Connecting Residents with Nature

The Hon. J.S.L. DAWKINS (14:37): Supplementary: will the minister bring back some information about the development of the former open paddocks that make up part of the Cobbler Creek Park, and as to whether there are plans to further revegetate those?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Climate Change) (14:37): I thank the Hon. John Dawkins for his fantastic supplementary question. As he knows, and others probably do know, a large part of that park was in fact clapped out old grazing land. Indeed, up until the interventions of the Hon. Jennifer Rankine, the member for Wright in another place, a large part of the scenic area of that park was allocated by, I think, the local council for housing development overlooking areas of the park, which really would have made the park undesirable from the perspective of revegetation and also turning it into a recreation park itself. You can imagine what a housing development overlooking that park might have thought about those sort of activities.

Jennifer Rankine, not to put too fine a point on it, went out and chained herself to several fences at some stage to draw attention to those heinous behaviours of the local council out that way, protected the park into posterity for her local community, and what a champion she is out there in Wright.

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins interjecting:

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: The Hon. John Dawkins, of course, was there supporting all of this, knowing what a great local member she is.