Bolwarra wetland developments has Greens' Brown seeing red

As a member of the hard-working Bolwarra Landcare team of the ’90s, Mr Brown oversaw the transformation of the suburb’s wetlands from a former sewerage treatment pool into a thickly-wooded, idyllic reserve brimming with wildlife. 

But development over the last 12 months has seen swathes of the trees removed, as well as fencing erected almost down to the water’s edge.

Pontoons have also been dropped into the water and footpaths through the bush have been removed as housing development backs onto the reserve. 

Adding to the prominent Maitland Greens party member’s frustration is that much of the development appears to go against Maitland City Council’s initial attitudes to development around the wetlands.

A June 2010 report by council’s then-town planner, Josh Ford, found that potential development around the reserve “would not be in the community’s interest”. 

The report, which explored amending the Maitland local environmental plan to investigate development opportunities around Bolwarra, outlined council’s assistance in regenerating the site.

This included overseeing the construction of pathways, vegetation regeneration and installation of seating, predominantly funded by Landcare and government grants.

A further report five months later about rezoning the site from special uses and environmental protection zones to residential and environmental protection zones was “unlikely” to have any detrimental impacts on biodiversity at the site. The report states that council wished to “safeguard natural assets” at the site. 

That’s not what Mr Brown says he has witnessed over the last 12 months. 

“Why didn’t they protect their own community and money they had spent?” Mr Brown said.  “The major part is that council has ignored their own work and own money, rather than support the community.” 

When contacted in July 2017 with concerns over vegetation clearing at the site, council’s manager of development and environment David Simm told the Mercury that sections on the land had environmental zoning. 

This allowed for residential development, which in turn required a management practice that protects against bushfires.

Mr Simm added that the onus was on “private owners" to protect vegetation.  

“In terms of the environmental benefits, the zoning has been used to protect the majority of vegetation by private owners, who have the ability to develop part of the land for residential purposes,” he said. 

Council has been contacted for an updated response.