Welcome In My Back Yard – a better vision for our neighbourhoods
We would ‘welcome in my back yard’ a truly ‘caring’ Blue Care, a cooperative developer, a facilitating and supportive Noosa Council and guidance from local experts as well as scientists and the Sunrise Beach community to find a solution that will save an iconic species while still caring for the elderly and having great benefits for the community.
Council imposed a number of conditions on the approval to address the habitat loss, including the identification of all active Glossy Black Cockatoo food trees within the development footprint; a vegetation clearing offset program with a five year required maintenance period; topsoil and mulched vegetation from the site to be translocated to a degraded receiving site within the Girraween estate for rehabilitation purposes and transfer of rare and threatened plant species; and identified Glossy Black Cockatoo Food trees propagated at a ratio of 8:1 from the parent tree and replanted.
Based on advice from experts in Glossy Black conservancy, offset planting is not going to work alone. What will they feed on until these trees fruit? How long will it take until our sensitive glossies take to them – if ever? This is why the birds are under pressure. This is why they are vulnerable. And this is why we need to leave their trees alone. THEN any revegetation can establish itself over time and they have time to adjust over the years.
Why wasn’t this process started previously to provide adequate time for bush regeneration? A bit of forward planning for a project that was approved ten years ago could have gone a long way to pre-empting the problem. Instead the site is covered in litter and hoons have been tearing through it in their hooning vehicles.
We have some great examples on our doorstep in the Girraween area where people have listened to the wisdom of our local Glossy specialists Bob Carey and Tim Lennon. In response to local conservation groups opposing the development, Noosa Council included a requirement in the DA to retain as much of the natural vegetation as possible at the nearby Flexi Learning Centre. Where food trees were removed for buildings, they harvested the seeds and propagated 5:1 on the school site. According to Flexi School Principal Paul Flanders, retaining the trees has been a wonderful feature for the school, creating a very relaxed environment for learning.
Hear Glossy expert Bob Carey talk about the Flexi school approach.
Build on existing infrastructure – reduce the footprint
The plans shows a massive two storey high care unit to be built into the bush next to the creek – where scientists from all over the world come to see the Glossies in their daily drinking ritual. Why not build that facility over Council’s existing row of shops, which could benefit from a rethink anyway? The existing shops can still be part of the development, and not so much extra land would need to be cleared!
Old Wallum growth is an asset
We welcome strategic thinking that looks at the bigger picture. We’d like to think that something really great can come from this. Blue Care need to understand that Wallum habitat cannot be recreated by human hand. It is precious. Wallum takes a long time to grow. It is a real asset.
Imagine incorporating this precious asset into the site – retaining the glossy food trees is a win-win. A vulnerable species would be protected and elderly people could enjoy visits by the Glossies in their natural environment. What about a forest bath, anyone?
Making the Wallum accessible
Options for an environmentally friendly bike lane could be explored to divert pedestrian and bike traffic away from Ben Lexcen Drive. People could enjoy this unique environment on the way to school and our local Sunrise Shops. The planned regeneration of bushland which was a development condition can regenerate naturally over time, and with a bit of weeding and rubbish removal this place would be a huge asset.
And if a soft footprint bike and foot path was established before construction begins it would minimise the impact of traffic during construction and also when the aged care facility is operational. It should be the minimal requirement – to get our kids safely to school and to get anyone who can ride or walk to do so in a nice environment. The bike/foot path can connect Castaways via Burgess Greek and Dame Patti all the way to the school.
The bike path would complement Noosa Council’s plans to get more students riding to school and relieve pressure in a traffic hotspot. We believe Council has engaged consultants to develop a behaviour change plan to get more kids riding to school – behaviour change #101 requires the barriers to change to be broken down, and safety is one of the main barriers to parents getting their kids to ride to school.
A can-do attitude
We welcome a Council and developers who can say YES, it can be done. Open your mind and ask “how can this be done?”.
Turning this development around is the only way we’ll be able to minimise our destructive impact on a precious environment. Considering these multiple benefits for people and the environment would truly demonstrate Biosphere in action.
Desiré Gralton & Bettina Walter, WIMBYs
