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Wednesday 10 February 2021
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More time wanted for comment
Picture: Yanni
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire is making a submission to the Melbourne Green Wedges and Agricultural Land Consultation (MGWAL) paper despite wanting the public exhibition time extended to at least the end of the month. The shire fears it will not have enough time to “consult with the community” over the plan which had a deadline for public comment of 5 February. It will also arrange a poll to “ask if the public agrees with the council’s response”. The state government’s Planning for Melbourne’s Green Wedges and Agricultural Land website says, “robust planning controls are needed to maintain the benefits provided by green wedges and manage land use to support long term agricultural use that serves the needs of Melbourne’s growing population”. The shire’s strategic projects manager Allan Cowley in a report to the 27 January planning services committee meeting said the consultation paper provided a “good overview of many issues facing green wedge areas and provided an opportunity to advocate for a significant number of the policy positions identified in the council’s green wedge management plan”. “It also responds positively to council’s earlier submissions in relation to strategic agricultural land by recognising that all rural land in the green wedge interface and periurban areas of metro Melbourne should be considered to be of strategic importance as part of Melbourne’s food bowl.” Delays in the public exhibition process and the release of the paper following the November council election and the Christmas/New Year period had limited preparation of a suitable response. The paper is at engage.vic.gov.au/gwal Stephen Taylor
Opposition against AGL gas terminal Keith Platt keith@mpnews.com.au THE state Opposition has announced it opposes power company AGL’s plan for a gas import terminal at Crib Point. The Opposition’s resources spokesperson Ryan Smith said on Monday the decision was based on supporting “local residents”, “serious environmental concerns” about the route of a proposed pipeline to Pakenham and because “the legally recognised indigenous traditional owner group opposes the project”. The latest declaration follows concerns raised by the Opposition last
year that the public was not being enough time to comment on an environmental effects statement prepared by AGL for the gas import terminal (“Libs in call to delay AGL process) The News 2/6/20). Monday’s statement by the Opposition quotes Hastings MP Neale Burgess: “The Victorian Liberal Nationals strongly oppose the creation of a gas import terminal at Crib Point.” Mr Burgess has previously said he did not believe the gas project “should ever have been considered for Crib Point, as it will just serve to once again, encourage thinking of this beautiful area as a potential location for toxic industrial development”.
The statement issued by Mr Ryan is the strongest support yet that the Opposition has given to Mr Burgess. Mr Ryan said the state government’s moratorium on gas exploration and development had left Victoria short of supply and rising gas prices. “Labor’s panicked response is to support a project [at Crib Point which completely ignores the concerns of the local community and indigenous group, and seems to overlook its environmental impacts,” Mr Ryan said. The Opposition’s three reasons for opposing the gas import terminal are: n To support local residents who oppose the project at Crib Point. n There are serious environmen-
tal concerns with the proposed route which seem not to be adequately addressed. n The legally recognised indigenous traditional owner group opposes the project. “Local opposition is evident, as shown in the public submissions received by the Department of Planning regarding the proposal, and by the local Mornington Peninsula Shire Council’s forceful objections,” Mr Ryan’s news release stated. “The Department has received over 6058 submissions about this proposal. The overwhelming majority of those opposed it.” He quoted Bass Coast Shire Council
as saying, “the project has the potential for serious impacts on the marine environment and biodiversity of Western Port”. He said Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation “damningly found” that construction plans for the terminal and the 56km pipeline to Pakenham “do not attempt to avoid harm and do not sufficiently minimise harm to Aboriginal cultural heritage and have not met the requirement under the Environment Effects Act 1978”. Mr Ryan said any jobs created by the terminal “would require specific skills and likely be filled from within AGL’s existing workforce”.
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