IF I want to build a tool shed or composting toilet on my property I must seek a development application from Bathurst Regional Council.
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It is likely to be presented to my neighbours if, in any way, it may impact on their lives.
So, it is rather surprising that council has seen fit to approve an application for a granite quarry at Rock Forest, at the end of Arrow Lane, very close to the Macquarie River.
Council has not gone through due process, nor have the neighbours been advised.
It granted approval on August 1 and notification of approval was published in the Weekend Advocate on August 11 the first any of us knew about the application. The reason for not notifying is given as "because of the small scale nature of the development".
Let us be specific about that scale.
The development covers two hectares. It is approved to run weekdays from 7am to 6pm "as long as the granite lasts". It allows 10 truck movements a day.
On Saturdays, the hours are 8am-4pm.
A couple of hundred yards down the river live a colony of platypus. Their burrows run well into the river banks. We have seen no environmental impact studies for the platypus, or for the other abundant wildlife of the area.
Why do I feel so completely betrayed?
Dr Carole Hungerford, Rock Forest.