By Staff Writers

Hornsby Shire Council has won the premier award in the 2006 Local Government Excellence in the Environment Awards announced recently at the NSW Art Gallery.

The awards, which have been staged annually since 1998, are sponsored by the Local Government and Shires Associations of NSW (LGSA).

The Minister for Local Government, the Hon Kerry Hickey, presented Hornsby Shire Council with a $10,000 study tour package after they won the LGSA-sponsored Local Sustainability Award

There are three divisions for each award based on council population data: C (More than 60,000), B (20,000 – 60,000) and A (less than 20,000).

The President of the Local Government Association, Cr Genia McCaffery, said the Awards were motivated by a strong commitment to leadership in communities served by Local Government.

“They are a testament to the unflagging commitment in local councils to innovate, explore and discover new ways that they can improve their sustainability.

“Running any program, especially involving the environment, is challenging and funding is always marginal at best.

“I congratulate the winners and finalists,” Cr McCaffery said.

The President of the Shires Association, Cr Col Sullivan OAM, praised the high standard of entries received this year.

“The quality of environmental management in councils, and the enthusiasm to try new ideas, shows no sign of waning.

”More importantly, they highlight the value of State and Local Government partnerships, and we are both united in our quest to promote better environmental management.

“Regional rural councils have never been more aware of the benefits of conservation and environmental management since we entered this century with critical water shortages and our worst drought on record,” Cr Sullivan said.

See all finalists and descriptions of projects at www.lgsa-plus.net.au/EnvironmentAwards