Opponents of the state government’s controversial Roe 8 highway extension project have taken their fight to the High Court following a recent decision that validated the project’s environmental approval.
The Save Beeliar Wetlands group successfully challenged the approval in the Supreme Court late last year, but a state government appeal was upheld by the Court of Appeal last month, paving the way for a key part of the Perth Freight Link project to go ahead.
The protest group has filed for special leave to appeal in the nation's highest court, with SBW convenor Kate Kelly saying the group had launched a crowdfunding campaign to help meet extensive costs in the legal action.
“Roe 8 can only be described as a total mess – disastrous for the southern suburbs, disastrous for Fremantle and for all arterial roads in the western suburbs – it just doesn’t make any sense,” Ms Kelly said.
“By any standard this project is culturally, economically and environmentally destructive and a suboptimal choice for our state’s ongoing health.
“This project represents a line in the sand for Banksia woodlands and wetlands on the Swan Coastal Plain – which are the only ones that exist in the world.
“There are better and less costly alternatives which would see the state’s freight task much more expertly managed through a land-backed Kwinana Port.”
