We will win!

Save Ralphs Bay
Bill Edmunds, SRB Chair added, “We know that many, many Tasmanians have very strong reactions to this proposal to bulldoze the Ralphs Bay Conservation Area. We are well prepared to fight for Ralphs Bay, and win.
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The Walker Corporation’s long-awaited draft Integrated Impact Statement
(IIS) has finally arrived, and Save Ralphs Bay Inc. is well prepared to respond.

“The entire IIS document will be thoroughly scrutinized by experts in all the relevant fields”, said Submission Coordinator, Jane MacDonald.

“We have experts lined up in all the key areas, and a strong team ready to show that the proposed canal estate will have an unacceptable impact and is not wanted in Tasmania. In addition, we have an extensive and very strong community of supporters, many of whom will be making submissions in response to the developer’s IIS. We encourage all concerned Tasmanians to make submissions to the Resource Planning and Development Commission (RPDC) before the deadline of 6 April. Every submission is of value, whether you are an expert or not.”

Bill Edmunds, SRB Chair added, “We know that many, many Tasmanians have very strong reactions to this proposal to bulldoze the Ralphs Bay Conservation Area. We are well prepared to fight for Ralphs Bay, and win.

It is almost five years now since Save Ralphs Bay Inc. was formed. Of course, we have nothing like the financial and staffing resources that the developer can call on, but we’re well prepared to knuckle down and prove our case.”

Save Ralphs Bay supporters have a wide spectrum of concerns, including

• the loss of habitat for resident and migratory shorebirds
• the loss of a valued windsurfing area and treasured vistas across the
sandflats to Mt. Wellington
• the loss of the ecosystem services provided by the sandflats, including
maintenance of water quality in the estuary
• threats to the Spotted Handfish and the saltmarshes fringing the bay
• the sale of a Conservation Area to a developer for a canal housing
estate of a style banned in Victoria and NSW
• the impact of heavy trucks on local roads during a seven year
construction phase
• hundreds more cars on the roads leading to the Tasman Bridge
• and, the sheer arrogance of the Walker Corporation’s claims that such
a development would be “uniquely Tasmanian.”

— Save Ralphs Bay Inc. : www.SaveRalphsBay.org —

1. Brief history of the campaign to save Ralphs Bay,
2004-2009: http://www.saveralphsbay.org/pdf/BG_HistoryFeb09.pdf
2. Canal estate bans, and excerpts from the Victorian Coastal Strategy
2008: http://www.saveralphsbay.org/pdf/BG_CanalEstateBansFeb09.pdf