Environmentalists hope Mosman Council will backflip on synthetic turf support
GREEN lobbyists have not given up hope that natural grass will remain at Middle Head Oval, despite Mosman Council drafting a development application for a synthetic surface at the site.
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MOSMAN Council staff are working on a development application (DA) for synthetic turf at Middle Head Oval, but environmentalists have not given up hope that natural grass will remain at the contentious site.
It is unknown when the council will lodge the documentation with the Harbour Trust, which manages Middle Head.
Mosman Swans and Mosman Football Club have long argued that an artificial surface is a safe, all-weather solution to maintain and expand their programs, which are hampered when wet weather washes out games and training at the oval.
The clubs also contend that athletes are prone to injury when the oval is muddy, patchy and strewn with rabbit holes.
But the Headland Preservation Group (HPG), supported by like-minded community organisations, hopes the new council, elected in September, will understand what HPG believes are the dangerous ramifications of synthetic turf and rescind the previous council’s decision.
In March 2016, councillors voted five to two for the installation of synthetic grass and to request that the Harbour Trust accept a DA for the works.
Last month, the environmental lobbyists hosted a community meeting where the issue was discussed.
HPG founding president Linda Bergin, OAM, one of the meeting’s organisers, said her new research supported her strong belief that the council should now consider rescinding its support of synthetic turf, in favour of natural grass.
“Certainly, from my research, and given the risks and costs of synthetic, Mosman Council should, prior to lodging any DA, thoroughly examine upgrading the existing natural grass field,” Ms Bergin said.
Behind the scenes with black cockatoos
“It appears that constructing an artificial grass playing field on Middle Head Oval runs contrary to many laws, would entail a costly and complex approval process, and cannot be proven safe to the environment and public health.
“I support whatever can be done to provide better sporting facilities in Headland Park, but it does not appear to me that an artificial playing field is compatible with the values of this significant public parkland, with its national park-type values.”