13 FEBRUARY 2013 Wednesday, 13 February 2013
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13 FEBRUARY 2013 www.hansard.act.gov.au Wednesday, 13 February 2013 National Arboretum Canberra .................................................................................... 429 Hospital emergency department waiting times .......................................................... 442 Major events at Manuka Oval .................................................................................... 462 Questions without notice: Auditor-General—audit findings .................................................................... 472 Art—public ..................................................................................................... 474 Children and young people—abuse ................................................................ 475 Schools—canteens .......................................................................................... 478 Electricity—feed-in tariff ............................................................................... 480 Bushfires—management ................................................................................ 482 Schools—early intervention program ............................................................. 484 Economy—support ......................................................................................... 486 Health—birthing centre .................................................................................. 492 Environment—Better Place ............................................................................ 494 Schools—swimming ....................................................................................... 496 Supplementary answers to questions without notice: Health—aged care .......................................................................................... 498 Bushfires—management ................................................................................ 499 Aboriginal reconciliation—national apology to stolen generation ............................ 499 Major events at Manuka Oval .................................................................................... 505 Bushfires—management and mitigation .................................................................... 515 Order of the day—postponement ............................................................................... 532 Roads—footpaths ....................................................................................................... 532 Transport—light rail .................................................................................................. 540 Adjournment: Australia Day awards ...................................................................................... 549 Australia Day awards ...................................................................................... 550 Aboriginal reconciliation—national apology to stolen generation ................. 550 Emergency services—workers ....................................................................... 550 Neighbourhood Watch .................................................................................... 551 Convoy for cancer .......................................................................................... 551 Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation .................. 552 Canberra Cavalry baseball team ..................................................................... 554 Legislative Assembly for the ACT Wednesday, 13 February 2013 MADAM SPEAKER (Mrs Dunne) took the chair at 10 am and asked members to stand in silence and pray or reflect on their responsibilities to the people of the Australian Capital Territory. National Arboretum Canberra MR GENTLEMAN (Brindabella) (10.02): I move: That this Assembly: (1) notes: (a) that the official opening of the National Arboretum Canberra on 1 February 2013 was a significant event in Canberra’s cultural history; (b) that the Arboretum has added to the wide range of national attractions in the ACT; and (c) the Arboretum’s value to the recreational amenity, cultural infrastructure and landscape of the ACT which will provide long term benefits for tourism and economic activity within the ACT; and (2) acknowledges the efforts of all involved in the planning and development of the National Arboretum Canberra. I begin by congratulating all those involved both in the development of the arboretum and in the successful open day held recently, which attracted thousands of Canberrans to the venue. The official opening on 1 February, followed by the community open day the next day, was a wonderful start to our centenary year. I had the great opportunity of attending the event. As the Chief Minister mentioned yesterday, the focus on children for the event was a wonderful experience for Canberrans. Also, I was very pleased to hear that one of the songs in the opening ceremony contained the names of all of the trees that have been planted in the arboretum since its inception, which is fantastic. The arboretum is a wonderful addition to the exceptional range of national attractions on offer here in Canberra. It will be a place of enjoyment, recreation, research and learning. I am sure that everyone who has visited the site will agree that it offers spectacular views across Canberra, and one can only begin to imagine its beauty over the next few decades as the forests mature. The arboretum features forests of Australian natives and various rare and endangered trees from Australia and around the world. The arboretum contains about 40,000 rare, threatened and symbolic trees from more than 100 different countries, as well as a range of facilities highlighted by the centre overlooking some of the best views in Canberra. 429 13 February 2013 Legislative Assembly for the ACT The arboretum is a place where trees are cultivated for conservation, scientific and educational study, display and preservation. The vision of the ACT government in establishing the National Arboretum Canberra is for it to become one of the great arboreta in the world. The aim is to provide a place for outstanding beauty of international standard and interest that is a destination and recreational resource for the local community and visitors to Canberra. As we have heard, the National Arboretum Canberra will feature 100 forests of Australian natives and various rare and endangered trees from Australia and around the world. This concept redefines the meaning of a public arboretum for this 21st century. As it develops into the future it will become a significant recreational and educational asset, with an important role for sustainability, the protection of biodiversity and best practice in horticulture and water management. Over 100 years ago, when Walter Burley Griffin designed Canberra, he envisaged, as part of the design, a continental arboretum, a place that would showcase iconic trees from all over the world. Burley Griffin’s vision of a world of trees did not eventuate until late 2003, when the ACT government saw the opportunity to make the original vision a reality. The design competition, as you are all aware, was held in May 2005, with the announcement made and the winning entry proposing the hundred forests and the hundred accompanying gardens. The official opening was a centrepiece of the centenary of Canberra celebrations. It provided the ACT government with an opportunity to recognise and thank all those involved—particularly the Australian government, for their generous grant of $20 million towards key features within the arboretum. Those include the visitors centre, pavilion, children’s play space, central valley, and interpretive program. The arboretum is working closely with the Friends of the National Arboretum to host guided tours and assist with event and general volunteering tasks. More than 150 people have participated in the Friends of the National Arboretum training program. Another group that has been involved in the arboretum is the STEP group, the Southern Tablelands Ecosystems Park group. A number of years ago I was involved with them in planting right down on the north-western end of the arboretum. The STEP group was formed in 2002 with the aim of establishing a demonstration native garden, a conservation and educational resource, in the heart of Canberra. STEP is now established at the National Arboretum, as we have heard, in forest No 20. STEP has planned a microcosm of the vegetation typical of the southern tablelands region of New South Wales and the ACT, which complements the arboretum’s mosaic of forest trees that are rare, endangered or have an ethno-botanical or symbolic value. Individuals, community groups, schools and others are welcome to visit or join this exciting program. Their website is www.step.asn.au. Also at the arboretum we have the bonsai pavilion and the National Bonsai and Penjing Collection of Australia. It is a collection of some of the finest bonsai and penjing in Australia on permanent display. It has been functioning in its temporary home in Commonwealth Park since 2008. In that time, it has had over 320,000 430 Legislative Assembly for the ACT 13 February 2013 visitors. The Japanese art of bonsai has spread all around the world and is now a familiar sight in many countries, including Australia. The influence of the lesser known Chinese art of penjing is also on show in many of the trees on show at that collection. Visitors to the arboretum can see some of the finest miniature trees produced by Australian artists. I had the opportunity to visit the bonsai display, noting that some of the trees