BEC supports Arakwal Sandhills claim

Byron Environment Centre is continuing its support for the transfer of title for the Sandhills Estate at Byron Bay to the Arakwal people, who should have the right to decide the future use of the site.

The Arakwal are the traditional indigenous custodians.

BEC has expressed its support for the Arakwal in a submission to GeoLINK, a firm of consultant engineers engaged by the Department of Lands to undertake a strategic planning study of the estate.

Submissions on the future of the site closed in October, 2006.

Sandhills Estate is a parcel of undeveloped land within the Byron Bay town area. It is bounded by Middleton and Massinger Streets, and parts of Gilmore Crescent, Tennyson and Lawson Streets.

For many years it was occupied by a homeless people’s camp until the residents were evicted in 2005 by the Department of Lands.

The Arakwal people, Byron Shire Council, and the State Government are parties to an Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) which was established in 2001. This led to the formation of the Arakwal National Park.

It also provided for future transactions for other land over which the Arakwal and Council had an interest, including the Sandhills Estate.

The Department of Lands engaged GeoLINK to undertake the draft strategic planning study of the Sandhills Estate, setting out the environmental constraints and social, cultural and economic characteristics for the site.

The consultants were told the outcomes of the study should include an examination of:

Appropriate land area required by the State Government for its purposes;

Appropriate land area required by the Arakwal Corporation for its purposes;

Appropriate land area required by Byron Shire Council for its purposes;

Future road and drainage reserves;

Potential development areas; and

Conservation areas.

The Sandhills Estate first became the subject of a land rights claim by the Arakwal people in 1992. As a supporter of the Arakwal claim the BEC became a party to the claim following a submission to the Native Title Tribunal.

The issues have not changed in the ensuing 14 years. The community is still asking for the same things:

Consideration of idigenous land rights;

Open space;

Flora and fauna conservation, and

Consideration of water drainage and flooding.

Release of the consultants’ report will be the next stage of this ongoing saga. [Posted 1/11/06]

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The Main Arm grab. Article by Nino MacDonald.

Councillors are expected to decide the fate of Main Arm by the end of the year when they come to vote on ‘The Main Arm proposal’- an amendment to the Byron LEP, which will permit rezoning of land at Main Arm.

If it is approved, Main Arm will be opened up for development on an unprecedented scale. Under the Byron Rural Settlement Strategy (BRSS) 1998, properties in Main Arm, identified in the rural land release program, have a potential yield of 135 new dwellings.

The reality is that the ‘village’ of Main Arm is a dozy hamlet of a dozen or so houses with a shop and a bad road that the locals are prepared to put up with.

Main Arm is situated on a flood plain, at the top of the sensitive Brunswick Valley water catchment and surrounded by farmland classified as regionally significant - land that would normally be protected from urban growth for the benefit of future generations.

If  ‘The Main Arm proposal’ succeeds, 55 houses will surround the village, dominating it physically, economically and socially.

The proponents of the Main Arm ‘Village’ concept are the developers Davis/Mciver and ReGenesis Enterprises Pty. Ltd.

In addition to the three properties that fall under ‘The Main Arm proposal’, ReGenesis Enterprises Pty. Ltd also intends to develop village zoned land it owns at Main Arm. They say they are about community based green development ‘fostering community cohesion’, but at the same time seem unwilling or unable to accept the actual community’s view. ‘A deep respect for nature’ will translate into a rural suburb.

Mullumbimby, via Main Arm road, is Main Arm’s nearest service town and will also have to bare the brunt of increased traffic in town, as will the Pocket road which links Main Arm to the Highway, Ocean Shores and the coast. Both roads present hazardous driving conditions and will require significant work, costing millions, to bring them up to Austroads safety standards.

Thirty-five major accidents have been reported in the last ten years along these roads and safety issues are a real concern.

Main Arm was originally excluded from the rural settlement strategy precisely over concerns for the high cost of fixing Main Arm road.

In 1998 the true cost was estimated at $43,000 per dwelling, making it economically unviable. In 2006, Section 94 developer contributions for roads at Main Arm stand at $6,000 per dwelling. This is a clear indication that there will be no requirement on the part of the developers to pay for the roads beyond the village.

There is no doubt where the Main Arm community stands on the issue- with only 20 submissions for and 330 submissions received against ‘The Main Arm proposal’- there is a clear mandate for councillors to reject the proposal and uphold community will.

The timing of the vote on such a strategic matter seems entirely inappropriate considering a new Byron Shire LEP is still in the making and the Byron Rural Settlement Strategy (BRSS) is under review and will not be approved by the time of this vote.

Approval of new land releases under the current rural settlement strategy and Byron LEP will set a precedent for future suburbanesque type developments that will be harder to resist in other areas such as Federal, Coorabell, Eureka and Clunes.  

The BRSS is proving itself an inadequate strategy that neither answers the demand to develop nor addresses valid concerns from the local communities who will be faced with the damaging consequences of these planning strategies.

The idea that you can foster community cohesion by forcibly grafting one community onto an another has been proven redundant. Communities are built from the inside out following growth patterns that naturally develop out of local demand. 

As it stands the BRSS permits a few selected landholders to develop their properties in a wholesale

fashion while denying the rest even the opportunity to build a granny flat.

The Byron Bay LEP, the one recently shelved, had provisions for second dwellings on residential blocks without a division of land involved and the same principal could be introduced into rural areas with less social impact and a more equitable result.

We need affordable housing and affordable rental accommodation, not gated communities of pseudo environmentalists.

Councillors need to give serious thought to the ramifications of ‘The Main Arm proposal’. There is plenty of evidence to indicate that the proposal contradicts overriding principles, aims and objectives of the Byron Rural Settlement Strategy, and therefore valid reasons to reject it in good faith.  [Posted 27/10/06]

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Byron coastline management process

Much of Byron's coastline is eroding rapidly, with houses threatened at Belongil Beach and South Golden Beach.

Following the erection of ad-hoc, unauthorised rock walls to protect a number of houses on the Belongil spit during the 1980's, Byron Council engaged consultants to undertake a massive study on the best option for future management of the coast.

The consultants recommended a preposterous solution to hold the seas back forever, spending $20M of unsourced public money on dredging sand off the headland and onto Belongil Beach.

The BEC believes the only long-term sustainable solution is the "planned retreat" option. Under the policy already adopted by Council in 1988, the owners of any houses built on threatened parts of the coast must be prepared to retreat and remove their houses as the coast moves westward.

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Daintree corridor saved for wildlife

The rescue of a corridor of rare lowland rainforest had green groups smiling.
Julie Olsen reports.

It's something we humans take for granted - the simple act of getting from A to B. But imagine what its like for a tree kangaroo living in the ever-shrinking rainforests of tropical north Queensland.First and foremost, you need trees, otherwise things can get pretty terrifying, even life-threatening. Imagine being forced to hop through people's backyards, across busy roads and over open paddocks only to be chased down and mauled by the local dog.Sadly, many animals inhabiting privately owned blocks of Daintree lowland rainforest risk an untimely death. This vital rainforest has already been carved up and the 'for sale' signs are up.

But there is a place where native animals, like the rare Bennett's Tree Kangaroo are still able to move around in relative safety, using a protected corridor of surviving rainforest.Eager to act before it is too late, Rainforest Rescue and the Daintree Rainforest Foundation have joined forces and have been steadily buying priority blocks of intact rainforest currently up for sale.It's part of a pro-active Daintree buy back scheme that is capturing the hearts and imaginations of rainforest lovers around Australia and beyond.

Recently, they announced the purchase of the sixth block of rainforest, strategically located between two World Heritage listed National Parks. Still clad in fully functional rainforest, these blocks are part of a larger rural residential subdivision.

"Up until now, these six blocks were on the real estate market, at risk of being cleared for housing and invaded by weeds," says Allen Sheather, a director of the Daintree Rainforest Foundation.

"Now we have an uninterrupted flora and fauna corridor between two major protected areas - the Heights of Alexandra in the south and the Bailey's Creek wetlands to the north."

"It's a life-line for cassowaries, tree kangaroos and other threatened wildlife - thank goodness it is now safe and will be protected forever."

All up, it's taken four years to raise enough funds to acquire the vital backbone of the corridor.

If this link were lost, experts say the plant and animals inhabiting this part of the Daintree would be split into two isolated populations. This split would place their genetic integrity under sever threat.

"The declining Cassowary population is especially worrying," says Allen. "These birds are solitary animals with defined territories. Without the corridor, they would not be able to go in search of food or a mate. They, and many other animals, need the protection of the forest to move around.

Like many other concerned locals, when he first arrived, Allen's understanding and appreciation of the Daintree's delicate ecology was very limited.

"Back in the eighties, I didn't realise what an amazing legacy had been left to us from millions of years of plant and animal evolution," he recalls.

“These forests contained examples of all the major evolutionary stages of plant development - a feature that few other places can boast.”

Here thrived viable populations of animals that had long since disappeared from other coastal lowland areas to the south. Nature lovers hoped their geographic isolation would help to keep them safe.

Sadly, given the current rapid development of places like Mission Beach, future generations of tourists and residents will no longer have the chance to marvel at viable forests and wildlife in these areas.

"But it's not too late for the Daintree – we have a window of opportunity to save something before it disappears."

"The corridor has now received official status in Queensland as a Nature Refuge," he adds excitedly.

Protected forever, the rescued corridor is now being managed for its conservation values and it seems a lot of the planning has already been done. Enthusiastic local naturalists will control the weeds and every effort will be made to educate the community in their prevention.

To minimise any impacts, the construction of boardwalks, car parks and toilets will not be permitted. In fact, the only activity allowed will be the ethical collection of seeds to help strategically revegetate nearby degraded areas.

"The generosity and concern of Rainforest Rescue members and the wider community proves that Australians really do care what happens to the Daintree," says Rainforest Rescue Executive Offcer, Kelvin Davies.

"These people come from all walks of life. What we all share is the vision of keeping the Daintree Coast a viable natural ecosystem."

According to this inspiring team of rainforest rescuers, the newly declared Baralba Corridor Nature Refuge is just the beginning.

"It's now vital that we ‘add flesh’ to the backbone by widening the corridor," says Kelvin. "The rainforest is already there, we just need to purchase more blocks."

Every $20 buys 10 sq metres of rainforest so please make a donation or purchase a Daintree Gift Cards. Gift Cards indicate how many square metres of Daintree rainforest you have purchased for your loved one.

To find out about Rainforest Rescue's Daintree Buy Back and Protect Forever Campaign phone 6629 1395, email info@rainforestrescue.org.au or visit www.rainforestrescue.org.au and click on Rainforest Buy Back. All donations are tax deductible.

Gift cards are also available from Bay Blooms in Byron Street Byron Bay. Byron Environment Centre- above Santos, Mullumbimby call 6684 2272

Rainforest Rescue is a not for profit organisation established by local rainforest conservationists committed to saving our rainforests for current and future generations.

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