Whale Nursery not Industrial Zone

doesnt look industrial to me

Tassal are back. They need new areas zoned industrial on Tassie’s east coast to carry out their Okehampton Bay plans. They want to change the law so these pristine waters -- currently classified environmental management -- are open for industrial development.

Take action now: make a submission to local council now and help stop intensive salmon farming in key recreational fishing spots and migratory routes for endangered Southern Right Whales. Use the below form to make a submission -- simply send it as it is or change the text to reflect your specific concerns.

I'm writing to make a submission about Tassal and Spring Bay Seafoods Development Application.

Please don't approve a rezoning at Spring Bay that will turn 'open space' and 'environmental management' zones into 'industrial' zones for 'resource development' use.

This is calving habitat for the endangered southern right whale. Construction and maintenance of an industrial wharf and the associated increase in boat traffic will interfere with priorities identified in the Commonwealth Government’s Conservation Management Plan for the species – which is to re-establish numbers in traditional breeding grounds on the east coast. Tassal and Spring Bay Seafood's proposal fails to address these priorities.

The only remedy they propose is "allowing mobile mammals to remove themselves" (page 40). This states, rather than addresses the risk to the species - habitat loss and noise interference. The proposal also fails to consider the acoustic threats from construction, acknowledging that noise from piling activities can travel 10 kilometres, but only recommending an observation radius of 2 kilometers. There is absolutely no consideration of ongoing noise interference post construction, resulting from infrastructure use.

Unbelievably, the proposal states no whales were seen during the field survey. But the field survey took place in September, OUTSIDE of whale season - the seasonal occurrence of the species in the area shows that most whales are observed between June and August.

In addition to this, the proposal completely fails to consider the impacts of groyne construction on erosion of the adjacent beach. There is no consideration whatsoever of the impacts on maintenance dredging, from the perspective of noise, or the risks of resuspension of toxic dinoflagellate cysts.

There is no way Council and the Commission can approve this application with so little information on the likely impacts of the rezoning. New field surveys need to be conducted in whale season. Acoustic studies and boat traffic modelling needs to be conducted for construction and operation and maintenance phases. Full studies of the impact of groyne construction on water movement and bank erosion need to be presented to the public.

Extending industrial zoning in this area conflicts with public use and growing tourism uses. Please reject this rezoning to protect endangered species, competing business uses and public enjoyment of our coast.

I would like to BCC myself

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Katrina Baillie followed this page 2017-06-23 13:21:02 +1000
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