Page 210 - Week 01 - Thursday, 18 February 1993
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Since this report was published, five groups have joined together to oppose residential development on the site. Individuals within these groups are working on alternative uses for the site which could generate income for the upkeep of the homestead. The Minders of Tuggeranong Homestead, the Tuggeranong Community Council, the Tuggeranong Community Arts Association, the National Trust and the Conservation Council of the South-East Region and Canberra all feel that the integrity of the site is an important issue. I have here a copy of a letter signed by members of those five groups which was addressed to the Chief Minister and dated 11 February 1993.
The committee noted in its own preamble that the task was set and undertaken in a short timeframe and now I feel that the chance must be taken to examine closely what impact residential development will have on the site. The committee has recommended that a study be undertaken of the Tuggeranong Homestead site flora and fauna "having regard to the changes in the land use since early European settlement, the desirable area of habitat and proposed land usage". The scope of such an inquiry is wide enough to allow all the aspects of the environmental impact of any increased residential use of the site to be considered. I call on the Government to accept this recommendation while keeping the other recommendations of section 4.20 of the report on hold until the study is finished and its recommendations are finalised. This must have been in the committee members' minds as this was the first recommendation, and it did include consideration of the desirable area of habitat for the fauna and flora on site.
I would also ask that the environmental impact statement start from a position not of seeing how best to accommodate a housing or residential development, but of considering what is needed for the protection of the bird, animal and plant life on site. I believe that the environmental impact statement must concentrate on the issue of the protection of the flora and fauna absolute, not for their protection from adverse impacts of development. I have mentioned before in the Assembly that I find it problematic that an environmental impact statement seems to be an enabling statement for development, not a statement which determines what is the best way to preserve flora and fauna. In this case we have a site that is currently discretely isolated and we have the opportunity to examine all aspects of preservation of species on site. We must therefore give the environmental impact statement the widest possible scope.
I also urge caution because of the need to assess carefully where we place new residential development. There is no social need for housing to be placed on the Tuggeranong Homestead site. What we have here is a development proposal for a site where, from the committee's report, it appears that current leaseholders have not fulfilled their responsibilities to keep the site in order. We must be careful to guard against leases which are allowed to run down and are then put forward as proposed residential developments. This is speculation by degradation and, while the homestead buildings appear from the committee's report to be in relatively good condition, the surrounding land could not be said to have been kept in serviceable order. When I went out to inspect the site I did try to gain entry to the homestead but was unable to get past the gate.
Madam Speaker, I can see no reason to rush this process. The current leaseholders have apparently been in no hurry until now to proceed with improvements to the property. I feel that if we are to change this area significantly we need to be very sure that we have not lost an opportunity for
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