerrong. This project involves collaboration between community, the SES, Rous County Council. We also look forward to engagement with Lismore City Council
Starting promptly at 1:30pm we will be joined by guest speakers from Rous County Council and the SES, plus Lismore City Council’s Community Recovery Officers will be in the room to answer questions and engage with community.
Important information will be shared about our local flood safety project and results from the flood observation survey will be presented.
Our local government representatives will explain their roles and responsibilities in relation to flood risk management and detail the systems and procedures that are in place to keep our community safe along with how these systems have been revised following the Feb 2022 Flood.
The workshop will also include informative and interactive group sessions about the CB Radio Network, where to look for flood information, understanding your risk, actions we need to take to strengthen our network, what we need from council and open Q&A.
Space is limited so it’s important that you register to participate. This workshop is primarily for residents of The Channon – Keerrong valley. Afternoon Tea will be provided so please register your attendance via the form below and let us know if you have any dietary requirements. Any questions you would like to ask our guest speakers can also be submitted in advance on the form below.
SPEAKERS
Tom Lloyd – Acting Group Manager Operations – Rous County Council
Tom has been invited to talk about the role & responsibility of Rous County Council during flood events, the dam safety measures that are in place and how the emergency plan functions in relation to alerts, surveillance, communications and public safety procedures. Tom will explain which parts of the community are at risk in the event of dam failure and share with us the downstream release hazard inundation map that details indicative flood extent and travel times.
Joanna Jones – Deputy Zone Commander – SES North Eastern Zone
Superintendent Joanna Jones is one of three Deputy Zone Commanders in the newly created NSW SES North Eastern Zone. Joanna looks after the Richmond, Wilsons and Clarence River command areas. Jo lives in the Lismore LGA and is keenly connected to her rural community.
Janet Pettit – Community Capability Officer – SES North Eastern Zone
Janet has worked with communities across the Northern Rivers for the past 12 years and is keen to support community initiatives to build resilience.
Jo and Janet will talk us through the changes to the new North Eastern Zone SES and how the local Lismore SES Unit operates within this Zone and in our local area. They will explain how the SES is now able to provide flood warnings to rural areas, and discuss how to plan and prepare for a flood emergency and the type of response our community can expect to receive during a flood event. We will learn about the new hazard warning categories and how the warning systems work.
Ed Bennett – Flood Intelligence Officer – SES Lismore Unit
A Northern Rivers local, Ed was raised on the family farm in Mummulgum. He studied meteorology and climatology at the University of New England before becoming a teacher at Richmond River High and then Casino High. Ed joined the SES in 1964 where he spent 11 years in the Lismore Flood Boat Group before transferring to the Richmond-Tweed SES HQ as part of the flood monitoring/predicting team, in 2016 he transferred to Lismore City.
Ed has also been a long time member of the Richmond River Historical Society and has previously served as the North Lismore representative on the Flood Management Committee.
Having lived in Howards Grass for almost 60 years, Ed has had a grandstand view of many floods, from his property that fronts the Wilson’s River.
Ed will explain the role of the SES Lismore unit, share his historical flood knowledge and explain how the water moves through the catchment and the travel times to Lismore.
Annie Kia – Coordinator, Terania-Keerrong Flood Safety project
Annie lives on Tuntable Creek Rd and is a member of The Channon Resilience Inc. She was involved in the community-led flood emergency response based at The Channon. After investigating failures in the official flood monitoring system, she has worked with others to develop a Terania-Keerrong flood safety system, and a CB emergency radio network.
Annie will explain how the Terania-Keerrong flood safety system works to gather flood intelligence from community rain and creek sentinels, and how, for the first time, the SES will receive comprehensive data on the whole Terania catchment.
Anna Conley – Project Manager – Terania-Keerong Flood Observation Project
Anna is a local consultant and resident of Terania Creek with decades of project management experience. She has been engaged by The Channon Resilience Inc. to project manage the Terania-Keerrong Flood Observation Project. Through surveys and home visits Anna has gathered local community flood knowledge. This information will be used to establish baselines for 2022/2017 flood levels and increase community capacity to better understand flood risk and improve resiliance.
Anna will present the results of the flood survey and the impact it had on our community. Key findings from the flood observation studies will be shared along with a flood awareness map for local bridges and causeways.
LISMORE CITY COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES
Throughout the workshop members of Lismore City Council will be in the room to engage with the community and answer any questions you may have.
Andy Parks – Strategic Planning Coordinator – Lismore City Council
As strategic planning coordinator, one of Andy’s roles is to work on Lismore’s Floodplain Risk Management Plan which is currently under review. There is a focus within council to start planning for more frequent and more severe flood events. A revised Development Control Plan has recently been open for public consultation with more floodplain risk planning underway.
Andy will be in the room to observe and learn more about how the Feb 2022 Flood impacted our valley. He will also be available to answer any questions.
Nikki Treanor and Justin Wall– Community Recovery Officers – Lismore City Council
To help with the ongoing recovery efforts following the floods, the Reconstruction Authority provided funding for two Community Recover Officers (CRO) to be embedded within Lismore City Council. Nikki & Justin hold these roles and are already 9 months in. They help support local coordination between public, private and community sector bodies and help to facilitate community recovery events, access to recovery information and assist with recovery planning at a local level.
Nikki & Justin will be in the room to answer any questions and let you know what support is available to our community.
AGENDA
1:30pm – 5pm
To ensure we are able to deliver to the Agenda we ask community members to arrive 10-15 minutes in advance.. The workshop will start promptly at 1:30pm
Welcome, Housekeeping and Intros
Terania – Keerrong Flood Safety Project
Updates on the community led project inc. rain & creek sentinels, the CB radio network and how the system works.
Flood Observation Project
Results of the flood survey, flood impact on community, key findings from flood observation studies & flood awareness map for local bridges.
Lismore City Council Community Recovery Officers
Meet our local community recovery officers. Learn about the initiatives they have already completed and the support that is available.
Rocky Creek Dam
Dam safety measures, emergency plan functions, community risks & safety procedures.
SES North Eastern Zone & Lismore Unit
Meet our local SES team. Learn how to plan and prepare for a flood emergency, the new hazard warning categories and how the warning system works.
Q&A
Afternoon Tea
Round Robin
Pick your topic – 10 mins at each table
Ask your questions to SES & Council
Ask your questions to Tom Lloyd from Rous County Council about Rocky Creek Dam
This is a free one day workshop for landholders who want to improve their productivity and / or biodiversity, but are facing challenges from extreme weather events such as droughts, fires, flooding and landslides. We will hear from a range of experts offering their knowledge so landholders can apply strategies to deal with these issues.
We have some wonderfully knowledgeable speakers offering their expertise..
Oli Costello
will be sharing some indigenous knowledge and helping us understand the importance of indigenous land-care practices in land management.
Jake Lennon
Will talk about the role of regeneration and native plants in improving landscape resilience.
Grant Flemming & Co
Will teach us the principles of Natural Sequence Farming and it’s role in landscape hydration and erosion mitigation
Geoff Lawton
Will teach us the principles of Natural Sequence Farming and it’s role in landscape hydration and erosion mitigation
Bring your notepad, bring your questions, and prepare to be informed and inspired! Bookings are essential so we can cater for everyone:
The Resilience Party was held at The Channon Hall on Saturday 14th May. With the creeks swollen and the ground still soggy it was wonderful to have such a great turn-out of people keen to socialize and dance. Regardless of the dampening conditions spirits were still high, and having our hall (which was the site of the emergency flood response for many weeks earlier this year) filled with light, music and joviality was a balm for all who came along.
Uncle Gil doing smoking ceremony
Uncle Gil gave a heartfelt Welcome to Country and smoking ceremony, huge pots of delicious food and tasty desserts were enjoyed, and the local circus performers put on a grand show. And the music! What a fantastic display of local talent there was! From folk, to punk rock, to DJ’s mixing, there was indeed something for everyone. A particular highlight was when the younger kids took to the dancefloor, owning the front row with their heads banging enthusiastically to the punk rock, while the older ones among us either tried to keep up, or appreciated from a quieter distance.
There were some fun games played, and the raffle was drawn, both helping to raise money to reimburse costs of the disaster response.
Zoe & Steve serve up yummy food
The Channon Resilience put on the event, with funds from a grant from Healthy North Coast, which we applied for to support our social, mental and environmental wellbeing. Grateful appreciation to everyone who helped the event take place, and to everyone who came along.Our original plan of holding a Festival of Resilience has had to adapt to the changing circumstances, and we now anticipate holding a series of workshops in The Channon Hall over spring. These workshops will use the remaining funds from Healthy North Coast, and still aim to support our communitys’ social, mental and environmental wellbeing.
If you would like to be kept informed of these workshops drop us an email at .
We are very happy to announce that the Festival of Resilience for The Channon and surrounds will be held on Saturday 2nd April at The Channon Oval (Coronation Park).
So please save the date to come along to connect with others in our community, learn skills that we can utilise in caring for ourselves and others in our lives, techniques to enhance our local environment, dance, share stories, and have some FUN!
We are currently seeking expressions of interest for workshop facilitators, musicians, and stallholders. Workshops will focus on mental and environmental wellbeing. Stallholders may be a business, community or government group that supports ecological or mental health. Food stalls and local musicians are also encouraged to register their interest.
If you have something to offer we would love to hear from you:
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