Please sign this petition to stop the clearing of 52,821m² (13 acres) of vital urban bushland, including hundreds of trees, in Fred Caterson Reserve, Castle Hill NSW.

Fred Caterson Reserve is a bushland oasis located at the headwaters of Cattai Creek. The reserve is home to several community sporting groups, as well as many plant and animal species, some at risk of extinction like the Glossy Black Cockatoo, Powerful Owl and Platypus.

The Hills Shire Council has a Master Plan for Fred Caterson Reserve that includes:

• Listed vegetation loss of 52,821m² (13 acres), including old-growth trees with wildlife-supporting hollows. 
• The expansion into bushland of most existing sporting facilities, construction of concrete pathways and a new road.
• Building an elite premier rugby complex on the former Pony Club site (for Eastwood Rugby at this time), with provision for synthetic surfaces and broadcast-quality lighting.

We know that:

• Only sporting clubs were consulted during the preparation of the Draft Master Plan, which was placed on public exhibition during Covid restrictions in 2020.
• A premier rugby facility would bring thousands of spectators, resulting in increased traffic and parking congestion in surrounding areas including Knightsbridge, as there would be a left turn in and a left turn out of the reserve.
• Such a facility would bring excessive noise and light pollution. The noise from big (Shute Shield) games would be heard in surrounding areas including Castle Hill and Kellyville and the rugby facility would likely be licenced (to serve liquor) for these games and some would be televised, requiring broadcast quality lighting.
• Traffic flow in Fred Caterson Reserve is already problematic. Adding a premier rugby union precinct would make things worse, especially when game times clash.
• Elite sporting facilities typically exclude the local community.
• Many native animals living in the reserve are territorial, or have very specific "home ranges" and cannot relocate successfully.
• It takes at least 100 years for trees to form hollows suitable for wildlife.

The Hills Shire Council has advised that they have not yet signed contracts and that nothing has been finalised.

We ask The Hills Shire Council to carefully consider the clearing of any bushland in Fred Caterson Reserve and to only add infrastructure when it is in harmony with its natural environment. Suggestions have included nature play spaces, and education areas, community gardens, picnic tables and BBQ facilities and exercise stations. These facilities in already-shaded areas will be needed by more members of the community in years to come than the facilities that are proposed.

Help to stop the destruction of our much beloved and vital urban bushland in Fred Caterson Reserve. Visit our website https://www.friendsoffredcatersonreserve.org for more information, join us on social media and subscribe for updates.