WSCA obtained documents under FOI that showed that Council had sought the advice of the NSW Environment Dept in making its LEP. DECCW in 2005/2006 had advised Council to ensure the LEP protected areas of high conservation value and that the LEP delivered viable biodiversity corridors. Later in 2006 DECCW produced mapping that identified Western Sydney Priority Conservation Lands of which many were located in the Penrith LGA.

WSCA had lobbied Council in this time, meeting with Mayors and Senior Planners, urging them to ensure that their new LEP protected core bushland areas and helped to create a viable conservation corridor that we had called the Cumberland Conservation Corridor. The DECCW mapped Priority Lands were crucial to establishing this corridor.

The Deerubbin Local Aboriginal Land Council had successfully claimed vast areas of the Priority Lands from the NSW Government (the Crown) and it was known that they were intent on seeking development outcomes from these lands. It was also known that Council was sympathetic to the Deerubbin Land Council.

In 2008 Council Planners finalised the stage one LEP and it was placed on public exhibition. The draft LEP failed to protect hundreds of hectares of the Priority Lands. WSCA lodged a submission calling on Council to amend its draft plan and apply E2 Environmental Conservation zonings to all of the DECCW identified Priority Lands. The basis for this was that the LEP as proposed undermined all valid attempts to create a lasting green legacy for Western Sydney, a viable green corridor. The NSW Government had indicated in its Growth Centres policy documents that it was going to spend $397 million protecting the Western Sydney Priority Lands. Another policy document, the discussion paper for a Cumberland Plain Recovery Plan, identified that the Western Sydney Priority Lands were pivotal to the success of any future Recovery Plan. The NSW Government stressed that a major constraint to protecting the Priority Lands would be if it was uneconomical to protect them. This meant that the Government would have to get value for money if it was to acquire land for conservation and Penrith's draft LEP did not assist that goal by zoning over 500 hectares of the Priority Lands to RU4 which allowed 2 ha subdivision. Councils LEP therefore undermined the success of the Cumberland Plain Recovery Plan by ensuring the RU4 zoned land would be unaffordable for conservation protection and addition to the NSW National Parks Reserve System.

Council knows it has acted appallingly and one must question why it has gifted the Deerubbin an RU4 zoning on land that is clearly high conservation value bushland containing vast numbers of flora and fauna species protected under NSW and Federal Threatened Species laws. Council is now resorting to spin to make itself look green on this issue. Council is claiming that it had always intended to make its LEP reflect like for like zonings, that being that the old LEP zoned the Deerubbin lands rural so it was okay that the new LEP did so as well. This is appalling planning and is something from the dark ages. The new LEP Template of the NSW Government clearly urges Councils to apply conservation zonings to areas that have high conservation values. Add to the mix that these lands have been identified by the NSW Government as needed to ensure the survival of Western Sydney's biodiversity (Cumberland Plain Recovery Plan) and one starts to see why Penrith Council LEP is deeply flawed and must be not be made as proposed

The draft LEP was endorsed by the Penrith Councillors, despite calls from WSCA urging a total rethink, and has now gone to Tony Kelly the NSW Planning Minister for final approval and gazettal.

All our efforts must now be focussed on Tony Kelly. He must save face for the NSW Government and reject Councils LEP. If he fails to act then his Government stands condemned of gross hypocrisy and of lying to the people of Western Sydney as they promised to protect the Western Sydney Priority Conservation Lands.

ADI Site

Moreover, Council appears to have conveniently forgotten that the ADI Residents Action Group did all the grunt work to save 900 hectares of the site. Council played a minor role in fighting for the ADI Site bushland.

Penrith Council, to show its hypocrisy once again, recently made a huge issue about the so-called 100 m vital biodiversity corridor being put at risk. Somehow the 100 metre corridor encroached onto land owned by a company called Jacfin. Jacfin were not a party to the changes to Penrith Councils Biodiversity Management Strategy. Jacfin wanted to develop their parcel of land and its proposal was assessed under Part 3A of the Planning Act by the Planning Minister. The Jacfin proposal meant that the proposed 100 metre corridor would be further reduced down to 70 metres. Penrith Council opposed the Jacfin development on the grounds that the proposed man made biodiversity corridor would be compromised.

What a load of rot. Council is arguing over a pathetic man made corridor. It conveniently omits that it allowed in situ bushland, that if preserved would of netted a corridor of many hundreds of metres, to be bulldozed. See the below image that exposes Penrith Councils hypocrisy on this corridor and its so-called concern for protecting its environment. If Council were truly serious about protecting bushland then why did it support the amended plan to nuke most of the vegetation at Erskine Park.

It was the campaigning by WSCA that saved the entire Air Services Site. WSCA lobbied the Federal Government and obtained $15 million that assisted the NSW Government to buy the site back off the developer. Council played a minor role in doing what it was meant to do and that was to ensure high conservation value bushland within its LGA was protected with proper conservation zonings.

There are many parks and reserves under Councils care control and management that are in appalling condition. Examples include an important patch of Cumberland Plain Woodland on the corner of Soling and Camelot Dr Cranebrook that has no bush care group and no management by Council. It is repeatedly burnt by arsonists and local neighbours continue to dump their garden waste into the bushland. 4WD's and motorbikes also use the reserve eroding topsoil and spreading weeds.

WSCA in late 2009 met with Council's new Parks manager about these problems. We presented a range of strategies and ideas that may assist with promoting bush care to the public. We told Council that we intend to set up new bush care groups on non council sites and that we want to work with Council not against it. We hope that 2010 delivers further consultation and some good outcomes.