The retired police sergeant who has given his time for many decades to the Volunteer Rescue Association (VRA) was on Tuesday named the recipient of an Emergency Services Medal in the Australia Day Honours List 2016.

The citation accompanying the award for "outstanding service" reports Mr Powderly's "knowledge, advice and training were highly sought after and most appreciated by members of the NSW VRA".

Mr Powderly, a veteran of the NSW Police Force before his retirement in 2008, was one of 14 recipients of the Emergency Services Medal, announced by Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove.

A reluctant recipient of the accolade, the Dubbo man insisted there were others deserving of recognition.

His praise went to the "skilled and talented operators working in emergency services" and also to the "great people of the VRA".

"They give their time, their lives, it affects their family," he said.

"In my career, I got paid for it.

"These people still do the same thing as I used to do in the police but they don't get paid for it... I enjoy giving something back to them.

"I think the award, I don't know who organised it all, but I'm a little bit gobsmacked about it and I don't know if I'm worthy of it, there's other people out there who probably should have it."

Mr Powderly, who was "born and bred in Dubbo", signed up to the police cadets in 1967 and was sworn into the force in 1970.

He transferred to the Police Rescue and Bomb Squad in 1980, and his role as the rescue co-ordinator of the 1997 Thredbo landslide disaster has been reported in the media.

During his career doing a job in which there was no five o'clock knock-off, he also prepared and delivered lectures and physical training live scenarios to the NSW VRA on numerous subjects.

Enjoying retirement at Dubbo with wife Lyndal by his side, Mr Powderly's training role has continued.

He has been determined to provide realistic scenarios to prepare rescue squad members for the "jobs that will happen and can happen".

His involvement in the rescue field took him to countless road tragedies and as he prepared to accept his Australia Day honour, he had a blunt message for drivers.

"I couldn't count the car accidents and the fatal accidents and the serious accidents I've been to in my life," he said.

"Hundreds. Hundreds and hundreds.

"People get in nice new modern cars, they put the stereo on, they open the sun roof... put it on to automatic pilot and basically they think they're sitting in a lounge chair.

"It's the most dangerous weapon we own."

He implored people to "stop and think", and not speed or drive after drinking, and to put their seatbelts on.

"The person who dies in the car crash is not the victim," he said.

"The victim is all the family that are left behind and we go back to the bus crashes up north, years and years ago.

"Everyone of those people that died had a brother, a mother, a sister, a cousin, an uncle, an aunty, a best friend, and the extended families of those people ran into thousands.

"So the emotional and psychological effect on the rest of your community and your family is enormous.

"And what we've seen in recent months and the last couple of years with some of the - driving stunts I'll call it - pulled by some people is just horrific and I can't push it enough, to tell people slow down, just take your time, think about it.

"I've told the kids, friends' kids, Nike says 'just do it', but I say just don't do it, don't take the risk."