Reject bushland DA, says State's top green group

The State's peak environmental organisation has joined other environmental groups in calling on Gosford Council to reject development of the Catholic site in Hillview St, Woy Woy.

The Nature Conservation Council (NCC) of NSW has made a submission to Gosford Council, which refers to the "enormous impacts that any development of the site would have on the Umina Coastal Sandplain Woodland (UCSW)".

The Council will consider an application on March 27 for a 39-unit retirement village on the bushland block on the corner of Hillview St and Veron Rd, Woy Woy.

The NCC submission, now published on its website, cites Justice Bignold's determination in the Land and Environment Court that "the loss of 0.5 hectares from the development site of 1.166 hectares of the endangered ecological community can only reasonably be regarded as significant indeed".

The NCC draws attention to the discrepancy between this finding and the Department of Environment and Conservation's stated reason for concurrence with the DA that "the proposal, as ameliorated by the conditions of concurrence, is unlikely, to significantly compromise the local or regional viability of any threatened species known to occur on the subject site".

The NCC also criticised the developer's offer of $225.000 as justification for the destruction, to fund the rehabilitation of other UCSW remnant areas.

"This ignores the fact that this sum is not necessary for the rehabilitation of UCSW throughout Gosford Council.

"Rather, a similar UCSW site has been rehabilitated successfully by volunteer workers in your Council."

In conclusion, the NCC submission asks council to capitalise on its investment.

"In light of Council's past actions, court expenditures and commitment to preserving this endangered woodland, we strongly urge that Council reject the application before it."

Letter, 3 March 2007 Cate Faehrmann, NSW Nature Conservation Council