Page 1354 - Week 05 - Thursday, 18 June 2020
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
cover; and environmental factors like the conservation of native grasslands and threatened species that rely on grassland communities.
Our tree teams have to make sure that there is an availability of tree stock in our nurseries as well—noting that a long lead time, usually two to three years, is required, especially for the slower growing exotic species—to locally source suitable trees that are hardened to Canberra’s climate. They also have to consider bushfire prevention on the outskirts of our city, in our increasingly fire-prone climate. They have to engage with local residents about the desirability of a new tree in their area and give particular thought to the tree species planted. That is why most of our planting is done by qualified contractors who are experts at doing this work. That means we that can keep people in jobs. Thousands of trees means thousands of hours of work for Canberrans, which is important now more than ever.
That is why our investment in planting 25,000 trees over the next three years is going to cost $350 to $400 per tree. This includes the cost of purchasing sufficiently mature trees that are ready to be planted in the street environment; choosing an appropriate location where the tree will be able to grow; investigating the site; checking for underground services; preparing the site for planting and mulching afterwards if required; planting the tree, including labour costs, machinery required and personal protective equipment; purchasing stakes and guards to protect juvenile trees; and ongoing maintenance and watering of the tree for the first five years after planting up to every eight weeks.
The ACT government will soon be releasing a draft of our urban forest strategy for consultation. This strategy outlines a framework for achieving our 30 per cent canopy cover by 2045 through planting additional trees, removing and replacing our existing trees—which also comes at a cost: over $1,000 per tree if it needs to be removed, which we will need to do as some of our trees come to the end of their life. What improvements we can make to legislation will also be considered. That includes the ongoing review of the Tree Protection Act and the Planning and Development Act, and we will also look at the Public Unleased Land Act.
The work that has gone into this strategy to date and the modelling that has been done by qualified experts tells us that we are going to need 450,000 new trees to be planted in our urban context in Canberra over the next 25 years. These 450,000 trees will be chosen, planted and cared for to maturity with the consideration and diligence that I have outlined. The strategy will outline how we grow a diverse and resilient forest through careful choice of tree species, planting locations and end of life treatments for ageing trees so that our forest continues to remain healthy for generations to come.
For example, the ACT government has worked with the Fenner School of Environment and Society at the ANU to research the tree species that will be the most resilient in our future climate. Ms Lee commented on this as if this work had not actually taken place. It has already been done; we are already incorporating it and will do through the urban forest strategy. The resulting report makes recommendations about the ideal trees for certain conditions, including high pedestrian traffic pavement areas, irrigated areas, local streets and arterial roads. This information is vital to ensure our future plantings are diverse and appropriate for emerging conditions.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video