Warnervale aircraft landing strip.

“It is shocking enough that the former Wyong Shire Council had no regard to planning law but it is beyond comprehension that the current Central Coast Council has cleared the same area of land AND failed to undertake a Part 5 Activity Assessment before clearing or relocating the End of Runway at its airport,” Mr Chestnut said.

In July 2019 the elected Councillors passed a resolution requiring the Central Coast Council to restore the 2015 area of unauthorised clearing.

However, in November 2021, the unelected Administrator attempted to rescind the Council resolution of July 2019. That rescission was bungled - the Administrator ended up rescinding a confidential minute which had nothing to do with the Central Coast Airport.

Mr Chestnut brought this mistake to Council’s attention in December 2021 and continued to correspond with the Council about this matter throughout 2022 and early 2023.

Fifteen months later Council’s CEO conceded that the report should have been written more clearly but said Council intended to clear the land for airport safety on the basis that Commonwealth legislation would override State legislation.

“Council’s attempt to hide behind Commonwealth legislation is regrettable and an ‘own goal’. If Council had bothered to undertake a Part 5 Activity Assessment, which is a statutory requirement, they would have found that the State Legislation complements the Commonwealth legislation.

“Instead, Council ignored the State planning law and cleared 2.25 ha of Endangered Ecological Community (EEC) with no justification. It appears not to be required for airport safety or fall within the status of existing use.

“In addition, Council has mowed 0.74 ha of EEC in a location where it only has the existing use status of trimming vegetation. This means Council has not taken into consideration the biodiversity impacts or offsetting on 3.00 ha of EEC.

“Why does Council and, by default, the Administrator, not follow the law when Council is responsible for applying planning law to all private citizens?” Mr Chestnut asked.

Comparing the following aerial photograph taken taken in 2023 with the aerial photograph below it, taken between 2015 to 2022, you will observe the location of the End of Runway has been relocated by Council without undertaking a Part 5 Activity Assessment.

The CEN is calling upon the CEO, David Farmer, to take the following steps:

• Prepare a report to Council requesting the Administrator suspend work on the current Draft Central Coast Airport Master Plan (CCA - MP) until Council receives legal advice on the implications of ‘existing use’ and ‘Part 5 Activity Assessment’.

• Subject to the legal advice received that the current Draft CCA – MP be withdrawn and re-exhibited.

• Explain in the Council report that if the airport masterplan has to be reexhibited it will contain: an explanation on ‘existing use’ and ‘Part 5 Activity Assessment’ and how this impacts planning options within the masterplan; a detailed history of the airfield operations along with the physical constraints of both Council’s resolution in July 2019 and the restrictions imposed upon Council to address the Department of Planning and Environment rehabilitation request to address biodiversity impacts; a map of the land that would require an enabling clause on land, which is part of Porters Creek Wetland that is currently zoned C2, to permit vegetation trimming if Council was to seek approval to increase the runway from 970 m to 1,199 m, which would then allow the upgrading of the airfield from a Category 1 airfield to a Category 2 airfield.