City supports wetlands Regional Park proposal

The City of Gosnells will write to the Minister for Environment to support calls from the community to elevate the Greater Brixton Street Wetlands (GBSW) to a Regional Park.

The Council confirmed its support of the change by adopting a position statement at the Council meeting on 13 August.

“The City is acutely aware of the importance of protecting the Greater Brixton Street Wetlands, which are seen as a ‘jewel in the crown’ of the City’s natural environment,” Deputy Mayor Serena Williamson said.

“It is incredibly important the City advocates to protect the wetlands for future generations.”

Calls for the GBSW to be elevated to a Regional Park emerged following debate about proposed changes to the town planning scheme for nearby properties.

Currently a Bush Forever site, the wetlands are bordered by the Maddington Kenwick Strategic Employment Area (MKSEA), which was rezoned for industrial use by the State Government in 2015.

The City is now required to bring its local scheme into alignment with the State Government’s framework.

The City has undertaken a complex body of scientific studies over more than 10 years, including site-specific research, data interpretation and seasonal monitoring of the characteristics of the land to be rezoned and its potential interaction with the wetlands habitat.

Rezoning the land will help protect the wetlands by creating formal buffers to separate the wetlands from nearby land uses, providing a drainage management strategy to mitigate any impacts, and improving the City’s ability to guide and monitor future land uses.

“While the wetlands themselves are of utmost value to the community and the City, the vast majority of the land surrounding the wetlands is currently highly degraded,” Cr Williamson said.

“The City’s proposal will result in an additional 57 hectares of land being protected and rehabilitated into high-quality bushland to complement the existing Greater Brixton Street Wetlands area.”

Visit gosnells.wa.gov.au for more information on MKSEA.