MINDA INCORPORATED

Ms FOX (Bright) (16:06): Today I rise to speak about the suggested plans—and I use the word 'suggested' quite carefully—for 144 apartments near or on sand dunes at North Brighton in the electorate of Bright. I choose this forum to express my very real doubts about the environmental wisdom of such an idea and I should make it very clear from the outset that, at this point, we are simply discussing a plan. This decision has not yet been taken. It is part of a plan which was put before the whole community and to which the whole community has been asked to respond. I have written to Minda, I have emailed Minda and I have met with their CEO, and I know that Minda is motivated (as it should be) by a genuine desire to raise as much money as it can to support its clients, clients who are amongst the most vulnerable in our community.

Minda has an excellent relationship with the residents and stakeholders in the Bright electorate and I truly regret that, on this particular occasion, I cannot support their master plan in its entirety. I understand that the land is private land, but I would also point out that coastal volunteers have worked tirelessly on this land, funded by all levels of government of all persuasions, be they Labor or Liberal. Careful examination of this master plan shows four apartment buildings—two of five storeys and two of six storeys—built along the shoreline.

These apartments would be on the verge of the coast offering wonderful views of the ocean. However, a wonderful view of the ocean is going to come at a price which is beyond mere dollars. Building on this site will potentially destroy an ecosystem that cannot be replaced. Development on the secondary line of remnant dunes will potentially result in the disappearance of the sand dunes in this area which would be highly regrettable. I have canvassed opinion from the general community, as well as local environmental scientists, and both sectors agree that the proposed building of apartments on or near these sand dune systems would not be wise.

In an exchange on radio last week on ABC 891 on the Matthew Abraham and David Bevan show, I recollect a Minda representative saying to me that the apartments would not be built on the sand dunes, but when I consult an aerial map and I compare it with the plan, it seems fairly clear to me that the apartments will be built on a dune system. This is backed up by a submission to Minda from the Australian Coastal Society. In their submission, the ACS makes it quite clear that, in their opinion, the map places the proposed retirement apartments directly upon the secondary line of sand dunes. This dune system is one of the last remaining such systems in South Australia and the remaining dune, the one on the actual foreshore itself, will probably disappear if these apartments are built. The ACS informs me that situating 144 apartments adjacent to the remaining dune will have 'an immediate and irreversible negative impact'.

Minda is an outstanding organisation caring for some of the most vulnerable in our community. Fifty years of outstanding care and love have made Minda a friend to many. I support them in their general work and I will continue to do so; however, on this occasion we must agree to disagree. I would appreciate it, as would my constituents, if Minda would consider moving the apartments to another less environmentally sensitive site on the Minda grounds.