Three things have stood out in the NSW Hunter Valley’s news this week, Development, Mining and Water.
Development
We’ve had multiple calls from the public and editors for the NSW Minister for Planning Mr Frank Sartor to reconsider the process for approving residential developments. This is on the back of proposed developments such as Catherine Hill Bay that have been pushed through the development process under the guise of “Sate Significant Development”, thus allowing the Minister for Planning to take all approvals responsibility away from the local council, in this case two councils, (both who appear opposed to the development in it’s current form), and giving it all to his own department.
It is obvious that the developers in question at Catherine Hill Bay have a lot of influence with the Minister for Planning, and this arrangement entirely suits them. It avoids the sticky local politics presented in many small coastal communities and allows developments to be viewed and assessed from the supposedly neutral ground of the Minister for Planning’s desk. More after the jump…
Unfortunately, the public consultation process is not functioning appropriately, with vocal opposition from several quarters, there seems little chance of a major change in how things will get done. Is it time to lower expectations? Money is a powerful driver, those in power are obviously influenced by those with money, sometimes it is better to receive small gains rather than lose the farm against the corporations of this world.
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Mining
Reports this week confirming modeling that shows Hunter Valley mining contributed to the geological instability that caused the Newcastle Earthquake. Can’t say it surprises me, and I can’t imagine it’s good news for the many mining applications that are underway in the various Government Departments. Another nail in the coffin of Coal Fired Power Plants?
Water
Despite the recent cooler weather over the Christmas break water supply and drought remains one of the hottest topics in NSW, and Australia. The Sydney Morning Herald ran a special called, “Scorched Earth” which covered many different aspects of the current crisis, and acts as a taxonomy for the topic. The debate rages over the Tillegra Dam proposal, with Hunter Water Corporation pushing for the infrastructure to be built to ensure centralized, controlled supply of water, compared with rainwater tanks on residential housing, over which they have very little control.
I predict that the dam will be built, Sydney will take all the water and we’ll be having the same discussion again in 20 years time, and at that stage, rainwater tanks will be the preferred solution, rather than dam up the next valley.
Technorati Tags: mining, coal mines, hunter valley, hunter water corporation, hunter water, water supply, tilligra dam, scorched earth, newcastle earthquake, catherine hill bay, minister for planning, frank sartor
If you enjoyed this post, why not try these ones:
- Coastal Development on the Radar Again
- Catherine Hill Bay
- Climate Change Considerations for Coal Mines
- Paper Water
- Development Opposition
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
With reference to the With reference to the development at Catho, the same developers are utilising the same underhanded (but yet legal) ways to progress the development at Gwandalan/Summerland Point. As anyone who knows this area there is only 1 road from the highway into Gwandalan & Summerland Point, and there is bushland either side of this access road. This is where the proposed new housing development is going to be. The mailout of information regarding the public consultation was mailed only to Gwandalan residents as in the Government’s opinion the Summerland Point residents were not affected by this proposed development. Duho? Luckily the protest movement and attitude from Catho is alive in Gwandaland and Summerland Point also. There is a public meeting scheduled for Monday, 29 January in Gwandalan for ALL residents of the area to attend. I know 1 resident who will be there in full voice of protest. This dirty underhanded way of getting this through is morally bankrupt. Our community planning and infrastructure is already overloaded and waning under the stress caused by urban development, and Mr Sartor & his blinded public servants whose lifestyle will not be affected by this development can see no wrong and only the $$$ on the bottom of a spreadsheet. I will let you know what happens.
Laynie,
Thanks for your on Laynie,
Thanks for your on the ground commentary, this issue with Gwandalan is another example of the planning process failing to adequately protect the environment and surrounding communities.
Public Meetings only go so far with the Part 3a “State Significant Development” application process as local councils are seperate from the decision making process. I don’t really see how a couple of hundred lots on the NSW coast can be classed as “State Significant”, it is transparently a way to get the local council out of the planning and decision making process.