Page 2629 - Week 07 - Thursday, 1 August 2019
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The Nature Conservation Act 2014 requires the land custodian, the ACT parks and conservation service, to prepare a draft reserve management plan and to consult with the Conservator of Flora and Fauna and the planning and land authority on its preparation. The conservator and the planning and land authority have been consulted and support the plan.
The draft plan was available for public comment for six weeks in February 2018. Twenty-one submissions were received, with the majority indicating general support for the plan. All comments were considered in finalising this plan and a report on consultation was prepared and is available on the Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate website.
I would like to thank all of those organisations and individuals who made valuable contributions during consultation. Their contributions have helped to ensure that the plan meets the needs of the environment and the community.
The plan and the report on consultation were referred to the Standing Committee on Environment and Transport and City Services on 1 May this year. The committee advised me on 6 May that they would not be conducting an inquiry into the plan. On 23 May the committee recommended that I approve the plan. The plan will be made available on the EPSDD website, the your say and legislation register websites from today, and printed copies will be available on request.
A current draft variation to the Territory Plan, DV360, proposes that the public land overlays in the Territory Plan are consistent with the zoning indicated in the reserve management plan. This will make the entire length of the river corridor public land nature reserve, with the exception of the two areas of special purpose reserve that will allow for more intensive recreation.
The Molonglo Valley will eventually be home to 55,000 new residents. This new reserve management plan provides valuable information to the community on the many natural, cultural and social values of the reserve. It outlines management actions to protect these values, particularly our threatened species and ecological communities, and a wide variety of other plant and animal species that call the reserve home. The plan also provides guidance for the new residents, along with the rest of Canberra, on appropriate recreational use of the reserve.
The urban development of the Molonglo Valley came with the requirement to protect matters of national environmental significance—NES. A new NES plan was prepared in 2011 to protect box-gum woodland, natural temperate grassland and habitat for the pink-tailed worm-lizard, swift parrot and superb parrot. This reserve management plan meets the obligations outlined in the NES plan.
The government has already made a significant investment in restoring the natural environment of the reserve and habitat for the species within it. We are committed to ongoing investment for the continuation of this important work and to provide recreational facilities in the reserve for existing and future residents of the area.
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