Koala concerns for Elanora site

A MAJOR new housing development on the Gold Coast is facing fierce opposition with residents claiming the proposal will strangle local traffic and see “prime” koala habitat destroyed.

More than 100 submissions have been made in the past week to council about the Elanora development, with the overwhelming number of them being objections.

Residents say there is no infrastructure in place to support the Guineas Creek Rd development and that the area is well known for its wildlife, particularly koalas.

Last week, a sick koala was found along a bush track in Coomera, a well known former habitat for koalas before much of the area was developed.

But an ecological assessment commissioned by the developer, Ritz Group, found just one koala and that the 109,200sqm site was an “unlikely habitat for many species”.

Ritz Group has been contacted for comment.

The group, which delivers “small boutique house and land packages” across southeast Queensland and northern NSW, proposes a 96-multiple dwelling development to be called Ellandra.

The site would be divided into two residential precincts bordered by koala exclusion fences, with the four-bedroom buildings two or three storeys high.

The site also sits on land designated for priority species under the City Plan.

But in an ecological assessment by the group, “no significant flora” was found and one koala was identified as using the site in its home range.

Documents provided to council in last year say the site is an “unlikely habitat for many species”.

The development also “proposes to positively contribute to the movement of koalas within the locality by installing koala crossing signage to encourage vehicles to slow down and be more aware of fauna movement in the Elanora area”.

However, Gecko Environment Council campaign coordinator Lois Levy slammed the proposal, arguing the land should have been bought by the council years ago under the koala habitat buyback plan.

“We are very concerned because it’s on the last large piece of land with good quality habitat for koalas. They’re seen in there quite regularly,” Ms Levy said.

“It is a continuous site, it’s not broken into smaller pieces. If it goes ahead … there will be very little habitat left. It will push them to the roads.

“It’s just the fact that koalas are being annihilated by rapid development growth and the three levels of government are doing absolutely nothing.

“Unless we do something, within five years they will be extinct (on the Gold Coast).”

Guineas Creek Rd was named a hotspot for koala strikes earlier this year.

Councillor Daphne McDonald said she had received multiple complaints about the proposal, with residents flagging the dwindling koala population as well as an increase in traffic along the bottom of the development as major concerns.

She said she was yet to meet with officers about the proposal.