Tonight (Monday, Jan 24) the Kingborough Council deliberated on a Development Application from Gunns Ltd. for another coupe at Middleton. Part of the coupe falls into a new zone (under the new planning scheme) of Environmental Management.

Twenty seven people put in representations, including Your Scribe and consultant in heritage landscapes, Gwenda Sheridan.

Senior Planner Andrew Goodsell recommended the application be approved, with conditions. The fact that the DA involved an environmental zone, could be accommodated under Alternative Solution, part of the new planning scheme, he reported.

When his report to the council was published, Gwenda drew my attention that there appeared to be no mention of her cultural landscape info, nor of my info. on biological diversity, the effects of clearfelling on the carbon cycle and reference to a new report on successful selective logging. (I also included John Hayward’s story on the The Private Timber Reserves of Weegena: a Concert of Corruption, for the edification of councillors and planning staff).

When I phoned Andrew this a.m. to ask why, he did not say that my representation had been disregarded. On the other hand he inferred that the collator might have missed the points in my representation, asked what my points were, said he could not agree with them, but offered to mention at the meeting that I had raised certain matters.

Before the meeting I was contacted by two councillors who would normally be against such a development as this and warned that I should not expect too much. One observed that sometimes it is better to lose the battle in the council and win the war in the Tribunal.

On the night, Senior Planner Goodsell repeated his report to the councillors, adding that he had been chastised by one phone caller because he had forgotten to mention some info. in his report. (I did not chastise him – merely queried why my info. was not referred to in his report. When he offered to mention this at the meeting, I thanked him and accepted his offer).

When councillors began to speak, they raised a number of matters e.g. what happens if we refuse the application, will we be taken to the cleaners again as happened last time, and can we make them leave wider streamside reserves .

Then the oratory started. One Councillor said that last time Gunns were at Middleton the council promised a lot to the locals and delivered little, and besides, the skyline is very important for our tourist industry and that will be destroyed. (Applause from the full gallery of around 40 people).

Another said that the Forest Practices Plan listed visibility as a B, but in fact there is a higher category, A (no visible effect) and they should be designing the coupe for this higher standard. We need information from qualified people on how this could be achieved by using a series of smaller coupes so that logging can be safely done (from an environmental view) in an Environmental Zone, they said.

Another Councillor echoed these remarks saying he could support the DA if the new style of small coupes were used.

Another said that this DA was a test of our new scheme. If approved it will degrade the whole area.

Another said much the same, adding that this development has no benefit for our community and we should say no to it.

The Senior Planner said that the DA met our development standards and if we end up in the Tribunal, we could not argue non-compliance.

Another Councillor noted that the council had originally wanted forestry prohibited in the Environmental Management Zones, but a government department had imposed the “alternative solution” process on us.

Greg Alomes the new General Manager at Kingborough, Graduate of University of Tas., Immediate Past Convener and Trouble Shooter for the new Natural Resource Management organisation in the south of the state then said:

As well as preparing reasons to recommend the application be approved, the Senior Planner has prepared reasons to refuse the application. It is difficult for staff to always have the best information in circumstances such as these. If the council should refuse this application, I assure councillors that we would do all things necessary to secure the relevant expertise to defend its decision.

My understanding was that he was inferring that the council could end up in the Tribunal, should it refuse the application.

Councillors then further discussed the pros and cons of approval with tighter conditions.

Finally, veteran councillor Flora Fox moved (seconded by Cnclr. David Grace) that the application be refused for the reasons as drafted by the Senior Planner, that is, it contravened 9.4.1.4 (b), (iii) and (iv) of the Kingborough Planning Scheme. In discussion she noted her appreciation that the General Manager had said that we would get the best advice if any Tribunal hearing eventuated.

She also said that this would be a ground breaking move and even if the Tribunal overturned our decision, we would have done something of which we could be proud.

There was further discussion about including an additional point relating to the planning scheme.

Councillor Fox was offered the chance to close the debate, to which she said no need.

The motion was put and passed on the voices. Mayor Hazell called for a show of hands, the vote being 9 for, 3 agin. Against were Cnclrs. Smith, McGinnis and Hazell.

We were all stunned into silence!

John Maddock is a grey hair who collects Macs and Crowns and dreams of being a dairy farmer again one day.