FOURTH CREEK CATCHMENT GROUP

Mr GARDNER (Morialta) (15:14): Last Wednesday I had the opportunity to attend one of the Fourth Creek Catchment Group's working bees beneath the Morialta Barns behind Norton Summit. It is very much in the heart of Morialta and a beautiful piece of land, even more so thanks to the efforts of the Fourth Creek Catchment Group, which has worked tirelessly to reclaim the area from weeds and return it to a natural ecosystem.

The Fourth Creek Catchment Group was originally established 12 years ago by Mr John Smith, who has been described to me by the current president, Mrs Jacqui Dekker, as 'an enthusiastic environmentalist'. His enthusiasm was infectious and the group quickly grew and has worked on and delivered many projects around the Fourth Creek catchment area over the 12 years of its existence.

Like many of the other great organisations around Morialta and the rest of the state, the Fourth Creek Catchment Group is a purely volunteer organisation. The bulk of their work is done by roughly 10 to 15 active members, with support from others from time to time. They run working bees, which involve a mixture of weeding introduced species and planting native species, provide educational walks, work with the local primary school on the Waterwatch program and work with landholders.

In the past, they have worked on areas along the Heysen Trail and a small area next to the Norton Summit CFS station. Recently they also set up possum and bird boxes along the Heysen Trail. I am pleased to advise the house that all those possum and bird boxes are tenanted—if only the government were as efficient at placing housing trust tenants in vacant Housing SA properties. Reclaiming these areas is a long-term project conducted over a number of years, as each step requires the right weather conditions.

The current project next to the barns has been a shared project between the Fourth Creek Catchment Group, who have the expertise and organised the whole project; Youth With a Mission, who own the property and has offered a great number of volunteers to help out; and the Norton Summit-Ashton, Cherryville, State Support and Summertown CFS brigades, who helped by burning off blackberries in April this year.

I am told that on the day the younger members of the brigades, one of whom sits in my office, placed themselves strategically out of harm's way, leaving Bob Butler and Sandy Taylor AFSM—two of the more mature members of the brigade—to deal with the climbing fire and smoke, which they did very well, as they have done for many years before. Congratulations also to John Naumann, who is the Captain of the Norton Summit-Ashton CFS brigade, for organising the burn. I believe it is a fantastic example of volunteers with different skill sets and different sets of interests working together effectively for a common purpose.

Last week's working bee was held to finish clearing the rest of the blackberries and prepare for another spray so that they do not grow back. Thanks to Jacqui Dekker from the catchment group and Chris Harrison from Youth With a Mission for their generosity in time and sharing the site with me as we battled muddy and slippery conditions on a fantastically clear morning. Already it was clear that some of the blackberries were sprouting again and that, without the efforts of the catchment group, it would not be too long before the area was once again infested with weeds.

It is a shame that many of these species were introduced to Australia in the first place and have taken over so voraciously. Very often, somebody with an untrained eye might go for a drive in the Hills and comment on the lovely vegetation without realising the damage these introduced species cause to our natural ecosystems. Without the efforts of environmental volunteer groups—such as the Fourth Creek Catchment Group up at Norton Summit; the Campbelltown Landcare Group at Wadmore Park; the Sixth Creek Catchment Group, who work all the way from Summertown down to Castambul on the northern border of my electorate; the Friends of Black Hill and Morialta Inc., who support the work of DENR in those two conservation parks; and other local groups too numerous to mention in the time allocated today—our local environment would be under greater threat.

Like many volunteer organisations, the Fourth Creek Catchment Group is always looking for more members. The working bees are hard work, but it is always extremely rewarding to see the results of your own contribution. The group is also always looking for grants, as the cost of hiring equipment and spraying weeds is expensive. With two or three sprays required, it can be a long and drawn-out process. Once again, I thank the Fourth Creek Catchment Group for their hard work, and I am pleased to have been able to acknowledge them in this place today.