Page 3171 - Week 09 - Tuesday, 22 August 2017
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Proposed expenditure agreed to.
Justice and Community Safety Directorate—1.15.
Debate (on motion by Mr Gentleman) adjourned to the next sitting.
Adjournment
Motion (by Mr Gentleman) proposed:
That the Assembly do now adjourn.
Keep Australia Beautiful Week
MS LEE (Kurrajong) (6.57): Yesterday was the start of Keep Australia Beautiful Week for 2017. Keep Australia Beautiful Week is an annual campaign that started in 2008, run by the Keep Australia Beautiful network, and aims to encourage Australians to take responsibility for their litter. Starting yesterday, and until this Sunday, 27 August, Australians across the country will be taking a pledge to make a difference to our communities by picking up one piece of litter each day of this week. I acknowledge that Ms Cheyne said that she is going to be taking the pledge, so thank you for that.
As shadow minister for the environment I have had the privilege of visiting some of the most beautiful landscapes and nature parks that Canberra has to offer. Our reputation as a clean, beautiful bush capital city is due in no small part to the amazing work by our rangers and volunteers who take so much pride in our natural resources. Our fierce protection of our natural landscape should extend to our urban areas. Our city and town centres, our local playgrounds and our suburbs should be the responsibility of each of us to keep clean. The cost of litter clean-up can be a huge drain on the public pocket. It is crucial that we engage in initiatives that encourage us to take personal responsibility for the cleanliness of our community.
In addition to the dollar cost, there is, of course, the environmental cost of the growing waste that we create, which, if not dealt with through an effective and sustainable solution, will continue to be a problem for our future generations. Over the weekend I attended the launch and tour of the new recycling plant in Hume. Seeing the enormous effort that goes into sorting, recycling and otherwise disposing of our waste brought home just how mindful we need to be about taking responsibility for what we produce and how we can thoughtfully dispose of our waste.
I am proud to inform members in the Assembly that Canberra’s very own Renee Gracie will be an ambassador for this year’s campaign. At just 18 years old, Renee became the first female to compete in the Porsche Canberra cup. I commend Renee for her promotion of the anti-litter message to help keep our highways and roads litter free.
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