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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 14 Hansard (11 December) . . Page.. 4756 ..

MS HORODNY (continuing):

Let me point out that we would have preferred the time at which trucks can start up in the morning to be 7.00 am, to match the Noise Control Act. However, we included 6.00 am on the basis that, if proposed new section 150G is amended to ban a wider range of the bigger trucks, then a 6.00 am starting time for the remaining trucks will not have such a major adverse impact on neighbours. The proposed 5.30 am start and 12 midnight finish for existing operators is definitely not acceptable.

MR MOORE (6.27): Mr Speaker, I think this is a very sensible amendment. I can understand the anger people feel when somebody is starting up a truck at 5.30 in the morning next to their bedroom window, and I wonder how many members here would think that was okay. Of course it is not okay. We have already clearly put in our environment Act that excess noise is appropriate only from 7.00 am. Many people believe that a diesel truck needs a significant warm-up. There is some debate as to whether that is true or not; nevertheless, a number of drivers believe that it is.

Mr Berry: What about a diesel car, or a 350 Chev with a supercharger?

MR MOORE: Mr Berry indicates that a big car, a big Chev or something with a 350-cubic-inch motor, will make the same noise. They do not. They do make a lot of noise. I suppose there are those that have straight-through systems, but it is very unusual for such vehicles to start up at 5.30 in the morning, whereas it is quite common for truck operators to start at that time. This legislation is supposedly about ensuring protection of residential amenity and protection of environment, but it is getting so weak as to have no effect at all. Ms Horodny has moved a couple of amendments to put a bit of spine into it. We would be able to put a bit of spine into the legislation if it were not for the two political parties, who are showing none of the same in their own backs.

MR DE DOMENICO (Minister for Urban Services) (6.29): It seems that the only person in this place who has political spine happens to be Mr Moore - or people who agree with him. The Government disagrees with that, Mr Speaker. Mr Whitecross used the word "reasonable". It depends on what your definition of "reasonable" is, but once again - - -

Mr Moore: At 5.30 in the morning a truck next-door is not reasonable.

MR DE DOMENICO: Mr Moore, there are a lot of people in this Territory who do have trucks that start up at 5.30 in the morning and who do not consider it unreasonable. It is all about compromise, as we said before. If we were going to wait to please everybody, we would never be doing anything.

Can I make a short point on a comment Ms Horodny made. Placing restrictions in the code of practice currently proposed by the Government enables these requirements to be more clearly specified and to be adapted to specific circumstances. Placing some restrictions in the Act and others in the code of practice is liable to give rise to confusion and enforcement difficulties, which Ms Horodny was alluding to. The code of practice, as a disallowable instrument, will also be able to be changed in the light of experience, without the delays involved in the drafting and passage of legislative amendments, and that is why we think the Government's way of doing it is the best way.

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