news, local-news, Campbelltown, Macarthur, Greg Warren, Office of Environment and Heritage, Labor, environment

Campbelltown MP Greg Warren is "extremely concerned" for the future of Macarthur's environment following the state government's decision to abolish the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. The office will be dissolved and cease to be an independent entity. Instead, the environmental and heritage protection organisation will be merged into a government department. "The abolition of the Office of Environment and Heritage demonstrates clearly that this government does not consider our great state's environment to be a priority," Mr Warren said. "It's distressing to think a strong, independent office will be reduced to a shell of itself and that those few workers who will remain, will have to answer to a hierarchy intent on developing every square inch of our state." Minister for Energy and Environment Matt Kean will now handle the environment portfolio while the heritage aspects will now form a part of the arts portfolio, held by Don Harwin MLC. Mr Warren said the Liberals' decision was a step away from the important issue of preserving and conserving Macarthur's green space areas like the pristine Scenic Hills and further showed exactly how little Premier Gladys Berekijlian and her colleagues valued our region's environment. Mr Warren said he shuddered to think how much damage the state government could do to Campbelltown's environment in the next four years. "Last year I, along with my colleague Anoulack Chanthivong, the Member for Macquarie Fields, announced Labor would create a koala national park from Appin to Glenfield," he said. "Unfortunately the election result means those plans have been put on hold. "But for now, my main concern is the next four years - in particular, trying to limit how much damage this government can inflict on Campbelltown's environment in that period of time."

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