Cobar Shire is one of nine councils in the Parkes electorate able to access disaster assistance following severe flooding events that occurred earlier this year.
Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton said the assistance is jointly funded through the Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA).
“Heavy rain and storm activity that occurred in the first half of this year has left many councils in my electorate with expensive repair bills.
“A range of practical assistance is now available as these communities assess the damage and get on with clean-up efforts.”
Mr Coulton said the disaster event saw floodwaters come down from Queensland, causing widespread flooding across several river systems in NSW, which was exacerbated by heavy rainfall in February this year.
“Another two heavy rainfall and flooding events occurred in early April 2020.
“For several days, these regions were lashed by heavy rain that caused significant damage to properties and road infrastructure, and led to the temporary closure of major roads and highways across the region.”
The Government will work closely with NSW authorities to ensure that affected communities have the support they need.
Assistance available under the DRFA includes: help for people whose homes or belongings have been damaged; support for councils to help with the costs of cleaning up and restoring damaged essential public assets; concessional interest rate loans; freight subsidies for primary producers, and grants for eligible non-profit organisations.