This is a request for help!

If you live in our region and support our efforts, you can help a lot by:

  • contacting Mareeba Shire Councillors and tell them you support Friends of Kuranda’s demand for a first-rate planning scheme that genuinely protects our wildlife and biodiversity
  • comimg to support us at the Mareeba Shire Council meeting this coming Wednesday, 20th January (around 11am)

Background

Help the Friends of Kuranda!You may be aware the “Friends of Kuranda region Planning Group” was formed in November 2015 to seek improvements to the next planning scheme for the Mareeba Shire, especially with regard to the Kuranda region.

So far, we have:

  • Conveyed our growing concerns to Deputy Premier Chad (Minister for Planning & Local Government), Craig Crawford (MP for Barron River) and to officers of the Planning and Local Government departments.
  • Liaised closely with other relevant individuals and agencies, including Terrain NRM, the Natural Resource Management agency for the Wet Tropics, which has been extremely constructive and wishes to help stakeholders achieve better conservation outcomes for this region

This latest Mareeba Shire draft plan was made public in September 2015.

Since its release, Council has sought State Government approval for the plan in its current form.

We, on the other hand, seek changes to the plan before the State Government signs off on a document that will have significant long-term implications for our future.

A small delegation from our group will be meeting with Mareeba Shire Council on Wednesday 20th January.

It will be a closed meeting (no media), but any residents interested in attending are welcome to sit in the public gallery. You’d need to present to the Customer Service Officers at the MSC main counter and ask to be admitted. We anticipate our presentation will be around 11am.

We intend to present a short suggested resolution to Council (see below).

Supporting material explaining our case in some detail will have been sent to Councillors in advance. This extra material will be displayed on this website by Monday 18th January.

What we’d like you to do to help

If you agree with us please email the Mareeba Shire Councillors supporting our requests to Council.

This would be useful ASAP – and if at all possible no later than Tuesday 19th January. 

Our requests are summarised in the resolution we intend to present to Council (see below).

Our goal is a planning scheme that’s truly “state of the art” which is conducive to better conservation outcomes.

We’d like a better plan in general, but especially seek changes in the Kuranda region, which we believe merits a “sub-plan” within the overall planning scheme to protect the unique heritage and rich biodiversity of this buffer zone between the rest of the Wet Tropics and drier inland areas closer to Mareeba.

If you can send an email to all the Councillors, so much the better! If you have a special connection with any of the Councillors, please make sure you contact them in particular.

Feel free to copy any emails you send to us (by cc or bcc), along with any replies you receive.

Incidentally, most of the current Councillors are expected to seek re-election in the coming March Local Government election.

We suggest you’re courteous to them – but don’t forget they’re looking for votes!

Extra Material to assist you

1/ Current Mareeba Shire Councillors 

The contact list is at http://msc.qld.gov.au/about-us/mayor-and-councillors/

For your convenience, here are all the Councillors and email addresses:

2/ Pre-election pledges re planning and community consultation by Mayor Gilmore and his team

“It is intended that our Council will have a detailed Environment Policy based on community consultation, council’s operational capacity and state and federal regulations.”

“Tom’s Team supports the completion of a new Planning Scheme as soon as possible. The current Draft Scheme will be reviewed and finalised, after further consultation with communities.”

“Our Council will assist Agencies and work closely with interested parties to protect endangered species.”

(Emphases added). See The Nov 2013 Mareeba Shire Council election: summary of candidates via the Friends of the Earth Kuranda website.

3/ Text of the Resolution we intend to present to Council on January 20th (it summarises our key goals)

Council resolves to postpone finalization of the MSC Draft Plan until a new Kuranda Regional Plan* is prepared, as a matter of urgency, once the new Council is in place following the forthcoming Council Elections.

Councillors note the distinctive demographic and environmental features of the Kuranda region, which is:

    • a border zone to the Wet Tropics with exceptionally high biodiversity and heritage values
    • a region whose inhabitants tend to have a strong interest in conservation  

Councillors agree the new Kuranda region sub-plan should be:

    • focused on achieving environmental sustainability, including protection of wildlife connectivity via suitable corridors
    • also concerned with prosperity and appropriate development
    • prepared promptly, but through a state-of-the-art consultation process, including meaningful participation by relevant regional, State and Federal instrumentalities, the scientific community, community groups and interested individuals within the region.

2. Council notes that the biodiversity areas mapping in the draft MSC plan 2015 has significant gaps when compared with the draft TRC plan 2012 mapping. Council resolves to identify, map and protect regional corridors and local scale ecological connectivity, including habitat linkages, and areas of general and local ecological significance in the plan throughout the Shire**. This will enable endangered species and the habitat they require for long-term survival to be conserved and for biodiversity to be sustained.

* Note 1: The Kuranda region is defined as the region between Top of the Range to the east and Koah/ Clohesy river to the west, and includes inter alia Kuranda township and environs, Top of the Range, Myola, Oak Forest, Speewah and Mona Mona.

** Note 2: Documentation in the draft TRC plan 2012 can be utilized and organizations such as Terrain NRM invited to assist. Terrain NRM has indicated willingness to help prepare and broker agreement over a Kuranda Regional Plan, contributing extra resources to assist Council with this task.

4/ Input from Terrain NRM

Terrain NRM is a community-based not for profit organisation that supports natural resource management (NRM) in the Wet Tropics. Terrain NRM receives funding from both State and Federal Governments.

There’s more information about Terrain NRM and its role here: http://www.terrain.org.au/About-Terrain

Terrain NRM has written a critique of the Mareeba Shire Council draft plan which can be viewed in full here.

Referring to changes between the earlier draft plan (which was subject to public consultation) and the latest MSC draft plan, Terrain NRM concludes:

The implications of these changes are quite significant, with the exception of High Environmental Significance wetlands and waterways where the changes are fairly minor and even include improvements. 

The implications of the greatly reduced overlay mapping to trigger assessment is a serious concern in and of itself. Added to that is the lack of consideration of connectivity for code assessable development and the lack of clarity around what the likely requirements might be for revegetation/rehabilitation in appropriate circumstances. 

Overall, the 2012 TRC draft provides greater protection and consideration of the environment and biodiversity of the Mareeba Shire.

Friends of Kuranda see this as independent confirmation of our view that the latest Mareeba Shire draft plan is a RETROGRADE step for those of us who care about conservation and want to live sustainably in this wonderful region.

For the full text of Terrain NRM’s critique of the Mareeba Shire Council draft plan see Terrain NRM critique strengthens concerns about Mareeba Shire Council’s draft plan.