Residents concerned for koalas as application lodged for 4500-lot development at Morayfield

THERE are concerns that a massive 4500 lot residential development north of Brisbane will destroy a large and active koala habitat.

Koala habitat is at risk over 4500-lot Lendlease development north of Brisbane.

THERE are concerns that a massive 4500-lot residential development north of Brisbane will destroy a large and active koala habitat.

Peakurban town planner Tim Connolly, on behalf of developer Lendlease, lodged an application with Moreton Bay Regional Council to develop more than 254ha of land in the Pine Valley Investigation Area, at Morayfield.

The proposed site is situated along Oakey Flat Rd to the east, between Willimason Rd to the north and Burpengary Creek to the south.

It is located within both the Rural Zone (Rural Investigation Precinct) and the Limited Development Zone under the council’s Planning Scheme 2016 and as such, does not currently permit urban development to occur.

Map of Pine Valley Lendlease development at Morayfield.

Lendlease has applied to vary the council’s planning scheme in order to progress the application.

The council on October 9 sent a letter to Peakurban confirming it had accepted the “properly made” development application for Pine Valley.

However, the State Planning department sent Mr Connolly a letter on November 1 stating the application did not meet the requirements for a properly referred application because it “does not contain evidence that the (tree) clearing is for a relevant purpose”.

The department requested the applicant to submit a Relevant Purpose Determination form as part of the application.

As a result of the department’s letter, the council sent another letter to Peakurban, this time asking for an extension of time so the company could address the department’s concerns.

The Pine Valley site is located within a Koala Assessable Development Area and contains areas designated as Koala Bushland Habitat, Koala Rehabilitation Habitat

The State Planning Policy Biodiversity mapping overlay has identified Pine Valley as supporting large areas of Matters of State Environmental Significance, being wildlife habitat.

It is also identified as “Essential Habitat “ for the wallum froglet, a species of frog listed as vulnerable under the Nature Conservation Act 1992.

Lendlease employed environmental planners 28 South to determine the extent of koala and wallum froglet habitation on the proposed development site.

It found koalas and koala droppings in concentrated locations right across the site, even in areas of sparse tree plantings.

In the council’s current planning scheme, the council states “it does not commit to support the rural residential or urban development” of Pine Valley.

In December last year, the council lodge a package of 139 amendments to this planning scheme with the State Government.

On October 11 this year, Planning Minister Cameron Dick rejected the amendments for a number of reasons, including concerns about the potential destruction of wildlife habitat due to development.

In a letter to residents concerned about the loss of wildlife habitat, Mr Dick said the government was committed to addressing declining koala populations.

Minister for State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning Cameron Dick. Photographer: Liam Kidston

“I have asked the council to work with my department to ensure that future development aspirations align with the Queensland Government’s Koala Conservation Response,” Mr Dick said.

However, in a report by the Queensland Audit Office released November 13, Auditor-General Brendan Worrall said the State Government Department of Environment and Science’s response to conserving threatened species was “unlikely to effectively conserve and recover many threatened species”.

“The department has not taken a strategic approach, and has no system to prioritise, co-ordinate and report on recovery activities, threatened species population trends and the effectiveness of conservation management,” Mr Worrall said.

“The department’s lack of systematic and reliable threatened species monitoring also means it cannot detect population changes or quantify the efficacy of its actions.

“As a result, the department often cannot show how it uses resources to achieve the best conservation outcomes.”

Lendlease is holding a community information session for residents interested in the development, on Saturday, November 24 at Carmichale College, 10am-1pm. Phone [phone] for details.