Louise Markus (Macquarie, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the coalition's wonderful Green Army initiative, which continues to deliver positive outcomes for our young people and environment in the electorate of Macquarie and indeed across the nation. With projects regularly occurring across the electorate, we are seeing firsthand the benefits of the program on the ground in both the Hawkesbury and the Blue Mountains. While supporting local environmental work and heritage conservation projects across Australia, the Green Army initiative is engaging young people aged 17 to 24 years and providing them with opportunities to learn new skills to prepare them for a career path they may not have considered before having been given this opportunity and gaining experience.

With more than $700 million committed to Green Army projects across Australia for four years, it is making a real difference to environmental assets by restoring and protecting habitat, weeding, planting, cleaning up creeks and rivers and restoring cultural heritage places. Some of the many projects currently underway in the Hawkesbury and Blue Mountains include the accessible World Heritage experience grand clifftop walk project, which will improve and link existing upper mountains heritage listed walking tracks from Wentworth Falls to Katoomba. The Blue Mountains is a beautiful World Heritage listed region, and there are many tourists and locals who use the picnic areas and walking tracks to go birdwatching and bushwalking. It is important to keep these tracks maintained and accessible for all to enjoy while still protecting the environment.

While that project is ongoing and successful in the Blue Mountains, in the Hawkesbury region a group of volunteers have been working on the Bushells Lagoon habitat restoration project in Wilberforce. Many of those working on the project have also brought a wealth of knowledge on board through university degrees in natural resource management, water quality, riparian management and animal science, which is incredibly valuable. Over six months the Bushells Lagoon team will be on the ground, working on restoring the degraded lagoon by testing water quality, removing invasive weeds and growing indigenous plants. I value the commitment and dedication of the many Green Army volunteers who are having a go and providing great outcomes for the environment, which will now be sustained for current and future generations.

Dr Andy Marks from the University of Western Sydney's Hawkesbury campus, who will be involved in six recently announced projects, said the UWS is a very enthusiastic supporter of the Green Army Program, which is an example of critically important environmental action initiatives. The six projects will involve the management of bushland and wetland enrichment in Hobartville, which contains Cumberland Plain bushland.

It has been wonderful to have the opportunity to visit the sites where the conservation work is being carried out and to meet the wonderful young volunteers involved. A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of attending the graduation and farewell of two Green Army projects from the Hawkesbury which will be completed this month. Sponsored by the Hawkesbury Environmental Network, the volunteers spoke of the project's success, the experience they gained in leadership and learning about precious environment and ecosystems as well as developing camaraderie. The volunteers also mentioned that it had opened up doorways to a career path. Some of them are actually already in work as a result of being part of the Green Army project.

The two Green Army projects involved the restoration of Little Wheeny Creek and Yellomundee Regional Park bushland, and the regeneration of Redbank Creek, Grose Vale and the University of Western Sydney's EarthCare Centre. The Redbank Creek project involved the removal of the cat's claw creeper, a weed which was rapidly spreading into endangered ecological communities and other bushland areas of Grose Vale. The Little Wheeny Creek and Yellomundee project involved the removal of environmental weeds to regenerate native species.

I would like to particularly thank HEN, UWS, Blue Mountains City Council and others who have been involved in projects across the electorate of Macquarie for their support and initiative. I encourage young people to consider becoming involved in round 4 of the program, which closes in September, as well as local groups who feel they may have projects which need to be addressed. Together we can work towards better environmental outcomes for our communities and sustain our beauty while also providing opportunities for our young people and pathways and doorways for them to step into a career.