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Mr WHAN (Monaro) [5.28 p.m.]: I raise today an important community proposal by the Eden community to build a memorial to timber workers who have been killed at work in the Eden area. A committee, chaired by Mrs Gillian Munday, put forward this terrific proposal, which recognises and permanently commemorates the people who have lost their lives in this dangerous industry. Mrs Munday and her committee have been working on this since March 2002, and have gathered together many names of people who they believe should be commemorated at this site. Recently, there was a story in some of the local newspapers, including the Land. Since then Mrs Munday has been contacted by many people in New South Wales wanting to add the names of their loved ones to the list of people who may be commemorated by this proposal. The Secretary of the Timber Workers Memorial Project Committee, Mr Laurie Owen, wrote me a letter stating:
The response has been rather overwhelming with many people supporting the concept, and many still unable to cope with the past loss of a timber worker.
The initial concept of the Committee was directed at local Eden area workers who died, but it is evident from the large expression of interest from people beyond this region, that the Memorial should now become a significant industry memorial certainly with a State focus and probably a national focus, which is likely to honour more than 200 workers.
The concept includes a large sculptured monolithic type Monument, surrounded by memorial walls and plaques, with a Memorial Walkway, perhaps a water feature, and logging heritage treatments, to be created upon Wellings Park, Eden …
The site for this proposed memorial is on the Princes Highway, which would be an ideal location for people to stop. It would certainly attract people to stop and look at the memorial, and allow them to think about how many people have lost their lives in this industry over many years. We are fortunate that the timber industry is much safer than it once was. New machinery provides much better protection for workers than the old style of logging, including felling trees with chainsaws and individuals, as occurred up until only a few years ago. Indeed, it still occurs in some areas.
This machinery is very expensive. All members would welcome the fact that forest industry structural assistance package funding in the south east has allowed many local timber contractors to get new equipment. An item of machinery can cost more than $500,000. Obviously this helps them to get wood more cost effectively. But more importantly from my perspective—and, I think, from the community's perspective—also means that hopefully the list of names to be dedicated on this memorial will not grow over the next few years. I am confident that this memorial will be an important tribute to the people who have lost their lives in the local industry.
The memorial proposal is gaining a lot of support. I urge honourable members with timber industries in their electorates to get involved in this project. I encourage them to have a look at the proposal from the Timber Workers Memorial Project Committee and get behind it if they can. They should talk to local timber workers or families and see if there are names they want to add to the list. Perhaps they could suggest to their communities that they help raise funds for the project. The project is important for our area and for the timber industry, and I commend it to the House.