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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2002 Week 1 Hansard (13 December) . . Page.. 248 ..

MR WOOD (continuing):

Prior to the election we highlighted our commitment to the environment, particularly in the area of nature conservation. We are committed to increasing the resources in this area and will allocate an additional $1.5 million for nature conservation over the next three years. This funding will be used to fund additional staff and resources for the Environment ACT Parks and Conservation Service, develop an integrated nature conservation plan, establish an Environment ACT community support and education program and implement a strategic species and communities management plan. As an initial step we have committed $250,000 for this financial year.

The government understands that the issues we must face in our own city are important in a regional and global context. The significance of planning, land use and transport policy in addressing these issues is recognised. How we respond to issues such as global warming and greenhouse will be vital to improving our own environment and contributing to a better global environment.

Therefore, the government will enhance its commitment to achieving greenhouse targets and will immediately introduce a number of steps. These include to review the Energy Advisory Service with a view to enhancing its services and to commence the solar hot water rebate scheme immediately with a commitment of $100,000 this financial year. We have begun an examination of our commitment to an office of sustainability and are considering its relationship with other offices such as the Conservator of Flora and Fauna and the Environment Protection Authority.

The government is committed to ensuring that the municipal services provided by the department are high quality, efficient and accessible. Urban Services will continue to deliver a range of services to the ACT community: parking and road user services, roads and traffic management, waste management, forests, information services-including Canberra Connect-libraries, e-services, urban ranges and horticultural services.

In delivering these services we are committed to ensuring that they are accessible to the whole Canberra community. A specific focus will be on improving online services and providing opportunities for the local community to conduct transactions online. Recognising that there is a need to provide alternative ways to access services, the government will continue to enhance services provided through shopfronts, by telephone and at libraries.

In conclusion, I look forward to working with the rest of the government as Minister for Urban Services and Minister for the Arts. In the next six months we will focus on specific priorities and implement the government agenda in these areas.

I present the following paper:

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