YORK PARK OBJECTION

 

LINK ...  https://yorkparkobjection.blogspot.com/

LAUNNIE KULCHA

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CULTURAL DIVERSITY

 

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CULTURAL REALITIES IN LAUNCESTON

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While on the face of it this committee might seem uncontentious yet drilling down into its 'strategic objectives' contestable ideas emerge. A fundamental in local governance is the often overlooked fact that its primary purpose is 'placemaking cum placescaping'. Another way of expressing this is CULTURALlandscaping. Indeed, every 'planning' determination local governance makes is fundamentally to do with CULTURALlandscaping. 

With the increasing diversity of 'cultural realities' evident in communities – in Launceston like all Australian communities – CULTURALlandscaping becomes more and more important. In places like Launceston much of this 'diversity' has been present and evident for a very long time. It is just the case that it has been downplayed in deference to Anglocentric colonial cum peri-colonial sentiments and sensibilities. 

Looking at this so-called 'advisory committee' as much as it might be 'purposeful', in fact its utility is highly challengeable. Firstly, why might 'Councillors' be appointed to such 'advisory committees'? What utility is there in 'the advised' being a component of 'the advisors'? 

Yes, Councillors – that is any Councillor at any time – should be free to attend meeting of their advisors to seek advice, listen first hand to advice, but not to offer advise. In this context, if a majority view was being sought by the 'committee's chair/coordinator' Councillors need not, indeed aught not be a part of that process. To any reasonable thinking person this should be self evident. 

Likewise, members of culturally diverse communities should be able bring their concerns to such 'advisory committees' in order to advance issues of concern within an advice context. 

Moreover, the 'place's' Community of Ownership and Interest should be able to make representations to 'advisory committees'. Additionally such committees should not meet in camera and their agendas and meeting records should be fulsomely and openly reported. 

Against this background there is a case to be put that, given that there is now a new Council in place, rather than inherit the determinations of previous Councils/Councillors current Councillors might well re-examine the committee's 'strategic purpose'. 

It is high time to bring the 'strategic purpose' of advisory committees into a more contemporary reality. 

There is that piece of bureaucratic wisdom that goes, 'never go into a meeting without knowing the outcome'. Typically, the preferred outcome is the status quo given all that bureaucratic functionaries have at stake. If it so happens that there is a disconnect between management's and governance's aspirations the 'governed' might well be alarmed.

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QUESTIONS TO MAYOR & ALL COUNCILLORS

 

ON THE AGENDA COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY 9 FEBRUARY 2023

QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES: 

The following questions, submitted in writing to the Council on 30 January 2023 by Ray Norman, have been answered by Duncan Campbell (Acting Manager Governance). 

Questions:

I now ask if Council will now, and with urgency: 

1. Put in place the necessary regulations and protocols that will enable Council, Councillors, and management to do in open council what they are collectively inclined to do, and apparently have already done in camera and closed council; and

2. In doing so, impose financial consequences upon constituents who persist in attempting to communicate inappropriately with Council or Council officers on any matter; and 

3. Any financial imposition upon a sanctioned constituent being $1,000 plus and determined at arms-length by a Magistrate; 

Response: With the exception of the Council’s Customer Service Charter, the management of customer interactions is generally an operational matter, not a strategic matter for a Council decision. The Council has established protocols with which to manage requests and enquiries made by members of the public. Those protocols accord with the requirements of the Local Government Act 1993 (Tas). The City of Launceston's Customer Service Charter and Unreasonable Customer and Complainant Conduct Policy include further information. Both of these documents are available on the City of Launceston's website. The intent in applying these documents is to ensure that the resources and assets of the City of Launceston are appropriately managed. There is no intent to impose financial consequences on a constituent in the administration or exercise of these documents.

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QUESTIONS SUBMITTED

Questions 2 & 3 deemed to be in excess of quota allowed

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BATTERY RECYLING IN THE REAL WORLD

 

A COUPLE OF SUGGESTIONS

• Wait to see what others do when and for why?
• Phone a supportive EXPERTfriend and offer them a consultancy?
• Look at what can be done in some far off future budget?
• Pretend that the 'issue' is not important right now?
• Employ someone to help an officer do what she/he is employed to do but does know what to do right now?
• Engage with the constituency to determine peoples' skill sets, experience, priorities and aspirations and capacity to deliver appropriate outcomes.

"Anyone who conducts an argument by appealing to authority is not using his intelligence; he is just using his memory." .... Leonardo da Vinci

SOME WORDS TO MUSE UPON

FREE SPEECH: is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recognised as a human right in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international human rights law by the United Nations. George Orwell said ... “If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” ... AND ... Aung San Suu Kyi said “To view the opposition as dangerous is to misunderstand the basic concepts of democracy. To oppress the opposition is to assault the very foundation of democracy.”  

           

DISCRIMINATION: happens when a person, or a group of people, is treated less favourably than another person or group because of their background or certain personal characteristics. This is known as ‘direct discrimination’. It is also discrimination when an unreasonable rule or policy applies to everyone but has the effect of disadvantaging some people because of a personal characteristic they share. This is known as ‘indirect discrimination’. 

DUE PROCESS: The phrase ‘due process of law’ comes from statutes that were founded on the Magna Carta and provide: 

• … none shall be condemned without due process of law (Liberty of Subject Act 1354) and 

• … none shall be put to answer without due process of law (Observance of Due Process of Law Act 1368). Due process has come to mean the conduct of legal proceedings according to established principles and procedures, designed to ensure a fair trial. This is also referred to as natural justice or procedural fairness. 

PROTOCOL: the system of rules and acceptable behaviour used at official ceremonies and occasions: OR a formal international agreement: OR the formal system of rules for correct behavior on official occasions: OR A protocol is also the rules to be followed when doing a scientific study or an exact method for giving medical treatment: OR the system of rules and acceptable behaviour that people or organisations should follow in official situations. 

WEASEL WORDS: or words of anonymous authority, is an informal term for words and phrases aimed at creating an impression that something specific and meaningful has been said, when in fact only a vague or ambiguous claim has been communicated. Examples include the phrases "some people say", "it is thought", and "researchers believe". Using weasel words may allow one to later deny any specific meaning if the statement is challenged, because the statement was never specific in the first place. Weasel words can be a form of tergiversation and may be used in advertising, (popular) science, opinion pieces and political statements to mislead or disguise a biased view or unsubstantiated claim.... Example = cost neutral

INAPPROPRIATENESS "Inappropriate" and "indecent" ... Inappropriateness refers to standards or ethics that are typically viewed as being negative in a society. It differs from things that are illicit in that inappropriate behavior does not necessarily have any accompanying legal ramifications. ….Synonyms of inappropriate include improper, unfitting, unsuitable and indecent. Although social ills are usually outlawed in wider society, there are many examples wherein various jurisdictions give their inhabitants full discretion over certain aspects of their lives so they can police themselves without any intrusiveness. ... For instance, though it's legal to flatulate in a crowded elevator, there are strong social pressures not to do so. Other socially contentious behavior, such as smoking while pregnant, may procure a statement from a public health organization rather than from a law enforcement organization. The term has also been used to negatively refer to the usage of recreational drugs. Increasingly, the term is used in the context of sexual misconduct, especially the touching of erogenous zones such as the genitalia or sending photos of said private parts.... In politics and public administration 'inappropriateness' extends to any un-welcomed activity ... quasi illegal!

SIN: is regarded as the deliberate and purposeful violation of the will of God OR an authority. The concept of sin has been present in many cultures throughout history, where it was usually equated with an individual’s failure to live up to external standards of conduct or with their violation of taboos, laws, or moral codes. Some ancient societies also had concepts of corporate, or collective, sin affecting all human beings and dating from a mythical “Fall of Man” out of a state of primitive and blissful innocence. In ancient Greek thought, sin was looked upon as, in essence, a failure on the part of a person to achieve their true self-expression and to preserve their due relation to the rest of the universe; it was attributed mainly to ignorance.

EXPERT: Someone with expertise, skills and knowledge of a person or a system, which distinguish experts from novices and less experienced people. In many domains there are objective measures of performance capable of distinguishing experts from novices: expert chess players will almost always win games against recreational chess players; expert medical specialists are more likely to diagnose a disease correctly; etc. The word expertise is used to refer also to expert determination, where an expert is invited to decide a disputed issue. The decision may be binding or advisory, according to the agreement between the parties in dispute.

DEEM: (verb) to consider or judge something or someone in a particular way..... sinful, inappropriate, wrong, an expert

SOFT PLASTICS AND RESOURCE RECOVERY

LISA KORYCKI 2 days ago

Hornsby Shire Council has introduced proof of residence and quantity limits for people using the Community Recycling Centre (CRC) as it struggles to cope with increased demand of its soft plastics recycling services following the suspension of REDcycle.

Residents need to show they reside in the Local Government Area (LGA)  in order to recycle soft plastics, hard plastics and Styrofoam. Quantity limits for residents of one normal shopping bag full of soft plastics (40cmx40cm bag) per week have also been introduced.

Hornsby council’s CRC has a viable soft plastics recycling service, however the amount of soft plastics dropped off has more than doubled since REDCycle suspended its service from supermarkets in November 2022. Based on the increasing trend, the council estimates the CRC facility will accept about 50-80 tonnes of soft plastic material over the next 12 months.

The council has a partnership with Plasmar, a plastics recycling specialist, which sorts soft plastics, pelletises them and then makes a broad range of products including posts, boards, sleepers, bollards, wheel stops and other construction materials. It said Plasmar’s Sydney factory has a limited capacity to accept soft plastics generated by the community and, with the rapidly increasing demand on its services, has capped the quantities being accepted.

“Restricting our reception of soft and hard plastics and Styrofoam to residents of Hornsby Shire is the first lever we have to pull in an effort to ensure that our recycling processes are not overwhelmed,” said Hornsby Shire Council’s Manager, Waste Management.

Residents from outside Hornsby Shire will no longer be able to drop off their soft plastics, hard plastics and Styrofoam at the Thornleigh CRC.

Council’s Mayor, Philip Ruddock has called on both the state and federal governments to do more to urgently address the soft plastics crisis.

“Both state and federal levels of government have Plastics Action Plans and it is critical that further funds are invested in recycling services that allow the sorting, processing and remanufacturing of our soft plastics into beneficial products that can be used in our circular economy,” Ruddock said.

“It is time that government looks to regulate the packaging industry and to heavily invest in the necessary remanufacturing facilities that can turn our waste into useful resources”.

Ruddock said that following on from the Global Recycling Crisis caused when China and other countries ceased accepting plastics from western countries, it is critical that onshore recycling and remanufacturing capacity is developed to ensure Australia’s waste does not need to be exported again.

“If our recycling systems are going to meet community demand, state and federal governments must invest in the rapid expansion of soft and hard plastics sorting and remanufacturing facilities such as Plasmar.”

The new rules came into effect as of 8.30am on Friday, 27 January 2023. CRC facility staff will accept either a Hornsby Shire Council issued rates notice or driver’s license proving residence in Hornsby Shire.

For more information, visit: hornsby.nsw.gov.au/crc