Meet the Team
Pioneer Valley Water Co-operative Limited
PVWater Board Structure / Elections
The Board of PVWater consists of 3 Member Directors elected by PVWater’s members, and 2 Independent Directors appointed by the Board. The Board Chair and Deputy Chair are appointed by the directors
Two directors retire annually on a rotational basis but may be eligible to be nominated for re-election/re-appointment. If the number of nominees for election to the Board exceeds the number of Member Directors retiring, a postal ballot is accordingly held. If an Independent director has retired in the rotation, the Board may nominate the same or another qualified person to fill the vacated seat. This process is ordinarily completed by ratification at the Annual General Meeting for PVWater.
The Directors for 2022-23 are:
Joseph Borg – Chairperson
Member Director (re-elected 2020)
Joseph is a sugar cane grower, accessing his water entitlement in the PRWSS from the Pioneer River in the Riparian irrigation area. He was initially elected to the board of PVWater in 2016.
Joseph holds a Diploma of Agriculture and occupies positions in several industry bodies including:
Director on the Board of Mackay CANEGROWERS Limited,
Chairman of CANEGROWERS Mackay Area Committee.
Kevin Ross – Member Director (elected 2019)
Kevin is a third-generation cane farmer, living at Te Kowai. He accesses his water entitlement in the PRWSS via the Palmyra irrigation area (Bakers Creek).
Kevin has extensive practical experience in irrigation processes and has served on the Boards of Mackay Taxis and several sporting organizations.
Kevin also has other off-farm interests.
David Said – Independant Director (re-appointed 2020)
David holds a BBus FCPA and was appointed as an Independent Director to the board of PVWater in 2016.
He was previously the Chief Financial Officer with Mackay Sugar Limited and currently holds the position of Manager – Finance and Controlling.
David brings his considerable corporate financial expertise to help guide PVWater in financial matters.
William (Bill) Cooper – Independent Director (re-appointed 2019)
Bill was initially appointed as an Independent Director to the Boards of Pioneer Valley Water Board and PVWater simultaneously in 2009.
He holds a Bachelor of Business Accounting, a Bachelor of Law, and Diploma in Legal Practice and has a demonstrated depth and breadth of experience across a wide range of financial and legal interests.
Bill provides the Board with valued guidance, particularly in legal matters.
Byron Nicholson – Member Director (elected 2021)
Byron is a 4th generation sugarcane and grain grower in the Mirani and Benholme areas sourcing water from the riparian scheme above Mirani weir.
He has completed a trade in Mechanical fitting and machining, and worked in maintenance operations in coal mining and sugar milling and refining.
Pioneer Valley Mutual Limited
PVMutual Board Structure / Elections
The Board of PVMutual consists of 2 Member Directors elected by PVMutual’s members, and 1 Independent Director appointed by the Board. The Board Chair is appointed by the directors.
One director retires annually on a rotational basis but may be eligible to be nominated for re-election/re-appointment. If the number of nominees for election to the Board exceeds the number of Member Directors retiring, a postal ballot is accordingly held. If the Independent Director has retired in the rotation, the Board may nominate the same or another qualified person to fill the vacated seat. This process is ordinarily completed by ratification at the Annual General Meeting for PVMutual.
Directors for the 2022-2023 Water Year are:
John Werner – Chairperson
Member Director (re-elected 2020)
John is a fourth-generation sugar-cane farmer, accessing his water allocation in the PRWSS via the Septimus irrigation area.
John was initially elected to the Board of PVMutual in 2014. He has previous experience in directorship through roles as a director of Mackay Fibre Producers Pty Ltd and Advanced Nutrient Solutions Pty Ltd
Joseph Borg – Deputy Chairperson
Member Director (re-elected 2020)
Joseph is a sugar cane grower, accessing his water entitlement in the PRWSS from the Pioneer River in the Riparian irrigation area. He was initially elected to the board of PVWater in 2016.
Joseph holds a Diploma of Agriculture and occupies positions in several industry bodies including:
Director on the Board of Mackay CANEGROWERS Limited,
Chairman of CANEGROWERS Mackay Area Committee.
PVWater’s Staff
PVWater’s staff form a compact team dedicated to providing a reliable, sustainable irrigation water supply at minimum cost to PVWater members. Current staff include:
Steven Ford – General Manager and Co-Operative Secretary
Sadeta Jakupovic – Administration Officer
Darren Roberts – Operations Manager
Pioneer Valey Water, managing the irrigation infrastructure through which the allocation is distributed.
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