Tweed Shire

On the northern coast of N.S.W. adjoining the Gold Coast and S.E.Queensland lies Tweed Shire, christened as the Green Caldera by once Environment Minister Peter Garrett. This area is famous for one of the highest biodiversity levels in Australia and infamous for the greatest level of biodiversity loss in N.S.W. thanks to the fact that the vast majority of Tweed councillors are pro-development. But in the case of Kings Forest, a massive housing development for 15,000 people worth $2 billion, NSW State Planning took control under the massively unpopular Part 3a legislation, depriving the council of all controls.
If this development is approved, it will be goodbye koalas on Tweed coast within 5-10 years. HAVE YOUR SAY!!

Kings Forest development plan includes 4500 housing lots, a golf course, two primary schools, and shopping facilities, and will occupy a large area between Kingscliff and Cabarita with a single entrance along Tweed Coast Road.

The social impacts of this development are huge. Just what will life look like with another 15,000 or so people driving around, looking for parking, jobs, needing infrastructure like hospitals, schools, libraries? Who will pay for the infrastructure - ratepayers?

Controversial Tweed Shire Council has a history of making poor environmental decisions that are hugely unpopular with the largely Green-oriented residents. It is the second most complained about council in New South Wales. However in November 2010 the councillors voted for the worst possible blunder which will be recorded as a major crime against Nature.

Byrrill Creek, NSW

In October 2010 the residents in Tweed Shire did something that had never been done before in the history of World Rally Championships – they succeeded in ridding Tweed and neighbouring Kyogle Shire of the rally. There were many reason for this, not the least of which was the threat to already threatened and endangered species living en route.

One of the routes, pristine and idyllic Byrrill Creek - home to platypus, diminishing koalas and 45 threatened and endangered fauna, 26 threatened and endangered flora and adjacent to two World Heritage National Parks – had such fierce opposition from locals that the race had to be stopped after only 3 cars went through. News travelled as far as New York Times that rocks had been thrown at the cars – which was 6 months later denied by local police.

The monthly council meeting in February 2010 was one of the worst bullying sessions of our only Green councillor, Cr Milne I have so far witnessed. Cr Holdom moved that a limit of 5 questions, 3 minutes each for councillors. This motion arose due to the extreme meticulousness of Cr Milne in researching issues pertaining to environmental protection that some other 'green platform' councillors don't appear to take so seriously, making meetings longer than they wish.

Why the kowtowing to developers? Cr van Lieshout said in a meeting some months ago “We must remember that the developers are our clients.” Cr Milne's relentless pursuit of sustainability in development would impose a financial burden on developers - so said Cr Skinner who pointed out this might aggravate developers.

How quickly the council forgets Cr Milne got the most votes in the history of Tweed elections. Cr Longland would not have even gotten in if not for her preferencial votes. Council should be following her lead, not be treating her in a patronising and disrespectful way. She is the one who is doing the wishes of the majority of Tweed residents.

I thought that one councillor was especially rude to Cr Milne and I could not help thinking of how low that councillor's vote had been in comparison to hers and wondered if he was a tad jealous.

An amendment to the Motor Sports (WRC) Bill 2009, Section 25, specifies that a Review be conducted to determine whether future rally events should be conducted in that region.

YOU SHOULD HAVE ASKED FIRST!!!
Submission to the Review of the Northern Rivers round of the WRC, 2009 by Dr Fiona McCormick

Introduction, My Background
My name is Fiona McCormick. I first made the Tweed shire my home nearly 30 years ago, at which time the population of the Tweed LGA was around 40 000, half the current population of around 80,000(1). I have seen a lot of changes in the shire in that time: particularly an increase in the coastal population and increasing housing pressure on viable farm land and wildlife habitat.

Media Release from Greens Tweed Shire Councillor Katie Milne

A lot of questions need to be answered in relation to cancellation of the Byrill Ck stage and the media reporting. People need to calm down about this until the truth is established and the police do their job.

The SMH now has a story entitled 'Car Rally Rock Attacks False' yet our local media are still carrying on with the story. Garry Connolly of Rally Australia has stated to the SMH that "no cars were struck by rocks on Friday". Why did Garry let the media frenzy escalate for nearly a week before he clarified this?

Why has he not deigned to apologise for withholding this information and letting the vilification of the protestors go unchecked?

Why was there no qualification by media or police that this was all only alleged, and that according to Mr Connolly "there was never any evidence that cars were hit by rocks on that day"?

Injunction to prevent suffering to native animals fails in Australian World Heritage National Park

Councillor Katie Milne of Tweed Shire Council, NSW, failed in her attempt to prevent the staging of a 3 day long international car rally through Tweed and Kyogle Shire national parks, state forests, World Heritage areas, nature conservation areas, major koala colonies, core koala habitats and habitat where over 12 nationally-threatened species live. In September 2008, the Minister for the Environment, Peter Garrett dubbed the area as the ‘Green Cauldron’, one of 8 national iconic landscapes.

On 27th August, 2009, in Milne v. Rally Australia Pty Ltd, Federal Court Justice Stone was assigned to hear the case in Sydney for 3 hours. The Judge had only just received the last of the reports an hour before the hearing and admitted she had not had time to read all the material.

Fastest case in the history of Tweed Shire?

“It was the fastest case in the history of Tweed Shire. The Judge was able to somehow determine the case in about 10 mins flat after we began," commented Cr Milne. "We didn’t even have a chance for all the issues to be heard. The rally has assigned 600 police for 5 days including training, but they couldn’t even assign a Judge for a proper full day trial to hear all the evidence."

Sylvia Hale, NSW Greens MP and Local Government spokesperson has slammed Tweed Council for imposing a ban on its Councillors disclosing information to the media. "Tweed Council was dismissed in 2005 because of corrupt conduct. Haven’t the Councillors who voted for this ban learnt anything from that experience?” asked Ms Hale.   “Denying the media and the public access to information creates the sort of climate in which corruption can flourish.”   The Daly report into Tweed Council that led to its dismissal in 2005 specifically criticised the then Council for adopting processes that “resulted in a low level of transparency in its operations.” (Daly report, May 2005, p. 294)   “Now this new Council is doing exactly the same thing, implementing processes designed to reduce transparency and shut down public scrutiny. It’s a very dangerous road for the Council to pursue and the Council should reverse its decision immediately.”   “If the Council wants to win back the trust of the community it should be looking at making more information available to the public, not less.”   “Given the potential negative consequences for public administration in the Tweed I am calling on the Minister for Local Government to intervene to ensure that Tweed Council adheres to the principles of freedom of information and stops its attempts to avoid public scrutiny

At the last council meeting Cr. Katie Milne, heroine of environmentally-minded local residents, moved a raft of motions to protect koalas, which were unanimously adopted. They were:-

1. The Recovery of the Tweed Coast Koalas is to be classed as an urgent and very high priority.

2. A review of Council’s Tree Preservation Orders (TPO) be undertaken to include identified Koala habitat:-

a) Currently identified Koala habitat to be included in the TPO as a matter of urgency.
b) Further identified Koala habitat to be included as a high priority as information becomes available.
c) Council holds a workshop on the Tree Preservation orders to facilitate further preservation of native bushland and urban vegetation, especially landscape values and waterways corridors.

4. Council develops a marketing campaign to educate and enlist the assistance of the community in the preservation and enhancement of Koala populations.

5. Where Koala habitat or corridors occur on private property, Council to inform landholders and provide appropriate strategies to preserve and enhance these habitats and linkages.

6. Council develops an interim Koala Recovery Action Plan, as a matter or urgency, until a Koala Management Plan is able to be funded and implemented, this plan to include addressing ameliorative measures to known Koala problem hotspots such as Clothier's Creek Road and South Tweed.

A new video has been uploaded to You Tube as part of our continuing campaign against Repco Rally Australia.

The video shows footage from the Byrrill Creek Special (RACING) Stage of the rally.

Help fight this eco-vandalism.

Sign our online petition at www.petitiononline.com/NRG01e/petition.html and check our website at sites.google.com/site/norallygroup for the latest info.

We don't want it!!! We don't need it!!!

From the Tweed Daily News:

'Lame duck' mayor loses peer support

Peter Caton | 3rd July 2009

TWEED Mayor Joan van Lieshout's job is now in jeopardy as other councillors rally behind general manager Mike Rayner over his support for the controversial world championship car rally in September.

The moves come in the wake of revelations of a power struggle involving the mayor and Mr Rayner.

Several councillors yesterday slammed Cr van Lieshout for publicly revealing she wanted Mr Rayner to step down from his extra role on the board of Rally Australia and are furious she has tried to sideline him.

Cr van Lieshout revealed earlier this week that although she had failed to convince Mr Rayner to resign from the Rally Australia board she had reached agreement with rally organisers to hold any future negotiations with elected councillors.

Cr Phil Youngblutt said the mayor's “time is nearly up” with councillors due to hold their annual vote choosing a mayor in September.

“If that's what she has done, she's overstepped the mark,” Cr Youngblutt said.

“It's only eight to ten weeks before there's an election.

“Things will be rectified then. As far as a mayor, Joan is a dead loss.

“As far as the general manager is concerned with the Repco Rally, he hasn't done anything wrong. He has done a bloody good job.”

Article (Front Page and Page 2) from the Tweed Daily News: GM refuses to quit board Peter Caton | 2nd July 2009 Mayor Joan Lieshout wants Tweed Shire Council general manager Mike Rayner off the board for Rally Australia. TWEED mayor Joan van Lieshout has revealed she asked the Council's general manager Mike Rayner to resign from his controversial position on the board of Rally Australia because the position created a “conflict of interest”. Mr Rayner declined the request made earlier this year after taking the matter to all the councillors and receiving backing from a majority. Yesterday he issued a statement saying a Council vote would be required if the Council wished him to quit the job with the car rally group. But Cr van Lieshout has not given up - moving to sideline Mr Rayner from any future Council negotiations with rally organisers in a request for them to deal directly with “the elected body”. Cr van Lieshout revealed her call for Mr Rayner's resignation from the board in the wake of the release of an email trail showing a lengthy and close involvement between Mr Rayner and organisers of the world championship car rally which is planned for the Tweed in September. “I have asked for the resignation from the board by the general manager and that went to Council,” said Cr van Lieshout. “The general manager asked for comments from the whole of Council and Council felt it wasn't necessary.”

An online petition has been started following the NSW state government passing 'special events' legislation to enable Repco Rally Australia to go ahead. Access the petition at www.petitiononline.com/NRG01e/petition.html The 'special events' legislation introduced by the government continues a disturbing trend in NSW that disenfranchises local communities and overrides state laws designed to protect the environment and the interests of those same local communities. The Motor Sports (World Rally Championship) Bill 2009 overrides the provisions of numerous state laws including: - Environmental Protection and Assessment Act - National Parks and Wildlife Act - Water Management Act - Fisheries Act - Local Government Act - Roads and Traffic Act - Crown Lands Act. The legislation gives legal exemption to the organisers (and local authorities acting in support of the rally) for breaches of various state laws and immunity from civil action by aggrieved local residents. This law is appalling and must be opposed. What you can do: - Sign the petition and encourage everyone you know to sign it. - Publicise the petition (and the issues) on any social networking sites to which you belong. - Raise the issues in any groups of which you are a member.

The enabling legislataion foreshadowed on 29 May by NSW State development Minister Ian Macdonald has been introduced to parliament. The legislation is even more draconian than we had feared. It gives the rally organisers the right to do whatever they want in National Parks, State Forests and Crown Land Reserves! It gives the organisers an "out" if they don't want to effect repairs to roads or property damaged during the rally. All they have to do is claim that the damage was caused by "vandals" or "protesters". Then the legislation lets them off the hook. Have a look at the proposed legislation in the attachment. It is scary. In his "second reading speech" the Minister admits it is based on recent legislation to enable the V8 Supercares in Olympic Park and World Youth Day. What you can do: Contact NSW Members of Parliament and Members of the Upper House (Legislative Council) and encourage them to vote against the legislation. Our local member for Tweed has announced he will be voting against the bill.

Local community groups in the Tweed Valley and Kyogle are outraged at their treatment by Repco Rally Australia and their consultants who prepared a crucial report supporting a planned car rally in the area in September.

In another embarrassing case of “foot in mouth disease” for the rally organisers it was revealed today that local community groups in the Tweed Valley and Kyogle are claiming that they have been misrepresented in a major report on the planned Repco Rally Australia.

Prepared by Conics Pty Ltd for Repco Rally Australia, the Socio-Economic Impact Assessment claimed to have consulted with various community organisations in preparing the report.

Representatives of community groups have expressed outrage at being misrepresented in the report and in some cases not consulted at all.

Here is the text of their letter sent to local and state media:

We, the undersigned, wish to advise the community that our respective community associations have been misrepresented in the CONICS report entitled Rally Australia Socio-Economic Impact Assessment which was commissioned by Repco Rally Australia.

We have been listed on p.29 of this report as being the representatives of our respective community associations who were supposedly part of the community consultation process.

The NSW state government has taken the decision about planning approval for the proposed Repco Rally Australia leg of the World Rally Championships away from local councils by announcing that it would prepare special events legislation to ensure the rally goes ahead despite growing local opposition.

In a sign of growing desperation the Minister for State Development, Ian MacDonald, made the announcement on Friday.

Local residents are outraged and appalled! The fact that the announcement was made the day after a well supported protest rally was held in Murwillumbah to oppose the rally was a real slap in the face for locals residents.

It demonstrates yet again that this government is not interested in listening to the views of locals, preferring instead to listen to the assurances of "flim flam men".

At the same time that the state government is ripping the guts out of local health and transport infrastucture it can find up to $8 million to support a bash and crash rally though National Parks and rural gravel roads.

The Minister calims that “The legislation will permit the Government to impose environmental protection measures to manage any temporary impacts on affected local areas.” This begs the question ... Upon what evidence will the imposed conditions be based? Will the government undertake its own environmental studies? Because the studies undertaken on behalf of the organisers are seriously lacking!!!

This blue-green jewel floating in space that we call planet Earth is dying. There are 16,000 species at risk of extinction in the world today. This mass extinction is caused by one species – us – and may well include us.

Australia has the worst reputation of species extinctions having driven 38% of its mammal species extinct in just over 200 years. The Tweed Shire has probably the most biodiversity in the whole country yet a whopping two thirds of our species are at risk of extinction. We could stop biodiversity loss right now – there are plenty of laws in place to stop it but they don’t appear to be enforced.

Biodiversity loss is a much bigger problem than water or climate change, according to Professor Hugh Possingham of University of Queensland. Whereas water shortages could be turned around in 20-40 years and climate change could be turned around in 100 years, biodiversity loss could take between 10,000 to 100,000 years to turn around.

The human species needs biodiversity to survive. We live in a complex web of life that has taken billions of years to evolve. If bees became extinct all of life on this planet would end in just four years, according to Einstein. If plankton became extinct, we wouldn’t have enough oxygen to breathe. Even earthworms tilling and fertilising the soil are more ecologically important than humans.

FEARS that the NSW Government is about to override council planning powers to approve the world championship car rally heightened yesterday as hundreds of protesters marched against the event.

At the same time concerns were raised that if the rally was approved, future
protest actions could disrupt it as objectors took matters into their own
hands.

Police escorted about 300 protesters, some in cardboard mock-ups of rally cars and some dressed as koalas, wallabies or other animals which they said would be put at risk by rally cars on rural roads, through Murwillumbah.

...

Outside the Tweed Shire Council chambers anti-rally speakers addressed the
crowd on environmental and other concerns.

Byron-based NSW Greens Party Upper House member Ian Cohen said he was worried the government could override council planning powers to approve the event which it has promised the help fund.

...

Concerned Tweed Valley residents will express their opposition on Thursday to the proposal to hold a leg of the World Rally Championships in the Tweed and Kyogle areas.

No Rally Group, set up by locals in February to fight plans to hold the rally, has organized a protest at Knox Park commencing at 2pm which will then proceed to the Council Chambers.

“We will be staging our own rally” President of No Rally Group Michael McNamara said today “one that will not have the negative impacts of the real thing. We will have rally cars and animals and police”

The rally is proposed to run in September 2009 and every second year for up to 20 years.

“Many in the community can’t understand how this proposal ever got serious consideration” Mr McNamara said.

“We have the highest concentration of National Parks in the state, we are one of only three biodiversity hotspots in Australia, we are up there with Uluru and Kakadu in terms of ecological values and we have a strong and growing nature tourism market focused on eco-tourism” he said ”and yet somebody in the Premier’s Department had the bright idea that rally cars hurtling through the bush, including National Parks, at speeds in excess of 160km/h was somehow good for the area.”

Mr McNamara said that community outrage was palpable “We have been circulating a petition against the rally and at Kingscliff recently we had over 350 signatures in 3 hours”

Repco Rally Australia spin merchants have outdone themselves in the last few days. Not only have they spun their web of deceit around the NSW state government and the Tweed Shire Council they have now caught themselves in their own web by posting comments from their "independent" ecological consultant that he did not say. They were caught out very publicly on ABC local radio yesterday.

Repco Rally Australia sent a media release out that quoted Dr Steven Phillips (who prepared their ecological report) as saying "There is no reason on ecological grounds that the rally should not proceed". This quote was printed prominently in the pro-rally Tweed Daily News on 18/5/08. It was their front page story, with follow up on Page 2.

The problem was that Dr Phillips did not say it!!! And he said so very publicly when interviewed by Tony Johnston on ABC North Coast radio the next day.

Tony was so taken aback he had to ask Dr Phillips the question a second time .. and he got the same answer: "The words were attributed to me, but I did not say them".

What else have the organisers got wrong???

What you can do:

Mr IAN COHEN [5.13 p.m.]: Rally Australia is promoting a car rally to be held in northern New South Wales this September and every other year until 2017. The rally will run through the Tweed and Kyogle shires of northern New South Wales. This event is yet to have its development application approved by Tweed Shire Council and Kyogle Council. The councils are awaiting the environmental assessment. This does not seem to deter the organisers, who are promoting it regardless. Repco Rally Australia General Manager, Gary Upson, told the media that organisers were continuing with planning "on the assumption that approval would be given". Given the area through which the rally is planned to travel and the negative environmental impact it may have, I am surprised at his assumption. The confidence with which this rally is being promoted by its organisers as a done deal should ring alarm bells.

In August 2008 the Tweed Shire administrators, as one of their last decisions while running the Council, decided to provide financial and other support to Repco Rally Australia (RRA) for their proposed car rally in the Tweed Valley. Recently, the details of that decision are being rewritten by newly elected councillors and the General Manager.

The Administrators decided to provide support as follows:

• $120,000 per event (every second year);
• office accommodation for 4 people for 18 months (RRA to be responsible for operating costs); and
• free use of council workshops to conduct pre-race and post-race scrutineering of rally cars.

They also authorised the General Manager (who later joined the board of directors of RRA) to negotiate additional "in-kind" support.

How can the CEO of the Council also sit on the board of a private company seeking to lodge a development application?

This decision, and his taking up the position, raises (in the minds of many reasonable local residents) a conflict of interest. How can the CEO of the Council also sit on the board of a private company seeking to lodge a development application?

Anyway, back to the main point of this message.

Up till 2008, a classic car race event called Speed on Tweed was run in the centre of Murwillumbah each September. Due to loss of sponsorship, 2008 was the last running of this event.

Out of six councillors, only two voted against the DA in spite of massive opposition from local residents who had a long list of complaints. They were Councillor Katie Milne and Barry Longland. Over 500 submissions were received by council. In the Land and Environment Court hearing, 100 people spoke against it and only 1 for it. In spite of this the Commissioner approved it.

After much delay (didn't they realise it rains here????) the Development Application for the planned car rally in the Tweed and Kyogle areas in September this year seems likely to be submitted to the councils in the next week (unless further delayed by acts of God or Brian).

When contacted, Tweed Shire indicated the DA would be available for public comment for a minimum of 14 days.

I have rung all Councillors and the Director of Planning to push for a 28 day consultation period. Those I have spoken to are supportive of this suggestion. I encourage everyone to do the same. This highly contentious development will have very detailed attachments to it in the form of an Environmental Impact Statement and an Economic Impact Statement. The local community deserves the right to have adequate time to conside the detail of the proposals, especially when the organisers have had 6 months and the benefit of the Tweed Shire Council General Manager on their Board of Directors.

We have taken the promo video put on You Tube by the rally organisers and turned it into a more realistic rendition of what the rally really means for the Tweed Valley.

The reworked video is on You Tube. The link is www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_O1ekQNX6I

Update: The video has been removed by YouTube because the organisers of the World Rally races have claimed that it breaches their copyright. If it does breach copyright, they, nevertheless, could hardly complain that the removed video provides a less accurate depiction of how the rally will turn out than their own. - JS, 23 Apr 09.

See also below: Local Resident decribes how World Rally will disrupt lives of quite coastal community.

Kingscliff residents outraged at plans to use Jack Baylis Park in Marine Parade Kingscliff as the "pits area" for the planned Repco Rally Australia in September have come out fighting.

They have organised a meeting in the park at 11am on Saturday 18 April to brief residents on the damaging takeover of the park planned for a month or more.

Local resident Max Hopper, OAM, who was Chief Commissioner at Bass Coast Shire Council from 1994 to 1999 said "It is inappropriate and totally unacceptable to take a popular foreshore park as the service centre for rally cars."

"If that is allowed Kingscliff residents can expect that our beach front park will be the centre for wild parties with many revelers sleeping in the park and the dunes."

"There is no way that Council will be able to enforce its rules on alcohol consumption, open fires and protection of vegetation on the dunes."