Page 1664 - Week 06 - Thursday, 20 May 1993
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It is our committee system that probably takes us closer than anything else to a town council. The irony of that, of course, is that the one member who will not participate in committees is Mr Stevenson. He is not here at the moment, but no doubt he can hear me in his room. One of the ironies is that he will not participate in the committees which give this Assembly those characteristics which take it closer to a council. The committees in this Assembly work more effectively, I believe, than in any other parliament in Australia.
It is an appropriate time to discuss fuelwood heating because this is the time that people are beginning to use their fires. The important education message that comes through is that there are two major things for people who are using fuelwood fires to do. First, do not turn them down. Do not use that old trick of throwing a bit more wood on in the morning. If you turn the fire right down you cut down the oxygen. I think that is one of the things that have created the visual pollution that we see, particularly in the Tuggeranong Valley, and that have been the cause of so much concern and representation to this committee. Secondly, ensure that the wood that you are burning is well seasoned. That is not a difficult task for people who are prepared to get one season ahead in storing their wood. Those are the critical factors for those who have a wood heater and are handling a wood heater.
The big advantage of wood heaters is that we are not using a fossil fuel. Even though we know that natural gas now is the most efficient system using fossil fuels and is easiest on the greenhouse effect, as it is a fossil fuel it will have a limited life. If we are going to take a very long-term view, wood fuels provide an opportunity for a renewable resource. That is a very important and critical thing, provided we can get growing our wood into balance with what we are using. That was one of the main themes behind the report.
Another theme behind the report, one that Mr Wood has emphasised a great deal lately and also in the greenhouse strategy that he tabled yesterday, is a huge emphasis on building houses that require less heating. That is basic to everything we are doing. The Government's emphasis in its response in that way is a very positive move. It is disappointing, of course, Madam Speaker, that when the Government and the Liberals had the opportunity to support a Bill that I put to this Assembly - I will not reflect on the vote, Madam Speaker - it was not carried, and we no longer have the position where insulation is compulsory in new houses.
Apart from that, Madam Speaker, a system is being put into place - the Government is to be congratulated on this - to provide for a five-star rating in the same way that people can now look at the way they buy their fridges. If you are out to buy a new fridge or a dishwasher or something, what are the energy efficiencies? That can be taken into account, and if it is taken into account it will assist in dealing with the greenhouse effect. The choices that people make in their houses do not rely just on energy efficiency. There are always other factors, and so there should be. Those other factors include, perhaps, the view, the locality, the local school, the shopping centre - - -
Mr Berry: It is all position, position, isn't it?
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