Walker Corporation has hit back at protest group Redlands 2030 over claims that several thousands have made submissions opposing the Toondah Harbour EIS, labelling the assertion "baseless".
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The $1.4 billion development has been firmly in the spotlight during the public consultation period for the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), which wrapped up on December 6.
An official count on the number of submissions and a breakdown of responses will be revealed once the final EIS report is submitted to the federal government.
Walker Corporation has advised that independent consultants are dealing with this process and the developers would have no oversight over the numbers.
In a statement, Walker Corp said it had been inundated with positive responses online and at its events and believed there would be thousands of submissions supporting the development.
But Redlands 2030 president Steve MacDonald had a very different take on the matter, saying the group's assessment of submissions had found that about 25,000 responses were against the $1.4 billion proposal.
"The weight of public opinion has clearly rejected the draft EIS and this despite strong advocacy by local members of Parliament," he said.
Walker Corporation spokesman Dolan Hayes claimed Redlands 2030 were on a "propaganda mission" because they had been shocked by the level of support for the development during public consultation.
"Redlands 2030 are hurt by the fact elected representatives at local, state and federal levels in the Redlands strongly supported the Toondah Harbour revitalisation after reading through the EIS," he said.
"Thousands of our supporters have, in fact, praised the modern EIS interactive platform provided to inform the community with the findings of the experts and scientists in easy-to-read factsheets.
"They have attacked the process because they can't attack the science."
Mr MacDonald said the EIS responses clearly demonstrated that residents were concerned about development putting their lifestyle at risk and destroying the area's "village feel".
The Redlands 2030 president said thousands of people - including dozens of community organisations, academics and environmental experts - had debunked claims made in the EIS.
"These results show how out of step our elected officials are from the views of the ratepayers of Redland City," he said.
Mr MacDonald also claimed that an "unprecedented effort" from residents and multiple environmental groups had resulted in about 1800 locals making submissions through Redlands 2030.
This was despite complaints during public consultation that technical information contained in the EIS had been "dumped" on residents and there was limited access to the documents at council libraries.
"People responding to the EIS showed their passion and feeling for their local area and were not impressed with proposals that put their lifestyle, sense of place and the village feel at risk," Mr MacDonald said.
Mr Hayes said it was "ironic" that Redlands 2030 had previously sought an in-depth analysis of the development but was now complaining about its length, which is more than 5400 pages.
"We support the level of detail which went into the EIS public consultation from the experts to ensure every aspect was addressed in a thorough manner, enabling residents to make informed submissions ...," he said.
The Redlands Chamber of Commerce has also thrown its support behind the development, adding to a chorus of local business professionals pushing to see the project come to fruition.
In its submission, the Chamber encouraged Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek to approve the development so key infrastructure could be in place before the 2032 Brisbane Olympics and Paralympics.
Opponents of the development say it will adversely impact wildlife, including migratory birds, and impact amenity for surrounding residents.
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