Tuesday, 2 June 2026

 Sarah MANSFIELD (Western Victoria) (22:34): (2536) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, and the action that I am seeking is for her to pause the tree culling on Woodland Street and meet with Moonee Valley Sustainability and Essendon residents to discuss smarter, sustainable solutions for road safety. The Department of Transport and Planning intends to remove up to 20 mature canopy trees on Woodland Street, which is a state-managed road. These are trees that provide important habitat and urban cooling, and they form part of a wildlife corridor connecting Napier Park to Moonee Ponds Creek. At a time when our urban environments are getting hotter and tree canopy, vegetation and the native wildlife they support are being lost at an increasing rate, we should be doing everything we can to protect established canopy trees. Trees can significantly lower the urban temperature, which makes it safer both inside and outside people’s homes and reduces pressure on energy bills for cooling. The safety lens through which this is being viewed positions the trees as a nuisance and being in the way of bitumen and cars. Instead local residents have come up with creative and thoughtful ways the trees could be kept and safety actually enhanced for all road users, including cyclists, pedestrians and car users. Once these trees are gone, they cannot be replaced. I would urge the minister to pause the tree removal before it is too late and to genuinely engage with local residents to work on a solution that suits everyone’s needs.