Fight escalates over Paradise roadworks

Environmentalists are stepping up their year-long campaign to stop the widening of Harris Road in Paradise, between Waterloo and Dardanup.

The Preston Environment Group fears the road works along a 3.5km stretch will bulldoze one of the last habitats of the western ring-tailed possum.

The group’s convenor Peter Murphy said the Dardanup Shire Council had ignored the group’s proposal of a one-way traffic system for the road.

It will now file for an injunction under the Federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act to have the road widening operation postponed until an independent fauna study was carried-out.

Dardanup shire chief executive Mark Chester said traffic had increased on the road and it needed to be widened for motorists’ safety.

He said the council had engaged an independent fauna specialist to undertake a survey of the area’s animals.

He said the report showed the proposed clearing would have “no impact” or “no significant impact” on its animals.

“The report received showed that the survey failed to find any evidence of a population or part of a population of western ring-tailed possums,” he said.

“The report also found the vegetation in the work area was in poor condition, not widely recognised as being suitable habitat for the possums and not provide a direct connection to any areas of significant habitat.”

In February the group handed over a possum found dead on the side of Harris Road to the Department of Environment and Conservation in Picton.

“We thought we were doing the right thing by handing-over the dead possum to DEC, believing that they would intervene and prevent destruction of possums’ habitat,” Mr Murphy said.

“But to our horror, they gave the council permission to bulldoze hundreds of trees and shrubs along the road after the council appealed an earlier decision by DEC to allow the shire to clear only a handful of trees.”