Page 4021 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 20 September 2017
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the maintenance of these systems will be ongoing and on top of a growing population. We must use a strategic approach to this city maintenance to ensure that Canberra is kept clean, safe and livable for all residents and visitors.
Managing the increasing levels of stormwater, particularly water resulting from newly developed suburbs, is a major responsibility for government, with approximately 4,000 kilometres of stormwater pipes and infrastructure already being managed across the territory. This stormwater network has an estimated replacement value of around $4 billion. It is essential for reducing flooding and maintaining the quality of parks, streets and urban lakes and ponds. Managing the increasing levels of stormwater, particularly water resulting from newly developed suburbs, is a major responsibility for the government.
In line with these directions, having a smart, efficient and innovative waste management system is a major priority for the ACT. A number of measures are in place to meet the target of 90 per cent resource recovery by the year 2025. One such measure was the introduction of the Waste Management and Resource Recovery Act 2016 and the 2017 regulation. This improved regulatory framework strengthens the capacity of the government to manage issues such as illegal dumping and is only the beginning of further reforms to come, thanks to the waste feasibility study currently underway.
The container deposit scheme is also a promising initiative expected to commence early next year. This scheme will serve to reduce the levels of litter in our streets, parks and waterways, thus improving the quality of our public places. As the amenity of our city is something we all value, extra horticultural and cleaning maintenance at entry roads into the ACT from Canberra Airport continues to be carried out, particularly in terms of increased mowing, weeding and litter removal along the major roads.
Weed control along arterial roads has recently been further enhanced through the introduction of innovative weeding technology. This not only has improved the amenity of our suburbs by significantly reducing weed growth but has also improved the safety of government staff who work to keep our streets clean. Weeding is carried out around park benches and public art, kerbs and gutters, road medians and roundabouts, urban parks and ponds. This work is vital to maintain the amenity of our public places and has proven to be of keen interest to locals, who care about their suburbs.
The better suburbs program will endeavour to work with the community to determine which services are most highly valued and which are the highest priority. Canberrans will have a significant role to play in defining the outcomes of this initiative and the future of how city services are coordinated and programmed. The collaboration we are undertaking with the people of Canberra will shape how people use public spaces over time.
For new suburbs we have a new opportunity to start from scratch with our services. Setting new habits for community engagement can lower costs, help reach better
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