A push is being made to get greater flood recovery support for local communities.
The appeal is specifically being made by and on behalf of Murray River Council, where residents of Moama and Picnic Point have been subject to particularly damaging floodwaters in the Murray River system.
Murray River Council is currently rated as category B for flood support, the same level as Edward River Council.
Under category B, affected residents in the local government area are eligible for certain concessional loans and transport subsidies.
Murray River Council is putting a case forward to be elevated to category C, which will add clean-up and recovery grants for small businesses and primary producers and/or the establishment of a Community Recovery Fund to the available support.
Category C assistance is only made available when the impact of a disaster is severe, and it must be requested by the state government and approved by the Prime Minister.
Member for Murray Helen Dalton has gone one step further, and is urging the Federal Government to declare Murray River category D.
Intended for “exceptional circumstances” this would give the council area access to all support under categories A, B and C, plus additional grants and loans.
This may include Special Disaster Grants of up to $75,000.
Like category C, the request must come from the state and approved by the PM.
Mrs Dalton said the PM and NSW Premier need to “stop wasting time and start supporting this devastated community”.
She said Murray River has been hit hard by recent floods which have decimated bumper spring crops and local infrastructure, including roads and houses.
“The cost of this flood will sit in the billions and for the life of me, I can’t understand why it is taking so long to make a deceleration,” she said.
“These people are stressed and feel forgotten.
“While the financial assistance will not even go close to recovering losses, it will give them a much needed mental boost during this crisis to have their plight acknowledged and feel heard.”
Locals at Mellool and Mallan have told Mrs Dalton’s office they have never seen flooding in areas hit so hard this time around.
“Levies that have protected properties for generations have disappeared under feet of water that was moving so fast and so unpredictably, people weren’t able to get their stock out in time,” Mrs Dalton said.
She said one farmer at Mellool has 3000 sheep stranded on a 400m stretch of road after his entire 2400 acre property flooded.
“Many farmers have lost their entire year’s income; their spring crops hay, silage and pastures all gone while others can’t get near ground to sow rice so that potential income is lost as well.
“Many farm businesses were expecting this season to bring them out of the red and to have that all taken away in the blink of an eye is just devastating.
“These communities need urgent support, and they need it now,” Mrs Dalton said.
To support its request to be elevated to category C, Murray River Council is asking the Murray River business community to complete relevant surveys.
There is a Business Impact Survey (https://www.murrayriver.nsw.gov.au/Community/Grants-and-funding/Flood-recovery-assistance) and Murray Regional Tourism’s Rapid Impact Assessment Survey (https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7K3MS6N).
Affected members of the Murray River Council LGA can currently apply for a $25,000 recovery grant for immediate clean-up and recovery costs at www.raa.nsw.gov.au or call 1800 678 593.