On Wednesday 18 October 2023, North Burnett Regional Council (NBRC) hosted the second Annual Operator Forum for the Wide Bay Burnett Urban Water Alliance (WBBUWA) in Mundubbera . WBBUWA Coordinator Jess Dean along with Shaun Johnston and the wonderful team at NBRC streamlined the day which brought together more than 20 operators from across the region.
NBRC Cr Sue Payne opened the forum and gave everyone a very warm welcome. It was great to see involvement from each of the 6 WBBUWA Councils; Bundaberg Regional Council, Cherbourg Aboriginal Shire Council, Fraser Coast Regional Council, Gympie Regional Council, North Burnett Regional Council and South Burnett Regional Council.
The day included a number of interesting presentations and even included an Operator’s Best Drop drinking water taste test competition. The winner was Fraser Coast Regional Council, with kudos going to Trevor Dean and team. The runner up was Gympie Regional Council, well done Peter Manning and GRC team! The scores were very close and no one was left thirsty.
The WBBUWA Operator Forums are for the Operators to share, listen and connect with each other, learn from one another and build beneficial regional relationships. It was evident that the relationships formed during the 2022 Forum are still going strong with many conversations and laughs had on the day. Also, great to hear experiences with training and suggestions for how training processes can be improved.
There are champions in each of our water communities, from Operators to Managers and the critical backbone support from Administration Officers. A lot of work and passion goes in to providing safe drinking water for communities and we appreciate every single one of you.