Your Rates, Their War; The Huge Cost of Council’s Fight Against Nature.

When decisions about public Crown land are made, councils have a duty to deliver genuine value for the community, protect the environment, and ensure transparency in decision making. That is how a healthy democracy is supposed to function.

However, in the Hills Shire, community concern has intensified over the treatment of environmentally sensitive land in the former Pony Club site, where Fred Caterson Champions Incorporated argue that the impact on endangered species like the Powerful Owl has not been adequately considered by The Hills Shire Council.

All wildlife in NSW is protected under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016, making it illegal to harm native animals, or damage their habitats without a license. Despite this, construction fencing was erected without proper environmental studies, locking wildlife out, leaving them stressed and confused, and increasing roadkill.

 

At one stage, animals were trapped inside the perimeter fencing with no access to water. Residents called WIRES who helped the wallabies escape.

Locals have written to The Hills Shire Council for an explanation but are still waiting for a response.

What makes this situation even more troubling is not just the environmental risk—but how public money is being used to obstruct justice.

We’ve seen what council have already done to the trees and the locked-out wildlife. With excessive bright lighting they will do the same thing to the nocturnal animals, including the threatened Powerful Owl.

People expect council to do the right thing, to do everything possible to minimise impacts on our threatened species. We are told to trust the process, but how can we?

Council should have properly looked at the environmental impacts when they self-approved their development. They didn’t.

Instead, they are spending your money fighting to stop expert evidence being heard in the Supreme Court.

This raises serious questions:

How can council claim that they “place great value on the environmental and ecological qualities of Fred Caterson Reserve?” when they are actively obstructing the courts from hearing evidence from an owl expert?

Why would a council not want to be fully informed?

Why are ratepayer funds being used against the very same ratepayers seeking to protect     their local environment?

It simply doesn’t add up!

GOOD NEWS!

Even though the photo of the clearing and earthworks is sad and shocking we are still fighting to stop the poor quality, excessive lighting being installed so that the owls have a fighting chance of being able to keep nesting, foraging and breeding in Fred Caterson Reserve.

Can you believe that Council has not conducted any assessment at all of the impact of the TV broadcast strength lighting on the habitat of the threatened owls?

Our court case is strong.

Everyone is welcome to attend the Supreme Court appeal hearing on Monday 13 April. More details coming soon via Fred Caterson Action Group on Facebook.

Fred Caterson Action Group

Give the Powerful Owl a voice: make a direct deposit today or donate to the Champions GoFundMe campaign.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-protect-fred-caterson-reserve

Don’t let the Hills Shire council run rough shod over you and the environment.