A newly upgraded truck wash has opened in Powranna, catering for the trucks carrying thousands of animals that pass through the Northern Midlands sales yards on a weekly basis.
The facility will service vehicles 24 hours a day, with the potential to carry out up to 3,000 washes per year.
Minister for Primary Industries and Water Jane Howlett said the truck wash was “vitally important” for the region’s livestock industry.
“It’s important from a farming perspective, from a biosecurity perspective and also, of course, for the environment,” she said.
The state government contributed $325,000 towards the project, which Northern Midlands Mayor Mary Knowles says will help mitigate biosecurity risks.
“Over 95% of the Northern Midlands area is agricultural,” she said.
“We’ve got trucks coming and going all the time, all manner of trucks, from potato trucks to trucks carting animals around.”
“It’s really, really important that [trucks] can be kept clean when they need to be cleaned and that all biosecurity risks are mitigated and we support our farming community.”
Gordon Williams, CEO of the Northern Midlands Business Association, said the truck wash was “state-of-the-art” and among the best in Australia.
“We have equipment now that does the separation,” he said.
“The smell [used to be] quite offensive at times. I think we all agree that we’ve got a really sweet-smelling product at the end of the day here, which is just an indication of how effectively we’re dealing with the livestock waste.”
