Considering that over 1500 people signed a petition to save the Bum tree, I thought some may be interested in knowing what has occurred since the tree clearing took place. 

In May this year the greater glider was listed nationally as vulnerable under the EPBC Act. Recently in NSW, a preliminary determination was made to list the greater gliders at Seven Mile Beach National Park area as an endangered population under the Threatened Species Conservation Act.

Prior to the tree clearing taking place, council was made aware that survey results had shown the greater gliders at Seven Mile Beach were isolated, that they were living in less than minimum habitat size required to sustain a population, and that there were no regrowth remnant blocks of bush land in the immediate area that supported greater gliders.  

The Bum tree was the oldest and most valuable habitat tree on Gerroa Road and in its vicinity. At the time of felling, it had a number of hollow limbs which were home to three greater gliders, sugar gliders and Peron’s tree frogs. Coincidentally, a dead juvenile male greater glider with a severed tail was found not far from the tree on the last day of felling. This is particularly poignant when you consider that females only give birth to a single young.

Greater gliders only occur in eastern Australia. Roadside tree clearing of hollow-bearing trees, logging, and habitat fragmentation are listed as some of the reasons for their demise and it is noted that they have a special requirement for large hollows in large old trees.

The stump of the Bum tree was unveiled by the mayor in the grounds of the public pool at Shoalhaven Heads in October 2015.

More time, effort and money was spent on placing the stump as a tourist attraction than was spent on wildlife mitigation measures for the displaced greater gliders.

Only approximately 600 metres of the 6.4km of Gerroa Road that attracted Black Spot funding has had the speed zone reduced from 100 to 80, with the majority of the speed reduction taking place on the part of the road that did not attract Black Spot funding, on the Kiama Municipality side.

Crash data available at the time of the tree clearing showed that the majority of car accidents on Gerroa Road since 1996 occurred south of the Beach Road intersection. The latest crash data from RMS confirms that the majority of accidents are still occurring south of the intersection.

I am writing to you today about the local buses and the need for improvement.

Most areas only have area four buses a day going from villages to Nowra. How are people supposed to do their shopping, go to doctors’ appointments, see friends and family or even go to work?

Can the council work with local bus companies in private government enterprise co-operation to provide better services?

Another idea. Can we allow the community bus to be expanded to allow both paying customers and elderly shoppers, not just people going to doctors’ appointments, having mini buses provided by the council run routes within the local towns and villages every hour and having “super” stops along the highway. 

A larger bus could then pick up members of the community at the “super” stops along the highway.  

A number of these stops could run between Berry, Bomaderry, Nowra, near the Log Cabin on the highway at Tomerong, Sussex Inlet, Ulladulla and Batemans Bay.

If the council can work with the private industry this could give a new revenue stream for council.

We cannot tax our way out of debt.