[Greens-Media] Snow Town to create problems

[Manderson, Roland]

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ACT Greens MLA Deb Foskey MEDIA RELEASE
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1 May 06


Snow Town to create problems

Following the announcement that the Canberra Airport would no longer be bound by the National Capital Plan, ACT Greens MLA Deb Foskey has condemned the view that airports are merely businesses in healthy competition with each other.

"Canberra is the National Capital. It has a National Capital Plan in order to protect its national design features and functions. However, the Federal Government has decided the Canberra Airport, privately owned by the Snow family, need not comply with it" Dr Foskey said today.

"Now we will have a Snow satellite town developed with no regard for the National Capital Plan, creating a stream of traffic problems for Canberra residents, and undermining the viability of their businesses and communities."

"For the Canberra Airport to argue that the National Capital Plan disadvantages it in competition with, say, Perth is both self serving and facile. Our airport should address our needs in Canberra, and if the owners aren't prepared to do that they should sell out, or better still, hand it back."

"The problem is not unique to Canberra. In responding to criticism, both the Canberra Airport and the Federal Transport Minister have blithely ignored the stream of complaints from planning agencies around Australia concerning untrammelled and ill considered airport development." 

"Our airports were not intended to be shopping centres or industrial parks. And in taking on those roles they are undermining other facilities and the planning regimes that govern them."

"The rationale appears to be that airports are businesses. In this case, however, they are special businesses under the protective wing of the Department of Transport" Dr Foskey said.

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Roland Manderson   Media Advisor
ACT   Greens    MLA  Deb  Foskey  
Legislative Assembly for the ACT 
ph(02)62050551      m 0412241379
==== www.act.greens.org.au ===== 
  
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