A ‘loophole’ has left hundreds of vulnerable flying foxes at risk after a colony moved into an East Maitland property which is due to be cleared.
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Further complicating the situation is that the camp moved in after a development application to clear the land was already approved.
The application to clear land and demolish a dwelling at 58 David Avenue, submitted by Anglican Care, was accepted by Maitland Council in November 2016, before the colony of grey-headed flying foxes moved in.
The arrival of the bats after the application has left it unclear what happens next, with Maitland Council and the Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) each saying it’s the other organisation’s primary responsibility.
With work currently underway at the site, Judith Hopper from the Bat Support Group said “a potential disaster” was brewing for the species.
“It’s a massive oversight in the legislation,” the head of the bat advocacy group said.
Ms Hopper said a large portion of the bats were pregnant or had young.
She fears the destruction of the trees, loud machinery and on-going noise is disturbing the bats and frightening heavily pregnant females and those with new born babies into the air.
Ms Hopper said “luckily it hasn’t been too hot”, stating that added heat stress could result in hundreds of the bats dying.
If it was a green and golden bell frog, work would be frozen immediately
- Judith Hopper, Bat Support Group
However, she fears about what will happen next with work continuing at the site.
“If it was a green and golden bell frog, work would be frozen immediately,” she said.
“It’s a potential disaster for the species.”
Council’s manager of development and environment, David Simm, said council had been liasing with the OEH on how to deal with the situation and others like it in the future.
Mr Simm said the law sits with the OEH firstly and then council and the landowner in terms of managing both the flying fox camp and human involvement.
However, when contacted, an OEH spokesperson said the department doesn’t have a role in this matter as the developer has a valid development consent from council.
Mr Simm said the DA was properly assessed and approved before the flying foxes arrived.
One of the stipulations of consent was that a qualified, experienced wildlife spotter-catcher attend the site during clearing to check for any nests and to relocate and rescue any displaced fauna.
With clearing set to continue at the site, Ms Hopper said the development loophole has her fearing the worst for the bat camp.
“If we lose this species we lose our forests,” she said.
“It’s a loophole threatening a species which has already suffered heavy losses in the last 12 months.”
