Amanda Rishworth (Kingston, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the House:

(1)

recognises the importance of sound urban planning for the long term future of our towns and cities;

(2)

acknowledges that:

(a)

planning new communities and regenerating older communities must maximise the ‘liveability’ of these communities;

(b)

local planning should ensure that:

(i)

local employment is available close to the local communities;

(ii)

transport options are well connected and integrated, including the availability of public transport and bike paths to reduce car dependency and promote healthy alternatives such as walking and cycling;

(iii)

housing and local infrastructure are designed to minimise the environmental footprint, including options to promote water and energy conservation;

(iv)

community services are available; and

(v)

local infrastructure facilitates a sense of community and place; and

(c)

urban planing of our communities must maximise the social, economic and environmental outcomes for local residents; and

(3)

urges all levels of government, industry, associated professions and the community to work together to ensure that we have healthy, happy, safe and sustainable communities.

In moving this motion, I hope that the parliament will join me in recognising the importance that sound urban planning has for the future health and wellbeing of our cities, local communities and us as individuals. With the population of our cities growing and with the increasing demand for housing, our communities are faced with a challenge of how we best manage this need. The solution is much more complex than just allowing urban sprawl to continue. Rather, as the motion states, we must take the opportunity to develop communities that maximise the social, economic and environmental outcomes for local residents. This reflects the Planning Institute of Australia’s principles on urban growth management, which begin by declaring:

Any pattern of urban growth has social, economic and environmental implications that need to be considered and balanced in deciding the most desirable urban growth solution.

This means, as the motion states, that the planning of our new communities should consider the availability of local employment, allowing for people to spend less time travelling to and from work and more time with their families. The motion also makes clear that considerations regarding the health of residents are essential. If we look at the ABS statistics in 2007-08 we find that they show that 68 per cent of all Australian men and 55 per cent of all Australian women are overweight or obese. This is an increase of five per cent since 1995. We need to think about how our town planning may affect every policy area, including health, and how we might address this issue of obesity in our society. People can be healthier and have a more enjoyable life with the best opportunities if they are at the forefront of planners’ minds and considerations. This means ensuring that transport options connect people to their places of employment and their places of leisure.

Transport options should include clean and green modes such as bike paths and public transport. They also mean making it easier for residents to go to local shops and services on foot. A well-designed community reduces its carbon footprint by reducing the amount of kilometres driven by each of its residents, in turn allowing residents to spend more time enjoying the things they like to do around their local community. On top of this, if people are not driving they are more likely to be walking or riding their bikes, which, as I said earlier, is far better for their health and the environment.

As our suburbs keep expanding, as they are likely to do in Kingston, it is vitally important that we think about what we would like our new suburbs to look like. I know that the RMIT University is currently undertaking a 10-year research program titled ‘Re-imagining the Australian suburb’ and I look forward to reading more of their work, but we already know a number of key things. Our future suburbs need to be designed so that houses and communities minimise water consumption and to allow for the re-use of greywater and stormwater run-off. They need to be planned to minimise energy consumption in terms of lighting and other energy use. There are many local communities who are already choosing to take the lead on this. In my electorate of Kingston, residents of the Aldinga eco-village have prided themselves on their houses and their common community areas being both water and energy efficient.

To make sure that we promote the wellbeing of our communities, we must plan to provide for community spaces, spaces for young and old sports teams to compete and places for families to enjoy and share activities with one another. Urban planning as an idea has a very short history, but if we do not realise the ramifications of bad town planning then our communities will not sustain us into the future. I commend the motion to the House. (Time expired)

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