Rosalie Woodruff MP | Greens Member for Franklin
The decision of the Rosny Hill Friends Network to discontinue their appeal against Hunter Development’s proposed hotel on their beloved public reserve demonstrates the abject failure of Tasmania’s planning laws to properly assess social and environmental impacts of large developments.
All eyes are now on Environment Minister, Roger Jaensch, who will sign off on the release of the Rosny Hill Nature Recreation Area.
Mr Jaensch said he would wait until the Tribunal appeal process was complete before determining whether the proposed development met the requirements of the National Parks and Reserves Management Act 2002.
Minister Jaensch should refuse to release Crown Land in the Rosny Hill Nature Recreation Area for development of a private hotel and conference complex. Rosny Hill is public land, and just because the community aren’t able to fight the proponent in the courts doesn’t mean they have given up their claim.
The massive environmental footprint of the hotel complex, and the resulting vehicle traffic, have never had a social licence. The Clarence City Council bulldozed the planning process through without ever formally asking the community what they wanted.
Minister Jaensch’s own Threatened Species Unit highlighted the threat the proposal poses to the endangered Leafy Sun-Orchid.
The members of Rosny Hill Friends Network are to be congratulated for their endurance and community-minded focus. They’ve fought for years to keep their beautiful place in public hands, available for everyone to access, in perpetuity.
Their self-funded campaign through the expensive planning process is testament to the strong opposition of local residents and the wider Clarence City Council ratepayers to this overblown development.
This tenacious community will not give up. They will, rightly, be pursuing all other avenues to stop this incredibly inappropriate sale of public land.
Minister Jaensch must return Rosny Hill to the people. He has a responsibility to protect the integrity of this publicly-owned bush reserve.
Approving the construction of this massive hotel and conference centre will not protect the natural values. The Greens call on the Minister to listen to the Eastern Shore community and reject the Rosny Hill hotel development.