Forbes Shire Council is joining forces with Lachlan and Parkes to develop a drought resilience plan for the future. The plan acknowledges that drought events are part of the future of any area reliant on the agricultural sector. With funding from the Australian and NSW Government under the Future Drought Fund, the project will allow Council to use the learnings from previous droughts and implement an evidence based strategy to assist the community to adapt to or mitigate future drought impacts. “Working together with our neighbouring shires makes a lot of sense for this far-reaching issue” explained Mayor Phyllis Miller OAM. “The impacts of flood are close to mind now, but we need to be ready for inevitable drought conditions that may just be around the corner. We will again work very closely with our community to make sure that this plan is practical and relevant and grows our already strong resilience.” The Regional Drought Resilience Planning Program is managed by the Department of Regional NSW and was started as a pilot with three groups of local governments. Rounds one and two are supporting 59 local Councils and regional areas to prepare 22 regional drought plans. The NSW Model for regional drought resilience planning program involves neighbouring councils working together to develop regional drought resilience plans. These plans will be provided to the CSIRO for independent review and completed plans from across the country will be published on the Australian Government’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry website. “Planning such as this is critical for Council to be able to access funding support for the implementation of these plans”, added Mayor Miller. “We look forward to working with Parkes and Lachlan on a regional plan that will really make a difference”.