Urgent call for Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) at Parsley Bay, Vaucluse
Petitioner:
Geraldine Nordfeldt
| Member:
Sloane, Kellie
| No. of Signatories:
711
| Date closed:
04/03/2024
To the Speaker and Members of the Legislative Assembly,
We, the undersigned petitioners, are submitting this petition to ask the Legislative Assembly to call on the Government to urgently order an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) at Parsley Bay, Vaucluse. This is to protect the endangered White Seahorse population from the impact of Sydney Water's sewage pumping station construction.
We seek to enforce current environmental legislation to protect this beloved Sydney harborside park and the habitat of the endangered seahorse. The proposed 2.5-year construction involves deep drilling under and around Parsley Bay Creek, which flows into the Parsley Bay marine area.
Parsley Bay, with its 'Littoral' rainforest and one of the last natural freshwater creeks in Woollahra Municipality, is home to 133 species, including the endangered White’s Seahorse and Powerful owls, as well as water dragons.
We have serious concerns about Sydney Water’s contractor Abergeldie Complex Infrastructure's potential impact, including catastrophic sedimentation, threatening the marine reserve and the endangered White’s seahorse.
Sydney Sealife Aquarium and NSW Dept of Primary Industries installed a ‘seahorse hotel’ at Parsley Bay on March 2023 to assist with habitat restoration.
More than 4900 signatures on a ‘Get-Up’ petition demonstrate community concerns about Sydney Water’s own Review of Environmental Factors (REF) conducted in 2020.
Despite community efforts and petitions, the project remains on course. The community is concerned the current REF does not address the construction's proximity to the freshwater creek, which flows into the bay where the endangered seahorses reside.
