Cabbage Tree Road Sand Quarry

This is an important koala habitat and must be preserved. Also the proposed quarry area is very close to Newcastle's drinking water supply at Grahamstown. Please DO NOT go ahead with this short sighted idea.

I'm the sand mine will clear important habitat for the Port Stephens koala
the sand mine is located within a groundwater catchment that supplies drinking water to the Hunter
the sand mine is located within the 'Red Zone' where groundwater is contaminated by toxic chemicals from the Williamtown RAAF base and the impact a sand mine in this area may have on the spread of contamination has not been assessed
there is no offset package described in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), therefore the application is invalid
there are serious health impacts from sand mining such as silicosis and other respiratory illnesses
the sand mine will create an extra 140 truck movements per day.

Koala populations in Port Stephens are already under threat of extinction. To further intrude on their habitat will be a travesty on these iconic Australian creatures. Please consider them, the environment and tourism.

Koalas are an Australian icon; for many years, Port Stephens koalas have been under threat from development.. The proposed Williamtown sand mine involves the destruction of vital koala habitat which will push these precious remaining koalas to the brink of extinction and should not be allowed to go ahead. Once the habitat is destroyed and the remaining koalas extinct, there will be no going back.

Please ensure the preservation of all koala habitat in the Port Stephens Shire and commence plantings of green corridors to ensure the survival of these precious animals.

The sand mine will clear important habitat for the Port Stephens koala.

I wish to enter an application in regards to the recent application for sand mining on Cabbage Tree Road quarry at Williamtown. This project should not go ahead due to contamination of our water supply at Grahamstown Dam, the destruction of koala habitat which is crucial to saving our precious koalas and the environmental impact it will have on our community, especially for people with respiratory problems. Any reply would be greatly appreciated.

The Noise Study Section states: "Road traffic noise calculations were performed using existing traffic count data for Cabbage Tree Road plus the additional road traffic that would be generated by the Project" and concludes "This slight increase would be neither measurable, nor perceptible to the human ear and is considered an insignificant increase during any period."
I suggest this conclusion is based on incorrect data and the findings therefore incorrect.
With sand trucks decelerating to turn into the sand quarry, there will be increased noise due to the drivers' use of compression braking to slow the vehicle prior to turning, even if roadside signs are erected to limit compression braking. Many drivers totally ignore these signs.
Then with the fully laden trucks accelerating away from the quarry, there will be a noticeable increase in noise until they reach road speed, which will be a considerable distance.
As a result I believe if the project is approved, it must be on the condition that affected residents, i.e. those opposite and on the entrance side adjacent to the entrance/exit have noise abatement walls installed, as is the case along other major roads in NSW.

I wish to state my personal opposition to the above development, in two key areas being due to the likely significant impact on threatened species and also due to the inadequacy of the current ecological assessment. I am an ecologist with a specific expertise in the ecology of arboreal marsupials, having completed a PhD in the area. I have undertaken extensive research on this group of fauna, including extensive research on Koalas in the Port Stephens area. This work includes radiotracking studies and landscape studies, both as principal investigator and as principal supervisor of student projects. Below I have undertaken a brief review of the Umwelt ecological assessment for the project, addressing its inadequacy and also the likely impacts on threatened species.
The Koala
The Port Stephens area is an important population for the Koala, at a state and federal level. This is recognised by the federal Department of the Environment and the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. The study by Umwelt and previous surveys by RPS recorded a number of Koalas within the study area, however exact densities were not presented, which is a deficiency of the presented report. Our work in similar Swamp Sclerophyll forest vegetation at Port Stephens has found home range sizes of animals in this vegetation type is in the vicinity of 2-4 hectares, while animals also occur in drier Blackbutt forests adjacent to Swamp Sclerophyll forest. I believe that a large proportion of the study area is important for the long term survival of the Koala in the Port Stephens local government area. Subsequently while not considered under the EP&A Act, a Referral under the Federal EPBC Act is required.
A site specific Koala Plan of Management is also presented and unfortunately this is one of the least rigorous plans I have ever reviewed. The issues include:
-The review of the ecology of Koalas predominantly includes only references from the OEH website, rather than peer reviewed literature. It is unlikely that the authors have a detailed understanding of the ecology of the Koala, based on the cited literature of this review.
-Statement of Koalas preferring larger trees (section 2.2). This is not always correct, for example Sally Radford at Pine Creek while radiotracking Koalas found that they actually preferred smaller trees, as these are easier to climb than larger trees.
-Local population size: no attempt has been made to estimate the Koala population size within the study area, or adjoining lands. The reference of Lunney et al. (2007) population of 800 individuals is a hypothetical estimate for the purpose of a population viability analysis, rather than field survey data. This is a major deficiency of this Koala Plan of Management.
-Tree felling procedure: this methodology is unlikely to assist the Koala in any great extent, as Koalas are not hollow-dependent fauna. The visual canopy inspection is unlikely to identify more than 50% of Koalas will be identified by a day search. This estimate is based on recent work in SE Queensland by Jon Hanger who found that of several hundred animals fitted with a radiocollar, only half were able to be visually identified within 10 minutes, despite being known to occur in a specific tree.
-Traffic and vehicle strike: in order to minimise vehicle strike, Cabbage Tree Road where the project area adjoins should be fitted with floppy top fencing and roller grids to reduce Koala vehicle strike directly attributable to increased vehicle traffic movements from the project.
-Monitoring program: the proposed monitoring program contains no science and is worthless. Additional information on the proposed methods are required. I would suggest that any Koalas found within the impact area are fitted with a GPS collar for at least one year post clearance and that a 10km x 10km monitoring program, consisting of spotlighting and SAT sites are established for the life of the mine. Where a decline in the local Koala population occurs, that cannot be not attributable to the mine, additional direct or indirect offsets must occur.
-Plan review: ideally the plan should be reviewed by an independent Koala ecologist, external to Umwelt.
Offsetting
No formal offset or offset calculations using the NSW Biobanking calculator have been included. This is a key requirement for any development in NSW and is required before any approval can occur. It is disappointing that details of offsets are not included in the provided documentation.
General impact assessments
Numerous `one liner' comments occur stating that the removal of ~50 ha of habitat is unlikely to result in a significant impact on threatened species. Essentially Umwelt claims that as adjoining habitats occur, the removal of this habitat is unlikely to place the local population at increased risk of extinction. No calculation of the percentage of the amount of the local habitat (i.e. within 5 km) of the study area proposed for removal are provided. Therefore no justification for the one liner comments occur. The Seven Part Tests need to be re-written for all species.
Squirrel Glider
A significant impact is likely to occur on this species and the study area is likely to support an important population. The Seven Part Test contains some unsupported facts, such as the home range size of the species which should be referenced.

My family and I live in Salt Ash, Port Stephens.
We believe that having another sand mine in the Red Zone is ludicrous the environment in which you will be allowing this sand mine to happen is home to our Koalas and other native animals. We deal with enough traffic on our Roads now with out you adding more Heavey vehicles. As a community we have dealt with a number of fires a mini cyclone the water contamination from the RAAF BASE which is yet to be stopped.... when is enough stress enough, in good faith you cannot allow this to happen while ever the PFOS &PFOA is still leaching off the Base. When is our community and it's children going to be put first before the almighty dollar?

I worked for the ACI sandminers at Tanilba Bay for eight years as rehabilitation officer. Never did I see a koala in the dunes we mined. They were only found in the swamp mahogany lowlands.The low nutrient levels in the eucalypts on the dunes meant they could not afford to be browsed and had toxins in the leaves which deterred koalas.
If mining reduces the dune height , koala food trees thrive with the topographical level lower. I doubt that any koalas live in the proposed mining area.

I wish to exspress that i object to more sand mining in Port Stephens area. This area has been subject to enough enviromental damage.
Listed are my points of concern...
1. Why mine contaminated sand and spread the risks more then whats already happened
2. Why destroy a Koala habitat isnt that what poer stephens boasts about.
3. Why put the residents through a higher health risk then what we already have.
4. Why congest our roads that clearly are not coping now with more trucks
5. More trucks causes more road accidents, more sand on surface of roads and why do we have to put up with the damage to our vechiles from loose sand blasting our cars
6. Why doesn't the council listen to port stephens residents.
7. Why is the WH&S ACT 2011 NO 10 being ignored

I used to like living here but lately its become a toxic, ignored waste land the residents have no say in any thing and im ashamed to tell people i live in salt ash. Our roads are dangerous and a mess. And what happened to preserving fauna and flora. The beaches were closed to the public due to damage and polutants but yet it seems ok to put all these sand mines in and polute our drinking water, people have lost business's, people properties devalued, people who rely on their spears points cant use them only tank water. Everyone is arguing over who is gunna pay for some to connected to town water. Its costs families to buy water to drink when it would be cheaper to be connectec to town water. NO MORE SAND MINES fix port stephens and help the people not destroy us more.

I am disgusted this is even being discussed. Port Stephens needs it's Koalas!!!

This application claims that it will provide a maximum of six jobs for an operational period of about 9 years. That provides a very minimal amount of benefit to the region and its residents.
Conversely, the application will destroy a significant amount of flora and fauna habitat for a range of threatened or endangered species. While some of the flora can be replanted, much of the rarer species are unlikely to recover their existing diversity. Nine years of access by mining equipment and support vehicles will disturb the entire site almost continuously. This disruption to nesting, feeding and breeding opportunities will create a major and permanent loss of fauna diversity and decline in numbers of threatened or endangered species that are unlikely to recover in an area that has had significant and major areas of disruption nearby. This is one of the few remaining areas of these types of habitat in the region.
The ecological assessment attached to this application concludes; "It is considered that some sensitive development of the site may be permitted, provided a representative area is permanently conserved as part of any future project". It is simply unbelievable that a sand extraction process can be considered "sensitive development". The application proposes to destroy a large area of preferred koala habitat without significant permanent representative areas being set aside.

The Koalas were here first , so they should be looked after or we"ll lose them forever

I feel the proposed sand mine will have a devastating affect on the ecological systems and to the port stephens environment as a whole.

Please reconsider the placement of the proposed sand mine at Cabbage Tree road.
I believe it poses too many threats to the local community as well as to important koala habitat.
I work in the Salt Ash area and have been living through the recent toxicity worries. It seems unwise to open a Pandora's box and further risk the water table and environment in general.
The port Stephens koala population is a valued and precious recourse both to tourism and biodiversity. It should be properly respected. Koalas are struggling with the weight of progress and need to be given adequate protection as they are alread living in fragmented, sub optimal habitat.
I do not support this proposal and ask for a more balance proposal that respects the environment and the community. .

The area has seen enough destruction through contamination and existing sand mines. We do not need more disturbances to the ground, groundwater as well as the destruction of another koala habitat.

I do not want the sand quarry to go ahead as it will affect the important koala population in this area. The koalas have already come under threat from housing developments, cars, dog attacks, urbanisation, etc and this will sand quarry will be the final blow to their habitat and numbers.

The sand mine will reduce habitat for port Stephens koalas

Our Wildlife Needs protecting! More Koalas, less mines!