According to the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) drought monitoring tool, areas around Bourke and north of Coonabarabran are currently either in drought or in recovery mode.

While the majority of the rest of the Western Plains is considered non-drought affected, local LGA's know the threat of drought is ever present. From 2017 to 2020, NSW experienced a record-breaking drought that affected the whole state. Between January 2017 and December 2019, NSW temperatures were the warmest and rainfall was the lowest on record.

With this in mind, Lachlan Shire Council is joining forces with Forbes and Parkes Shires to develop a drought resilience plan for the future - a plan which acknowledges that drought events are part of the future of any area reliant on the agricultural sector.

Backing from the Government's Future Drought Fund funding will allow the Council to use learnings from previous droughts and implement an evidence-based strategy to assist the community mitigate or adapt to future drought impacts. The first two rounds of the funding supports 59 local Councils and regional areas to prepare 22 regional drought plans.

“The Regional Drought Resilience plans will support economic resilience and help manage drought impacts across a range of sectors and improve the way natural resources are managed in each region,” Lachlan Shire Mayor, Paul Phillips said.

Mr Phillips said working together with neighbouring shires makes a lot of sense for this far-reaching issue.

“While the impacts of flood are close to mind now, we need to be ready for drought conditions that can occur at any time," he said. "We will be working closely with our community to make sure that

this plan builds on our existing resilience and is relevant and practical."

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," Mr Phillips said. "We look forward to working with Forbes and Parkes on a regional plan that will really make a difference."

Minister for Regional NSW Tara Moriarty said the program supports local councils to partner with regional communities, farmers, and industry to prepare for the future.

“As we move into hot, dry conditions it is vital regional NSW is supported to develop community-driven drought plans that use local knowledge to develop tailor made solutions for their local areas,” Ms Moriarty said.

Other local councils collaborating on drought resilience plans are Cobar, Walgett, Bourke and Brewarrina, Warrumbungle and Gilgandra, and Coonamble, Warren and Bogan.