Amanda Rishworth (Kingston, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to rise today to talk about a number of issues around this government's strong delivery record in my seat. Over the last few weeks and months I have seen a range of different types of infrastructure in my electorate that have been delivered by this government. Whether they have been schools or health care infrastructure, I have been very pleased. In my electorate it is very clear that it is this government that is delivering to the people in the southern suburbs of Adelaide.

But tonight I want to talk about one particular delivery that I am very pleased with. One of the important areas in which the federal government is delivering in my local community is water conservation. In South Australia we know only too well just how precious our water supplies are. We are a particularly dry state, relying heavily on downstream flows from the Murray River to meet both our domestic and our industrial water needs. Communities around our state have been aware of this for some time. I am very pleased that it was this government that delivered to the southern suburbs of Adelaide money for infrastructure to conserve water and re-use the water that is currently in the system. Really, it has been federal Labor that has been meeting the important community expectations that we invest in vital water infrastructure.

The Australian government has invested $34.5 million in Waterproofing the South Stage 1 to provide alternative water sources such as reclaimed water and stormwater to replace the use of traditional water sources, reducing the demand on our scarce freshwater supplies and ensuring that overall water use in the south is more sustainable. I was very pleased to be at one of the launches of this project with the Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and Urban Water, Senator Don Farrell, along with the local council and the state government, to turn on one of these projects. All levels of government are working very closely together to ensure that we conserve our water supply.

Recycled stormwater is now available for local reserves and sporting fields in the southern suburbs. Recently the $15 million upgrade at Christie Creek—the final component of Waterproofing the South Stage 1—was completed. This local project alone has the capacity to supply up to 850 megalitres of stormwater for re-use in the Christies Beach and Morphett Vale areas. Stormwater harvesting projects like this are critical, because they enable communities to plan for the future by using water supplies as efficiently as possible.

The benefits of this particular project are many. This upgrade will not only help to reduce our reliance on the River Murray in the southern Adelaide region but also improve the quality of stormwater discharged into the Gulf to ensure the health of our local ocean ecosystems into the future. Furthermore, the project has had a positive outcome for local residents and community groups, who are already talking about what they plan to use in the attractive new wetland areas that are being constructed throughout this project, providing open space and wonderful aesthetic areas in their local communities. I know that one local group even has its eye on the wetlands as a potential launch site for its miniature sailboats. This project is, once again, about keeping our parks and reserves green in a sustainable way.

During the drought, for many people it was their local parks that had to be sacrificed because of lack of water to keep the trees alive. With this project, over 40 school ovals, sporting fields and council reserves are now set to benefit from this recycled water and stormwater to ensure that these areas do stay green and that our water is once again used very sustainably.

Another project that has been funded through this project is the Southern Urban Reuse Project, which has allowed 500 residential properties in Seaford Meadows to reconnected to recycled water for non-potable things such as watering their gardens and flushing their toilets so that they can once again preserve their fresh water supplies. And this is just the start.

So I am very pleased that, building on this success, the federal government has provided funding of $14.97 million for Waterproofing the South Stage 2, which once again seeks to re-use stormwater. South Australians know about conservation of our precious water supplies. They are pleased, in communities right across my electorate, that we are investing in infrastructure that will help them use water sensibly into the future.