Extinction Rebellion to join fight for Brisbane creek

The fight for a Brisbane creek will ratchet up on Thursday when Extinction Rebellion crews blockade a school.

Police arrest activists from the Extinction Rebellion (XR) group after they took over the William Jolly Bridge on October 11. They will target a Toowong Creek construction site tomorrow morning. Picture: AAP Image/Dave Hunt

EXTINCTION Rebellion crews are expected to join in a protest during school drop-off tomorrow morning to protest construction works in a Brisbane creek.

About 20 people, mostly from ER, would blockade the site from 7am, zoologist Iris Hing said.

Ms Hing has led protests to stop work on the Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technology expansion bordering Toowong Creek.

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The area is home to several endangered species including tusked frogs and powerful owls.

“(Approvals for the work) is all based on a flawed ecological report. The State Government was made aware of this a year ago,’’ she said.

“But the Government and the Department of Education (DoE) have continued to go ahead.

“Now that dead frogs have started to turn up in the creek bed the Department of Environment has become involved.

“They are due to have a meeting with the community next week.’’

Construction at the QASMT site. Picture: AAP/Richard Walker

The DoE agreed to move one building by 11m to save a native grey ironbark thought to be at least 300 years old.

Ms Hing, and an arborist, said however that trucks and heavy machinery had been traversing the site right up to the trunks of large trees, compacting the soil.

That could lead to their deaths in about five years, they feared.

QASMT is expanding from Years 10-12 to Years 7-12 in a staged process.

The protest will be at 117 Miskin st, meeting between Brisbane Boys’ College and QASMT.