ROADS, telecommunications, community facilities and health-care services - these are bread and butter issues for any rural council.
They are the lifelines to the rest of the nation.
While the poems of Paterson and Lawson describe the fraught lives of the pioneers as they struggled in desperate isolation, thankfully the bush is better connected than ever to the business and social pulse of Australia in the 21st century.
This developing improvement is mostly thanks to the sweat and toil of these local communities and their locally based leaders, who have made enough noise to bring about change despite often indifferent state and federal governments.
As retiring Quilpie Shire Mayor Dave Edwards (pictured) stands down from the region's top job at the next local government elections on March 31, he said he will be proud to know he has made a difference in his community.
After more than 40 years involved intermittently in local government, including 15 years as mayor, Cr Edwards has assisted in sealing the hundreds of kilometres of highways heading east (cutting a trip from Quilpie to Cunnamulla down from six hours to just two), as well as upgrading the streets of the Quilpie township and constructing 18 aged care units in the town to enable elderly residents to live their final years near family and friends.
More than half of the 67,000sq km council region now has mobile reception, with telecommunications set for another drastic upgrade when Quilpie is linked into the national broadband network.
And the sporting facilities at Quilpie have been greatly improved, from separate and competing racetrack, rodeo grounds, polo field and pony club facilities littering the town common, to a single council- owned facility which attracts competitors and tourists from across the nation.
But while he believes there is a bright future ahead for the region, Cr Edwards said the ever growing bureaucratic "red tape" of state and federal government was increasingly strangling local governments.
"I think since they changed the Local Government Act, they have stuffed the whole thing," Cr Edwards said.
"It's not the same as it used to be. The problem, in my opinion, is the government has got a one-size-fits-all approach and it does not work - our region is very different to the big regional towns.
"The paperwork is five or six times more than what it used to be and, whether it's wild rivers or workplace health and safety changes, trying to keep up with all the rules and regulations is a big cost for council.
"And then there is the cost shifting from Federal Government onto the states, who then pass it onto us and we can't shift it anywhere else because we are the bottom of the ladder."
Among the latest battles the council is fighting is the redevelopment of State Government land into industrial and rural residential blocks.
With strong future job opportunities, including an ever growing oil and gas industry, Cr Edwards said the council would like to see more land made available to assist this economic growth.
Cr Edwards said the council first be-gan raising the issue with State Government in 2008 and, four years later, is no closer to an outcome.
However, following a meeting with Minister for Local Government Paul Lucas last month, Cr Edwards said he is hoping to see a definitive commitment from the State Government before he hangs up his ceremonial robes in two months.
"It is an important issue - we need to be able to ensure businesses and new residents have somewhere to live and work," he said.
"There is not a house for sale or available for rent at the moment in Quilpie."
The second battle front is health-care service. Quilpie Hospital has been without a resident doctor since its long-term GP left the region in November.
The position on offer is medical superintendent in charge of Quilpie Hospital with the right to private practice.
A revolving door of locums has filled the void in the meantime, but Cr Edwards said it was important to the stability of the town that a professional was sourced who would be willing to live in the town.
"The doctor is probably the most important person in the community because if you are trying to attract skilled people to the region, especially with young families, the first thing they ask about is health care - they want to know if the area has a resident doctor," Cr Edwards said.
"The elderly residents also like to see the same person when they go to the doctor - someone who has their records and understands their needs.
"They are losing some confidence by not having a regular doctor in town.
"We are the last fully equipped hospital west to the border.
"There are only clinics further west than us. This area would cover 300,000sq km, which is nearly a quarter of Queensland and four council areas. It is vitally important there is at least one resident doctor to be on call for this large area."
Despite calling for better communication with the Department of Queensland Health in the media, Cr Edwards said he has received little definitive information about when this position will be filled.
"It's very cheap to make a phone call and if people in the community knew what was happening, they wouldn't be so worried about it all," he said.
"We are 1000km from the coast and while that distance is not as bad as the old days, it is still a long distance to be without a reliable medical service.
"We are Queenslanders, too, and need to know what is going on."
As he reflects on his time in office, Cr Edwards said it is the desire to bring about change for the people of the bush which has kept him in the political arena over his long career.
"I was born and bred in this region and in the old days, families were out here generation after generation," he said.
"We all got together to play football or go to races. It was not like now where you can get to the coast in a day's driving.
"We never went away much and so you wanted to improve the facilities as much as you could for your own and your community's enjoyment.
"That's what got me involved in local government in the first place."
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