Mrs PHILLIPS (Gilmore) (16:35): No-one cannot have been impacted by the 2019-20 bushfires. There were tragic losses of lives, and hundreds of homes were destroyed and/or damaged, along with outbuildings, stock animals and wildlife. Recovery was made all the more difficult by multiple floods, storms, landslips and COVID-19. That journey is continuing. But today I want to focus on our upcoming bushfire season and let people know of just some of the many things that have been done and continue to be done to help prepare for it.
The message I heard loud and clear was the need for better power and communications. I began beating the drum for improved power and communications, and I want to thank the Minister for Emergency Management and the Minister for Communications for listening. I give a special shout out to the Durras Progress Association, which advocated for composite power poles from the Princes Highway into their one-road-in, one-road-out community. They also questioned having a stretch of NBN cables above ground that could easily have been put underground. Before the 2022 federal election, I made a commitment to have that fixed. I'm pleased to say that just last week I visited South Durras and saw for myself the NBN cabling fixed and the composite power poles being rolled out by Essential Energy workers from Moruya.
During the bushfires, we lost essential and emergency communications when the Mount Wandera transmission station was burnt to the ground. While the Mount Wandera transmission station was rebuilt, again came the calls for composite power poles to help bushfire-proof the power and protect the comms. Again I made a commitment to doing it, and I'm pleased to say the composite power poles will go in next year. Endeavour Energy has worked with the Bawley Point and Kioloa community, with the help of federal funding, to build a microgrid which will provide a more resilient and reliable power supply during emergencies.
During the bushfires, there was no dedicated, purpose-built emergency operation centre at Moruya. I was pleased to make a $5 million funding commitment towards a purpose-built emergency operations centre at Moruya, with funding delivered in the budget. Pleasing progress is being made on this by the New South Wales state government and Eurobodalla Council.
In the Shoalhaven, with federal funding, 25 community information hubs are now working on the walls of community halls and will provide tailored emergency information, controlled by the incident controller, in times of emergency.
The government has also implemented a new Australian fire danger rating system. There is now a dedicated national large air tanker capable of dropping 15,000 litres of water or fire retardant, which will supplement the state's bushfire air fleet. Our Rural Fire Service, at both state and local levels, are doing all they can to complete hazard reductions in time for the upcoming season, even though this has been difficult in such wet times. Our local Indigenous rangers have been out completing Indigenous cultural burnings. There are upgrades to RFS stations and more satellite communications at key emergency centres, and mobile phone towers now have improved battery back-up. There are more cells on wheels to provide emergency communications that can be delivered to communities when needed. In coming weeks, the national Minister for Emergency Management will meet with emergency ministers around the country to make sure we are prepared as much as possible. Today we opened up public consultation on how we can improve disaster response support.
Just last week, I opened up another heatwave and bushfire haven at Batemans Bay. I want to thank the Southcoast Health and Sustainability Alliance for their dedication. This is now the sixth heatwave and bushfire haven established in the Eurobodalla.
There have been many great disaster preparedness projects that I have championed and helped with federal funding. The EMBER project by disability employment provider Flagstaff in the Shoalhaven is another which is amazing. It provides valuable tools and resources for people with a disability, their carers and emergency workers and volunteers.
In the Eurobodalla, I have been very impressed by the work of the Australian Breastfeeding Association, spearheaded by local GP Dr Michelle Hamrosi. It conducted research from the bushfires on how we can better support mothers and parents during disaster. One of the results is evacuation packs specifically designed for breastfeeding mums and formula-fed babies. There's a pack for toddlers too. It is imperative that people have their fire plan ready. Talk with your local RFS about what you can do to be fire ready. We have learnt many lessons from the bushfires. While we can't defy science, we can be better prepared, and that we are.
