Member for Wakehurst Michael Regan delivered a speech in the NSW Parliament during the debate on the planning proposal to rezone the Ralston Ave and Morgan Road sites, known as Lizard Rock.
The debate was brought on due to Mr Regan tabling a petition on 20 June in the NSW Parliament of over 12,000 signatories against the proposed development on Lizard Rock.
In his speech, Mr Regan thanked the Northern Beaches Bushland Guardians for presenting him with the petition and recognised the effort of the 12,000 residents who signed it.
He also reinforced the petition’s calls on the NSW Government to repeal the Development Delivery Plan for the Northern Beaches, which would clear over 200 hectares of local bushland for housing and industrial use.
The proposed development includes the Lizard Rock site for a subdivision of 450 dwellings which has passed the Gateway stage, but it needs more support from the local community and council.
Mr Regan also mentioned the importance of the site for the environment as it holds significant biodiversity value, forming part of a wildlife corridor and providing habitat for various Australian wildlife species.
He explained the bushfire risks that the development might pose and its inconsistency with strategic planning efforts. He concluded by voicing the community concerns and the importance of finding a “win-win solution”, such as leasing the land as a new national park or compensating the Land Council for the loss of development potential.
Read the full speech below:
Firstly, thank you to the 12,000 residents who signed this petition. They want this chamber to hear a clear message: precious bushland on the Northern Beaches should be protected for future generations.
The petition before the house calls on the NSW Government to repeal the Development Delivery Plan for the Northern Beaches, developed in the previous term of government.
This plan puts over 200 hectares of local bushland on a trajectory towards being cleared for housing and industrial uses.
The two largest sites proposed for development are the 135 hectare site at Ralston Ave in Belrose, and the 71 hectare site at Morgan Road in Belrose, affectionately known by locals as “Lizard Rock” (for the large rock shaped like a lizard’s head on Morgan Road.) Lizard Rock is the first cab off the rank, slated for development.
In recent weeks, a planning proposal to rezone the Lizard Rock site for a subdivision of at least 450 dwellings has passed through the Gateway stage with the NSW Department of Planning.
The next stage for the rezoning proposal is a more detailed assessment, as well as a public exhibition period. This consultation has not yet started, but I can tell you right now – the development of this site does not have the support of the local community or local council.
And for good reason.
The proposal for a massive housing subdivision, clearing 45 rugby fields of native vegetation, in this location is completely inappropriate. I will briefly outline three of many reasons why.
Firstly, the biodiversity values of the site.
The Lizard Rock site adjoins Garigal National Park, Narrabeen Lagoon State Park, and forms part of a wildlife corridor across private and public land.
Lizard Rock provides habitat for iconic species of Australian wildlife, from Powerful Owls, to Red Crowned Toadlets, through to spotted-tail quolls and bandicoots. It’s a place where observant locals have spotted a male lyrebird dancing his mating dance, and a mother wallaby unloading her joeys from the pouch for their first bounces. It is home to Black Cockatoos, which I spotted with Dr Sophie Scamps when we were there one morning.
Australia has committed to reversing biodiversity loss by 2030, and conserving 30% of Australia’s land areas by 2030. How can we achieve these goals, if we continue to clear bushland at this scale, as though it were worthless?
Secondly the bushfire risk of developing the site.
Surrounded by bushland and with constrained evacuation routes, the Northern Beaches Council states:
‘In its current form, the proposed development presents an unacceptable and, in some cases, a catastrophic risk to future residents.’
Have we learnt nothing from the 2019 Bushfires and subsequent Inquiry and Royal Commission?
We have to stop building homes where we know we will expose lives to danger, and where we will put the lives of RFS and SES volunteers in danger protecting them.
Thirdly, inconsistency with strategic planning.
The Lizard Rock proposal and Development Delivery Plan are totally disconnected from the agreed strategic planning currently being undertaken to deliver more housing in Frenchs Forest and Brookvale.
The Lizard Rock proposal would create a car-centric enclave, unserviced by public transport.
The cities and towns we need to be creating are ones connected to social infrastructure and public transport, which make effective use of our urban land, rather than sprawling into new greenfields areas.
This is entirely consistent with the Government’s own messaging in recent weeks about moving away from low density greenfield housing development.
One member of the Sydney North Planning Panel – Annalise Tour – recognised the compelling reasons the rezoning should not proceed when she opposed the planning proposal. She cited concerns that it did not demonstrate site specific merit; about the extent and nature of the proposed R2 zoning area; and that the proposal did not adequately respond to the environmental and other constraints of the site.
I want to be clear that I support the intent of the Aboriginal Land Rights Act and appreciate the importance of enabling First Nations people to achieve economic self-determination through developing land. But we should consider all proposals on their merits, regardless of the landowner, and this proposal does not stack up.
The community recognises that this land was granted by the State Government to the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, in recognition of past wrongs committed against First Nations people by Governments of the past.
The community does not criticise the desire of the Land Council to want to improve the economic circumstances of its members, given the structural disadvantage faced by Indigenous people as a consequence of colonisation.
However, the community’s concern is that we are now committing wrongs against wrongs, trying to fix the past wrongs against First Nations people, by committing new wrongs against nature.
We have to work harder to find solutions able to provide a win-win for both nature and society. This petition calls for this balance to be struck.
The community has ideas for finding a win-win solution, that both delivers the Land Council a fair and timely income from its landholdings, while also retaining the bushland. The State Government could lease the land as a new National Park, or compensate the Land Council for the loss of development potential, or offer a land swap for a developable site elsewhere. However, the petition does not dictate a particular solution, as we recognise that the Land Council has to be part of making any new decision.
Through this petition, the community is asking the State Government to be an active partner in finding that solution.
I want to thank the Northern Beaches Bushland Guardians who spent their weekends and mornings for months at markets and beaches, collecting these signatures and informing the community. The Bushland Guardians are Dr Conny Harris, Cr Kristyn Glanville, Rachael Leah Jackson, Sarah Baker, Pamela Dawes, Deb Harris, Marion Kiss, and Sue Denham, and thank the many groups and individuals in our community who have worked to build momentum to conserve our local bushland.