Councillors under pressure to overturn $500,000 of ratepayer money on cableway plan
Environmental groups will stage a vigil at City Hall to fight multiple cableway proposals for Springbrook’s World Heritage-listed national park. FULL DETAILS
Community and environmental leaders are planning a vigil outside City Hall to protest after it was revealed several proponents are lining up to build a cableway in the Gold Coast hinterland.
Lois Levy, vice-president of environmental group Gecko, said Springbrook “guardians” would join the protest on Tuesday before a full council meeting.
Many of the same opponents had previously campaigned in 2000 against the ‘Naturelink’ cableway proposal which was ultimately canned by the then state government on environmental grounds.
“It’s time to stop this waste of ratepayer funds and council officer time investigating a project that is extremely unlikely to ever gain Federal approval, as it endangers the national park’s World Heritage status,” Ms Levy said.
Councillor Glenn Tozer last week confirmed there were at least three cableway proponents. None of them are likely to push the button on the project until the council clears the way for it to go ahead.
At a committee meeting last year Mr Tozer gained 4-3 support in a vote to stop the project going ahead. However that vote was overturned 10-5 at a full council meeting when planning committee chair Mark Hammel pushed successfully for a “memorandum of understanding” with the Crisafulli Government.
Those councillors voting against were Mr Tozer, Peter Young, Josh Martin, Naomi Fowler and Nick Marshall. At that stage, council officers were not aware of any proponent.
Ms Levy said councillors had been sent an updated brief from opponents on their concerns about the cableway including:
* Loss and disturbance of protected wildlife habitat during construction and operation.
* Destruction of protected vegetation in building of towers to support the cableway.
* Risks of bushfires and landslips, with increasing extreme weather events.
* Impacts from increased invasive species.
* No town water, sewerage on Springbrook Mountain for an extra 500,000 visitors.
* Inadequate power for the cableway.
* Unfair competition with local businesses.
Gecko’s campaign co-ordinator Sara Hicks said the cableway could not be regarded as nature-based tourism because patrons would travel over a small and fragile national park.
“In fact, it is mass tourism with an estimated extra 500,000 visitors straining the park’s facilities. It is destructive of protected vegetation and habitat, risky over fire prone vegetation and unsustainable,” she said.
Conservation and community group leaders, along with concerned residents, will be at the vigil to call on all councillors to go no further with the proposal.
Queensland Conservation Council spokesperson Nicky Moffit said Gecko was receiving the support of state-wide groups.
“Nature defenders at all levels are joining Gecko’s growing coalition against the disastrous cableway proposal – from local to state and national organisations,” Ms Moffit said.
Ms Levy said Gecko supported a World Heritage Environment and Cultural Centre at Mudgeeraba or Nerang to enrich visitor experiences with interactive education, uplift research and support local tourism operators accessing the whole hinterland.
“This could be a world-class gateway to the Gold Coast’s unique natural landscape and an important community asset,” she said.
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