John Martyn’s new book has landed … order your copy now!

The Geology and Flora of the Sydney Basin: A Photographic Journey is an updated and expanded version of Rocks and Trees published in 2018, with a new objective to venture into the Sydney Basin to its outer limits.

The book's framework is the basin's geology: the complex succession of sedimentary rocks and the igneous, tectonic and erosional events that affected them across an area that’s roughly twice the size of Wales not to mention two-thirds the size of Tasmania.

On this diverse and extraordinary geology and landscape grow even more diverse and often very beautiful floras. The creation by botanists of formal terms like Blue Mountains Diatreme Moist Forest, Blue Mountains Shale Cap Forest and Shale Sandstone Transition Forest for threatened ecological communities shows a clear recognition of linking the flora to the underlying rocks; thus providing a firm technical basis for a book like this.

Details: $80, 551 pp, hard back, more than 1000 colour photographs plus numerous geological maps, diagrams and sketches.

In recent years STEP has become increasingly concerned about the proliferation of Spanish Moss on our local trees and its potential impact on our bushland. So in December 2023 we asked members to send us details of any Spanish Moss they have seen growing on trees. We then undertook a preliminary survey from Cowan to Marrickville to determine what tree species it grew on. What we found horrified us.

Trees most affected by Spanish Moss

Turpentine (Syncarpia glomulifera) is the most severely affected of all the 76+ species of plants we recorded Spanish Moss growing in. Infestations can be so dense and widespread that whole trees are festooned. Spanish Moss flourishes over Turpentine leaves and worryingly it appears it may be able to kill mature trees by preventing photosynthesis. Locally, Turpentines are important trees in the critically endangered Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest and Blue Gum High Forest as well as in sandstone gullies. Their loss would be disastrous. Worse still, Turpentines are common trees in fertile forests from the Queensland border to near Ulladulla and our evidence suggests that Spanish Moss could damage Turpentines all the way along the coast and ranges. We are not sure why it flourishes so well on Turpentines but we are prepared to speculate that leachates from the fungi on the leaves encourages its growth.

More bad news for our rainforests and wet sclerophyll forests is that Lilly Pilly (Acmena smithii), Cheese Tree (Glochidion ferdinandi) and Brush Box (Lophostemon confertus), all major components of our east coast rainforest, can be severely affected while Coachwood (Ceratopetalum apetalum) and Blueberry Ash (Elaeocarpus reticulatus) can certainly carry Spanish Moss. In addition to causing damaged or dead trees, threats to ecosystems include subtle effects such as altered water and nutrient cycles, changed predator/prey interactions, habitat alteration, moderation of the microclimate and transformed fire regimes. Changes such as these are some of the greatest conservation threats to biodiversity in Australia.

The good news is that eucalypts, bloodwoods and Sydney Red Gum (Angophora costata) seem to be resistant to it. We only repeatedly recorded Spanish Moss flourishing on Red Mahogany (Eucalyptus resinifera).

How it spreads

Spanish Moss is obviously well loved by many gardeners, but STEP is not sure that gardeners realise how rapidly it can grow and spread. What today may be a gentle grey ornamental addition to the garden may overwhelm it with dense heavy screens of moss up to 3 m long over a few years. Overseas, festoons over 8 m long have been recorded. The artistic addition to the garden today may be a nightmare tomorrow. You may think that your garden is safely distant from bushland, but we recorded a jump of 70 m from the nearest Spanish Moss when it was used by Noisy Miners in their nest. All gardens must therefore be viewed as sources of bushland infestations.

Spanish Moss can spread in several ways. Asexual spread can occur with the tip of plants blowing in the wind and becoming entangled in other parts of the plant or a different plant. Birds are obvious dispersers as they move Spanish Moss for nest construction.

Physical control will be difficult as it is an air plant and has no contact with the ground. In most cases we found it out of reach, sometimes 15 m up a tree. We haven’t trialled chemical control methods used in the USA, but they are listed in our report.

Recommendations

• Gardeners remove all moss they can reach, put it in their green bin and prevent spread.
• Local authorities such as local councils and NPWS remove it from all public places, including trees on nature strips.
• Add Spanish Moss to the next iteration of the Greater Sydney Regional Strategic Weed Management Plan and all other relevant regional strategic weed management plans.
• Classify Spanish Moss at a level that enables its eradication and containment, prohibition of sale and distribution, e.g. as a regional priority weed.
• Undertake research into why Turpentines are a favoured host and the ecological effects of Spanish Moss on bushland.
• Undertake research into control methods.

Swaying veils of grey in dead or dying trees and simplified bushland is not something to look forward to. Let’s not risk it.

Read our full report or check out our website.

The NSW government announced new planning laws in late-2023 that will radically change the landscape by increasing housing density at the expense of tree canopy, heritage design and landscape character. The changes are focussed on locations near to public transport with development of low to mid-rise housing within 800 m of stations and local centres.

In addition, Ku-ring-gai has been identified as a location for more intense development near Gordon, Killara, Lindfield and Roseville stations defined as Transport Oriented Development or TOD for short. This imposes 6 storeys within 400 m of the stations regardless of current zoning, with greater heights of 7 or 8 storeys if affordable dwellings are included. In the town centre zones slightly higher flats are proposed of 7 to 9 storeys.

Council has been fighting against the imposition of these changes by taking legal action in the Land and Environment Court. The detail of this action is confidential.

The whole community is concerned about the legislation. These station areas contain prime examples of outstanding heritage architecture in wide tree-lined streets. Council has estimated that, if the proposals were to be fully implemented, over 400 properties in heritage conservation areas would be demolished plus another 136 properties would be next door to the TOD areas and would be negatively impacted.

Streetscapes and tree canopy cover would be lost because the policy does not provide for the essential space for tree survival such as minimum lot size, deep soil, adequate setbacks and minimum planting.

Alternative scenarios

Council has been examining alternative scenarios that could deliver a similar number of new dwellings to the government objectives but protect heritage conservation areas and change the planning parameters for construction so that tree canopy is protected. Of course there will have to be trade-offs.

Not only are the defined parameters bad for the character of the TOD areas but also council believes that they will not be attractive for developers to build so the government’s objectives will not be met. This applies in particular to construction in town centres where there are constraints caused by existing configurations. Council believes that shifting more of the extra dwellings into town centres via mixed commercial/residential buildings will be more financially viable for developers.

This highlights the situation that the ball is still in the court of developers to make things happen. There is no direct government investment in new housing projects.

Consultation

Council has analysed five possible scenarios that are consistent with the government’s estimates of 22,580 new dwellings within 15 years. The scenarios actually produce slightly higher estimates of 23,200.

The agenda papers from council’s meeting on 30 October provide a detailed description of the analysis that has been undertaken.

We have been asked to make submissions expressing views on these scenarios by 17 December. You can also complete a survey.

Council will consider community feedback in February 2025. If there is support for a preferred scenario council may ask for the government’s approval to exhibit it as a replacement for the government’s policy. The exhibition will be a further opportunity for the public to comment.

Consideration of constraints

The TOD SEPP applies blanket changes to planning rules within 400 m of Gordon, Killara, Lindfield and Roseville stations.

Council has examined the areas in detail to consider topography, existing development and financial feasibility. All these factors have been ignored in the state government’s simplistic one-size-fits-all changes. They have applied some basic principles to the analysis to select locations suited for the changes in planning rules, such as:

• to avoid environmentally sensitive areas and tree loss
• to minimise heritage impacts
• to manage transition from high rise to low density so that houses are not squeezed between high rise flats
• to revitalise town centres

An example of the difference between the TOD high rise parameters for residential buildings and the current council development control plan on a typical site of 2,000 m² is:

• TOD requires 1 to 2 medium trees
• council development control plan would require 6 to 7 large trees

The current tree canopy cover averages 34% in the TOD areas. This could be wiped out if the full redevelopment occurred.

The red circles in the map at the top of the page indicate where the TOD applies to areas with tree canopy cover over 30% in in Killara and Roseville.

Council’s five scenarios

Scenario 1

Based on the NSW government's existing TOD policy which zones areas within a 400 m radius of stations for 6 to 8 storey development with minimal protection for heritage or environmental areas.

Scenario 2a

Protects 78% of heritage neighbourhoods and allows building up to 25 storeys in town centres.

Scenario 2b

A minor amendment to the NSW government’s TOD policy, which protects 31% of heritage areas and allows buildings up to 15 storeys in town centres.

Scenario 3a

Preserves all heritage areas and delivers a high level of tree protection. However, it means very tall buildings in town centres - up to 45 storeys in Gordon.

Scenario 3b

Also preserves all heritage areas but to limit building heights in town centres to a maximum of 20 storeys, the apartment buildings are spread further from stations.

Trade-off

The major trade-off is in the town centres. The preservation of canopy and heritage comes at the cost of high-rise development in the town centres as shown in the table.

For comparison, note that the maximum height in Hornsby near the railway line will be 40 storeys.

There is more to come – dual occupancy

Council’s December meeting papers introduce detailed discussion of the next issue for increased housing density. That is the definition of minimum lot size where dual occupancy can be imposed in low density residential areas. The original announcement was that dual occupancy could be built in all low density residential areas with a minimum lot size of only 450 m².

The government has accepted that this development is unsuitable for some locations for bushfire risk, heritage and environmental reasons. Three options for minimum lot size definition is presented in this report for council's consideration. After discussion with the Department of Planning the options will be presented for public consultation in early-2025.

What about the longer term?

One issue that has not been considered is what happens beyond the projection period of 15 years. Sydney’s population is going to keep growing. The ABS’s latest forecast is for the NSW population to grow by another 2 million between 2041 and 2071 having grown by 1.6 million over the 15 years to 2041 that the housing plans are aiming to cater for.

In NSW, under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, the maximum fine for illegal tree removal is $1.1 million for a corporation and $220,000 for an individual. This is in cases brought before the Land and Environment Court. But the usual range is from $1,000 to $100,000 per offence. Only 19 cases were prosecuted from 2018 to 2022. There have been other smaller fines imposed by councils. Few have been issued as it is difficult to catch the tree loppers in the act.

There have also been instances of major tree destruction in 2023 in Willoughby and Lane Cove with no prosecutions. There have been lots of council lobbying and petitions but no action so far by the NSW government.

There may be a sign of action soon. Recently Matt Cross, the member for Davidson, asked a question in the NSW parliament whether the Department of Planning and Environment is considering whether the current penalty framework for tree vandalism is effective. He received a positive response that:

The NSW government is consulting with councils as the primary regulator of illegal tree clearing and investigating opportunities to strengthen the current penalty framework and promote tree retention.

A positive sign but how long will this take?

We have previously described the process that Ku-ring-gai Council has been following to try to get land known as the Secret Garden at 1192 Pacific Highway, Pymble reclassified from community to operational land so that it could be sold. Council regards the land as a liability as its inaccessibility and location makes maintenance difficult and it is too small to provide open space benefits to the community.

The proposal was reviewed by an independent commissioner who recommended that the proposal not go ahead mainly because of the high biodiversity value from its classification as Blue Gum High Forest.

The issue was on the agenda of the meeting in October. The staff report recommended that the reclassification of the land should go ahead. This would enable other options to be considered for the site, most likely divestment. This would transfer cost of management, surveillance and use of the land, including care of the onsite mapped trees and vegetation, to a new owner. The landowner of the undeveloped land next door at 1190/1190A Pacific Highway, zoned for high density, has expressed interest in acquiring the land to augment their floor space ratio potential and to deliver the open space and tree planting requirements of their future development.

Despite many residents at the forum arguing against reclassification the councilors voted to proceed with the Department of Planning’s process to declare the land as operational land. They agreed to pursue an option to explore sale of the land to an adjacent property owner if it can be linked to a voluntary planning agreement that re-dedicates a material portion of the block back to the public. This would require improved public accessibility of this portion but also additional development rights elsewhere on the consolidated site. If the agreement cannot be achieved within four years, then Council may subsequently decide to reclassify the land back to community land.

The process for the development of Westleigh Park has been long and slow since the land was purchased from Sydney Water in 2016. We wrote about this project in Issues 217 and 219 of STEP Matters. Since 2021 Hornsby Council has been developing plans for a major sporting complex and seeking consultation along the way. The major issue from the environment point of view is the mountain bike tracks that were built illegally by local enthusiasts through the bushland including critically endangered Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest and endangered Duffy Forest.

Much consultation and many workshops have been held particularly about the bike trails. This evolved into a draft master plan and plan of management that were exhibited during 2023. These were finalised and on 13 September 2023 council resolved to provide owner's consent for the lodgement of a development application (DA/975/2023) for Westleigh Park.

Funding withdrawal

Then there was a major hiccup. In 2018, Hornsby was given $40 million for the Westleigh Park project under the Stronger Communities Grant process. These grants were criticised by the auditor-general because of the dominance of awards to Liberal electorates. Since then only $4 million of the grant money has been used. In June the now Labor government ordered council to repay $36 million because they had not demonstrated sufficient progress on the project. Council can keep the interest earned on the money. Nevertheless, council is proceeding.

Stages of development

The project has been divided into three stages (1a, 1b and 2). There is funding for stage 1a with a completion date of mid-2026. Further work will be undertaken as funds become available. Funding is available under a separate grant for construction of mountain bike trails.

Stage 1a

Includes the southern sports platform, mountain bike trails, carparks 3 and 4 the Sefton Road extension – west section and the shared pathway to Ruddock Park.

Stage 1b

Includes the Sefton Road extension – north and east sections around the reservoir.

Stage 2

Has uncertain timing and covers the centre and northern sports platforms, carparks 1 and 2 and Warrigal Drive upgrades.

Sydney North Planning Panel final stage

The final approval stage was completed on 4 December when a Sydney North Planning Panel hearing was held. The purpose of the meeting was to give interested people the opportunity to speak directly to the planning panel before a decision is made. The panel took only four days to determine that the project can go ahead.

Major concerns

• The high level of development of the project and the resulting number of visitors travelling along roads to the end of a ridge surrounded by Berowra Valley National Park and the Dog Pound Creek biobanking site.
• The continuation of bike tracks in endangered ecological communities. Council made a referral to the Commonwealth Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water asking whether the developments in the bushland that contains endangered ecological communities and threatened flora and fauna needed to be assessed as a controlled action under the EPBC Act. Sadly, this was determined as not necessary which means that the proposed development does not require further assessment or conditions under the EPBC Act.
• The area of bike trails close to an aboriginal rock shelter and the decision to move a scar tree.
• Impact on wildlife of 30 m high floodlighting in use until 10 pm.
• Risk of synthetic turf in bushfire prone area.
• Allowance for use of e-bikes that can be almost of fast as motorbikes.
• Management of the site to prevent control behaviours, damage to wildlife and vegetation.

Welcome to the annual report on the 46th year of operation of STEP Inc. Last year’s report was optimistic about the future of the environment following changes in government at federal and state level. However, the implementation of the necessary changes is not happening despite statements that legislation will be ‘nature positive’.

At the federal level the legislation to revise the EPBC Act in accordance with the recommendations of the Samuel Review is being held up by big business interests so that the new EPA will not have standards to guide its executive actions.

The future for biodiversity in NSW is being overwhelmed by the housing proposals to build thousands of new homes in response to the huge increase in population since the COVID pandemic. The planning law changes ignore existing environment controls and will obliterate high proportions of urban tree canopy in areas like Ku-ring-gai and Hornsby.

At both state and federal level coal and gas projects are still being approved like there is no tomorrow of serious climate change.

Activities

Talks

Our post AGM talk in 2023 was given by Ian Dunlop about climate change and the urgent need to change the paradigm of growth and capitalism that underpins our economic systems.

Also we held talks on biodiversity conservation in Ku-ring-gai, weedy sea dragons, the impact of fire retardants on the environment and management and the nutritional needs of wildlife. Our AGM speaker will be Nicolette Boele, independent candidate for the Bradfield electorate, about democratic engagement on climate change issues.

Walks

We scheduled 5 walks that featured the great diversity of bushland and birdlife that can be encountered within and near Sydney. We thank our volunteer leaders, John Martyn, Wendy Grimm and Ross Rapmund who shared their local knowledge and Beverley Gwatkin who organised the walks.

Publications

We are still offering a year’s free membership to anyone who buys a book or map.

John Martyn’s new book is about to land on our shores. It is an expanded version of his Rocks and Trees book, a brilliantly illustrated exposé about the Geology and Flora of the Sydney Basin. Details will be provided in an email to members.

A revised reprint of the Lane Cove Valley map is also about to be released. There is still a demand for paper maps that give a big picture for planning of potential walk itineraries.

Committee

The STEP committee has, as always, been a great group of people to work with. We owe a huge thank you for all their efforts.

We thank Jim Wells for keeping track of our finances and compiling monthly finance reports. Trish Lynch continues to keep Facebook up to date and find news of local activities and wildlife discoveries.

The committee members work well together in organising activities and writing submissions. We have been undertaking an investigation, led by Robin Buchanan, on the proliferation of Spanish Moss and its potential consequences, in the long term, on our urban tree canopy.

Newsletter

We are continuing to publish five issues of the newsletter each year. Links to individual topics are also included in the email and are on our website so anyone can pick out particular articles of interest. These articles also have links to previous articles on related topics and all our past newsletters are on our website.

While the newsletter concentrates on local issues and events we also cover broader national environmental issues that affect us all. We aim to be educational but not too technical. We welcome feedback and articles from members about topics related to STEP’s areas of interest. You may also advise us about local events and developments that can be published in the newsletter or on Facebook. If you have read a book that you think will be of particular interest to our members, please send us a review.

Accounts

The net cash balance at the end of the financial year reduced compared to last year because of some grants and donations (see more detail below).

The Environment Protection Fund (EPF) balance is on hold in case a major issue arises. We need to maintain this separate fund that is part of our deductible donation status. The Fund’s purpose is to support our environmental objectives. We received a total of $3,736 in donations in the past financial year which included transfers from the wind up of two local environmental organisations.

Our general fund can be used to support educational projects as well as the EPF. We donated $4,000 towards a student biodiversity camp held at Muogamarra as well as donations to some environmental organisations.

We thank Allan Donald, Chartered Accountant for his completion of the audit on a pro bono basis.

Education and research grants

The John Martyn Research Grant supports student research in an area relating to the conservation of bushland. The grant for 2024 was awarded to Solomon Maerowitz-McMahan to support his research on the role that mycorrhizal fungi play in fire-affected ecosystems.

For many years STEP has been donating a prize in the Young Scientist Awards run by the NSW Science Teachers Association. The selection of a winning project out of a wide range of ecological issues is an interesting exercise. We appreciate the assistance of Syd Smith and Gaye Braiding with the judging.

Advocacy

There have been several issues to review this year. The major local issue is the debacle of flooding in Quarry Creek that has occurred during the construction of a new stormwater system in preparation for the synthetic surface.

Two years ago, the Chief Scientist’s published the review on the design, use and impacts of the use of synthetic turf in public open spaces. It is very frustrating that we are still waiting for a promised response from the NSW Department of Planning that will provide guidance for future decisions on its use that take into account the review’s recommendations.

There has been some good news with the refusal of development applications at Lourdes in Killara and Eden Gardens on Lane Cove Road but, no doubt there will be new plans submitted in the near future.

We have made submissions on the interaction of planning system with the need to respond to climate change and the disastrous impacts of the new housing proposals.

We are supporting Ku-ring-gai Council and Voices of Ku-ring-gai initiatives to try to halt the loss of our tree cover, particularly large trees that are essential habitat for our wildlife.

Conclusion

A community group like STEP works best with many lines of communication. We enjoy a good relationship with other community groups and local council staff. Information sharing is an important part of our work. To that end we appreciate feedback from our members and reports on local issues that we may not be aware of. It is becoming harder to keep track of local developments as the local newspapers provide limited coverage.

Jill Green, President

Following the AGM on 2 November we welcome Greg Taylor as a new committee member. As a former Ku-ring-gai councillor, he will add valuable experience of council processes as well as his knowledge of ecological restoration management, bushfire risk mitigation, and connection to local First Nation's community and perspective.

We were delighted and surprised to receive details of the community recognition statement Matt Cross MP, Member for Davidson, made to the NSW parliament on 13 November to recognise STEP’s work.

The bushcare community of northern Sydney has lost a wonderful contributor with the death in October of Bill Jones at the age of 90. At the funeral, Caleys Pavilion at the St Ives Wildflower Garden was packed out by many people who had worked with Bill and gained the knowledge he shared in his many activities.

The chronicle of Bill’s life, together with his wife Noela Kirkwood – they are inseparable – provides us with a history of the development of bushcare in northern Sydney.

Bill’s was a scientist with CSIRO and his retirement in 1992 opened up a new world immersed in the natural environment. His scientific background gave him the skills to develop a deep knowledge of plants and soils. He was the go-to person to identify tricky plants such as grasses. He often consulted with the Botanic Gardens to confirm the identity of a plant that had been discovered in a bushcare site. His technical knowledge was also put to good use as one of the early members of the Australian Association of Bush Regenerators.

Bill and Noela, a TAFE teacher of bush regeneration and one of the founding members of AABR, were a great team. They were involved with the Friends of Lane Cove National Park from before its beginning. They attended the inaugural bushcare breakfast meetings in 1991, which later led to establishment of Friends of Lane Cove National Park after the 1994 fires.

Prior to moving to West Pymble in the 1990s Bill and Noela were active members of the Ryde Hunters Flora and Fauna Preservation Society. They introduced the Bradley method of regeneration to the Field of Mars Reserve.

Birds were another interest through Birding NSW and the Bird Observers Club. They also developed an extraordinary and detailed knowledge of birds and understanding of how they connected to their local habitats.

Bill ran workshops on grass identification in the remnant of Sydney Turpentine Ironbark Forest at Killara Park. This helped bush regenerators to recognise the value of this remnant of native vegetation that is now classified as critically endangered. They persuaded Ku-ring-gai Council to cease mowing and volunteers started regular work removing weeds to stimulate regeneration. It is now transformed into a diverse multi-layered forest.

Bill’s involvement in saving forests and bush regeneration started when he was a member of the KUBES, the Ku-ring-gai Bushland and Environment Society from 1992. This group was active in changing the attitudes of the Council towards the biodiversity value of native vegetation. They started the longwinded process of saving from development the Blue Gum High Forest in Rosedale Road that eventually became part of the Dalrymple Hay Forest in 2007. STEP was actively involved in this process

KUBES folded into STEP in 1998 and Bill joined the committee until 2002. He led many walks for STEP that were combined with lots of information about birds and plants. He also made major contributions to the activities of the Australian Plants Society (North Shore Group).

Bill and Noela made a great team managing several bushcare sites. One notable site is along Quarry Creek below Yanko Road, West Pymble that has now been beautifully restored with many sightings of wallabies and reptiles. Wallalong Crescent now is a picturesque corridor of native plants. A new site was created near the West Pymble swimming pool that has eliminated balloon vine. Then further up the creek we have another site that this year had many flowers of Dipodium and Cryptostylis erecta orchids.

Bill was very concerned about the development of the synthetic turf field at Norman Griffiths Oval sending emails asking questions and expressing his concerns in his gentle but passionate manner.

Bushcare in Ku-ring-gai will not be the same without Bill but he leaves a wonderful legacy of knowledge and regeneration of our bushland. Our thoughts are with Noela who is also not in good health.