Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Rural advocate Gerry Wood raises concerns about vegetation being removed at the fire station in Howard Springs

Transcript

Rural advocate Gerry Wood raises concerns about vegetation being removed at the fire station in Howard Springs · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: We're going to head beyond the bear of the line
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  Speaker 1: right now, and a voice that you haven't heard for
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: a little while, but one that you'll definitely recognize, Jerry
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  Speaker 1: would good morning to you.
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  Speaker 2: Jerry, Hey, good morning, Katie. Are you.
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  Speaker 1: I'm very good, lovely to have you on the show.
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  Speaker 1: I'm lovely to go beyond the bear of the line
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  Speaker 1: with you this morning, Jerry, because there's plenty happening out
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  Speaker 1: your way, isn't there.
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  Speaker 2: Oh, there's certainly lots on. I mean, you've been talking
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  Speaker 2: to the Fibrigade, so obviously we've had our share of
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  Speaker 2: fires out this part of the world. So I think
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  Speaker 2: all those volunteers and the regulars, both of the Fire
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  Speaker 2: Service and the bush Fires Council. I've seen the planes
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  Speaker 2: flying lower over the rural area regularly lately, and don't
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  Speaker 2: not wonder how these fires started. I can't imagine them
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  Speaker 2: as lightning it this sum of year, and whether we've
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  Speaker 2: got some idiots around the place that just like to
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  Speaker 2: light fires at the wrong time of year.
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  Speaker 1: You would really hope not, wouldn't you, Jerry? And you know,
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  Speaker 1: I tend to think that most of the people that
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  Speaker 1: live out in the rural area are very aware of
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  Speaker 1: what they can and can't do, like when you have
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  Speaker 1: those fireban days.
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  Speaker 2: That's right. Whether it's there's just some lone people who
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  Speaker 2: just think it's fun lading a fire. It's just coming year.
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  Speaker 2: And for most people in the rural area, that's the
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  Speaker 2: last thing they want. They're trying to protect their property.
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  Speaker 2: They live on five acre or twenty acre blocks, and
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  Speaker 2: they don't want you know, sires damaging their not only
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  Speaker 2: their houses and vehicles, but also the growing mangoes crops.
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  Speaker 2: And we know that fires do get stuck into a
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  Speaker 2: mango plantation called a lot of damage. Certainly not something
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  Speaker 2: we need.
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  Speaker 1: No, that is exactly right now, Jerry. I know that
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  Speaker 1: there's a few things going on as well, or a
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  Speaker 1: few concerns that you'd raised with me. One thing you
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  Speaker 1: were a little bit worried about was the clearing of
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  Speaker 1: some of the vegetation near the fire station out there
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  Speaker 1: at Howard Springs.
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  Speaker 2: That's right, Hook, My dogs have decided to welcome someone,
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  Speaker 2: so you've hit some barking in the background.
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  Speaker 1: That's all right.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, Look, I mean it's great that we're getting what
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  Speaker 2: I call the rural in Parmisansov station built in the
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  Speaker 2: Howard Springs area. But there was some lovely bush in
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  Speaker 2: front of that fire station. We didn't do any didn't
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  Speaker 2: affect the station or because they've got a very big,
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  Speaker 2: lovely manicure front lawn they put in there in front there,
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  Speaker 2: but they decided to clear. Ninety five percent of that
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  Speaker 2: vegetation is gone, and I just think why would it go?
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  Speaker 2: Was there when the bus Stepo was there, didn't cause
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  Speaker 2: the bus deebow any problem. It's a nice little habitat.
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  Speaker 2: It's sort of bylieving that natural vegetation, you don't It
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  Speaker 2: doesn't require watering, requires three little maintenance and reflects where
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  Speaker 2: the fire station is, which is in the rural area,
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  Speaker 2: not in Parmison. So someone decided that they think they
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  Speaker 2: it should be tidied up, and it's all gone. So
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  Speaker 2: I'm asking the ministers. I've written the minister's yestery. Can
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  Speaker 2: they just leave it alone now afill the wet season
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  Speaker 2: comes and see whether it will revegetate because it wasn't
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  Speaker 2: doing any harm to anybody. It just seems senseless to
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  Speaker 2: me why people need to do things like that. They
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  Speaker 2: made it. Perhaps they just don't like noive vegetation, but
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  Speaker 2: I don't know what it was.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, and so you've written to the minister though, Jerry,
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  Speaker 1: to ask them to leave in a line. Yeah.
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  Speaker 2: Look, sometimes dammage done to vegetation if it's not too severe, Kenry.
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  Speaker 2: The vegetation where he read will revegetate pretty hardy stuff,
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  Speaker 2: a lot of those trees. But of course if they
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  Speaker 2: keep mowing it and slashing it or whatever they intend
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  Speaker 2: to do with I have no idea, then they probably
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  Speaker 2: won't come back at all. But I just don't understand
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  Speaker 2: the thinking behind someone in higher levels why we should
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  Speaker 2: destroy vegetation that was not needed to be destroyed. If
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  Speaker 2: there's a good reason, fair enough, But there was no.
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  Speaker 2: I don't believe there's a good reason. We should look
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  Speaker 2: after our bush, even in small amounts. And we have
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  Speaker 2: a government there's always talking about conservation and climate change
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  Speaker 2: and looking after the environment. Well, sometimes there are the
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  Speaker 2: big pictures, but you also need to look after the
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  Speaker 2: little picture as well.
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  Speaker 1: Hey, Jerry, I understand as well. There was some or
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  Speaker 1: there's some use graffiti at the Howard Springs Reserve. Is
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  Speaker 1: this good use graffiti or bad?
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  Speaker 2: No, it's bad stuff.
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  Speaker 1: What's happened?
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  Speaker 2: Well, we don't know whether this person is even the
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  Speaker 2: hashtag if someone knows you're sixteen. Where the crown is?
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  Speaker 2: We believe it's a group of people. Where they're from.
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  Speaker 2: We don't know where they're drifted in from, Parmisan or
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  Speaker 2: local people. And I'd say they're probably older kids, not
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  Speaker 2: young kids. There's a beer bottles around yesterday, broken beer
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  Speaker 2: bottles nearby. Lookase they know who they are. Look, I'm
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  Speaker 2: sure if they could let the council know or that
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  Speaker 2: the police don't painted over it all yesterday cleaned it up.
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  Speaker 2: The poor ladies does the hygiene in the toilets there.
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  Speaker 2: I had to clean out all this poop and toilet
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  Speaker 2: roll stuff down there. So you know, you wonder about
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  Speaker 2: the sins because we've got a beautiful park. In fact,
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  Speaker 2: we've got not only I've got the jump part there,
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  Speaker 2: we've got new cricket nets. You're just about completed. It's
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  Speaker 2: been built for the community. And you get some meat
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  Speaker 2: dick heads. It's come along and just a rumor for everybody.
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  Speaker 2: But I don't know what their logic is. It just
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  Speaker 2: seems to stay, yeah, get together as a group and
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  Speaker 2: sort of show off.
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  Speaker 1: Well that's exactly right, and I think you hit the
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  Speaker 1: nail on the head there, Jerry, I are acting like
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  Speaker 1: dickheads and it's not acceptable. And you know it's an
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  Speaker 1: area that people love and and you know, so much
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  Speaker 1: effort put in to keep it such a beautiful place.
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  Speaker 1: So it's just you know, it's not on them when
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  Speaker 1: people are behaving in this way.
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  Speaker 2: No, I mean it puts you know, people used to
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  Speaker 2: put on the weekends it's use for cricket, the softball
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  Speaker 2: and baseball, and then come and find their toilets are unusable. Well,
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  Speaker 2: you know, it just shows you the logic, you know
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  Speaker 2: that they don't respect other people. One of your people
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  Speaker 2: were talking about before, yes, and we're talking about respect.
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  Speaker 2: Your lady that works for you said about respect. I
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  Speaker 2: just wonder whether some of the issues and it's not
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  Speaker 2: quite on the same subject, but what's happened to all
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  Speaker 2: the youth camps? So there's EMU I think it's seven
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  Speaker 2: EMUs out nearborrol lillit. What has happened to the idea
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  Speaker 2: of having youth work camps and things like Wildman River
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  Speaker 2: the government was talking about. So some of these kids
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  Speaker 2: it's talking about who are very young, you know, what's
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  Speaker 2: the chances of now developing? You know, places where they
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  Speaker 2: can be taken off the street if they're repeat offenders
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  Speaker 2: and taken out to a place where they are safe.
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  Speaker 2: And in many cases I suppose they are Aboriginal, not entirely.
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  Speaker 2: I don't think the trouble is all Aboriginal. But if
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  Speaker 2: they are Abriginal, you know, start to have people who
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  Speaker 2: are Aboriginal looking after these kids. Out push, so get
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  Speaker 2: them away from what you might say, the temptations, and
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  Speaker 2: get them out there where they learn, get a bit
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  Speaker 2: of education, learn a bit of respect, have to do
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  Speaker 2: a bit of work, and have time away from the
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  Speaker 2: phone and all the things IA equipment to think about
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  Speaker 2: what they're doing. So there's a bit of a bit
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  Speaker 2: of space in their life. O Push. But I don't
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  Speaker 2: know what's happened to the idea that the government was
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  Speaker 2: talking about youth work camps and as I said, we
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  Speaker 2: had Wildman River seven you play out borrel Oh. I
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  Speaker 2: think it's so sad when I hear the stories I
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  Speaker 2: heard on this morning from.
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  Speaker 1: That was shocked and hot.
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  Speaker 2: But we can't stand still, no, and we have to
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  Speaker 2: do something to fix that app not only from the
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  Speaker 2: victim's point of view, but we'll take these kids off
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  Speaker 2: the street. Yeah, you got to go separate them out
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  Speaker 2: so they can't go out with them mates, they go
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  Speaker 2: out in communities away from and give them time to
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  Speaker 2: think about what the heck they're doing.
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  Speaker 1: Oh, it is absolutely shocking. Yeah, look, Jerry, something we've
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  Speaker 1: got to start thinking differently to what we are right
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  Speaker 1: now because what's going on is just totally unacceptable. And
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  Speaker 1: you know, I heard from the grandma yesterday of the
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  Speaker 1: young fella who'd been assaulted at the exchange, at the
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  Speaker 1: Casualina bus exchange. But then you know, I've been sent
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  Speaker 1: this vision now this morning of what these kids allegedly
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  Speaker 1: had done as well. And there is an old, older
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  Speaker 1: Indigenous man sleeping on you know, sleeping on the ground,
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  Speaker 1: and they stomp this kid stomps on his head. I
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  Speaker 1: watched it and I wanted to cry, Jerry, like it's shocking.
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  Speaker 2: Well, yeah, to turn it round if I meant to. Actually,
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  Speaker 2: when you hear the kids are ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen,
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  Speaker 2: these kids, We've got to do something now because if
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  Speaker 2: it goes on too long, it'd be very hard to
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  Speaker 2: turn around altogether. So that's why I'm saying, you know,
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  Speaker 2: where are these places we can take these kids to
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  Speaker 2: get them off the street, get them away from the temptation,
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  Speaker 2: get them away from all the Wisbang computers and Facebook
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  Speaker 2: and whatever, and get them out where they can hopefully
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  Speaker 2: do some work, get a little bit of education, get
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  Speaker 2: that older Aboriginal people working with them, and get a
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  Speaker 2: bit of space in their life so that they can
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  Speaker 2: sort of sit down and say, you know, wonder where
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  Speaker 2: they're going and what am I here for? Which I
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  Speaker 2: don't think we ask people often enough what they were
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  Speaker 2: on this earth fort because there are the hard questions
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  Speaker 2: everyone's got to answer to.
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  Speaker 1: Sometimes absolutely, Hey Jerry, before I let you go this morning,
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  Speaker 1: I've loved going beyond the bear and align with you.
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  Speaker 1: But before I let you go. Cycling path there's calls
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  Speaker 1: to extend the cycling path, isn't there?
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  Speaker 2: Oh yes, well you know so far it's taken a
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  Speaker 2: long time, think about thirty years to get the bicycle
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  Speaker 2: down the old railway line from Darwen to now cool Inger.
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  Speaker 2: I'm always said, well, look, you know, when we need
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  Speaker 2: to preserve that line. One way to preserve it is
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  Speaker 2: to continue with as a cycle path. Now we can
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  Speaker 2: get the cycle path at least to get down to
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  Speaker 2: Dunamar and out branch off to the Artum Highway, because
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  Speaker 2: there's already a cycle path on the out of my way.
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  Speaker 2: That would be a fantastic thing to the tourists. You
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  Speaker 2: can go down and have lunch at the Unamar Pub,
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  Speaker 2: you can go out and have one of the home
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  Speaker 2: to the cabin or to the public. You can also
• 9:28
  Speaker 2: go to cool Inger. There's plenty of places there. Look.
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  Speaker 2: I use it regularly every morning and on the weekends.
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  Speaker 2: Amazing number of people are using it walking, riding, you
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  Speaker 2: get the like a brigade slide, fasting, you get just
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  Speaker 2: lots of people using it, keeping fit. But there's also
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  Speaker 2: lots of tourists using it. And the thing is the
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  Speaker 2: government has spent a lot of money on a mountain
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  Speaker 2: boat pass I think down in Central Australia, which is fantastic.
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  Speaker 2: They also ought to be looking at perhaps having a
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  Speaker 2: mountain boat trail going from munamart right down through Bachelor
• 10:01
  Speaker 2: to Adelaide River, and that would be great too. Would
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  Speaker 2: be preserving the the railway line, the history of it,
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  Speaker 2: but also encouraging people to look at the history of
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  Speaker 2: that area right through from run Jungle to Bachelor and
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  Speaker 2: to Adelaide River as well.
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  Speaker 1: Well, Jerry would It is always good to catch up
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  Speaker 1: with you. You're going to have to go beyond the bear
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  Speaker 1: of the line with us again in a few weeks,
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  Speaker 1: I reckon. I think a lot of our listeners be
• 10:24
  Speaker 1: very happy to hear you back on the radio.
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  Speaker 2: It's okay, I'll go back to watching the dishes.
• 10:31
  Speaker 1: Good on you, Jerry. Always good to catch up mate.
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: Thanks so much for your time this morning.
• 10:38
  Speaker 2: Than see