BATHURST Regional Council will lead a new delegation to sister city Ohkuma in November, the third such visit since a devastating earthquake hit the region in 2011.
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The earthquake and subsequent tsunami badly damaged the nearby Fukushima power plant and sparked a nuclear crisis that forced the evacuation of the city.
More than seven years on, life has not returned to normal in Ohkuma with residents still relocated to surrounding towns, particularly Aizuwakamatsu.
A report to councllors by corporate services and finance director Aaron Jones recommended council lead a new trip to Ohkuma in November, including paying the travel costs of the mayor and general manager, or their authorised delegates.
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“Since the tsunami, Ohkuma has sent a number of delegations with a group of 20 students and two teachers visiting in August 2013,” the report states.
“The Mayor Toshitsuna Watanabe led a delegation in May 2015 to help celebrate Bathurst's 200th birthday. There was also a group who visited Bathurst in August 2015 consisting of eight students and two teachers, and more recently their Ohkuma Wings of Hope group last year.
“The ongoing visits between Bathurst and Ohkuma reinforce how strong and important the relationship is to both communities.”
Mr Jones said the cost to council would be $4500-$5500 for each delegate it sends, covering return airfares, airport taxes, airport transfers, accommodation in Aizuwakamatsu and Tokyo, and a Japan rail pass.
At this stage, any other councillors who wish to make the trip would have to pay their own way but that could be changed by a future resolution of council.
Once the details of the trip are finalised, council will put out an open invitation for other members of the Bathurst community to join the delegation, again at their own expense.
The last Bathurst delegation to Ohkuma visited the region in 2016, led by general manager David Sherley and former mayor Gary Rush.
