The Greater Brixton Street Wetlands is the most biodiverse ecosystem remaining on the Swan Coastal Plain. Despite their ecological significance and repeated calls for stronger protections, the City of Gosnells has voted to rezone over 250 hectares of the wetlands for ‘Business Development’, disregarding both independent and significant community opposition.
The Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority (WA EPA) has recommended enhanced protection for this globally significant wetland, warning that cumulative impacts must be considered to ensure protection of its ecological integrity.
Experts from the Beeliar Group of professors have long advocated a vision for Yule Brooke Regional Park which would protect an area from Lesmurdie Falls to the Canning River through the Greater Brixton Street Wetlands, creating a 15-kilometre corridor to protect an area home to almost 900 native plant species and 11 threatened ecological communities.
“The Greater Brixton Street Wetlands are a perfect example of why WA needs stronger environmental protection laws. Experts have long called for the creation of Yule Brook Regional Park to safeguard this wetland and its surrounds. Yet instead of protecting it, the City of Gosnells is prioritising industrial expansion – putting at risk the survival of this ecosystem and species like the endangered Carnaby’s Cockatoos,” said Rhiannon Hardwick, Nature Program Manager at the Conservation Council of WA.
Christine Richardson, Chair of the Urban Bushland Council, called for greater transparency: “This decision should be deferred until all scientific studies have been made available to Councillors and the community. The City must be satisfied that it is complying with Ministerial conditions before pushing forward with this rezoning.”
Senior biologist Cate Tauss highlighted the irreversible environmental damage at stake: “Under this plan, the wetlands would be greatly diminished, degraded, fractured, polluted, and deprived of groundwater – threatening countless species, including plants that grow nowhere else in the world. This must not be allowed to happen.”
“Without proper controls, we could lose this wetland forever. We are now writing to the Minister for the Environment and calling for him to step up and fix this mess,” said Save the Great Brixton Wetlands Campaign Manager Paddy Cullen
Paddy Cullen adds, "The community is shocked and sickened at the decision by the city to push ahead with the rezoning. We are now looking at all legal avenues to investigate and challenge this decision."
Environmental organisations, community groups and conservation experts are calling on the City of Gosnells to reconsider its decision and commit to protecting this globally significant wetland.
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CONTACT: For any enquiries relating to this release please contact 0401 233 965 or by email on [email protected]
MEDIA INFORMATION: The Conservation Council of WA (CCWA) is the state’s foremost non-profit, non-government conservation organisation representing nearly 100 environmental organisations across Western Australia.