Forget the arguments about the aesthetic and practical importance of trees. They are not needed now. Likewise, the pleas for keeping landmark and treasured trees; for the lives of animals; for maintaining biodiversity; for the integrity of our beloved parklands—are now, sadly, irrelevant. The great Malinauskas massacre is underway. Hundreds and hundreds of huge and significant trees are currently being felled by chainsaws. This will likely be a death knell for many animals, now lacking a habitat to sustain them. Also being decimated is an important precedent. Control of the parklands has traditionally rested with the Adelaide City Council, which, by and large, has kept this precious resource intact for public enjoyment. Stealthily enacted legislation last year wrested control of about 20% of the parklands from the council and placed it in the less-benevolent hands of the state government. The Malinauskas government has vandalised both the parklands and transparent governance.
The Premier likes to claim a mandate for this action by saying that the blueprint for the ruination of the northern parklands was taken to the election. But people do not vote on a single issue. The availability of housing, the state of the health system, ramping, the cost of living and the functioning of the education system are what sway people’s votes. To claim that his election win vindicated the ruinous plans for the north parklands is — on the kindest interpretation — disingenuous. Further, the Premier would have needed to have been living under a rock the size of Uluru not to appreciate the breadth and depth of the resistance to his devastating project.
What makes this environmental malpractice so egregious is that it is unnecessary. The original plans were made to satisfy the voracious demands of the LIV golf tour. However, LIV golf recently had a serious run-in with financial reality and is likely to die a slow and largely unmourned death. Premier Malinauskas had the perfect off-ramp. He could have announced that his unwanted plans to decimate the parklands were no longer necessary. However, last week, he jubilantly announced that he had secured the Australian Women’s and Men’s Open for three years, justifying, he believes, wrecking the north parklands. Why? Adelaide has three excellent tournament level courses that are more than capable of hosting the Men’s and Women’s Opens; Royal Adelaide; Kooyonga and Grange. The Australian Women’s Open was held at Kooyonga in March this year. It was a very successful tournament. Every day, large and appreciative galleries attended, and the course was showered with praise for its beauty, as well as the challenges it posed for players and the thrilling golf it provided for spectators.
First Nations South Australians must feel particularly bruised. For no good reason, plans they consider disrespectful and destructive are pushed ahead, despite requests for consultation and dialogue. Their cultural heritage is threatened and diminished for a superfluous $45m shiny, new trophy in the north parklands.
So, if you are as puzzled as we are about why the gratuitous wrecking of the north parklands is going ahead, ask the Premier, and ask your local MP. See if somebody can give you a satisfactory answer. If you do get an answer that satisfies, let us know, we’d be fascinated to hear it.
Contact: the Premier on premier@sa.gov.au or the Minister for the Environment, Emily Bourke, at Minister.bourke@sa.gov.au or ring 7133 1100
Find your local MP’s contact details at: https://www.parliament.sa.gov.au/en/House-of-Assembly/Members