Greens MP Mehreen Faruqi to bulldoze 20 trees for her Port Macquarie investment property

A Greens senator plans to mow down dozens of native trees and local flora around her investment properties to build three luxury homes in the heart of one of the largest koala habitats in the state.

The party’s deputy leader, Mehreen Faruqi, and her husband will cut down 20 trees at her investment property in Port Macquarie and subdivide it to build three two-story townhouses.

A development application approved by Port Macquarie Hastings Council in May estimated the cost of developing the property, which the couple has owned since 2001, at $1.5 million.

The architecturally designed plans call for most of the trees on the property to be removed, including a hollow tree, which provides a habitat for native animals, council documents said.

The deputy leader of the Greens and her husband will knock down 20 trees at her investment property (pictured) and subdivide it

An ecological report presented to the council said the plans “will result in the loss of the majority of vegetation on the site” near Lighthouse Beach.

‘The development requires the removal of native and exotic vegetation on the site. Tree removal includes planted ornamental trees and native species, including figs, Guioa, Tuckeroo, fruit trees and tree ferns,” it said.

“Up to 20 native trees and shrubs must be removed, as well as ornamental plants.”

Port Macquarie has one of the largest populations of koalas in New South Wales – there are around 2,000 of them – and is home to one of Australia’s best-known koala hospitals.

Land clearing is one of the main reasons why the endangered marsupial is under threat, with the NSW Department of Planning and Environment saying they are on track to be extinct in the wild by 2050.

An ecological assessment conducted for Ms. Faruqi’s development application found that there were no koala food trees on the site. However, several ‘reasonably fresh’ koala droppings were found on the property boundary of the site.

The study found that the development is ‘unlikely to have significant adverse effects on the local population’, but noted that the larger area ‘contains a potential foraging resource’.

Ms. Faruqi has co-owned the investment house Port Macquarie with her husband since 2001

An ecological report presented to the council said the plans “will result in the loss of the majority of vegetation on the site,” including native and exotic vegetation and a hollow tree, which provides habitat for native animals

The report claimed that “threatened … species” would rely “on adjacent and nearby habitats to meet their life cycle requirements” once development was undertaken.

The report outlines a number of measures to reduce the development’s impact on ‘flora, fauna and ecological communities’.

“These include pre-clearance surveys and clearance monitoring, weed control, and replacement nest boxes for fauna,” the report said.

A spokesman for the Greens senator claimed that her application met “all environmental requirements.”

The subdivision plans add two more properties to Senator Faruqi’s portfolio.

She has declared four properties in the parliamentary register of interests.

This includes two in Beaconsfield, in central Sydney – one of which is an investment – and a 500m² plot in Lahore, Pakistan.

Ms. Faruqi has declared four properties, including an investment home in Beaconsfield. A spokesman for her office said the development on her property met “all ecological requirements”

She did not disclose whether the development would provide more affordable housing for renters.

The Greens have consistently blocked Labour’s $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund, which would see the government build 30,000 new social and affordable homes.

The party has demanded a two-year rent freeze from the Commonwealth and limited future rent increases to two per cent every two years.

This is despite the fact that the federal government cannot freeze or cap rents under the Constitution. Only the states and territories can cap or freeze rents.