Thursday, 12 May 2022

Western Metropolitan Region green wedge planning

Mr FINN (Western Metropolitan) (18:24): (1919) I wish to raise a matter on the adjournment this evening for the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change. I have spoken in this house at least a couple of times before on my support for the greening of Melbourne’s west. With new subdivisions appearing almost daily and new suburbs popping up all over the place, there is an urgent need for more trees to be planted, particularly when you consider the Andrews government has been on a cutting-down-trees spree on Sunbury Road. We need those replaced before we can get any further. That is in a green wedge, by the way. I never thought I would see a Labor government chopping down trees in a green wedge, but anyway, that is the way this government rolls. The trees I suggest would be good for the aesthetics, they would be good for air quality and, you never know, they might be even good for the environment—even for the climate. If that is what it takes, if I have to say that to get these trees, I am prepared to go that far.

The west needs more trees urgently. And I am not just talking about a few trees, I am talking about tens of thousands of trees as soon as possible. Visiting a local nursery lately I spoke to the owner, and he pointed out to me that many of the trees that are being planted in the west now are actually being supplied from the other side of Melbourne. That to me seems to be quite absurd when local nurseries could provide those trees, and of course they would not have to travel. It would be environmentally friendly to have them provided by local nurseries. What I am wanting is trees for the west from the west. I do not think it is asking too much. What I am asking the minister to do is to provide some leadership on this particular matter and to work with councils, to work with developers and to work with those voluntary groups in the community that are also keen to ensure that more trees are planted in Melbourne’s west. A canopy of green would be absolutely magnificent in the west. As I have said before, the leafy green suburbs should not be just in the eastern suburbs but very, very soon should be in Melbourne’s west as well. So I ask the minister to do that. I think it is very, very important, and it will go a long way towards making Melbourne’s west a more livable place for us all.