When Joni Mitchell sang about paving paradise and losing what you’ve got, she could have been singing about Bribie Island. Our Island Paradise is being lost bit by bit through the thoughtless efforts of developers and various levels of governments. It’s difficult to say who is the worst offender.
We don’t normally expect much in the way of environmental considerations from developers and that is certainly the pattern on Bribie. But we expect some consideration from our various levels of government. Sadly, they are the worst offenders. MBRC (or now Moreton Bay City Council) routinely approves non-compliant Development Applications and shows little consideration for the environment. The recent approval of a helicopter landing area adjacent to a Marine Park and in the middle of a migratory bird flyway is an example. Material provided recently to a community group through a RTI request regarding a DA on South Esplanade suggests that MBRC staff were more focused on advising that Applicant on ways to avoid the MBRC Master Plan provisions rather than advising on how to comply.
But the worst offender, without doubt, is the Department of Environment which is supposed to have the responsibility of preserving the environment. It lifted the Vegetation Overlay (which is supposed to give the highest level of protection to vegetation) on the Sandstone Point Tavern site enabling that development to proceed. It lifted the Overlay on the Churches of Christ housing development at the corner of Goodwin and Cotterill enabling that development to proceed. And it lifted the Overlay on the “hospital” site at the corner of First and Goodwin allowing that development to proceed. The Department also employed some dubious reporting to get around the EPBC protections for fauna and flora on that former wetlands site.
The latest irresponsible decision is the approval by MBCC of a non-compliant DA by the Baptist Church to pave over over a greenfields site adjacent to National Park areas on First Avenue. MBCC ignored its own stated policy of buying back greenfield’s sites to prevent inappropriate development and/or non-compliant DA’s and gave unanimous approval to the DA.
MyBribieIsland has tried to capture all this in our song… “Paving our Bribie Island Paradise”. MBI challenges musicians out there to put this song to music and post the results.
Editor, MyBribieIsland
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Paving our Bribie Island Paradise
They paved paradise
To put up parking lots
With a hospital, heliport and a swinging hot spot
Don’t it always seem to go
You don’t know what you’ve got till its gone
They paved paradise to put up parking lots
They’ve taken all the trees
Brought in a chipper and chipped ‘em
And are charging all the people an arm and a leg just to use them
Don’t it always seem to go
You don’t know what you’ve got till its gone
They paved paradise to put up parking lots
Just last month
We all heard a big kabaam
And Council threw away all of its Master Plan
Don’t it always seem to go
You don’t know what you’ve got till its gone
They want to pave paradise and put up a Baptist church
Hey my Council
Follow your Master Plan now !!!!!!
Give me potholes and leaves but leave me the birds and the bees please
Don’t it always seem to go
You don’t know what you’ve got till its gone
They want to pave paradise and put up a Baptist church
They want to pave paradise and put up a Baptist Church
