ROBYN MCNICOL: Spectacular Arm End, slated for a golf course development, is being overtaken by boxthorn weed while lease information is withheld
THE announcement by the State Government that it would not release the contents of leases over reserved land comes as no surprise to Re Imagine the End (RITE).
We made a RTI request last August about the lease over Arm End Nature Recreation Reserve by the developers of a long delayed golf course and were told no information would be provided. The golf course project remains at the development permit stage and has not progressed since 2015.
We simply wanted to know the area of land the lease applied to, what land management responsibilities the leaseholder had, in particular with regard to controlling weeds, and what, if any, action would be taken if land management responsibilities were not met.
We urged the Government to remove personal and commercial-in-confidence information.
The State Government refused to release any information about the Arm End lease.
We do not know whether the leaseholder is responsible for controlling weeds and therefore cannot know if they are contravening their legal requirements.
This is a very big deal for Arm End. The spectacular Arm End reserve is being taken over by the vicious thorny weed, boxthorn which is an invasive weed of national significance that comes from Africa. Since getting a lease in 2014 the proponent has not started work on the proposed golf course and has allowed boxthorn to spread across the reserve. Urgent action is required.
In the northern part of the reserve, boxthorn now forms a near continuous thicket from Mary Ann Bay to Ralphs Bay. Some tracks are now unsafe to walk on and dogs should definitely avoid them. We have had reports of cyclists puncturing tyres on the boxthorn. Every year the boxthorn is left unchecked it will become more difficult and costly to control. The thousands of boxthorn plants are beyond the capacity of dedicated Coastcare volunteers.
The Arm End Reserve was created in 2011 after being purchased in the 1995 by the Crown (using your taxes).
Arm End is rich in Aboriginal heritage. Arm End attracts a growing number of people, including locals, Hobart residents and tourists, to enjoy the magnificent views and to go walking, dog walking, cycling, swimming and picnicking. Boxthorn is threatening all of this while no progress regarding the golf course is made. Other issues plague this development, particularly the plan to irrigate with recycled water. The developer is yet to clearly address how they will solve restricted public access to the reserve due to the proposed use of class B water. The permit for Class B water will restrict public access however this is in conflict with a development permit for a golf course that conditions there be no restriction to public access.
Re Imagine the End wants action to prevent this beautiful reserve becoming neglected and has taken the courageous step to launch a petition to the Tasmanian Parliament to get basic reserve management done at Arm End Reserve.
We really need your help to save our reserve from boxthorn. We call on all Tasmanians enrolled to vote to sign the boxthorn petition at https://www.rite.org.au/act-now-petition
We have resorted to petitioning the Parliament because the leaseholder, Mary Ann’s Island Pty Ltd and the Parks and Wildlife Service fails to take responsibility for stopping the spread of boxthorn. The secrecy means that everyone can evade responsibility. When we get to our petition target we will ask for the petition to be tabled in the House of Assembly.
Much of the coastline is recovering native vegetation like this.
Mary Ann’s Island Pty Ltd obtained approval for a golf course at Arm End in 2013 and received a lease from the PWS in 2014. For the first four years the leaseholder did absolutely no weed control. After determined lobbying by Coastcare in 2017-1208 (who have removed boneseed from the reserve and continue to) the leaseholder finally took limited action, spraying localised weeds including gorse, broom and serrated tussock. But only a token effort has been made to control boxthorn, the biggest weed threat. A handful of plants were cut down and left on site and some are now a hazard on the beaches. Some were sprayed and are now flourishing.
Recently, residents observed contractors spraying serrated tussock, broom and other weeds at Arm End. The contractor confirmed they were not controlling boxthorn.
The petitioners call on Parks and Wildlife Service Minister Peter Gutwein to take action by instructing the PWS to immediately commence boxthorn removal with the aim of having all younger plants removed by the end of June 2020 and by June start implementing a control plan for all mature boxthorn while ensuring that removal does not negatively impact little penguin or cause erosion.
While we really want to stop this horrible weed taking over our beautiful reserve, there are other reasons to be concerned.
If we do not act, then the same problem may occur in other reserves. There seems to be nothing stopping a leaseholder having a lease over reserved land and not making progress with its development for many years while ignoring its management responsibilities.
The secrecy protects them, yet does nothing to promote and conserve the reserve and is painful for the community to stand by and watch ongoing neglect of this important headland.
Why does the developer and the PWS evade responsibility for managing a reserve?
One guess is that the lease only requires the developer to undertake large-scale weed control as a part of the golf course development.
Until the developer obtains the required investment, submits a building permit and starts work then no one is responsible for weed control.
Does the lease require the proponent to control boxthorn but the PWS deliberately ignores this because the lease is kept secret from the community? Either way, the environment and community loses out.
Robyn McNicol is spokeswoman for Re Imagine the End.