Judge says Wollondilly DA process ‘falls short’ of transparency expectations
A JUDGE has lambasted Wollondilly Council in the Land and Environment Court for the process in which it approved the expansion of a Lakesland turkey farm objected to by neighbours.
Macarthur
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A JUDGE has lambasted Wollondilly Council in the Land and Environment Court for the process in which it approved the expansion of a Lakesland turkey farm objected to by neighbours.
Justice Terence Sheahan struck down council’s approval for the expanded turkey farm operation given in late 2016 in the Land and Environment last month.
Council’s approval for the turkey farm would have allowed the operation to transition to a chicken farm in the future.
In striking down the development application, Justice Sheahan issued a stinging rebuke of council’s decision making process.
“The handling of this DA by the Council... falls well short of the thorough, transparent, and community-sensitive development assessment practice expected to be followed these days by local councils in this State,” he said.
Justice Sheahan’s criticism centred on council’s decision to put the DA before councillors at its November meeting in a ‘closed’ council session despite having already approved the DA at its October meeting and the addition of amendments by Cr Matthew Gould allowing the farm to process chickens as well as turkeys.
Justice Sheahan noted the different environmental impacts of turkeys and chickens and the limited time council staff or councillors would have had to consider those issues at the October meeting following Cr Gould’s ‘last minute’ amendments.
“It is sufficient to note that a proposed reduction of the original DA project was publicly notified, but a subsequent, major expansion of environmental issues involved in it was not, and the amended project was then accepted by Council at a “closed” meeting,” he said.
The Land and Environment Court appeal was initiated by Lakesland resident Wayne Benson.
A Wollondilly Council spokeswoman said council was still considering its options before appealing the court’s decision.
The spokeswoman said legal advice had been provided to councillors and council before putting the DA before the closed meeting in November.
“Council currently has in place a continuous improvement program which is the framework in which we review any improvements that are required for our systems, processes and practices. The findings of this case, once finalised, will be carefully considered through this process,” she said.
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“Council is confident that the meeting Code of Practice was followed at the time this DA was being determined.”
The cost of the court case to Wollondilly Council was $31,841.
Read the full Land and Environment Court judgment here.