Page 2018 - Week 06 - Tuesday, 4 June 2019
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I present the following paper:
Education, Employment and Youth Affairs—Standing Committee—Membership—Proposed changes—Copy of email correspondence between the Opposition Whip and the Acting Speaker, dated 20 May 2019.
Motion (by Mr Gentleman) agreed to:
That the change to the membership of the Standing Committee on Education, Employment and Youth Affairs as proposed to and agreed by the Acting Speaker, pursuant to standing order 223, be adopted.
Integrity Commission—Standing Committee
Membership
Motion (by Mr Gentleman) agreed to:
That Ms Lee be discharged from the Standing Committee on the Integrity Commission and Mr Wall be appointed in her place.
Bushfire season
Ministerial statement
MR GENTLEMAN (Brindabella—Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Minister for Planning and Land Management, Minister for Police and Emergency Services and Minister assisting the Chief Minister on Advanced Technology and Space Industries) (10.29): I would like to make a report in regard to the end of the bushfire season. I commend the ACT government directorates and the ACT community for the work that they have undertaken to ensure that, despite the severe conditions in the bush capital, Canberra remained well informed and protected during the 2018-19 bushfire season.
The lead-up to this bushfire season saw some of the driest conditions on record in the ACT and significant active fires in New South Wales. New South Wales brought forward the start of the bushfire season to 1 August 2018 for 10 of their fire areas, and the ACT bushfire season was brought forward to 1 September 2018.
This season’s weather has seen a number of extreme weather events develop in the ACT, including heatwave conditions, a week of temperatures above 40 degrees followed by storm activity producing lightning, high winds and patchy rain. These weather events, particularly in the mountains to the west of the ACT, posed a significant threat of bush and grass fires to the ACT and surrounding region.
The residual dryness and fire danger potentials were a concern late in the season. As a result, the surrounding New South Wales regions declared an extension to the bushfire danger period. In the ACT the Commissioner of the ACT Emergency Services Agency, ESA, also extended the bushfire season by one month, concluding on 30 April 2019. This made the 2018-19 bushfire season the longest since 2003-04, which saw the devastating fires that destroyed over 500 homes.
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