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2005 (c) Peninsula Community Access Newspaper Inc

 

Forum calls to reject DA

 

The Peninsula Bushcare Forum has called on Gosford Councillors to reject the application to build luxury retirement villas on the corner of Veron Raod and Hillview St in Woy Woy.

Council is expected to consider the DA at its meeting next Tuesday.

The forum's UCSW campaigner, Ms Shirley Hotchkiss, said the presence of uncommon and threatened species in the vicinity of the Catholic land highlighted the absurdity of destroying 10 per cent of the remaining Umina Coastal Sandplain Woodland.

"Last week staff and volunteers saw the bush stone-curlew again in the grounds of Umina campus of Brisbane Water Secondary College," she said.

"It has been recorded in this vicinity many times in the last few months.

"Mostly the sightings have been of one bird, but one volunteer saw three birds. This suggests they are breeding nearby.

"An ecologist has advised the Department of Commerce that the new perimeter fence at the College needs to be modified so the bush stone-curlew can gain access.

"However this species threatened with extinction is not even considered in the Species Impact Statement that is part of the DA."

Ms Hotchkiss said her discovery of an uncommon plant at the College across the road from the Catholic site was additional evidence of the need to preserve the Catholic site's rare UCSW bushland.

"This plant is commelina cyanea, but in a white-flowering form.

"Commelina cyanea is one of the native UCSW plants. The advice from botanical experts is that special care should be taken with its protection and conservation."

Ms Hotchkiss said for nearly three years community members had sent a strong message to councillors through petitions, submissions and letters that the Catholic site's rare bushland should be protected instead of destroyed.

Ms Hotchkiss said the recent evidence reinforced the existing strong case for councillors to reject the DA.

She said the Council report which recommends the DA be approved, is inadequate, and not only in relation to the bush stone-curlew.

"Neither the SIS, nor the council, nor the Department of Environment's concurrence report addresses several key factors.

"They don't address the quality of the total Umina Coastal Sandplain Woodland Endangered Ecological Community; the inconsistency between the concurrence report, the DEC draft management plan and the DEC's other published statements; the rationale for, or adequacy of, the compensation offered by the developer; the adequacy of "ameliorative" measures; or how the "Option B" SIS that was placed before the Land and Environment Court differs from the SIS for the current DA."

Media release, April 26 Shirley Hotchkiss, Peninsula Bushcare Forum