Page 2063 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 15 May 2013
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MR ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Mr Gentleman): Order, members!
MR RATTENBURY: There is quite a conversation going on across the chamber. I thought it was interesting that when the Assistant Speaker acknowledged the presence of a former member of the Liberal Party, Mr Mulcahy, there was a distinct lack of “hear, hears” from members of the opposition, who normally are so vocal in their welcoming of guests to the chamber. But I was not here during Mr Mulcahy’s tenure. I cannot imagine why that was the case.
Members interjecting—
MR ASSISTANT SPEAKER: Order, members! Mr Rattenbury has the floor.
MR RATTENBURY: Returning to the matter at hand, unfortunately, due to changing economic and business circumstances and models, there are now many disused petrol station sites around Canberra. Certainly, if you think about an area like Weston Creek, in the lists that have been discussed today about the various sites it is an area that features prominently.
I was at the Weston Creek Community Council just a couple of weeks ago speaking to the members of the community council and taking questions. One of the issues that came up was the service station sites, and also the fact that in Weston Creek there is now only one service station, and how it is always busy and there is always a queue. It is quite interesting to think about how the economic model has changed—the fact that all of the other ones closed down for lack of business, yet now there is only one and it is generally, I think from most people’s views, overcrowded and they are desperately in need of another service station in the Weston Creek area.
Some of the sites that have closed down, of course, have been redeveloped. I touched on the fact that some have made that progress since 2010. They have become either residential or commercial sites. Unfortunately, some of them are lingering, leaving sorry-looking sites right in the middle of suburbs.
There are environmental health issues associated with chemical contamination from petrol and other fuel leaking into the ground. It is important that these issues are addressed through the appropriate environmental remediation, which does take quite some time in some circumstances. Mr Corbell has given quite some detail about this rehabilitation process, and why, therefore, there are so many sites currently in the process of remediation, and gathering the neighbourhood’s litter, as well as attracting graffiti. It is worth noting that the government did waive the lease variation charge for former petrol station sites to expedite the process of getting these sites ready for reuse.
In terms of what is before us today, I certainly support the basis of Mrs Jones’s motion. I do not think that information about the status of these sites should be a secret. I think that the community should have the opportunity to know more about the status of former petrol station sites.
I do support Mr Corbell’s amendment. I think that in the text that he has brought forward he has provided a level of information that goes some way towards
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