Media release - 16th October 2013
To the residents of the Cassowary Coast Region,  tourists and all those who value Queensland's biodiversity: join us in opposing the Newman Government's predation of National Parks and the rush to convert priceless wildlife reserves into lifeless cash.

Queensland has a miniscule percentage (4.8%) of land historically protected   as national park, less than any other state. Nevertheless, the State government intends to sacrifice even this last tiny bastion of nature protection, our state's last public good, on the altar of profit-taking.

Previous signs describing the Coquette Point Foreshore and Wetlands as part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage were vandalised.  I hope all people visiting the foreshore area now will learn how special this place is and realise the intrinsic value of 'this home for birds'.

Three generations of the Epong family belonging to the Mandaburra clan, right to left, Henry, Nellie, James and in the front Michael-John were delighted to inspect the new Coquette Point signs, before going for a walk on the foreshore to see which migratory shore birds had arrived.

The wind was blowing very strongly and a sandstorm occurred as we walked around the low side of the rookery.

 In the lee of the dune three pelicans and a darter were sheltering from the  wind.

Proposed changes to the Nature Conservation Act  will turn the Act,  like the Vegetation Management Act, on its head.

You can read a draft submission prepared by ASH here ASH DRAFT SUB NCA&OLA Bill (No. 2) 09 Sep 2013




The following is a summary of the changes. 

Read the latest news from the southern region of the Cassowary Coast in the August edition of Phoenix published by ASH.

On July 24th the Cairns Post published an article claiming that Hinchinbrook Shire Council Mayor Rodger Bow was in favour of shifting the shire boundaries to include "Port Hinchinbrook"  in Hinchinbrook Shire.  

MEDIA RELEASE   19 July  2013
 Alliance to Save Hinchinbrook Inc.
OPEN LETTER IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST 

Port Hinchinbrook Services is in provisional liquidation. Williams
Corporation, the development company, is under voluntary administration.  Previous developers Tekin Australia (Resort Village Cardwell) were also wound up, in 1990. 

So what's the problem?
The short story is that "Port Hinchinbrook's" waterways cannot be kept 
navigable by dredging, because of an unchangeable characteristic of the
Hinchinbrook Channel coast: "severe siltation".

This problem is inherent in the site; it is not caused by cyclones.

A stand of  trees that were almost forming a canopy over the road at the entrance to Bingil Bay has been totally removed and replaced with matting to control a long time problem of erosion.

It is very disappointing the Council has not responded to the many concerns voiced by the community about the strategy being used to manage the slip areas on the steep road banks on Alexander Drive.

Despite concerns being brought to three councillors attention, ten days before, the destruction of seemingly healthy vegetation has proceeded. 

There has been a long history of sewage treatment non-compliance by the developer of "Port Hinchinbrook".

Prior to this recent episode, the developer had already been breached and fined several times for non-compliance.  Until QDEH has laboratory test results (due this week) that would comprise "legal" evidence that raw sewage has been discharged into the marina, it can do no more. 

This latest episode has occurred at a time when a "normalisation" scheme (contents not public) is being proposed by Andrew Cripps (MP Member for Hinchinbrook and Minister for Natural Resources and Mines) and Queensland's Coordinator-General. 

MEDIA RELEASE 07 August 2012
Alliance to Save Hinchinbrook Inc.

Cassowary Coast Regional Council (CCRC) has made clear and strong responses to an attempt to have a new and different “Port Hinchinbrook Stage II” development proposal accepted as a mere “change” to a Development Application first lodged in 2008.

In 2009, state government departments advised the CCRC that an earlier “changed” version should be refused.

Nevertheless, the CCRC continued to grant the developer extensions of time to the present day, allowing the Application to remain “alive” under old legislation, the Integrated Planning Act. Otherwise, as a new Application, this battle-axe subdivision proposal would have to be assessed under the Sustainable Planning Act 2009 and the FNQ 2009-2031 Regional Plan, which allow no urban development south of the present “Port Hinchinbrook”.