Setting the record straight: Conservation SA on MotoGP in Park Lands
After the Premier again mentioned sitting down with the Conservation Council SA over plans to build a new MotoGP track, chief executive Kirsty Bevan has her say.
Premier Peter Malinauskas has again referred to the Conservation Council SA (Conservation SA) when discussing his plans for a MotoGP street circuit through the Adelaide Park Lands.
He recently was quoted in InDaily as saying: “We’ve sat down with the Conservation Council.”
Some have taken this to mean we’ve sided with the government. Well, we have not. We did sit down with the Premier, but this is not the whole story.
Our position has been clear in every meeting, letter and submission: Conservation SA does not support the MotoGP in the Adelaide Park Lands. We never have. We did not support the redevelopment of the North Adelaide Golf Course, and we were not part of the discussions about it.
And we do not support the removal of almost 400 trees from Pakapakanthi/Victoria Park, one of the most precious public green spaces in our state.
Part of our role as a peak body for conservation is meeting with decision makers, especially when we strongly disagree with them. But a meeting is not an endorsement, and we have been consistent about our position throughout.
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In meetings with the Premier, we entered the room armed with evidence. We brought data on the value of mature trees, research on the number of trees needed to replace mature trees, science supporting how much our city relies on its canopy as the climate heats up, and historical data on the cumulative impact from the steady loss of trees across our suburbs and the state.
We brought the views of our member groups, our sector and our community. We argued, plainly, that the Park Lands are the wrong place for this race.
Faced with a government determined to proceed regardless of public pressure, we did what our sector has had to do time and again: fight for the best possible outcome for nature.
We pushed for two things. The first was a stronger offset for the trees being lost, and the state government has since committed to 300 new plants for every mature tree removed – including 10 new trees for every tree lost.
The second was a significant, dedicated investment in the long-term future of the Park Lands through restoration, revegetation and biodiversity.
We insisted that this money go to the community groups and not-for-profits already doing this work on the ground, rather than sitting inside government agencies.
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We saw this investment as an insurance policy against the worst outcome. It was never a trade-off, and it was never an endorsement of the project.
Conservation SA will not receive a single dollar of the $15 million package, and we never engaged in these conversations for our own gain. We did what we could for nature.
It is also worth being clear about what we did not know. We were not given the full details of the proposal before it became public, including the track design and the number of trees that would be impacted.
The recent news makes all of this more urgent. The federal government’s National Environmental Protection Agency has decided the circuit does not require assessment under national environment law, provided certain measures are followed. That clears the way for works to begin in December.
We are deeply disappointed. National environment laws exist as a back-up for when state governments get it wrong. On this occasion, the federal government has failed our Park Lands.
We know some people do not agree with our tactics, and we respect that. The loss of these beautiful trees is having a profound impact on many people across the state, and I share in this grief.
Reasonable people can disagree about strategy. But no one should be in any doubt about where we stand.
We will keep working with our member groups and the community broadly to keep this race out of the Park Lands, and to hold the government to account for every tree lost or impacted.
We will continue to work with the Premier and his government on the many issues where we can make progress for nature. On this issue, we simply ask that our position is represented accurately.
We oppose the MotoGP in the Park Lands.
Kirsty Bevan is the Chief Executive of Conservation Council SA, South Australia’s peak environment body.
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