❓ Mr. Taylor asks about the newly released Swan Canning River Protection Strategy. The Minister for Environment outlines the strategy's aims to guide investment, ensure accessibility, and address threats to the river system, highlighting existing projects and positive trends in river health.
AnsweredQoN 866Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
SWAN AND CANNING RIVERS — PROTECTION STRATEGY
866. Mr M.H. TAYLOR to the
Minister for Environment:
I understand that the minister released a river protection
strategy for the Swan and Canning Rivers today. Can he please tell the house
what the strategy will deliver?
866. Mr M.H. TAYLOR to the
Minister for Environment:
I understand that the minister released a river protection
strategy for the Swan and Canning Rivers today. Can he please tell the house
what the strategy will deliver?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Bateman for this question. As he
outlined, today we released the ''Swan Canning River Protection Strategy''.
This strategy provides a master plan to guide —
Mr C.J. Tallentire interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Gosnells, I do not want a running commentary from you.
Mr
A.P. JACOB : The strategy, which is a requirement of the act, provides a
master plan to guide investment into keeping our rivers healthy; also, its aim
is to ensure that they are open and accessible to various community uses in the
long term. Essentially, the river protection strategy has been developed
through extensive consultation, particularly within government and particularly
amongst those agencies that have heads of responsibility over the Swan Canning
Riverpark. For the first time we now have a whole-of-government strategy
setting out a shared vision that sits over the Swan Canning Riverpark around
what we need to do to ensure that our rivers continue to be managed whilst also
meeting the demands for a growing Perth and Peel region.
Importantly, the government is already hitting the ground
running. We have already implemented a number of the priority projects that are
outlined in this strategy, including reduction of excess nutrients flowing into
the river system through, as I have said in this house before, the Eric
Singleton nutrient-stripping wetland as well as the Ellen Brook
nutrient-stripping wetland. This government has made a heavy investment into
increased oxygenation plants, particularly on the Canning River system in
recent years, and also is making sure that we support riverbank restoration. We
saw a significant injection of funds into that in the previous budget in this
place. The Department of Parks and Wildlife also continues to partner with
Murdoch University on our fish community index, a longitudinal study that looks
at the health of fish communities in the Swan and Canning Rivers system as a
key indicator towards the overall health of that riverpark, both near shore and
in deeper water. They are looking at now more than a five-year time period of
those longitudinal health indicators of the Swan and Canning Rivers system.
Importantly, that study continues to show that, overall, our river health is
generally good and is also in an improvement trend in the longer term. However,
this government does recognise that we cannot take our eye off managing the
river system, hence why we are now delivering the river protection strategy. As
I have said before, our rivers are under threat. They face challenges,
particularly from a drying climate and also from historical land uses and
developments, particularly down here on the Swan coastal plain. As I said,
generally, we are seeing not only stable river conditions, but also a general
improvement over the past decade.
The strategy that I have released
today confirms that the management actions that this government has been
implementing since 2008 are effective and are also working to improve the
health of our Swan Canning Riverpark.
outlined, today we released the ''Swan Canning River Protection Strategy''.
This strategy provides a master plan to guide —
Mr C.J. Tallentire interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Gosnells, I do not want a running commentary from you.
Mr
A.P. JACOB : The strategy, which is a requirement of the act, provides a
master plan to guide investment into keeping our rivers healthy; also, its aim
is to ensure that they are open and accessible to various community uses in the
long term. Essentially, the river protection strategy has been developed
through extensive consultation, particularly within government and particularly
amongst those agencies that have heads of responsibility over the Swan Canning
Riverpark. For the first time we now have a whole-of-government strategy
setting out a shared vision that sits over the Swan Canning Riverpark around
what we need to do to ensure that our rivers continue to be managed whilst also
meeting the demands for a growing Perth and Peel region.
Importantly, the government is already hitting the ground
running. We have already implemented a number of the priority projects that are
outlined in this strategy, including reduction of excess nutrients flowing into
the river system through, as I have said in this house before, the Eric
Singleton nutrient-stripping wetland as well as the Ellen Brook
nutrient-stripping wetland. This government has made a heavy investment into
increased oxygenation plants, particularly on the Canning River system in
recent years, and also is making sure that we support riverbank restoration. We
saw a significant injection of funds into that in the previous budget in this
place. The Department of Parks and Wildlife also continues to partner with
Murdoch University on our fish community index, a longitudinal study that looks
at the health of fish communities in the Swan and Canning Rivers system as a
key indicator towards the overall health of that riverpark, both near shore and
in deeper water. They are looking at now more than a five-year time period of
those longitudinal health indicators of the Swan and Canning Rivers system.
Importantly, that study continues to show that, overall, our river health is
generally good and is also in an improvement trend in the longer term. However,
this government does recognise that we cannot take our eye off managing the
river system, hence why we are now delivering the river protection strategy. As
I have said before, our rivers are under threat. They face challenges,
particularly from a drying climate and also from historical land uses and
developments, particularly down here on the Swan coastal plain. As I said,
generally, we are seeing not only stable river conditions, but also a general
improvement over the past decade.
The strategy that I have released
today confirms that the management actions that this government has been
implementing since 2008 are effective and are also working to improve the
health of our Swan Canning Riverpark.
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