The Government has pumped some welcome money into the Great Eastern Ranges Initiative but what still concerns me is the myriad planning decisions up and down the ranges happening every week that impact their conservation. The Government needs to remember their commitment to the Great Eastern Ranges initiative everytime the miners, loggers and developers come asking to damage another little piece of nature. That’s why I moved the following motion:

526. Ms Faehrmann to move—
1. That this House notes that, as is stated on the website for the Great Eastern Ranges Initiative, the
Great Eastern Ranges:
(a) are the mountainous ranges and escarpments of eastern Australia, including the Great
Dividing Range and the Great Escarpment,
(b) separate Australia’s eastern coastal fringe from the plains and the interior,
(c) are the backyard to our cities; places we visit for recreation and to restore our spirits,
(d) are home to many of Australia’s treasured areas of World Heritage, national parks, alpine
areas, forests, woodlands and rainforests,
(e) store carbon in their vast forests, breathing out oxygen we breathe in,
(f) contribute to our prosperity by sustaining agriculture, tourism and industry,
(g) are a refuge for our richest biodiversity, containing 66 per cent of the threatened species
in New South Wales, and
(h) are the source of our clean water providing water supplies for over 93 per cent of eastern
Australia’s population.
2. That this House notes that:
(a) in 2006, the Environment Heritage and Protection Council (EPHC) first considered the
idea of a continental scale conservation corridor extending along Australia’s great eastern
ranges from Victoria through New South Wales to Atheron in Queensland,
(b) in New South Wales, this became the Great Eastern Ranges Initiative which is a
collaboration with Bush Heritage Australia, Greening Australia, the National Parks
Association of NSW, Nature Conservation Trust of NSW and the Government,
Legislative Council Notice Paper No. 66—Wednesday 7 March 2012
3520
(c) the initiative aims to maintain and improve long-term connectivity conservation of
mountain ecosystems running the length of eastern Australia, with the 1,200 kilometre
New South Wales section of the Great Eastern Ranges the initial area of focus,
(d) the NSW Environmental Trust allocated $4.4 million to continue the Great Eastern
Ranges Initiative, which was announced by the Honourable Robyn Parker MP, Minister
for Environment on 16 December 2011, and
(e) the integrity of the ecosystems that comprise the Great Eastern Ranges corridor is still
being threatened by a lack of coordination to manage threats such as mining, logging and
housing developments.
3. That this House calls on the Government to ensure its commitment to the Great Eastern Ranges
Initiative includes protecting the integrity of the Great Eastern Ranges corridor when
considering applications for mining, logging and housing developments.

(Notice given 6 March 2012—expires Notice Paper No. 85)

Greens MP and environment spokesperson has today given notice of a motion in the NSW Parliament calling on the government to ensure a fair market price is being offered for the voluntary acquisition of the valuable Kariong site for inclusion in Brisbane Waters National Park.

Ms Faehrmann to move—

1. That this House congratulates Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras for ‘Sydney Mardi Gras 2012′, one of the most successful festivals in a proud 34 year history.
2. That this House notes the significant contribution of Sydney Mardi Gras to the community, including:
   (a) a boon of more than $30 million dollars to the New South Wales economy each year,with approximately  20,000 interstate and overseas visitors coming to Sydney specifically for the festival,
   (b) as a global beacon of diversity, acceptance and of equal rights for all,
   (c) providing resources and opportunities for creative and political expression, and
   (d) bringing the world’s best artists, thinkers and entertainers to Sydney.
3. That this House thanks the Sydney Mardi Gras Chair Peter Urmson, Chief Executive Officer Michael Rolik, all the Board, staff and thousands of volunteers who made the Sydney Mardi Gras 2012 possible.

453. Ms Faehrmann to move—
1. That this House notes that:
(a) sharks play an important role in the maintenance of healthy and productive marine
ecosystems,
(b) sharks are vulnerable to over-exploitation due to their biological characteristics,
(c) targeted shark fisheries all around the world have led to dramatic population declines,
(d) the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Shark Specialist Group
has determined the global conservation status of 64 species of pelagic sharks and rays
and classified 32 percent as threatened with extinction, primarily due to overfishing,
(e) the international demand for shark fin is rapidly increasing,
(f) New South Wales has a targeted shark fishery which supplies the domestic and Asian
shark fin market – the Ocean Trap and Line Fishery,
(g) there is a 110t limit for sharks in the Ocean Trap and Line Fishery in place until the end
of January 2012 and it is a condition of the Commonwealth Environment Protection and
Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 export approval for the fishery that this level of take
be reviewed by mid 2012 and for new shark management measures to be put in place,
(h) the CSIRO (2010) Review of Shark Catches in the Ocean Trap and Line Fishery stated
that the two main species targeted by the shark sector of the fishery, sandbar shark and
dusky shark have proved to be highly susceptible to population declines caused by
fishing mortality on reproductive adults across their range,
(i) the states of California, Hawaii, Washington and Oregon have bans on the possession
and sale of shark fins, and
(j) the Canadian cities of Toronto, Mississuaga, Oakville, Pickering and Brantford have bans
on shark fin, and
(k) the Bahamas, Honduras, Maldives and Palau outlaw targeted shark fishing in their
waters. Legislative Council Notice Paper No. 75—Tuesday 3 April 2012
4119
2. That this House calls on the Government to undertake an independent review of the ecological
sustainability of the trade in shark fins from sharks caught in NSW fisheries.
(Notice given 14 February 2012—expires Notice Paper No. 79

Motion by the Hon. Cate Faehrmann agreed to:

1. That this House notes the outstanding lifelong contribution Sir David Attenborough, OM, CH, CVO, CBE, FRS, FZS, FSA, has made to wildlife documentary-making, nature appreciation and nature conservation.

2. That this House notes that:

(a) Sir David Attenborough is a Trustee of the British Museum and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; an Honorary Fellow of Clare College, Cambridge; a Fellow of the Royal Society and was knighted in 1985,

(b) for decades, Sir David has captivated all when bringing the natural world into living rooms with landmark television series and books including Life on Earth, The Living Planet, The Trials of Life, The Private Life of Plants, The Life of Birds, The Life of Mammals and Life in the Undergrowth, Life in the Freezer and Life in Cold Blood, Frozen Planet and Blue Planet,

(c) Sir David’s career as a naturalist and broadcaster has spanned nearly five decades and there are very few places on the globe that he has not visited, and

(d) without Sir David’s outstanding contributions our understanding of this wondrous planet would not be what it is today.

3. That this House:

(a) sincerely congratulates and thanks Sir David on his lifelong work, and

(b) requests that the President write to Sir David on behalf of the Legislative Council to convey the terms of this resolution.

Motion by the Hon. Cate Faehrmann agreed to:

1. That this House notes:

(a) Samantha Stosur’s spectacular victory at the 2011 US Open Tennis Championships, the first Australian woman to win a Grand Slam title since Evonne Goolagong Cawley won Wimbledon in 1980; and

(b) Sally Pearson’s current status as World Champion in the 100 metres hurdles with a time of 12.28 seconds, who is one race away from a perfect season in this event after her nineteenth consecutive win.

2. That this House:

(a) congratulate both women on their achievements and commends them as inspirational examples of Australian accomplishment in women’s sport; and

(b) requests the President to write to both Samantha Stosur and Sally Pearson on behalf of the Legislative Council conveying the terms of this resolution.