Page 963 - Week 04 - Thursday, 7 May 2020
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… ACAT made a consent order in 2012, whereby the Coombs peninsula would be removed from development and that a future development application for the peninsula would not be lodged until such time as a Plan of Management that included the river corridor adjacent to the suburb of Coombs was in place. This was not an agreement that the peninsula would not be developed.
He further stated:
Now that the Molonglo River Reserve Management Plan is in place, a development application for an estate development plan can be lodged with the independent planning and land authority. It is at this stage of the process that the final zoning of land is determined (and therefore no longer indicative) in accordance with the Planning and Development Act 2007.
When a development application is lodged, the application will be determined taking into consideration the requirements of the Territory Plan, the outcomes of environmental and tree surveys, stormwater management measures to protect the Molonglo River and environmental values within the river reserve, the requirements under the EPBC Act, and recommendations of a bushfire risk assessment. The authority will also take into consideration submissions received during the development application’s public notification. The public notification process will provide the community with a further opportunity to comment on the proposal.
In response to concerns about the ecological value of the area, the minister noted that extensive environmental studies were undertaken and they:
… demonstrated that, due to the past use of the area as a commercial pine plantation, the Coombs peninsula had low environmental value and was therefore not suitable for inclusion into the adjacent Molonglo River corridor reserve.
He further indicated:
… this conclusion was supported by the decision of the Australian Government to approve development of the peninsula under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act), which occurred in 2010.
In relation to the specific concerns about the platypus, the minister acknowledged that, whilst not endangered, its importance in terms of the health of the ACT’s waterways led to Waterwatch compiling a report, due in early 2020, on the most recent platypus survey work.
As the Standing Committee on Planning and Urban Renewal has already undertaken an inquiry into DV360, Molonglo River Reserve, which considered issues raised in this petition, the committee has determined that it will not be holding an additional inquiry at this time.
Statement by chair
MS LE COUTEUR (Murrumbidgee) (12.15): Pursuant to standing order 246A, I wish to make a statement on behalf of the Standing Committee on Planning and
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