Trent Zimmerman (North Sydney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I represent an electorate which is bordered by our beautiful Sydney Harbour. It is an international icon for good reason, but so often it has been threatened by inappropriate development and infrastructure. It remains fringed by beautiful bushland, parks and places of Indigenous and modern heritage. This has been no accident. The protection of our harbour has so often been the result of long struggles led by communities and individuals determined to ensure its heritage and natural attributes are retained. Today, I want to pay tribute to one of those individuals and a great Australian, Bruce Burns, who recently lost his fight with cancer but has left in his wake an enormous legacy. Bruce and his wife, Carol, have been residents of the Lower North Shore, particularly Waverton, for 45 years. For much of that time, they have been defenders of what makes the character of our area so special, from fighting proposals for second harbour crossings to the dedication of former industrial sites as parkland, to the most recent affront, a giant marina proposal in beautiful Berrys Bay. The hand of Bruce has been so often present. In a calm and yet determined way, he worked with the community, not just to protect what we have but, in fact, to ensure we improved our local environment. The magnificent Coal Loader Centre for Sustainability is an example of this. To Carol and their children, I extend my sincerest condolences. They have every right to be proud of what all they achieved together for our community and, indeed, all of Sydney.