WIN News Cairns
They're worried its approval could infringe on the Cassowary Coast's namesake, with potentially disastrous consequences for the town's identity and economy, despite the promise of low impact and predicted returns.

People are worried that the proposed aviation facility on the Tully-Mission Beach Road will have a negative impact on property prices, tourism, the World Heritage environment and wildlife, including cassowaries, and the peaceful, laidback lifestyle.

Peter Rowles, president of Community for Coastal and Cassowary Conservation (C4), which organised the meeting, told the gathering the lack of clarity around the development application by Victorian-based Kestrel Aviation and the contradictions between it and the planning report to Cassowary Coast Regional Council were cause for concern.

“There is still insufficient information for an informed vote on this deferred application when it is presented at next Thursday’s Council meeting,” Mr Rowles said.

Much of the conflicting information concerned whether the base would be a tourism venture using light helicopters to ferry visitors between Cairns and Townsville and the offshore islands or whether, as stated in the planning report, Mission Beach would be a base for heavy-lift helicopters used in firefighting and emergency services.

Calls by C4 to Kestrel Aviation to gain clarity on the development proposal had not been returned.
“Emergency services and medivac operations are already catered for by contracted companies with established bases in Cairns and Townsville,” Mr Rowles said.

“We are not against new business – we encourage economic growth of the Cassowary Coast region – but the proposed location of a noisy helicopter base will have a negative impact upon existing businesses, residents, tourists and wildlife.

“There are aviation facilities available at Tully and Innisfail and either of these sites would be a better option.

“Mission Beach is the centre of tourism on the Cassowary Coast so this development has implications for the whole region.

“We live in one of the few places in the world where two World Heritage areas (Wet Tropics and Great Barrier Reef) lie side by side and visitors from all over the world are attracted to this region because of its natural beauty and biodiversity.”

Mr Rowles made a point of welcoming local Division Three Councillor Trudy Tschui, who had come to listen to the meeting. He encouraged everyone to read the development application and planning response and to note inconsistencies,   contradictions and omissions, and to email councillors with their concerns.
​
Petitions with around 750 signatures asking the Council to refuse the development application had been presented this week, and representatives of C4 and Mission Beach Cassowaries had made a deputation to the whole Council on Tuesday.

 Arun Singh Mann
Source Cairns Post 14 Jan 2021

What's next?
Today's public meeting is on at Marcs Park, Mission Beach from 12pm, and follows last week's meeting.
"There has been further developments with the application since then, so it's a chance for the community to keep up to date," says Mr Rowles.
The proposal is set to be tabled at the next council meeting in Tully, on January 21.

Following from Kestrel Aviation website
​Did you know that Kestrel Aviation, Australia's leading provider of specialist aviation services, also operates Mission Helicopters, a far north Queensland focused operation catering to both high-end tourism and commercial helicopter charter with quick change multi-function platforms.
​
Mission Helicopters, a subsidiary of Australian owned Kestrel Aviation, was established in 2019 to provide high-end tourism and commercial helicopter charter for communities in Far North Queensland from its proposed base at Mission Beach.
Servicing the Cassowary Coast, an application has been lodged with Council to construct a purpose built helicopter and passenger handling facility which will service, amongst others Cairns, Port Douglas, Townsville and the Dunk and Bedarra Island resorts. The site also provides an important link for local tourism and the Great Barrier Reef.

 Residents  of Mission and Wongaling  and anyone enjoying our  beautiful beaches  will be impacted.   The proposed location is  directly adjacent to  a primary cassowary corridor and close to the walking/bike track along Tully Mission Beach Road. ​

Below shows  the noise and dust  generated from a     Sikorsky  UH-60A Blackhawk  ​​ taking off.
There are  many videos   on the Kestrel facebook page demonstrating the noise factor of these  large  aircraft.

"...helicopters sound noisier, because the “blade slap” produced by these machines involves low frequencies sounds that determine the diffusion of vibratory systems that affect greatly the perception and the annoyance..."

​In order to control the environmental impact of a heliport all involved actors (the State, the local authorities, the local resident associations, the heliport users and the heliport managers) should adopt measures that aim to reduce the environmental pollution and its associated annoyance, especially noise and gas pollution, due to the helicopter activity in order to preserve the health and peacefulness of the local residents.

Conclusions
"...Rotorcrafts have unique flight capabilities, such as hover and lateral or vertical operations. But these additional operational degrees of freedom are balanced by complex source noise mechanisms that can enhance annoyance..."

See following mail out by  Ray White
We encourage  you to write a polite letter  to the following  councillors and representatives ;
​mayor@ccrc.qld.gov.au
trudy.tschui@ccrc.qld.gov.au
jeff.baines@ccrc.qld.gov.au
Teresa.Millwood@ccrc.qld.gov.au
Barry.Barnes@ccrc.qld.gov.au
nicholas.pervan@ccrc.qld.gov.au
kylie.farinelli@ccrc.qld.gov.au
The Hon Bob Katter – bob.katter.mp@aph.gov.au
Member for Hill Shane Knuth - hill@parliament.qld.gov.au

From: "Ray White Mission Beach" <missionbeach.qld@raywhite.com>
Subject: Objection to Heliport
Date: 8 January 2021 at 10:25:01 am AEST
To: "
Reply-To: r-ff014d242934b505c5b4671bc54db55ca569655f@campaign.raywhite.com
Dear 
Trust everyone had a good Christmas and New Year break. 
I wanted to alert you to the Cassowary Coast Shire Councils rezoning of a rural block of land at Mission Beach (next to the Raw Material Centre, Tully Mission Beach Road) for use as a helicopter base with noisy, heavy lift choppers regularly flying to and from there. These are massive noisy machines. 
If allowed, I believe, it will impact on our peaceful and quiet enjoyment of our beautiful area and threaten the very reputation and attraction of Mission Beach as a quiet and peaceful sanctuary to escape the noises and commotions of city living. 

If ever there was a time your voice is needed, it’s now! 

Please email your objection ASAP by the deadline of Wednesday 13th January 2021 so your concerns will be registered at the next Cassowary Coast Council Meeting on Thursday 21st January 2021. 
Please email to the following 3 recipients:
 
Mayor Mark Nolan – mayor@ccrc.qld.gov.au
Councillor Trudy Tschui – trudy.tschui@ccrc.qld.gov.au
MP Bob Katter – bob.katter.mp@aph.gov.au
 
Please see a link to a very clear response attached below from one concerned local, setting out the facts (he has given me permission to send out his email to all).
 
Please forward to other friends you know and get them motivated to act by simply sending in an objection. 
There is a lot at stake here and this absurd project must not be allowed to proceed. 

Thank you for your help.

Kind regards,

Dick Williams  PREMIER MEMBER 19-20
Principal
RAY WHITE MISSION BEACH
 
Objection to Heliport.pdf
 
Dick Williams
0419 734 705
dick.williams@raywhite.com