Speaking at an outreach meeting in the town on Tuesday, Mr Bennett said Council would be encouraging the proponent, the Al Mabarrat Benevolent Society, to be “a lot more transparent” with its amended development application.

He accused it of being a “closed shop” regarding information supplied to the community so far.

“This could be seen from the arrogant attitude of the lead consultant at the (NSW Land and Environment Court) conciliation on Friday,” he said.

“When asked by the Commissioner to explain the application, he gave a 32-second address. I think the community deserved more than 32 seconds.”

The proponent’s planning consultant Richard Smyth declined to respond to Mr Bennett’s comments.

The two parties are immersed in a court battle over what the Society claims is deemed refusal of the DA. The council has always maintained the application lacked information to allow a proper assessment.

The Society has until September 4 to lodge an amended DA. It must address all matters raised in Council’s statement of facts and contentions. These include permissability, particularly of a service hall, the legality of an access road, traffic impacts, visual effect, bushfire risk management, vegetation and noise impacts.

Mr Bennett said consultants had only undertaken groundwater impact assessments in dry weather, which did not give a ‘realistic’ view.

“There could be up to 11,000 bodies. Our question is how they’ll control the runoff when there’s that many bodies,” he said.

The council is also asking for more detailed traffic management analysis based on 300 people attending services, not the 150 cited in the DA. It must also address people’s safe passage back on to the Hume Highway.

A woman at the meeting questioned the safety of cars coming off the Hume Highway into Highland Way with the spectre of speeding trucks.

Mayor Geoff Kettle and Mr Bennett are meeting with the RMS today (Friday) to discuss the cemetery’s and quarries’ traffic impacts.

In response to a resident’s question, the general manager said he did not understand the Society’s decision not to allow members of the community onsite during Friday’s inspection.

He doubted it was due to public liability concerns, which the Society claimed.

Mr Smyth said all outstanding material would be supplied to the Society’s solicitors by next week and then to Council by the due date. He suggested the groundwater analysis “might have to wait for decent rain.”

Questioned further on this, he said consultants would undertake modelling based on the maximum 11,000 bodies the sevenacre site could take.

Mr Smyth maintained the site could take 3500 to 11,000 bodies depending on site design and terrain.

The amended DA is scheduled for public exhibition from September 17 to October 15.

The court will meet with both parties to review progress on September 23 and Council will determine the DA on November 17.

On November 23 the court will determine whether the section 34 conciliation should continue.

Mr Bennett said existing public submissions would remain ‘live’ throughout the process but any new comments would be considered.

He told the meeting that Council had so far spent $80,000 on the case and he expected this to double by its conclusion. But his organisation would be claiming costs for the work done to date.

One man asked how many chances the Society should receive, given several extensions already.

“The reality is it could go on for many years,” Mr Bennett replied. “The court has given them a lot of leniency, which is frustrating for us. Then if the court refuses the DA, they could lodge a fresh application the next day.