by Carla Caruso

What might happen to your Adelaide Park Lands in the year 2022?

Better protection or ramped-up attacks on Open, Green, Public spaces?

We asked a few representatives about their New Year’s wishes for the greenery garlanding our city. This is what they had to say.

Darren Peacock, CEO of the National Trust SA

The not-for-profit National Trust of SA is hoping for big things in 2022 with its Save Our Trees Facebook page.

The Trust is also working on a new mobile phone app (still in development), which would allow you to help document the trees that we love, those at risk, and those that have been lost.

Chief executive Darren Peacock said the main contributors to mature tree loss are “private development and government road projects”.

Replacing an existing mature tree with one or even several young trees does not account for the many years of inadequate canopy cover, according to Dr Peacock.

Fingers crossed for improved safeguards for our ageing trees in the year ahead.

Adelaide City councillor Keiran Snape

“My big wish is for both the major [political] parties to abandon their respective pledges to build [on]/mismanage our precious Park Lands.

Liberals - to change their mind on the riverbank rezoning and the basketball arena. That would be a slam dunk for me. 

Labor to slam the brakes on the Clipsal 500 returning to the Park Lands.

My second wish is for the council to support more tree canopy throughout the Park Lands. We need to start adapting better to climate change here and now.

(Apologies for the bad puns, but it is the season.)”

APA President Shane Sody

“New Year’s resolutions we’d like to see as an organisation:

For the State Government to:

1) Stop attacking the Park Lands.

2) Strengthen the Park Lands Act to ensure Open, Green, Public Park Lands are protected for future generations.

3) Grant State Heritage status for the Park Lands – recommended by the SA Heritage Council in December 2018.

4) Support UNESCO World Heritage Listing of the Park Lands.

5) Endorse a feasibility study into the Adelaide Recreation Circuit – a uniform, uninterrupted walk/run/bike circuit.  

For the Adelaide City Council to:

6)  Find a new site for the Adelaide Aquatic Centre that is not on Park Lands (hint: look at the Central Market precinct).

7)  Grow a spine to firmly resist constant State Government attacks on the Park Lands. 

8) Continue helping APA with our pilot re-greening project on former bitumen netball courts in Bonython Park / Tulya Wardli (Park 27) as we plan for work to commence in mid-2022.

Plus, a few extra wishes for the list…

Rezoning to be abandoned

“My New Year’s resolution for the Park Lands is for the Liberals’ proposed rezoning of the Riverbank to be abandoned – ensuring the protection of our city’s iconic green space.” - Greens MLC Robert Simms

More Kaurna cultural burns

A Kaurna-led cultural burn lit up Carriageway Park / Tuthangga (Park 17) in May. 

Jeffrey Newchurch, the chairperson of the Kaurna Yerta Aboriginal Corporation, told CityMag the burn not only celebrated Aboriginal culture, but was the first time since colonisation one had occurred under the auspice of local government.

Burns have been used by Aboriginal communities to manage and regenerate land for tens of thousands of years. After a successful pilot, there are plans to repeat the practice next year.

Safeguards for established trees?

Independent MP Sam Duluk has introduced a Bill (proposed law) to establish an Exceptional Tree Register in SA. 

The Planning, Development and Infrastructure (Exceptional Tree Register) Amendment Bill 2021 seeks to bring the State into line with other jurisdictions nationally. 

If the Bill is passed by State Parliament, local councils would define exceptional trees and a commissioner would be appointed to maintain a complete list, with stronger legal protections against felling trees.

Legal advisors to the local government sector, Norman Waterhouse, warned on 3 December that although reform of tree protection laws would be “desirable”, the approach taken with Sam Duluk’s Private Member’s Bill might exacerbate issues with the current laws.