As the clock ticks ever closer to a Ministerial decision on Toondah (due late April), the Toondah Alliance will gather this weekend to celebrate World Wetlands Day, a new political ally and a recent win where Minister Plibersek saved a Ramsar site in Victoria.  

Firstly, if you can, please come show your support and join the ‘Our Bay - Our Flyway’ World Wetlands Day celebrations from 8-11am on Sunday 4 February at G.J. Walter Park in Cleveland. Find out more here too. 

We will also be celebrating the precedent set by Minister Plibersek’s decision to reject a ‘clearly unacceptable’ Victorian Government offshore wind farm proposal at the Port of Hastings Ramsar site due to “irreversible damage to the habitat of waterbirds and migratory birds and marine invertebrates and fish”. Thank you Minister, if you can do it in Victoria, please do the same in Queensland.

In more good news, we’re pleased to welcome a new political ally, highly influential Senator David Pocock, to Team Toondah. Thank you for your video of support.  

There’s also a great new addition to the proforma letters to the Minister asking to save Toondah, with Save Straddie assisting with promotion of a new Stradbroke/Terrangeri Protection Association letter. 

If you haven’t already, please send your own letter or use the Stradbroke/Terrangeri Protection Association, Birdlife Australia, Australian Conservation Foundation or Redlands 2030’s proforma letters and add a unique subject line and any of your own words.  

I will also write to the Minister Plibersek and Premier Miles on World Wetlands Day and LODGE OUR PETITION  with them to insist they respect Ramsar and our more than 67,550 signatures. A current social media promotion for it has almost 5,000 likes. 

In other major news, Walker Corporation’s co-founder and Toondah developer, billionaire Lang Walker has died. 

Finally, it’s always good to see the tsunami of support for Toondah knowing we are not alone and that there are sound reasons for saving the lungs, livers, kidneys and providers and protectors of life on our land and in our seas.  

Thank you to Independent Australia and The Guardian (click links for articles) for your coverage of the arguments that should help our mud army sink this development.  
                       
The final countdown is on and we are making waves, let’s hope we can always celebrate World Wetlands Day at Toondah’s Ramsar site.

Fingers and everything else crossed!  

Dylan