Adam Bandt (Melbourne, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

Many members of the public who aren't affected by aircraft noise may think it's an issue that affects only people who live near airports—and many of them it affects greatly. But what I want to tell the House is that, in Melbourne, and in east Melbourne in particular, it's currently Rafferty's rules in the skies above east Melbourne, and aircraft noise is a very, very real problem for people who live there.

If you think about east Melbourne, for those who don't know, it's an area that's right next to the MCG. One of the things that this means is that there are, routinely, helicopters that come in and fly in a loop around the MCG to have a look at it and to film what's going on. But it's not just helicopters who come in and loop the loop around the MCG, keeping a distance, so they can get a view inside, which of course puts them right over people's houses at a very low height; it's also small fixed-wing aircraft that come in, for tourist reasons, so that people can have a look at the MCG or at Melbourne, and fly in circles around the MCG, keeping a bit of distance from the centre and flying right over people's houses. But it is also aircraft that take off from Moorabbin and Essendon who come in and do a loop around the city, because the MCG is a recognised landmark, and then fly back, perhaps to clock up their training hours or perhaps for some other reasons. That adds to it as well. So, when you look at a map of flights over east Melbourne, it's a whirlpool centred around the MCG. It's a twisted tangle of spaghetti, of flights flying over and over—in a completely unregulated manner, as far as the impact on the residents is concerned.

To add to that, a change was made several years ago for large aircraft. That was savaged by the Aircraft Noise Ombudsman for failing to consult the residents. Flight paths and gathering points for large aircraft now are basically broadly over IKEA in Richmond. The aircraft line up one after the other to come in over the city before turning north and heading to Melbourne Airport.

When you add all those things together and the fact that governments over the years have completely ignored regulation of our skies when it comes to residents who don't live near an airport but are affected by flight paths then you have for many people in East Melbourne an almost unbearable situation on some days. Residents have told me of their windows shaking, the noise that means they can't go outside into their backyard and the effect it is having on people's mental health. Some people have said to me, 'It's like it disrupts your ability to just live a normal life.' This is not what people sign up for. At the moment it is completely unregulated.

The people who live there have pushed and pushed against some very powerful interests, who say, 'We're not going to do anything about it because it is more important for people to be able to fly wherever they want than for people to have a good night's sleep or to enjoy life in their homes.' They have pushed and pushed. As a result of that community pressure, with the Greens working side by side, we've secured something very significant from the minister. I thank the minister for her action on this. There will now be a taskforce aimed at better understanding the issue and determining operating procedures that will better protect residents from overflight.

There will be a very big difference if some changes to flight paths are made—not changes that push the problem onto other people but changes, for example, that could result in leisure flights flying down the river or over the rail yards instead of over the people's houses, so everyone can still get a good look at Melbourne but not have an impact on residents. Changes to flight paths could see flights come in and turn at a different point that's not over people's houses, so again you don't push the problem onto other people but ensure that resident amenity is protected.

I acknowledge Greg Bisinella, Shelley Faubel, Matt Faubel, Ian Mitchell, Susan Henderson, David Woodward, Jennifer Owen and everyone else in the East Melbourne Group and all the other people in East Melbourne who have not taken no for an answer and have pushed and pushed. We are starting to see progress. Now we need to see action.

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