THE City of Melville has voted to clear 6800 square metres of native bushland to expand John Connell Reserve’s playing fields, but questions have been raised about its proposed offsets.
In a heated debate on Tuesday night, councillors supported Leeming Cricket Club’s request to make space for a new pitch at the reserve, despite a 600-strong petition opposing the clearing.
The club said increasing junior and senior membership, limited ground availability, and the need for safer, higher-quality surfaces were key reasons behind the push for expansion.
The plan also formed part of an election commitment made in 2022 by federal Tangney MP Sam Lim.
However, last October a petition signed by 276 residents and 38 non-residents asked the City of Melville not to remove the mature trees over concerns about vegetation, endangered Carnaby’s black cockatoos, and the City’s canopy cover.
Councillor Jennifer Spanbroek said the move would be a “net environmental gain”.
• Friends of Ken Hurst Park stalwart Eddie Wajon fears the local extinction of grand spider orchids. File photo
“Let’s be clear here; we are not looking at removing part of the Amazon forest nor the Queensland’s Daintree forest,” Cr Spanbroek said.
“This land has been identified by Landgate for recreational use since the 1970s… and there has been no identified threatened ecological communities.
“The offset area for revegetation is almost 11 times greater than the area to be cleared.”
But Friends of Ken Hurst Park president Eddie Wajon raised concerns about the difficulties of replanting and keeping them alive.
He said he aimed “not necessarily to make a case one way or the other… but to alert all elected members to the issues associated with the alternatives”.
Dr Wajon said the area to be cleared contained “a large number of Banksia trees… very much used by Carnaby’s cockatoos”, warning they were “necessary for the continued existence” of the species locally.
He also flagged orchids “within 20 to 50 metres of the projected clearing area… at definite risk of being extirpated”, noting “the number of orchids potentially affected is 20”.
He said Friends of Ken Hurst Park’s efforts over two decades had seen plant survival rates “between zero… to 30 per cent”, adding “we are nowhere near” the 70 per cent replantation target flagged in the council’s offsets.
Attadale resident Katie Burns said there was a big rise in demand for community sport facilities which wasn’t “sufficiently met in the city”.
She said cricket wasn’t one of the sports in high demand.
“Basketball, soccer and netball are all missing facilities in the area,” Ms Burns said.
“I think one application from one club to apply of an extension shouldn’t decide how the council spends its money.”
by ISLA TOMLINSON