FOUR Home Hill-based organisations were amongst a total of 12 Burdekin clubs who have been presented with grants under Pacific Blue’s Haughton Sustainable Communities Fund, which shares the benefits of the Haughton Solar Farm with the surrounding communities, providing long-lasting social, economic and environmental value that goes beyond the life of the solar farm.
Pacific Blue’s General Manager Development & Delivery, Simon Maan made the presentations to the organisations who were able to attend the Sweet Days, Hot Nights activities at the former Home Hill Showgrounds recently.
The Home Hill organisations that received their grants were the:
- Home Hill Tennis Association
- Home Hill Choral Society
- Burdekin Artisan Community Assoication Inc.
- Burdekin Brass Band.
Those that were present to receive their grants were the:
- Burdekin Community Association
- Ayr Surf Lifesaving Club
- Burdekin Potters
- Clare State School
- Burdekin Machinery Preservationists.
Other successful organisations that were unable to be present for the ceremony were:
- Giru Daycare
- Giru State School
- Burdekin Vietnam Veterans
From March 1 to 31, 2023, eligible community groups and not-for-profit organisations from throughout the Burdekin were encouraged to apply for project funding up to $10,000 from a pool of $80,000.
Since the commissioning of Haughton Solar Farm in 2019, the Fund has provided more than $300,000 to 52 local sustainable projects. The Haughton Sustainable Communities Fund is a part of Pacific Blue’s Community Benefit Sharing Program, which has provided more than $5 million to over 1000 projects across Australia since 2005.
The Haughton Sustainable Communities Fund aims to support projects, initiatives, and organisations that provide lasting benefits to local communities and address community needs in at least one of these six key areas:
- Education and training
- Health and welfare
- Sport and recreation
- Arts and Culture
- The environment
- Projects that support the health and well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
