!!!February 22, 2024
Locally owned and independent
The Northern Rivers Times
NEWS continued from page 3
have done for months – about the development. Councillors went into deadlock with four voting in favour to approve the subdivision certificate and four against. After hours of debate, Mayor Michael Lyon used his casting vote to determine the matter, voting in favour of approving the application. Mr Lyon said he had made it ‘crystal clear’ from the beginning that council were limited in their power as the Northern Rivers Planning Pannel (NRPP) had already approved the development. He said it would be better to have discussions with the developers about preserving parts of the site rather than ending up in court and potentially coming out with nothing. The early stage one ‘ecological rehabilitation works’ certificate for the subdivision to start was subject to discussions to clarify some potential errors including, the VMP being updated. Councillor Peter Westheimer, who was against the subdivision certificate being issued, asked ‘how much are the community willing to risk for Wallum.’
“I’d say a considerable amount,” Mr Westheimer said. “Risking that the council has to go to court and the council will have costs, that’s just the way it is. “I’ve been involved in lots of these issues since the early nineties, and it takes guts for the community, and it takes energy … but the community can win. “Let’s look at some of the terms being thrown around in the environmental management plan, we have a ‘habitat translocation plan’ a ‘revised froglet management plan’ these terms are increasingly dystopian. “They are all about humans trying to manage an environment which they want to destroy but trying to make themselves feel better along the way,” he said. Supporter of the Save Wallum campaign Maria Lloyd said she and many others were left ‘really disappointed’ by the decision. “We really hoped council would step up and support the community,” Ms Lloyd said. “We’ve had incredible community support for this issue for months,
council have received thousands of emails from members of the public. “The issues of the environmental significance of the site and cultural values of the area have been brushed aside in favour of negotiations with a developer who has shown no respect for the area,” she said. The Northern Rivers Times was unable to contact the developer before this story went to print. But they told ABC they rejected claims from Save Wallum that environmental and cultural assessments carried out were inadequate. Clarence Property’s managing director Peter Fahey has stated they have been rigorous and recent and gone through all the processes set out by the state government and the council. A follow up on the developer’s comments will be in next week’s edition. The Federal Environment Department said Clarence Property had been notified of its obligations under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.
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5
Diary of a Flood Survivor
Some of my grandmother’s tea set
Have you ever noticed that when you talk about life’s events, there is a distinct axis we use? For example, when I left school, all events were related to when I was at school, to when I had left school. ‘I had my hair short at school, but it’s been long ever since I have been working.’ Or when you had children. ‘I had a trim figure prechildren, but post-kids I am a bit of a dumpling.’ There are many life-defining moments that we can catalogue ourselves in pre- and post- of how we have changed. The flood is obviously one of those moments
and it seems to become more obvious as we approach the second anniversary. For me, pre-flood my favourite colour palette was warm tones – reds, browns and oranges. Post-flood it has been cooler – greys, greens and white. Pre-flood I didn’t throw stuff out but just put it away to worry about at a later date. Post-flood I am more brutal with what I throw out and keep things to a bare minimum. While I still have collectibles, such as my grandmother’s crockery set, I am more inclined to use and display it than hide it away. Pre-flood hubby and I
bought things for each other. Post-flood our presents are now experiences, such as our recent holiday. Pre-flood it didn’t bother me if there were flood watches or warnings of the rivers. Post-flood it does. I know this is a part of life’s seasonings and experiences as we continue in our day to day, it is what makes us who we are. I am sure as time moves on, the axis will fade and there will be other life-defining moments, both good and bad, that we will measure our changes to. Little Steps
INVASIVE WEED ALERT
LOOKS CAN BE DECEIVING
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