The 120 million year old Daintree Rainforest is on the brink of being saved from over-development. You can do something to help right now.

Douglas Shire Council wants to control development of freehold subdivisions in the heart of the Daintree rainforest. Four out of seven councillors support a proposed town planning scheme that limits residential development, but three do not. Subdivision owners say they want the freedom to develop land that they own.

The councillors who support the ban are under extreme political pressure to drop their proposal. Dropping the ban would allow unrestricted development in the heart of the World Heritage-listed rainforest.

Development control in Douglas Shire needs your support before 3 September 2004. WPSQ would like YOU to write and support the proposed ban on development in the World Heritage rainforest.

What you can do today

Write and support the Douglas Shire Council's Daintree Town Planning Scheme. Contact the DSC before it votes on its proposed town planning scheme on 3 September 2004.

Some contact options are better than others. In order of impact:

1. Write a signed letter.
2. Fax a signed letter.
3. Email your support

Why write?

• Support the temporary ban on development. The DSC put a Temporary Local Planning Instrument (TLPI) in place to stop residential development proposals flood in during the consultation phase in case the new plan was passed. Dissenting councillors have announced that they may ask DSC to reconsider the TPLI after 3 September. Any letters supporting the TPLI will inform DSC's decision on whether to keep the temporary ban in place. You can use the pre-prepared letter.
• Submissions. The consultation phase for the proposed town plan closes on 3 September 2004. If you want to make a formal submission, you must do it before then. The future of the plan will depend on submissions made.

The councillors who back the proposed town plan need to know you support them. They need to be able to demonstrate that support from letters, faxes and emails.

The issues in the Daintree

International recognition: This is where the rainforest meets the reef. The Daintree contains two sites listed by the IUCN as World Heritage status: the Wet Tropics of Far North Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef. These are areas of extraordinary biodiversity: the rainforest has the highest number of endemic primitive plants in the world.

National importance: What happens in the rainforest affects the reef. Daintree rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef are important to Australia's interests. Our national biodiversity and our tourism industry are at risk if this area is damaged. Run off from development and residential waste will affect the reef.

Development impacts: Subdivision and development need infrastructure. Pressure from residential development increases demand for water supply, waste treatment, road building, increased ferry capacity and/or a bridge over the Daintree River.

Urbanisation affects wildlife: Wildlife extinction, weed and disease invasion and habitat loss are caused by increased residential development.

Douglas Shire Council

The DSC, under Mayor Mike Berwick, wants to restrict residential building on privately owned subdivisions in the heart of the rainforest. A proposed town plan has been circulated for 3 months. This plan:

• would make it difficult to develop subdivisions north of the Alexandra Range.
• allows DSC to offer to buy any subdivisions in the area to create a conservation area.

or more information on the proposed plan, go to the Douglas Shire Council website.

Contacting Douglas Shire Council

Wildlife Queensland