Mr O'Neill received the honour for his service to the rejuvenation of inland rivers.

After co-founding the Inland Water Rejuvenation Association (IWRA) in 2007, Mr O'Neill said he was not the only one to deserve the recognition that he was getting.

"They (IWRA) deserve it too, all the work that we've done over the last years, I am very proud of the committee they all deserve recognition and awards just as much as me,"

Although he may be modest, Mr O'Neill feels it is nice for his contribution to the community to be recognized.

"I don't know who nominated me but I would like to thank them very much, I'm very proud and a little bit embarrassed about it."

Luckily, Mr O'Neill has still received his award after almost missing out.

"I actually nearly missed out getting the award, they sent a letter out and no one checked the mailbox so I got a phone call asking me if I was going to accept the award and I had no idea what they were talking about."

Award recipients receive a letter telling them that they have been nominated and must call a number to confirm they are the correct person before being contacted again to inform the recipient they will be receiving the award.

Mr O'Neill who has spent the last 15 years repairing and improving the health of waterways around the region and says there is plenty people can do to assist his organisation.

"We all work full-time and always need money from sponsors to help our cause.

"We always need money. We have gone well for the last four or five years but we haven't been able to run the Burrendong Fishing Classic which is our main fundraiser for the past two years."

The IWRA run the annual Burrendong Fishing Classic but unfortunately the event will not run this year due to the pandemic.

In 2017 Mr O'Neill was awarded the Dubbo Regional Council Citizen of the Year award for his contribution to the inland rivers.

The year before he received a Dubbo Day Award for 'outstanding service to the city of Dubbo', and in 2010 he received a Macquarie River Smart Hero award for 'many years of voluntary work cleaning up the Macquarie River.'

The Order of Australia medal and title are 'an Australian society of honour for according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or meritorious service'.