threatened species in the senate spotlight

Let's not remember
our species as stuffed
animals like this
threatened species, the
Leadbeater's Possum.

Recently Senator Larissa Waters successfully committed the Senate Standing Committees on Environment and Communications to conduct an inquiry into the effectiveness of threatened species and ecological communities' protection in Australia.

The investigation will cover:

(a) management of key threats to listed species and ecological communities;
(b) development and implementation of recovery plans;
(c) management of critical habitat across all land tenures;
(d) regulatory and funding arrangements at all levels of government;
(e) timeliness and risk management within the listings processes;
(f) the historical record of state and territory governments on these matters; and
(g) any other related matter. 

The investigation is timely, we've seen the Auditor General report that Victoria's environment and primary industry departments are failing to act as proper watchdogs (see The Age story here).

Further to that we've seen Professor Tim Flannery publish his opinion piece (from the Monthly's Quarterly Essay) on the extinction crisis pointing some of the blame at the Commonwealth's inaction (here). 

The rate of extinctions in this country is alarming, if you are concerned then you should write a submission to the  Senate Standing Committees on Environment and Communications. You can help create a policy that starts to protect our species, but to do so means you are going to have to make a submission.

MyEnvironment are planning Senate Inquiry Information Sessions across the region, visit their website for more information with the first one coming up in Healesville on Friday night (23/11). 

Want to know more? Then visit the Inquiry site.

The effectiveness of threatened species and ecological communities' protection in Australia

1. Information about the Inquiry
2. Terms of Reference
3. Getting involved in Committee inquiries
4. Upload Submission Online
5. Submissions Received

Submissions should be received by 14 December 2012. The reporting date is 07 February 2013.

  

The Committee is seeking written submissions from interested individuals and organisations preferably in electronic form submitted online or sent by email to ec.sen@aph.gov.au as an attached Adobe PDF or MS Word format document. The email must include full postal address and contact details.

 

Alternatively, written submissions may be sent to:

Committee Secretary
Senate Standing Committees on Environment and Communications
PO Box 6100
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Australia

our disappearing wildlife, info session at healesville

public passenger transport hearing

Today I attended the hearing in Melbourne for the Senate Inquiry into the investment of Commonwealth and State funds in public passenger transport infrastructure and services. The inquiry, the first ever Senate inquiry into public transport, was initiated by Senator Scott Ludlam, Greens Senator in WA.

I heard from a number of groups and academics from across Melbourne, including the Public Transport Users Association, Professor Graham Currie, John Stone from GAMUT, Jan Scheurer from AHURI , Paul Mees, operators Veolia & Connex and the Melbourne Transport Forum.

Most of the people who spoke painted a picture of poor public transport services across Melbourne, dogged by delays, lacking in connectivity with poor frequency of services. It was interesting, but no surprise, that it paralleled what the Yarra Ranges community says of its own local public transport services.

Senators were very interested in why the federal government should invest in public transport and if so what sort of accountability measures should be put in place if they did fund public transport.

Key messages from today’s hearings were:
· The public transport system should be coordinated by a central body (much the same way roads are via VicRoads) so issues around connectivity could be addressed and allow different modes to work together.
· There should be space set aside on our roads for public transport (be that trams or buses) as these modes of transport offer much greater efficiencies and assist in reducing congestion.
· There is a skew between the amounts spent on road infrastructure versus public transport with a great need for this to be redressed through significant spending on infrastructure and coordination of services.
· The planning around roads is done competently and efficiently, however the model of professional planning that is dedicated to roads is not mirrored in the state’s approach to public transport.
· There is a good business case to spend on public transport, despite the difficulty with using public transport there is still keenness by the community to take up public transport.
· The public transport system must be open, transparent and accountable. At the moment there are significant difficulties in gaining information and there is a lack of coordination of knowledge management.
· Public versus private operation is a distraction from the main aim of a well coordinated public transport system, the fundamental issue is the amount of money invested in public transport.
· Two thirds of Melbourne is covered by buses (rather than trains & trams), the average time for these services across Melbourne is a bus every 40 minutes between 7am and 7pm, this service average drops to 20% on Sundays.
· Public transport has been chronically underinvested in for decades.
· There is not enough focus on orbital linkages, rail efficiencies or growth corridors.
· There many gaps in services, particularly with no rail to Doncaster or Rowville, there are also gaps in growth suburbs and outer suburbs of Melbourne with no focus on orbital services.
· We have to catch up on 20 years of under investing.

From the operators:
· Policy makers have put too much focus on motor vehicles.
· Tax system doesn’t encourage sustainable transport options
· The states don’t have the capacity to fund infrastructure on their own. The Commonwealth should support the ‘right’ projects.
· There must be increased population densities to support sustainable transport.
· The Commonwealth should put funding into the tunnel and need to focus capacity on the inner areas before the outer areas.

It was interesting to note that no Senators from Victoria attended the hearing today.

report from the roundtable - 16 dec

Report from the Roundtable is a regular entry on my blog where I report back on items from the most recent council meeting. This week it was the first meeting of the new council, very much the same faces as the last council with the addition of Cr Richard Higgins (Chirnside) and Cr Chris Templer (O’Shannassy).

A lot of different items were covered, but this time round I’m going to focus on childcare. Childcare is an issue that I have always been passionate about and I have long been an advocate for community based not for profit childcare, rejecting the notion of ‘for profit’ childcare. The demise of ABC Learning Centres across the country has thrown the childcare sector into crisis. Of the four ABC centres in the Shire, 3 are being continued, the one in Healesville is scheduled for closure in March, 2009. This is a dire situation for families in the Healesville region.


Me, outside council's long day care facility, Sherbrooke Children's Centre (SCC). It's full steam ahead for this site with the development of a Children's Hub for the Dandenong Ranges region. This will include integrated services for families across the hills and a 110 place long day care centre. Currently the waiting list at SCC is over 240 places. There is a clear demand in the hills for community based childcare.

The Robyn Jane Childcare Centre, a not for profit community based provider, are looking to expand their centre but can’t at their current location. The ABC centre offers them an ideal opportunity for expansion and if successful the community will have an even greater access to community based childcare.

Given the current Senate Inquiry into the provision of Childcare I thought it was important that the shire makes a submission to the inquiry as well as assisting Robyn Jane in their efforts to secure the ABC site in Healesville. It is time for the Federal Government to rethink long day care in this country, the failure of ABC highlights many areas of serious concern for the childcare sector. With this in mind I moved the following motion:

Submission to the Senate Inquiry into the Provision of Childcare:

Resolved on the motion of Crs Dunn and Cliff
That:
1. Council make a submission to the Senate Inquiry into the provision of Childcare prior to the close of submissions on the 30 January, 2009 and that the submission include:
a) Calls for greater federal investment into community based child care.
b) Support for local government to provide or support childcare services and that the provision of childcare is affordable and of high quality.
c) Acknowledgement that provision of Childcare is an important part of early childhood development and should provide quality care, health and educational outcomes for children and families.
d) That there be adequate performance monitoring including financial audits.
e) That federal funding for capital grants for childcare be reinstated.
f) Provide funding to local government and not for profit community groups for failed ABC childcare centres with the provision that the net operating costs, including leases and other costs associated with buildings and grounds, are funded by the federal government and any costs to be borne by council are identified for council to consider first and that Council is indemnified against any liabilities arising from the existing operations.

2. Council works with the Committee of Management from the Robyn Jane Childcare Centre in Healesville to assist with their negotiations to take over the operation of the ABC Childcare centre located in Healesville.

3. Council notes that where appropriate council’s family and children’s services staff will offer advice and support to ABC Learning staff and users.

The motion was supported by all councillors with the exception of Cr Graham Warren (Chandler).