Nominate a mate
for Aust Day Awards
A winning result from unfair tolling system before 29 October
Our Young Citizen of the Year Sam Bonus is an outstanding example of a mate you should nominate for the 2022 Hawkesbury Australia Day Awards .
Sam , 15 , who appears on our cover , is a quiet achiever but a fierce athlete with an amazing record of competitive swimming .
He has competed at both State and National levels in open water swimming , including the Rottnest Channel Swim – a gruelling 19.7km swim through the West Australian open ocean with sting rays , jellyfish and sharks .
Out of the water , Sam participates in community conversations surrounding mental health and wellbeing in public forums , all while studying at school and being committed to a training schedule with the goal of swimming the English Channel .
Great mate , great Aussie : Sam Bonus in action .
If you know a high achiever , a Hawkesbury great giver or an all-round community star , nominate them to Hawkesbury City Council before 29 October .
Categories include : Citizen of the Year , Young Citizen of the Year , Local Hero and Volunteer of the Year , along with sports , environment , community and cultural awards .
All nominees must be residents of the Hawkesbury or non-residents who have significantly contributed to the Hawkesbury community .
Judging will take place early December , with winners announced on Tuesday , 26 January 2022 .
Visit Hawkesbury Events Facebook facebook . com / hawkesburyevents or hawkesbury . nsw . gov . au for updates .
Proceeds from the government ’ s sale of WestConnex will now be reinvested into Western Sydney infrastructure – a successful result for local councils which lobbied hard for the agreement .
The Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils ( WSROC ) dubbed it as “ a qualified win for the region ’ s communities ” due to this region ’ s disproportionate toll burden warranting a larger re-investment of the sale revenue .
WSROC president , Barry Calvert , said the announcement gives our councils and communities a muchneeded boost after a particularly difficult year .
“ This investment [ also ] represents just a portion of the money Western Sydney has poured into infrastructure , through an unfair tolling system ,” Cr Calvert said .
“ WSROC has long advocated for proceeds from the sale of WestConnex to be reinvested into Western Sydney ’ s infrastructure and liveability needs as the region ’ s road users have paid a disproportionate amount towards the delivery of the project .
“ Full time , Western Sydney workers are paying tolls to the tune of $ 2000 per year to get to and from work on WestConnex ; a fee that will be increased at a minimum of four per cent annually for the next 40 years .”
WSROC welcomes and commends the government for deciding to reinvest sale proceeds into the west which “ continues to be unduly taxed through unfair tolls ”.
WSROC is also calling for expensive commutes and better transport networks for families to be addressed post-COVID recovery .
“ We keenly anticipate further developments , including the imminent Tolling Inquiry , to continue to advocate for a better , fairer system for the West ,” Cr Calvert said .
WSROC president Barry Calvert , calls the decision a win for Western Sydney infrastructure .
12 ISSUE 137 // OCTOBER 2021 theindependentmagazine . com . au THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT