2 December 2017
BARNESON BOULEVARD
MEDIA RELEASE – Still waiting?
One Mile Dam spokesperson, Mindy Timber, told the People’s Forum this week that no one from the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Logistics (DIPL) had consulted with anyone at One Mile Dam about the proposed Barneson Boulevard project which will run 50 metres from the boundary of their homes.
The People’s Forum was an open public forum held in Darwin on Thursday 30 November and hosted by community group STOP Barneson Boulevard.
Mindy Timber and ten other residents of One Mile Dam attended the forum seeking certainty. DIPL had previously committed to consult with residents about the impact of opening up the seriously degraded land adjacent to One Mile Dam, but Mindy Timber confirmed that consultation with One Mile Dam residents had not occurred.
STOP Barneson Boulevard spokesperson, Nick Kirlew, explained that there is very little information in the public domain as to the plans of DIPL and the Northern Territory Government. He said this omission seems to be part of a trend in this project of misinformation and broken promises.
Promises such as:
There is no contamination on the route of the road – DIPL has gone back to soil testing and Darwin City Council are now waiting to hear the truth before they consider the previous Council’s endorsement of the project.
There will be no impact on Frog Hollow – DIPL now states that only 85% of Frog Hollow will be preserved.
No trees will be harmed in Frog Hollow - DIPL has now ear-marked 50 trees in Frog Hollow for destruction and has promised to plant 200 trees as part of the entire project but that is well short of the 2000 plus trees this project will destroy in total.
A well-planned green cool city – residents who attended the people’s forum were amazed to hear that there are at least 10 planning proposals currently in process, demonstrating a broken and fragmented planning system.
Mr Kirlew went on to say that Minister Nicole Manison’s pronouncement that “Barneson Boulevard [is] another opportunity to demonstrate to the community this Government’s commitment to delivering a benchmark, green infrastructure project” flies in the face of all the available evidence including Chief Minister Gunner’s recent statement that Cavenagh Street is “a river of fire”. To the citizens of Darwin it is clear that cutting down large, established shade trees in the CBD and laying bitumen is not the way to create a cool, green city.
Spokesperson Nick Kirlew advised that the population of various towns and cities around the world are engaging in legal process against government-sanctioned projects that pollute farms and waterways.
He said “The Barneson Boulevard project poses an unacceptable risk to residents and the harbour. We’ve been told that the mangrove trees near One Mile Dam currently provide a filtering system for the run off from the old Shell tank farm. Once they are removed to make way for Barneson Boulevard the pollution will flow straight into the Duck Pond and the harbour. The project should be abandoned and negotiations should begin to reallocate the federal funding to complete and enhance existing bike paths, city gateways and traffic measures.”
Finally Mr Kirlew pointed out that both Lord Mayor Kon Vaskalis and Chief Minister Michael Gunner had been openly opposed to this project destroying the future of the Frog Hollow precinct prior to their respective elections.
STOP Barneson Boulevard
Web: froghollowdarwin.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/STOPBarnesonBoulevard/
Media contacts:
Nick Kirlew 0447 499 794
Penni Tastula 0417 893 288