Page 301 - Week 01 - Thursday, 14 February 2019
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
those legs waxed again. In all seriousness, it will be even greater when one day we have a cure. Put simply, we have got to have the funds to get there.
Waste—green bins
MS STEPHEN-SMITH (Kurrajong—Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, Minister for Disability, Minister for Children, Youth and Families, Minister for Employment and Workplace Safety, Minister for Government Services and Procurement, Minister for Urban Renewal) (5.06): As we all know, Canberra is a garden city. We are a city of accessible bushland, generous parks and canopied streets with wide green verges and medians. We are also a city of diverse creative private gardens and courtyards surrounding the homes in our suburbs. I do not think I have ever been anywhere in the world where urban greenery is more loved and more diligently cared for.
Of course, I cannot speak of our garden city without acknowledging the incredible work of the Transport Canberra and City Services staff who maintain our public spaces. Our public gardeners often go unthanked, but I hope they know there are few cities where their work would be more valued, and I am sure they are aware that there are few where it would be more scrutinised by the community than here in Canberra.
We likewise cannot overlook the contribution of private gardeners, the everyday Canberrans who curate suburban gardens that frame our streetscapes and provide food and habitat for our native birds, insects and other wildlife. Canberra would not be a garden city if it were not also a gardeners’ city.
That is why I am so proud to be part of a government that is delivering on its commitment to roll out green bins across our entire city. I was pleased recently to join my colleague Mr Steel to announce that green bins are now coming to Kurrajong. For a one-time fee of $50 residents of the inner north and inner south can now apply to receive their own green bin. This is achieved by simply visiting the ACT green waste bins website and entering your details, with services to commence on 1 April.
As members would be aware, the governments green bins program allows Canberrans to access free collection of garden waste such as grass clippings, hedge trimmings and fallen leaves and small branches, through a fortnightly kerbside bin collection. In other words, green bins are just like existing red and yellow bins but for the garden.
While on the subject of hedge trimming I take this opportunity to remind constituents in Kurrajong that it is their responsibility to keep their hedges trimmed away from footpaths, something that is raised regularly with me by constituents. Having a green bin will make that job even easier.
Green bins help to prevent green waste from ending up in red bins. We know that Canberrans are very environmentally conscious; we know that Canberrans are very waste conscious. Green bins are just one way this government is giving Canberrans the tools they need to minimise the amount of waste sent to landfill and to help us all work to minimise our collective environmental impact.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video