Celebrating Excellence In Sustainability: Parkes Takes Top Honours At KAB NSW Tidy Towns Awards
By Julius Ewudo, ASEAN Region Representative
The winners of the Keep Australia Beautiful NSW (KAB NSW) 2024 Tidy Towns Awards were announced on November 2, 2024, at a ceremony hosted by 2023 winner Bathurst. The prestigious KAB NSW 2024 Overall Tidy Towns Award was presented to Parkes, earning the town the opportunity to represent NSW at the Australian Tidy Towns Awards in Beechworth, Victoria in May 2025.
KAB NSW has been running the Tidy Towns programme since 1981 which celebrates, recognises and rewards projects that reduce litter, minimise waste, encourage recycling, promote heritage and culture, biodiversity, and waterways protection, celebrate community spirit and many other environmental areas.
Overall winner, Parkes, also won in the Biodiversity Conservation, Liveable Towns, Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation and Community Spirit and Inclusion categories.
KAB NSW Tidy Towns Assessor, Doug MacDonald commented that “Parkes has demonstrated that it has taken sustainability seriously for many years, exemplified by their successful implementation of resilience projects and their recent focus on ecotourism, planned growth, and economic development. Council’s sincere sustainability culture among staff reaffirms their dedication to creating a thriving, environmentally conscious community for current and future generations.”
CEO of KAB NSW, Val Southam said that “the Tidy Towns Awards inspire communities and councils across NSW to make a genuine and lasting contribution to their area through partnerships between local authorities, businesses, community groups, schools, and individuals. The commitment of the councils, organisations and individuals who entered is evident in the calibre of the entries received this year and I would like to congratulate this year’s winners and finalists and everyone that entered.” said Ms Southam. The awards are hosted by Keep Australia Beautiful NSW with support from the NSW Environment Protection Authority, Bathurst Regional Council, JR Richards and Snowy Hydro
