SEDIMENT TASK FORCE
1566. Hon DIANE EVERS to the Minister for Environment:
I refer to the Sediment Task Force,
facilitated by Perth Natural Resource Management and funded by the Department
of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
(1) Is the
Department of Water and Environmental Regulation an active participant of this
task force, and —
(a) if it is not, why not;
(b) if it is not,
was it previously part of the task force; and, if so, why did it cease
participating; and
(c) if yes, in what way does the
department participate?
(2) Are the minutes of the task
force meetings publicly available; and, if not, why not?
Hon
STEPHEN DAWSON replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1) The
Department of Water and Environmental Regulation is not an active participant
in the Sediment Task Force.
(a) The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and
Attractions administers the water quality management arrangements for the Swan–Canning
River system, which were formerly the responsibility of the Swan River Trust.
This includes the Sediment Task Force, which was originally set up to help
implement the trust's water quality improvement plans for the Swan–Canning
River system.
(b) DWER was
represented on the task force from 2014 to 2017 in relation to water-sensitive
urban design. Although there are currently no DWER representatives on the task
force, DWER has made a standing offer to provide specialised advice on
water-sensitive urban design on request.
(c) Not applicable.
(2) The minutes
of the task force meetings are not publicly available. The Sediment Task Force
is attended by both government and non-government organisations, including
community and industry-based groups. It provides an open forum for stakeholders
to share information and develop solutions. Any requests for minutes of
meetings would require consent from the organisations represented on the task
force.