Australia’s gardening industry pens letter to government reps 

ULTIMO, Australia: Landscape construction and green space installation must be included in the upcoming construction stimulus package to help mitigate the significant impact of Covid-19 on the sector.

An alliance including Greenlife Industry Australia, Turf Australia and the Landscape Associations of Victoria, NSW & ACT, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia has written to Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Minister for Housing Michael Sukkar asserting that homeowners should be given choice in how they invest the proposed grants.

The landscape, turf and greenlife industries collectively represent almost 17,000 businesses, employing approximately 58,000 Australians. Together, the industries contribute over $8.8 billion annually to the Australian economy.

Greenlife Industry Australia CEO Peter Vaughan said it was critical both landscape construction and greenspace installation were considered in the package.

“There is great concern that once existing stimulus packages end, business and job loss across these industries will be substantial.

“We know that many landscape construction projects are on hold or have been cancelled and the flow on effect to the turf and greenlife industries has been substantial.”

Mr Vaughan said the construction stimulus package presented an enormous opportunity to encourage homeowners to invest in their outdoor spaces.

“The mental health and wellbeing benefits of greenspace are well documented.  Areas where bushfire recovery efforts are underway could also benefit from having landscape construction and greenspace installation included in the package, particularly when it comes to the regeneration of residential greenspace,” Mr Vaughan said.