KESAB SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES AWARD

Mrs VLAHOS (Taylor) (15:27): I would like to speak about an event at which I recently represented minister Caica, the KESAB Sustainable Communities Award which was held at the Semaphore Palais. These original awards were a presentation ceremony to winning towns and communities that represent all corners of South Australia. It is South Australia's longest serviced and largest community environmental initiative. KESAB has now been operating for over 45 years, and the Sustainable Communities program recognises environmental sustainability action which is taking place in our communities.

There were over 200 category entries in 2011, showcasing hundreds of thousands of volunteer hours and efforts valued at more than $20 million, which work towards environmental sustainability, action and improvement in our lives and communities. Local projects delivered on the ground by rural communities embrace water and energy conservation, waste diversion, litter reduction, and recycling and biodiversity. The Playford City Council, one of the councils in my area, won an award for biodiversity. Schools, councils and business community groups and individuals were also represented at the award ceremony.

The overall winner for the 2011 KESAB Sustainable Communities Award is Mount Gambier, and this is the 11^th time Mt Gambier has won since the inception of the tidy towns program in 1978. Mount Gambier won the national tidy towns award twice and is the only place in Australia to have done so. They will also now go on as a state representative and compete against other states and territories to the Keep Australia Beautiful Australian Sustainable Communities Awards, previously known as tidy towns awards, which will be held in 2012.

I would like to place on the record a special thanks to the many people who made this event particularly memorable on the day: Colin Hill, Patron of KESAB, and I had a lovely time chatting to him about his long-term commitment to sustainability and KESAB, in fact, it goes back over the 45 years of my life that he has been involved in KESAB which is truly amazing; Ashley Watson, Chair of the KESAB board; KESAB board members; John Phillips OAM, the Executive Director of KESAB; mayors and chief executives from all around the state; and many children and families who came in from the regional areas of South Australia.

Indeed, we were very lucky to be able to participate in the ceremony. I would like to name some of the awards that were given out on the day that were particularly noteworthy. The Charles Sturt community council won a fantastic award about biodiversity and conceptualising for their whole community in many, many different ways on the great works that they can make their lives more green as a community.

Roxby Downs Council won an award for the Outback region of South Australia for initiatives they were making. The Water Infrastructure Commendation went to the Balaklava area, which is close to one of the boundaries in my electorate. I congratulate them on that.

In closing, I would like to congratulate the Sustainable Community Award winners. I look forward to seeing the awards in 2012. Congratulations to KESAB for continuing to do the wonderful work you do for our state.