Page 3614 - Week 13 - Tuesday, 16 October 1990
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
review decisions taken by the Commonwealth Government at another time in another set of circumstances when revenues were not a constraint.
Tuggeranong Dam - Vandalism
MR STEFANIAK: My question is directed to the Minister for Urban Services, Mr Duby. I refer the Minister to reports of persistent vandalism at the Tuggeranong dam valve chamber resulting in the level of the Tuggeranong lake being lowered. What is the Minister's department doing about this problem?
MR DUBY: I thank Mr Stefaniak for his question. On Thursday, 27 September, officers of my department identified that the level of Lake Tuggeranong was falling. An investigation showed that on Monday, the 24th, the access lid had been opened and a person or persons had entered the valve chamber and opened the valve, allowing water to drain from the lake into Tuggeranong Creek. Staff from my department turned the valve off on Thursday morning. However, that evening vandals returned and again turned the valve on. We had a case of musical valves. On Friday, 28 September, staff from my department again turned off the valve, fitted a chain and padlocked the valve wheel, and welded a steel bar across the steel entry covers, which was broken later that evening. The valve chamber has been inspected daily since these incidents and no further break-ins have occurred.
Over the period of this vandalism, the level of Lake Tuggeranong fell by about one metre, which will be replenished, of course, as rain falls in the catchment area. To this date no-one has been found to be responsible for these acts of wanton vandalism. However, it should be pointed out that Lake Tuggeranong itself is there for that purpose: it is, in effect, a flushing pond, a settlement pond, and I am assured that the leakage of water from the lake has caused absolutely no danger whatsoever or harm of a permanent nature to the environment.
Ministerial Travel Expenditure
MR CONNOLLY: My question is directed to the Chief Minister. I refer the Chief Minister to his statement in public hearings of the Estimates Committee last week that he was not responsible for or accountable for travel expenditure by other Ministers. I ask the Chief Minister: first, does he deny that payments for ministerial travel are made from the money appropriated for the ACT corporate management program administered by his department? Secondly, does he deny that he is the Minister responsible for the administration of his department and that particular travel program?
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .