Meryl Swanson (Paterson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

In my electorate of Paterson we are privileged to be surrounded by some of the best natural assets that nature can provide. We have the magnificent rolling hills, mountains and ranges of the Hunter Valley, and we have the beautiful sand and beaches of Port Stephens. We've always been aware of our environment and put value in it. We know that under those opposite, sadly, our environment was allowed to deteriorate. They received report after report providing evidence of its deterioration but chose to not do enough and, in some cases, even tried to cover that up, which is just not good enough. But I don't want to talk about what has gone by; I want to talk about the future. I don't want to talk about blatant disregard for things like climate change and its effects; I want to remain positive and talk about what we are doing, and what we can do, on the ground.

A future that respects our world, and understands that simple and effective changes by the Australian government now, can help in so many ways, not only at a hyper-local level or a national level but also by helping our Pacific neighbours that are being terribly affected by climate change on their lands as well. The Albanese Labor government is delivering on its NaturePositive Plan with the establishment of the nature repair market. For all intents and purposes we're putting in place a market that puts value on nature.

The Australian government has committed to protecting 30 per cent of Australia's land and sea by 2030. It's a shared goal in lock step with the UN Convention on Biodiversity, and it's great news for my electorate—a community that relies on farming and agriculture. It relies on sea farming, like oysters, and fishing. It relies on tourism from the thousands of people who come to Port Stephens and the surrounding areas to enjoy the beauty of the land and the wonder of the sea, including getting up close to those majestic whales that are currently making their way up the Australian east coast. It is a sight to behold, to stand on a cliff to watch a humpback breach, but if you're lucky enough to be in a boat just out of Nelson Bay it's just incredible. It really puts everything in your life in perspective when you see those enormous creatures very close by.

But this nature repair market is not only about the environment. It's also about the positive economic impact it's going to have on our local businesses and the way it's going to help out our local farmers as well. As someone who has a few acres, I know how soul-crushing it can be to try and stay on top of things like lantana and blackberry. Not particularly on my place, but on neighbours' properties and throughout the broader Hunter region, I know that if you're dealing with incredibly invasive species, whether they be weed, wild boars, rabbits or foxes, they can have a terrible, terrible impact on your land, and that's what this bill is really about. It is about helping Australians, whether they're environmental people who might be involved in land care, local community groups or farmers who just want to get a bit of a hand, a bit of a clear run, on trying to restore their properties, trying to create some biodiversity and trying to create some corridors for nature, which we know is so important. This bill is a critical part of that plan to deliver.

Our government will make it easier for people to invest in activities that help reverse environmental decline and ensure nature repair. It simply won't be enough to stem the tide. We must start reversing the decline and ensuring positive repair to our environment. Every one of us should want to leave the environment in a better place for our next generation than it was when we inherited it. The Nature Repair Market Bill will make it easier for businesses, organisations and individuals to invest in projects to protect and also repair and reinstate nature. This is a significant opportunity, and I'm so pleased to be speaking on it today.

The nature repair market is going to be based on science—it won't be some sort of feelgood weeding group. It is really going to be important that we base it on science. Establishing the market in legislation will ensure its ongoing integrity, encourage investment and drive environmental improvements across the country. We need significant investments in conservation and restoration to reverse the environmental decline we've watched over the past years. We need to really be encouraging people—farmers, landholder groups and businesses—to get involved in this market, because it is going to make a massive difference. All landholders, including First Nations and Torres Strait Islander peoples, conservation groups, and farmers—if you're out there listening to this speech, you can be involved in the nature repair market. There is going to be support and funding involved to restore your properties and areas that you may have a deep interest in locally. Projects will deliver long-term, nature-positive outcomes through activities such as weeding, planting and pest control, including for feral pests. It includes our lakes and rivers as well as the land. Groups like the Slow Food Market in my electorate: g'day Amarell and all the wonderful slow foodies that get along to the market, including the farmers; the Anna Bay Landcare Group in Birubi, a terrific group doing an amazing job up there over those rolling sands, keeping those dunes going well; Shoal Bay Beach Preservation Committee; Tilligerry Habitat—what a magical place that is, if you ever get a chance to go. These are magnificent parts of Australia. Community groups like these in my electorate work tirelessly. They literally work their fingers to the bone caring for our environment. I want to send a shoutout to the men's sheds who build habitat boxes and bird-breeding boxes that are often installed in these habitats to help native birds in particular breed and continue life. It's so important.

I also want to give a shoutout to local councils, who work really hard to do their part to ensure a sustainable future and the nature reserves that we have across the electorate. It is important work, and this is a really important bill. For the first time, I'm just so happy to be seeing that we are creating a market for nature. I know it's so important because, in recent times, as chair of the agriculture committee, I've spent a lot of time talking not only to my local farmers and landholders but also to farmers and landholders right across the country, particularly people conducting a lot of cutting-edge research in this field. We're now talking about a thing called natural capital. It is where we place value on nature on our properties, as well as on things like the soil and the biodiversity in soil. It's not just about the idea of fertilising all the time but also about building capacity and carbon capture in the soil. Soil is one of the most incredible things. I'm delighted to be a co-chair of the Parliamentary Friends of Soil, and I want to give a big shoutout to Penny Wensley, who does an amazing job as the National Soils Advocate. It's things like this that are so important. That's where this bill will come in. We're going to be increasing the value of our soil not just in monetary terms but also in terms of farming, nature and biodiversity. There's a lot of work to do, but at least we're making a start on it.

This bill is going to support landholders, especially farmers. I know how hard it is for farmers to try to stay on top of invasive species like blackberry and lantana—the array of weeds! You've only got to go down to your local DPI and get one of those amazing brochures to see what you're up against if you have a few acres and you're trying to keep the place weed-free. There's fireweed—a whole range of things that just take over pastures before you can blink an eye. This is where people locally say to me: 'We just need a hand with this stuff. We need to be able to get some support.' That's what this bill is going to do.

It also supports collaboration for the environmental entrepreneurs and passionate conservationists. I think it's a good thing to make investments with confidence in these shared efforts. We know that there are a lot of who have philanthropic desires around nature and want to contribute to something like this, so we're providing a legitimate pathway for those people to do that. We understand that around 60 per cent of our country's landmass is privately owned and the key majority of this is controlled by farmers and our First Nations communities. We know that they're already magnificent custodians of the land. You won't get anyone working harder and loving the land more than our farmers and our First Nations people, and this is really going to be a key change for them.

The data shows that a large percentage of critically endangered habitats rest on privately owned land or occupied land as well. You cannot successfully reverse decline in our environment without investments in private land rehabilitation, and that's what this market is about. Transparency is going to be core to the scheme because we don't want people ripping it off and rorting it. It's got to be found to be legitimate. There will be comprehensive information available for projects. There will be certificates and a public register. It will be above board. It will be effective. It will be all the things that people want to be able to have faith in, restoring nature whilst having a properly functioning market as well. It's going to enable parliament and the public to monitor the scheme too. This is really where the rubber hits the road.

Drawing from last month's budget, we're delighted to have secured crucial funding to preserve the exquisite natural treasures of Australia along with their devoted custodians. We've allocated $262.3 million to support our majestic Commonwealth national parks. That's all part of this as well. This new funding will go towards refurbishment or substitution of worn-out infrastructure and it will also ensure our devoted staff have the resources to enact threatened species protection, amplifying opportunities for our First Nations community in both employment and business, amongst other benefits. We're also investing $163.4 million towards the Australian Institute of Marine Science. This funding will ensure that continued contribution is made to providing world-class scientific research for our oceans, including, of course, the big jewel in the crown: the Great Barrier Reef.

These are just a number of gestures showing our unwavering commitment to preserving the splendour of the Australian environment, whether it be the world-renowned Great Barrier Reef, Wallis Creek in the Hunter, the Broken Back Range or those magnificent dunes that just go on and on when you drive to Birubi. The local legend was that we used to sell that sand to Hawaii. I'm not quite sure if we still do, but I tell you it's absolutely well worth bottling that beautiful sand at Birubi. I know how many people want to go there and enjoy it. That's why bills like this are going to be helping to preserve that beautiful local ecosystem.

On top of all of this, we've put $45.2 million aside for the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust. I think that's pretty important too because we know how many people go to Sydney from across the world. We have to address the pressing backlog of maintenance needs around Sydney Harbour such as deteriorating sandstone walls and docks and the stabilisation of sea walls. Although this is not directly in my electorate, I can see the benefit in this because Sydney is obviously the entry point for a lot of people who come up to Port Stephens to look at our beautiful waterways up there and who come to the Hunter more generally. So I think that's very happy news.

In another significant move, we're investing a substantial $236 million to establish a comprehensive and dependable natural flood warning system. This is not just a line item in the budget.

In closing, I want to say this resonates deeply with all of us from the Hunter region. In my electorate of Paterson, in cities like Maitland, we've had increased challenges with flooding. We are going to facilitate, purchase and upgrade essential monitoring equipment, ensuring that our communities in flood-prone areas are better prepared and supported in the face of potential natural disasters. I'm really excited about this. We're going to improve those flood gauges. There will be more of them in areas like Maitland, Dungog and further afield, where people have had terrible consequences because of flooding. This is another fantastic initiative. I'm so excited. I want to thank Minister Plibersek and the experts involved. I commend this bill to the House.

See this speech in context