ARE YOU FUR REAL

Pet cats banned from planned mini-city to protect native fauna

FUR is flying on the Tweed as a developer squares off with the NSW Government over a ban on cats. The Government wants to protect native wildlife from the expert hunters but the claws are out, even though a somewhat bizarre compromise was offered.

DEVELOPER giant Leda believes the NSW Government is kitten itself if it insists on a “claws” banning cats from a $3 billion estate on the Queensland border.

So much so it wants to enforce a rule where residents of its would-be 13,000-population town would have to put leashes on their feline friends if they were to go outside.

The NSW Government has approved Leda building 5500 homes at Cobaki, southwest of the Gold Coast Airport, but residents would not be able to own cats because of fears about vulnerable wildlife.

While dogs will be allowed, the Government is concerned cats would particularly target the long nosed potoroo, an endangered rat-kangaroo species found within Cobaki Lakes and Tweed Heads West.

If enforced, Leda would lose cat owners as potential investors into the estate which will be the size of Murwillumbah with two schools, a retail precinct and free-standing homes.

Leda, owned by billionaire Bob Ell, is taking the Government to the Land and Environment Court, but in the meantime has offered a peace deal where cats should be allowed providing they are restrained when outside.

“In an attempt to reach an agreement, (Leda) is willing to discuss an alternative to the proposed condition sought in the modification request,” the developer wrote to the Department of Planning last week.

“Any cat that resides at the residential allotment is to be desexed before four months of age.

“Any cat that resides at the residential allotment is to be kept wholly within the residential allotment of the cat’s owner at all times (except when being transported), in a cat carrier or with a cat leash.

“Other than when being transported from the allotment – any cat is to be kept either: indoors, or outdoors in a secure cat enclosure or under human control on a cat leash.”

However, the proposal has not gone down well with cat lovers.

“It is discriminating against cats when dogs are allowed to live there,” said NSW Cat Fanciers Association president Joanne Greentree. “Dogs can do just as much damage as cats. I can’t understand the reasoning behind it.”

A NSW Department of Planning and Environment spokeswoman said cat bans had been imposed on other residential subdivisions near environmentally sensitive areas.

“The prohibition on cat ownership at Cobaki was originally put forward by the proponent in response to concerns raised about the potential environmental impacts of the proposal,” the spokeswoman said.

Leda regional manager Reg van Rij yesterday urged the Government to forget previous arguments about the project and allow cats into the township.

However, Tweed Mayor Katie Milne said “if this ban was removed many of the plans would have to be revisited”.

“The numerous modifications to the original approval cause an enormous amount of work for the approval authorities and are a significant drain on council resources to respond.”