News

The North Head Sanctuary Foundation was formed on 31st August, 2002 in response to a Forum conducted in July by the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust and the National Parks and Wildlife Service at which the idea of the whole of North Head, including the Quarantine Station, being managed as an ecological sanctuary was discussed.

Concept Plans for the Car-rang-gel (North Head) Sanctuary have been created and are being discussed by various agencies who manage public land on North Head - National Parks and Wildlife Service, Sydney Water, Police Institute, Sydney Harbour Federation Trust, and the Artillery Museum.

There will be a flotilla of protest in Sydney Harbour on July 17th 2004 from 10:30am onwards to register the desire of the people of NSW for a halt to the leasing process. Banners will be displayed on boats that sail past the Quarantine Station. These can be viewed sailing past from Little Manly Point and from Collins Beach.

In April, 2002, the documents concerning the Declaration of Critical Habitat for Little Penguins were made public and comment was invited. Closing date for comments is 14th June 2002.

The Minister for Planning organised a Commission of Inquiry into the leasing of the Quarantine Station and the environmental impacts of this. The hearings were held during February and March 2002 and the Commission is expected to finalise their report by the end of June 2002.

On the Thursday before the Commission of Inquiry began in February 2002 an explosion and fire occurred in the wooden Hospital building at Quarantine Station. This building was the most powerfully evocative place - and crucial to the meaning of the Quarantine experience. It held many artefacts used by the medical staff during Quarantine times.

Early on Saturday 13th October, a fire destroyed the Third Class accommodation building. The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a proposal to use the QS as a hotel was under public discussion at this time.
The NPWS have employed security guards to prevent any further vandalism. It is difficult to predict the ways in which this will alter the economic viability of the proposal under discussion via the EIS.

Click here to read the full text of the media release sent by NPA to newspapers and radio stations.

Click here to read the full text of the resolution that has been sent to the Premier, the Environment Minister and the Minister for Urban Affairs.

In September, 2001, the parliament to made public the entire document entitled "Conditional Agreement to Lease the Quarantine Station" which was signed on January 24th, 2000.

A coalition of groups from around Sydney have formed an association. Each group has the same concern - the sale or lease of significant public lands. It is envisaged that groups from other parts of New South Wales will join the coalition in protest against the lack of full community consultation in decision-making concerning the future ownership and/or management of an array of public assets - schools, hospitals, open spaces, heritage sites, etc - that have high value to the public.

A notice of motion before parliament to make public the entire document entitled "Conditional Agreement to Lease the Quarantine Station" which was signed on January 24th, 2000 resulted in the release of this document during the first week of the EIS public comment phase.

Urban Affairs minister, Andrew Refshauge, has announced a public inquiry into the future of the Quarantine Station site.

The NPWS have contracted the preparation of six precinct Detailed Area Conservation Management Plans (QSDACMPs) for areas of the Quarantine Station. These cover the details within the buildings, the fabric of the buildings, etc. The working group of community members studying these plans met on October 31st, 2000 to begin the process. They met again on December 12th to discuss the six QSDACMPs. The Heritage Council accepted these plans PROVIDED 35 corrections were made.

The Environmental Impact Statement comment phase began on Sept 17th, 2001, and yet those 35 corrections required by the Heritage Council had not been made. The "final" versions of the QSDACMPs were issued with the EIS but are not actually compliant with the requirements of the Heritage Council.

The NPWS prepared their Penguin Recovery Plan which is quite comprehensive but was initially weak in one regard - it failed to define the critical habitat area. NPWS, in October 2000, listed some areas of penguin habitation but these may not be the total number of areas critical for penguins. Detailed observations and research are continuing in conjunction with Charles Sturt University.

During 2001, the NPWS announced that areas from Stuart St Manly through to Cannae Point and 100m inland were areas of critical habitat for little penguins.

Friends of Quarantine Station applied for a History Grant through the Centenary of Federation 20001 Committee. If we had been successful, we would have been helping to complete the cataloguing of all ships and people who were quarantined at the Station during its operation. But the application was unsuccessful.

On January 24th, 2000, the National Parks and Wildlife Service together with Mawland Hotel Management P/L signed a conditional agreement to lease the Quarantine Station. On January 28th members of FroQS lodged a Freedom of Information request to see the signed document.

FroQS wanted to see the exact details of the intended relationship between the NPWS and Mawland to make sure that the NPWS retained full powers over all activities within this National Park. We want to make sure that the agreement binds Mawland to honour all aspects of the new Conservation Management Plan and we want to make sure that the financial arrangements do not compel either party to let economic considerations override the conservation of cultural, historical and natural heritage.

Our request to see this document was refused even after an internal review. The matter went before the Administrative Decisions Tribunal - the hearing took place on July 11th and 12th, 2000. Their decision was announced at the end of September - that FroQS have access to those sections of the agreement that cover the conservation of the natural, historical and cultural heritage but not those detailing the commercial arrangements.

In June 2001, the Conditional Agreement to Lease was tabled in the Upper House of NSW parliament. Just after the Environmental Impact Statement was released for public comment in mid September, 2001, the Conditional Agreement to Lease was made available to the public.

The Environmental Impact Assessment dates have not been published but it is thought likely that the process will begin in December 2000 or early in 2001. There have been formal requests made to extend the duration of public comment beyond a month because of the complexity of the issues involved.

Peter Freeman and his colleagues have have completely rewritten the Conservation Management Plan and seem generally to have produced a very comprehensive document. This document was approved by the Heritage Council on 18th April 2000 and is available on the National Parks and Wildlife Service website.

A statement concerning the value of the Quarantine Station can be found on the National Parks and Wildlife Service website.

On October 23rd, 1999, Peter Freeman was commissioned by the National Parks and Wildlife Service to prepare a document to replace the Conservation Plan that the Heritage Council judged to be flawed. Many submissions were presented to Peter Freeman. The new Conservation Management Plan was ratified by the Heritage Council in April, 2000.

1.. Council note the stated intention of the National Parks and Wildlife Service to review the 1992 Conservation Plan for Quarantine Station.

2.. Council advise the National Parks and Wildlife Service that it considers it desirable that the new/revised Conservation Plan should encompass all the lands on North Head which will come under the control of the Service in the near future. The Conservation Plan should cover the School of Artillery Site, Quarantine Station and the Sydney Harbour National Park on North Head.

3.. Council engage the three consultants who commented for Council on the 1992 Conservation Plan to provide comments on the Heritage Council’s comments and any other matters which should be included in the revised Conservation Plan.

4.. Council seek legal advice on the status of the NPWS tendering process in the light of the changed status of the Conservation Plan, which forms the basis of the tendering documents.

5.. Council seek written assurance from NPWS that the draft revised conservation plan will be placed on public exhibition for comments prior to lodgement with the Heritage Council.

On October 9th, 1999, several members of FroQs presented a workshop at the Ecopolitics Conference in the Blue Mountains.

Our various activities during 1999 were discussed - seminars, protest marches, letters, meetings and compared.

On September 4th, 1999, a seminar was held at the Quarantine Station at which specialists in several fields presented aspects of the Quarantine Station and panels discussed the weaknesses in the current Conservation Plan.

On August 15th Friends of Quarantine Station marched with the Jam for the Dam protestors into Manly.