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Byron Shire
March 28, 2024

Protecting remnant Gondwana species at Grandpa’s Scrub today

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Community and experts are uniting this afternoon to protect what they say is remnant Gondwana species at Grandpa’s Scrub.

Organisers of today’s event say the Coffs Harbour Pacific Highway Bypass route has been a contentious issue as competing interests of agriculture, community and environment attempt to find an outcome.

They also say that the final chosen route has strongly favoured the local blueberry industry. It has been chosen to the detriment of the community and will have an irreparable impact on some of the last remaining areas for endangered ecological communities including remnant Gondwana rainforest. 

If the proposed route is built through the area known as Grandpa’s Scrub, the community in the area and their supporters say several species could cease to exist completely because of the failed biodiversity offset process that has been followed.

Today, globally recognised expert on Gondwana Rainforests Dr Rob Kooyman will be assessing and cataloguing the area. He will be willing to make statements about his findings as he completes his work.

There will be an at Grandpa’s Scrub, adjacent to 133C MacKays Rd, Coffs Harbour NSW 2450.  In attendance will be Sue Higginson MLC, Gondwana Expert Dr Rob Kooyman and local conservationist Dave Wood.


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4 COMMENTS

  1. Coffs folk have been crying out for a by-pass away from their town and CBD for over 40years.
    It has been a well-known traffic bottleneck and accident black-spot – far worse than Bulahdela was in the past.
    Hopefully this potential green impasse can be negotiated quickly to facilitate both-way Pacific Motorway freight and all other users.

  2. Thanks to the free press for highlighting these important local issues. Finally sense has prevailed, not to mention the obvious threat of a messy legal challenge, and the NSW Transport Minister announced the realignment of the Coffs bypass to completely avoid the original patch of critically endangered sub tropical lowland rainforest. Of course the local member has claimed responsibility for saving it 4 weeks out an election, but in reality it was a combination of a committed and unified voice from locals, experts, elders and some serious effort from engineers for Transport for NSW and the joint venture company Ferrovial Gamuda.

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