Residents dig in on Bullamalita Road quarry

Don Riley couldn’t hide his disappointment at Tuesday night’s Goulburn Mulwaree Council meeting.

The retiree and wife Barbara were among the scores of district residents who poured into the council chambers to hear debate on a proposed shale quarry at 984 Bullamalita Road, Quialigo.

Despite two and a half hours of discussion, including eight public forum speakers and lengthy debate, councillors approved the project five votes to three. Councillors Margaret O’Neill, Denzil Sturgiss and Peter Walker voted against. Cr Sam Rowland was an apology for the meeting.

“I’m not happy,” Mr Riley said.

“They have totally ignored the 1000 metre buffer distance and reduced it to 350 metres. Why have that rule if you’re going to ignore it?”

Mr Riley was speaking about Kristen Florance’s plan to extract 14,000 tonnes of shale annually from the Varaville quarry, just 350 metres from the Riley’s home and 20km southeast of Goulburn. The material will be used on roads and horse arenas.  

Distances to homes, the impact on noise, dust, amenity and lifestyle flared as major themes in public forum addresses and in numerous submissions. But the road was uppermost in most people’s mind. Most said it was too narrow and unsuited to handle heavy vehicles and even the quarry’s two trucks per day would pose an “unacceptable risk.” 

“Most of us have had experience with trucks on the road and it is not pleasant,” Mr Riley said.

“...The council is placing no emphasis on the safety of Bullamalita Road users.”

Michael Peden from Bullamalita sheep stud said dust kicked up by trucks would affect the fine wool clip. He pointed councillors to a letter from Australian Wool Network stating there would be “big discounts” on the fleece if there was dust penetration.

He was also worried about road impacts.

“Obviously with the increase in trucks there is significant risk to residents. Sealing the road is commonsense not only to minimise this but also as a safeguard to everyone who uses the road,” Mr Peden said.

Another resident, Bernie Dryden told the meeting that as a former Highway patrol Sergeant he saw the “heavy vehicle industry in full flight to make an extra dollar.”

“That’s what this comes down to,” he said.

“Fair enough but there has to be a balance between the needs of the developer and the community. I don’t think enough consideration has been given to the residents of Bullamalita Road.” 

Mr Dryden said the company’s self imposed 50km/h speed limit would be “ineffective” and questioned how it would be policed.

The applicant has committed to 50km/h on the road’s unsealed section and 80km/h on the sealed stretch. 

The council has struck a voluntary planning agreement with the applicant to upgrade Bullamalita Road. Under the agreement the company will pay $18,000 annually in section 94 contributions, double the required amount.

It must also undertake gravel repair on a section of the road, placing 1400 tonnes of gravel, and complete a maintenance grade on the unsealed section. The applicant would make $150,000 in road contributions over the quarry’s 10-year life, Tuesday’s meeting heard. In total, the quarry will contribute $50,000 of in-kind works, including for weighing and cameras to monitor truck movements.

The council will also spend $84,000 on the road over the next year. Work includes widening and improving visibility on curves.

Crs Peter Walker and Andrew Banfield remained concerned about the road, especially given a future 24-lot subdivision. Cr Walker questioned the strength of culverts and causeways to withstand heavy loads, saying this could determine the trucks’ route.

As other heavy vehicles used the 14km thoroughfare, which stretches from Windellama to Lumley Roads, this could not be specifically tied to the development.

Consequently, Cr Banfield put up a separate motion, which won unanimous support. This calls for: 

“We owe it to residents to work tirelessly to get this road sealed,” Cr Banfield said.

“...The road will only get busier and we mustn’t drop the bundle on this.”

The operator agreed to change operating hours to 9am to 3pm Monday to Friday in response to concerns.

Ms Florance’s husband, Adrian Florance also told the meeting that it was unlikely that quarry material would be screened onsite, despite approval for this. 

After the meeting, Mayor Bob Kirk said the application had highlighted the road as the main issue, rather than the quarry.

“While we couldn’t link the two together, the proponent has to go ahead with changes to operating hours and contributions under the voluntary planning agreement,” he said.

“We’ve addressed the other issues with the road...Had this proposal not come forward, it would have run its normal course and the road would not have been elevated in work priority.”