Hundreds sign fifth Toondah petition to save wetlands, birds from high-rise
A controversial plan to build high-rise apartments on reclaimed land made out of dredging sludge in Moreton Bay has come under fire as part of the fifth petition against a nearby project that gathered hundreds of signatures in a matter of hours.
Redlands Coast
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A plan for high-rise apartments on land in Moreton Bay made out of dredging sludge came under fire on the weekend, when hundreds signed a parliamentary petition against the Toondah Harbour ferry terminal project.
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Within hours of Save Our Bay campaigner and bird lover Judith Hoyle lodging the petition more than 900 people had signed.
Ms Hoyle made a name for herself addressing Redland City Council last year and leading protests attended by hundreds at the ferry terminal.
It is the fifth petition lodged on the issue since 2014 and asks the state government to protect millions of migratory shorebirds and the wetlands at Toondah Harbour.
It also calls on the government to pare back the project boundaries at the terminal to stop any building into Moreton Bay.
Construction giant Walker Group’s $1.4 billion ferry terminal overhaul will include 3600 units, some of which will be built on the reclaimed land.
The project will also encroach on wetlands, listed as significant under an international conservation agreement known as the Ramsar Convention.
Action group Redlands2030 launched a petition in January calling on the government to set up an independent Commission of Inquiry.
It was signed by 6063, the largest number of people to sign an online petition in Queensland on Redlands issues since digital records started in 2002.
Also this year, koala advocate Debbie Pointing lodged a petition asking the government to reconsider the development area zoning at Toondah Harbour to protect a healthy koala colony.
In March 2016, Cleveland resident Brian Douglass launched a petition complaining about the approval of dredging and extending the development into the bay.
His petition also objected to revoking part of the Moreton Bay Marine Park, amending the international Ramsar agreement and building on park land.
That petition was signed by 1373 people.
In 2014, the Star of the Sea Catholic Primary School, next door to the terminal in Passage St, lodged a petition objecting to the “total lack of consultation”.
Redland City Council has defended its community engagement processes in 2013 and 2014, claiming the council won a planning award for the project.
The council and the state government launched an expression of interest tender process in 2014 before entering into a deal with Walker Group in 2016.
“The cost of upgrading the public infrastructure at Toondah Harbour, including the ferry terminal and deepening and widening the navigation channel, is $116 million,” the council said.
“As a PDA and under the infrastructure agreement, ratepayers and the community reap the benefits of much-needed infrastructure in the area at minimal cost to council and no impact to rates over the long-term,” the council said at the time.
Conservation group Redlands 2030 spokesman Chris Walker said he was not surprised with the large number of signatures in such a short period of time.
“Toondah Harbour is an issue which has resonated with people in the community even if the politicians at local, state and federal levels are ignoring it,” he said.
“Walker Group said the channel into the terminal needs to be dredged so that it is straighter and deeper but that has been denied by Maritime Queensland.
“Candidates for the major parties in next month’s state election are out of step with the community and the issues of concern and nobody is willing to tell the truth about this.”