Andrew Hastie (Canning, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I also rise today to speak on the bushfires in the south-west of WA this last month. The people of the Peel-Harvey region have suffered much over the last month. The raging bushfires of January burnt through 71,000 hectares of bushland, farms and properties and destroyed many homes and businesses throughout the region. The historic township of Yarloop was engulfed in flames in a matter of minutes. Livestock and wildlife have been injured and killed. Primary producers have seen their livelihoods destroyed before their very eyes. Sadly, the greatest tragedy has been the loss of two lives in Yarloop—two everyday Australians who in the midst of the festive season did not expect to perish in an inferno in their own homes.

The fires are a painful reminder of the environmental challenges that Western Australians have faced since settling the colony in 1829. Thomas Peel, the first European settler in Mandurah and namesake of the Peel region, lies buried in the heart of Mandurah city. Peel endured many financial and environmental setbacks trying to build a settlement out of nothing. On his headstone is the epitaph: 'The first settler here who bore with much fortitude the hardships and disappointments endured by the first colonists'.

Of course, Indigenous Australians, especially the Noongar people in the Peel region, have long appreciated the harshness of the Western Australian landscape—well before the arrival of European settlers. Their history and relationship with the land looms large over the region. I note that my predecessor, the late Don Randall, in February last year spoke on fire in the same region and made reference to the Noongar people, who have long understood fire and have used fire to reduce fuel loads and also for hunting. I would like to add to his comments that I think we can learn from historic practice in this area.

Thomas Peel died in 1865, but if he were to wander my electorate today he would hardly recognise it with the vast increase in population and economic development over the past 150 years. The Peel region began with only a few hundred European settlers in 1830. It now boasts 129,000 people, with a phenomenal population growth of 45,000 people between 2004 and 2014. It now encompasses the city of Mandurah and the shires of Murray, Boddington, Waroona—where the fires were concentrated—and Serpentine Jarrahdale. The Peel economy is built on mineral processing, mining—Boddington is home to Newmont, Australia's largest goldmine—agriculture, tourism and building construction.

Peel is endowed with many natural resources but its greatest strength lies with its people. We saw this displayed in the heroic efforts of volunteer and professional firefighters who battled the flames day after day over that eight-day period, even when exhausted by the heat and lack of sleep. I spoke to many local volunteer firefighters who went 72 hours without rest. We saw this with the Pinjarra volunteers, who cared for those in need at the Murray Leisure Centre, those evacuated from Waroona and Yarloop; we saw this with the local and state leaders who rallied around those devastated by the fires; and we saw this in the faces of those—and I spoke to many of them—who had lost everything but who showed concern for their neighbours before themselves.

As the fires have demonstrated, our prosperity is fragile. Throughout the electorate of Canning, particularly in Waroona, many of my constituents have suffered. Businesses have been destroyed. Bernie Worthington, the owner of Drakesbrook Winery, lost his whole vineyard just prior to harvest. This amounts to a loss of 60 tonnes of wine, even before we factor in the loss of damage to the vines, the irrigation and other infrastructure essential to his business operations. I acknowledge the outstanding efforts of the Peel Thunder Football Club who assisted the Worthington family with a clean-up of the winery two weekends ago.

Graeme and Sonia Watson, owners of Forest Edge Recreation Camp, also suffered extensive damage to their property and infrastructure. Forest Edge provides recreational activities to groups of people from all walks of life who are trying to build personal relationships and stretch themselves with challenging outdoor activities. They employ 20 staff and have had to cease operations due to the effects of the fire on the infrastructure essential to their business. I also note that this fire has set back their plans for the future. Graeme and Sonia have only recently returned from the United Kingdom, where they were investigating the next step of their business development. Forest Edge Recreation Camp is situated on beautiful hill country to the east of the Waroona township. The gradient on their hills is near perfect for a 300 by 300 metre artificial ski slope. This is their plan to develop their business, and this would be a first for WA. Of course, the fires have set that back.

I met with Helen and Mick Muir who live right along a road that was engulfed in flames. They have a 1,000 acre property, and they have lost 15 kilometres of fencing. They have lost their tractor, they have lost feed. They face a huge task. They are just one funding family of many who have suffered through the fires. The consistent message that I have received from farmers has been: 'We need help with fencing, we need help with feed and we need help with labour.' I am hoping that many Australians, not just in my electorate but throughout the Perth region, will step up and assist these people with fencing.

I do want to make note of the Rotary clubs of Pinjarra and Mandurah who have given significant financial assistance to those in need through the fire relief efforts. The Pinjarra Rotary Club, headed up by local farmer Geoff McLarty, last weekend came to Waroona, along with 112 volunteers from Rotary clubs around the state of WA, and worked on 10 separate properties, removing fences. It was great to see the volunteer spirit alive. It certainly complements the efforts of the state and federal governments, who have provided assistance thus far.

The Peel region needs more than just a recovery from fires. We need to build long-term resilience against both bushfires and the WA economic downturn. The commodities boom has slowed in WA and the impact has been felt across all sectors of the economy. In the Peel region, retail and real estate markets have softened, and youth employment currently sits at almost double the national average. Building construction has slowed. I have many FIFO families who live in my electorate who are asking, 'What's next for the Peel region?' With so many people now having to rebuild their lives after the fires, I think this is a very important question.

I am working very closely with local Peel leaders across the five shires to look at a long-term vision for job creation and economic development out to 2050. In December last year, I attended the launch of the Peel Development Commission's Peel Regional Investment Blueprint. This blueprint casts a vision for the region built on its natural strengths as the basis of our economic future. Three investment opportunities have been identified. Firstly, the completion of the state-of-the-art multifunctional Murray Equestrian Centre at Coolup will bring a new focus to the local economy that goes beyond WA. I hope that, if this is fully funded and completed, it will transform our region into the equine capital of the Indian Ocean rim. Perhaps, most importantly, in future bushfires it will serve as a temporary housing facility for large numbers of livestock that need to be evacuated from nearby properties.

Secondly, the establishment of the Peel Business Park at Nambeelup will bring together Peel's strong industries, such as agriculture and food innovation. This in turn would broaden the focus of the WA economy beyond cyclical commodity exports.

Nambeelup is central to the Peel region and ideally positioned to service all five shires. It would bring many workers together and keep them off the freeway headed north to Perth on those very congested mornings that we see every day.

Finally, Mandurah city is the heartbeat of the Peel region. It services the rest of the region with medical, educational and professional services. It is home to 82,000 residents. It boasts a world-class marina and is a popular tourist destination. We need further investment in it—in infrastructure—but, particularly, public transport. I am keen to see more trains, I am keen to see my electorate linked up—like the City of Melbourne, the City of Sydney and much of Perth. So that is something I will be fighting for into the future.

I will close by acknowledging the hardship of the people of the Peel and Harvey region over the past month. They have my full support. I have been very heartened by the volunteer efforts that I see throughout Canning and, of course, the division of Forrest to the south. It has inspired me, and I hope the residents of the electorate will also take heart in these efforts. Thank you.

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