Six local community members presented evidence to a Land and Environment Court conciliation conference between Yamba developer Clifton and Clarence Valley Council last Tuesday.

An appeal with the Land and Environment Court was lodged by Clifton Yamba Land Pty Ltd on December 14, 2023, concerning the deemed refusal of their development application DA2023/0241.

The DA is for the proposed stage 2 of the Clifton development, a 216 dwelling manufactured home estate with ancillary communal facilities, car parking, tree removal, and civil works at 110 to 120 Carrs Drive, Yamba.

The conciliation conference on July 2 aimed to resolve outstanding issues with the proposal.

Yamba Community Action Network Yamba CAN Inc member, Bob Cairns, a retired engineer said when the group inquired about 6 documents concerning the proposal that were not listed on Council’s website, they were told they weren’t relevant to the application.

Mr Cairns said he was concerned about acid sulphate soils in the area which have a pH similar to vinegar of between 2 and 3 which would upset the delicate environmental balance of the site and the proposal should be referred by the court to the Northern Regional Planning Panel.

He mentioned the Northern Regional Planning Panel recently refused the Yamba Gardens proposed development opposite the Clifton proposal.

Yamba CAN Inc Secretary, Lynne Cairns argued the proposal should be refused in the “public interest” as, if it was approved, there would be 660 dwellings along Carrs Drive, the only road in and out for an estimated 1,100 vehicles that was cut by stormwater in the 2022 floods, without warning.

She said the evacuation plan could not guarantee safe evacuation, providing examples of the detrimental impacts not previously experienced by existing residents during the 2022 floods.

Mrs Cairns said the Clarence Valley was identified as being in the top 3 locations of highest flood risk in the state in the social, economic, and natural environments in the 2024-2026 State Disaster Mitigation Plan and a March 2024 circular from the NSW Department of Planning recommends that planning authorities apply a risk-based approach to the assessment of flood-affected proposals.

Retired construction project manager, Stan Cousins told the court the Clarence River was part of a 22,000 square km “basically hard rock catchment” and the Lower Clarence was on a huge delta that tries to recreate itself during floods.

Mr Cousins said recent reports identified that by the year 2030, there is a chance between 50 and 80 per cent of the houses in Yamba will be uninsurable and before any development on the floodplain is allowed to proceed, developers should “get the fundamentals right”.

He also raised doubts about the accuracy of the recently adopted flood plan.

Valley Watch member, Graeme Granleese said development in the west Yamba area over the past two decades had diminished key storage areas for floodwaters in the area, no hydrology report had been done on the proposed site and part of the site was below sea level.

Mr Granleese said the proposed site was home to two threatened ecological communities, the Broad-Leafed Paperbark, and the Swamp Oak, plus established Melaleucas and the integrity and quality value of the site would have a value of nil after the site is cleared.

Helen Tyas Tunggal said the West Yamba area was predominantly wetlands and that Valley Watch had argued against its rezoning for housing.

She said a government assessment at the time found the conservation values of the area to be high and development proposals would be highly detrimental.

Ms Tyas Tunggal highlighted development impacts on flora and fauna in West Yamba, the results of fill altering the natural drainage of storm and flood waters and said the Clifton proposal would require clearing of 8 hectares (including Threatened Ecological Communities) of the 10-hectare site.

Grevillea Waters Village resident, David Robinson said the village was one of the most vulnerable communities around Yamba, with 145 homes housing more than 200 people, and development at west Yamba altered storm and floodwater flows which saw the village isolated for 7 days in the 2022 flood.

Mr Robinson said residents of the village who objected to the proposal require regular homecare visits, meals on wheels deliveries, medical and nursing care, many don’t know how to use a smartphone or computer to get weather alerts, with any future developments placing their homes and lives at risk and evacuating the village would require a “military grade operation” to ensure residents safety.

An online hearing about the matter is scheduled to be held at 12pm on July 17. 

This article appeared in the Clarence Valley Independent, 10 July 2024.