Bushfire and drought relief were at the top of the agenda when Bayside Council met this week.
Bayside Council decided to donate $5000 each to Australian Red Cross Disaster Recovery and Relief, the Salvation Army Disaster Appeal and the St Vincent de Paul Society Bushfire Appeal (NSW).
The council also committed to donate $10,000 to the NSW Farmers Association's Drought Relief Fund.
Bayside Council mayor Joe Awada in a Mayoral Minute acknowledged the hard work of the Rural Fire Service and volunteers.
"While NSW and parts of Queensland burn, we watch and wonder how can we provide assistance and relief to those most impacted," Councillor Awada said.
"The burnt area statewide now covers more than 1,650,000 hectares - more than during the past three bushfire season combined. Recovery is a long road for those affected and impacted by these fires."
Cr Awada said the drought also continues to deepen in regional and rural NSW.
"The images of dust-blown and brown paddocks, emaciated livestock and the severe bushfires that continue to ravage parts of the state are the visible manifestations of this deepening crisis," he said.
"From our positions in Sydney, it is very difficult to conceive the enormity of the scale of the crisis gripping the country.
"Equally, it is difficult to know how we can be of assistance, or anything we do will actually have an impact.
"Is is my hope that as well as the financial assistance, such an initiative will carry with it a message that they are not in this fight alone; that they know we're here and we're supporting them in their time of need."
