Page 4990 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 28 November 2018
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Let me repeat that:
But Canberra Liberals emergency services spokeswoman Giulia Jones said dry weather conditions shouldn’t be a deterrent …
What an extraordinary position! Canberrans should be rightly worried if the Canberra Liberals spokesperson on emergency services ever becomes a minister. Can you imagine it? A burn is scheduled in advance but the day before the bushfire management experts say that the weather will be too hot and windy and that the burn would be dangerous. Imagine what Mrs Jones would do. She would be straight on the phone saying that that burn will go ahead because the weather should not be a deterrent to that burn. Talk about the shadow minister for reckless endangerment! Unlike Mrs Jones, I respect the role of our emergency services workers and will continue to respect their operational independence—that is, do not interfere.
In closing, let me reassure the Assembly and the community that the ESA and all those across government responsible for bushfire preparedness have been working hard to prepare our city. Their efforts mean that our city is better prepared than ever before. But we also need Canberrans to prepare. Bushfire preparedness is the responsibility of all of us.
MR RATTENBURY (Kurrajong) (4.15): Mrs Jones has brought an important topic to the Assembly. Bushfires are a terrible occurrence and an ever-present risk during the hot summer seasons and, increasingly, beyond the summer seasons. The terrible events of 2003 made this all too real for so many Canberrans who were here at the time. As a city and a community many people are still painfully affected by the events of 2003.
I want to firstly recognise and thank the emergency services staff and volunteers for their ongoing work. Our community is extremely grateful for the work they do in often very difficult conditions. I am also aware of the key role that the parks and conservation service play in undertaking fuel management and reduction across the territory. The ACT parks and conservation service manages over 75 per cent of the land in the ACT, which is a huge job. I also want to note the work done by the parks and conservation fire management unit which undertakes crucial bushfire operations planning, most of the hazard reduction burning and the bulk of fire suppression work for the ACT, and they are ably backed up by the Rural Fire Service.
Since 2003 the ACT government’s understanding of fuel management has improved vastly due to dedicated staff, lots of scientific research and goodwill in implementing improved fire and land management measures. The government has developed a much better picture of what the various vegetation types are across the territory, what the best land management practices are for each one, which ones need to be burned and how to best monitor and assess fuel loads, and which ones are too delicate and should instead be hand-slashed or fuel-managed in some other way. This knowledge means that in the ACT we can strike an effective balance between managing fuel loads and protecting ecological values in our natural environment.
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