The General Manager
Eurobodalla Shire Council
PO Box 99
MORUYA NSW 2537

The Dairy Cultural Heritage of the Eurobodalla Shire

The Coastwatchers Association would like to take this opportunity to raise with you the issues that could be considered in the above Heritage Study.

Researching the historical artefacts and customs of the dairy industry can be an opportunity to reflect on the activities of past generations and use those examples as guidance for future generations of farmers. Coastwatchers feel that any glorification of historically unsustainable practices of dairy farmers, such as draining of wetlands, allowing stock to access rivers and inefficient irrigation methods, is not appropriate.

Given that residents of the shire are told time and again that finances are tight in regards to many other services this organization is of the view that there are other more important issues to be dealt with at the present time.

If the Eurobodalla Shire Council is to proceed with this study we suggest that the outcomes should be focused on educating dairy farmers about
1. restoration of freshwater wetlands
2. fencing off of rivers from stock
3. education of farmers to employ efficient irrigation methods
4. restoration of key habitats historically cleared for dairies i.e. forest red gum forests

The above mentioned are very important parts of the natural heritage of the shire and need to be considered an integral part of any heritage study. As an industry dairy farmers cannot move forward without learning from the lessons of the past.