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Legislative Council - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2016-03-08 Daily Xml
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Mapland

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:15): My question is to the Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation. Will the minister inform the chamber about the success of the high-quality work produced by the Department for Environment, Water and Natural Resources' mapping unit, and the international acclaim it is attracting?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Climate Change) (15:15): Mr President, how does he do it? How does the honourable member find out these little nuggets of facts—these brilliant little nuggets—and then come in here and ask questions?

The Department for Environment, Water and Natural Resources is a very highly diverse department that undertakes a range of tasks and responsibilities. I am pleased to report that one particular section of DEWNR, often overlooked, has recently received international recognition for their work. DEWNR's Mapland unit is responsible for delivering spatial and mapping products and services. They draw on a wealth of expertise in the management of property boundaries, topographic data, and aerial and satellite imagery.

The unit develops and sells a range of products, including printed maps, customised mapping services, digital elevation data, aerial and satellite image data, and various publications. I am pleased to report that two of the unit's products won awards at the International Mapping Industry Association Asia Pacific Region Conference held in November 2015. DEWNR won the Gold Award for Best Map Sheet Product in the Asia Pacific Region, and the Graham Stanton Award for the Best Overall Mapping Product for their work on the new Heysen Trail map sheet series.

The Heysen Trail map sheet series comprises, I am advised, eight double-sided A1 maps, each folded to DL size. They depict detailed 1:50,000 topographic maps covering the entire 1,200 kilometres of the trail, including elevation, and provides, safety and trip planning information. The maps are printed on water and tear-resistant stone paper made from recycled quarry waste, and are an outstanding resource for bushwalkers.

DEWNR also received an award for the third edition of the Mount Lofty Ranges emergency services map book, which supports emergency services operations as well as providing useful information for commercial users, travellers and the wider community. Map books are an important tool that assist bushfire crews, for example. This most recent edition was released just prior to the Sampson Flat bushfire, I am advised, and DEWNR was able to provide local and interstate bushfire crews with up-to-date information to assist with their firefighting efforts.

I understand that developing map books is a highly collaborative process, and DEWNR engages with numerous agencies to ensure that the information provided is accurate and of a high standard. In particular, DEWNR works with regional Country Fire Service crews to draw on their local knowledge and assist with on-ground verification of data. DEWNR is continually looking for ways to increase the accessibility of information to customers.

It is fantastic that in addition to buying the hard copy version of the Mount Lofty Ranges map book, customers can also choose to purchase individual maps that can be viewed on mobile devices, such as phones and tablets with GPS capability. In order to make this great resource even more effective, the electronic maps can be accessed in remote areas without internet access, using a free application and GPS.

I would like to commend and congratulate, of course, DEWNR's Mapland team and everyone involved in producing these highly useful resources and for receiving this international acknowledgement. Without comments today, the mapping unit of DEWNR may have continued on its excellent way, providing this significant service to our state without mention in this place, and I thought that would be a shame. So, I am very pleased to bring their efforts to the attention of the chamber.

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