Dailan Pugh, Byron Bay
I find Fast Buck’$ attack on me (Echo December 12) for not addressing Council on the destruction of wetlands for the bypass astounding.
I was disappointed I was the only person who addressed Council on their West Byron proposal to rezone for housing 4.6ha of existing environmental zones containing 1.2ha of core occupied koala habitat and the catchment above the eastern population of the Wallum Sedge Frog, while rezoning cleared land for protection. I similarly could not believe their proposal to allow for lot sizes less than 100m².
While I supported Council belatedly re-zoning the western Wallum Sedge Frog wetland for protection, I objected to their failure to provide the buffers and habitat linkages required by its recovery plan.
Contrary to Buck$’s claims I have never supported the bypass as a solution to Byron’s traffic woes.
I am well aware of the studies that say the bypass will only redirect at most 20 per cent of traffic.
I have supported the idea that the bypass should be located in the rail corridor to avoid the wetland.
I never supported biobanking or the idea that you can destroy one area of habitat of a threatened species in return for protecting another area of existing habitat – they both should be protected.
I long ago gave up on trying to address the multitude of Byron Council’s woeful schemes. While I still work on a variety of Byron issues, the Greens don’t want to listen to what I have to say, as displayed by Michael Lyon over West Byron.
What Council is lacking is their own environmental expertise and a willingness to give it the prominence in decisions it deserves.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
