MUNDARING
REGION
Mundaring Issues
This section umbrellas issues regarding
developments in The Perth Hills Mundaring region.
More will be added as they come to light. If you feel
an issue or group should be included please contact
us: info@saveperthhills.org
Weir Water Treatment Plant Plan Could Change
The Save Mundaring Village group has rallied support from the community and members of parliament to take another look at building at the DEC site. Building there would have a negative effect on the tourist district: the Weir Campground, Discover Centre, Kookaburra Theatre, Weir picnic areas, B&B's, the Weir Hotel, the Lavender Patch, etc.
The popular alternative is a site near Firewood Rd, formerly known as the "O'Connor Site". Frank Alban MLA has stated if the Greens, Mundaring Shire, Save Perth Hills and the Eastern Hills Ratepayers Groups can agree on the alternate site, he will take it to the Minister.
Mundaring Shire chose the Firewood Rd.site in the original consultation. Alison Xamon MLC has stated she would be open to the whole process being revisited. Save Perth Hills agrees, pending engineering, environmental and Aboriginal reviews on the Firewood Rd. site, it could go to a quick round of community meetings before a final decision is acted upon.
Since the original approval in 2008, two major additions have been made to the plant: a Western Power substation to power it, and the relocation with in the site of the DEC forest management facility. These alone should trigger the reopening of the process.
The positives for the Firewood Rd. site are: Western Power already seems to be leaning toward building the substation on the Firewood Rd site, since for various reasons they can't build on the DEC site. DEC Forest Management wouldn't have to be relocated. It would be easier and cheaper to build a water plant on the Firewood Rd site as it is flatter and immediately next to the existing pipeline; on the DEC site is quite steep necessitating much cutting and filling, and the pipeline would have to be re-routed through Jacoby Park and across Weir Rd.
Time is of the essence, construction on the DEC site could begin in May. The plant will be there for at least 50 years, we could take a little extra time to make sure it is in the best place.
Lifting the Urban Deferrment Status for Developments
Save Perth Hills Scores a WIN!
1st August 2009
The WA Planning Commission has turned down the Request For Lifting Urban Deferred Zone for the controversial Stoneville and Parkerville developments in the Shire of Mundaring.
The Request was based upon a report written by engineering firm Cardno BSD. The report, kept secret from the public, outlined several options for the solving the sewage disposal problems that have held back these developments for two decades. The Request to Lift was submitted by the developers to the WAPC in September, 2008.
The developers then sought support for the plan by the Shire of Mundaring Council at the Sept. 2008 Council Meeting. The 500 page report was delivered to the councillors the night before the vote. 150 members of the community attended that meeting, opposing the developments as unsustainable and inappropriate for the rural area. The Council voted 8-3 in favour of supporting the Request to Lift based on the report.
Though the report was presented at a Shire meeting and was the sole basis for the Request to Lift Urban Deferment, its contents were kept secret from the public. The developers, Cardno BSD and the Shire refused to let anyone other than the councillors and staff officers read it. Cardno BSD cited ?copyright? as the reason.
Save Perth Hills began a six-month Freedom of Information action, and gained inspection of the Report in May 2009. After a lengthy inspection with an environmental engineer and a hydro-geologist, a submission was written and sent to the WAPC last month.
Water Corp has since decided it would not support the sewage plan as presented, so the developments will remain Urban-Deferred.
What was in the Cardno Report?
1st August 2009
Very little. It was heavy on platitudes, light on plans. It was a bit of a disappointment, really, after the 6 month FOI action, we expected better. The sewage plant was not new, it was an off-the shelf technology, certainly nothing proprietary to Cardno BSD; and the data was inaccurate and incomplete
The proposed plant would have put out 1900 kilolitres of effluent each day. It called for irrigating 150 ha of open space during the dry months, and storing 480 mega litres during the wet months. The sheer weight of that much water sitting on the water table would have caused springs to flow out of the ground all over in the vicinity. When the storage dam reached capacity, the overflow was to be discharged into Christmas Tree Creek and then into Jane Brook.
What was most interesting was the location of the sewage plant. The Midland Brick Quarry on Toodyay Rd. was the prime candidate, as the other four sites listed had been knocked back for various reasons.
The report was misleading as the data was skewed to show a better result than could be expected. Background levels of minerals and metals in existing streams were ignored, as if there was a ?0? background level in the water the effluent is being discharged into, yet according to another part of the report, the level of phosphorous in the native streams was already 4 times normal. The report touted ?tertiary treatment? of the effluent, though the plant, as described in the report, would produce only secondary treatment.
Water Corp saw through the plan and knocked it back. But that doesn't mean it won't be back. This was the third fight to stop these developments, it is only a matter of time before the next one begins.
Mundaring Shire Council votes to limit information
At the May Council meeting the Shire Council voted to limit information given to it's own councillors. The matter was brought forth by the CEO. The final decision on who sees what information now rests with the CEO. If there is a disagreement, the Shire president will decide. If there is further disagreement, a majority vote in a closed door session of the Council will decide.
Would this compromise the freedom for all members of the council to see documents, minutes, plans, etc.? Does this change the fundamental system of government away from a democracy? Does this violate State Freedom of Information laws? This motion was proposed and passed without legal advice.
The document, "Access By Council And Committee Members to Information", was copied from one the City of Joondalup drafted and adopted. The full document is available on the Shire website under "Council minutes and agendas, ordinary council meeting May 26, 2009."
Parkerville
Development Block Layout
The 900+ block layout as approved
by Mundaring Shire and sent to WAPC 2008.
Erosion
at Parkerville Development
Erosion is becoming evident as the first houses are being
built in the outer ring (2 ha. blocks) at Parkerville
Highlands development. If the Shire and WAPC lift the
deferment, 900 more homes will be built on much smaller
blocks (down to 300 sq. metres). On smaller blocks all
trees can be cleared. The development is directly above
John Forrest National Park. The proposed Stoneville development
(1700 homes) is in a similar situation directly upstream
from Parkerville Highlands. All stormwater runoff, along
with pesticides, herbicides and fertilisers, will flow
through the National Park into Jane Brook and eventually
the Swan River.
Sewage
Plant Expansion Could Start Massive Development
Water Corp wants to expand the Mundaring sewage plant
by 2012. The plant has been irrigating the local oval
and 2 primary school grounds with excess treated water
in summer, and "temporarily" dumping into Jarrah
Creek each winter for 11 years. Now they want to double
the plant's capacity. They are floating 4 plans to deal
with the excess water. Read
more
The Other Side: A Pro
Development Argument
The following letter appeared
in the October 18 Hills Gazette. It was written by
Peter Carter, who neglected to add that he was a Mundaring
Shire Councillor when the developments were first proposed.
Mr. Carter criticizes the alternative to the land in question
being "broken into 2 ha "farmlets". Instead
he apparently proposes they be broken into 800 sq. metre
suburban blocks, 2700 of them . A 2700 home suburb 10
kms out in the bush is not a "small development".
The cost of providing infrastructure will far outweigh
the benefits, and that's not taking into account the social
and environmental questions. We aren't against all development,
but it should be appropriate and sustainable. We don't
pretend to represent all the residents in the Hills, just
most of them. Read
the letter
Water
Corp Disregards Recommendations for the Mundaring Drinking Water Plant
At a special meeting in Mundaring, Water Corp went against
two years of community consultation and announced they would put the drinking
water treatment plant on the CALM—now DEC—Ranger Station site next to
the Discovery Centre. Water Corp engineers explained that they chose the site
as being cheaper than the old pine plantation behind the Weir, which was recommended
by community consultation groups and Mundaring Shire.
The plant will include a huge storage tank the size of a multi-story office building
that will be visible from Weir Road, tanks of toxic chlorine, and acres of pipes
and filters. Trucks will be coming and going, and lights and machinery will run
24 hours a day. The noise and smell will affect the area, including the Weir Campground,
Kookaburra Theatre and Lavender Patch B&B.
The historic timber village
and buildings are to be moved. The Historic Society claims relocated buildings
are compromised as historic records. The DEC ranger station will be relocated—possibly
to Greenmount—which is unfortunate as where it was centrally located as a
bush fire coordinating station.
The water is supposed to be for
Kalgoorlie and the Gold Fields, but can also be used
for new suburban developments in the Perth Hills, such
as those planned in Parkerville, Stoneville and Gidgegannup.
Parkerville Stoneville
