The community campaign against the cable car that has been proposed for kunayi/ Mt Wellington in Hobart is going from strength to strength.

Here is a summary of what’s happened in the past week.

Last Saturday, the cable car proponents revealed they are planning to build the cable car straight over the large cliffs that are a dominant feature of the mountain – the Organ Pipes – and undertake massive road upgrades through the peaceful valleys of Old Farm Road and Lenah Valley.

On Tuesday, the media revealed that the cable car proponent claims that the state Government directed his company to refrain from releasing information on the project to the media and the public until it had passed the enabling legislation through parliament.

The government is clearly highly supportive of the cable car, yet on Thursday, they had to order the Mount Wellington Cableway Company to stop working on the mountain.

On Friday, two climbers began a two-day protest, suspended 100 m above the ground on the Organ Pipes. The group’s spokesman Phil Stignit said the Organ Pipes site was world-renowned in the rock climbing community, and the stunt was about attracting widespread attention.

And on Sunday May 6, a huge crowd of several thousand turned up to protest against the cable car.

The ABC reported that:

So many people were packed into the park for the Mountain Mayday rally — held near the proposed base station for the project — that some had to stand outside the fence on the road in order to see.

The speakers included Tasmanian author Richard Flanagan, former Australian Greens leader Bob Brown and independent MP Andrew Wilkie.

They said the process for the cable car development had been corrupt and lacking transparency and community consultation.

 

Residents Opposed to the Cable Car have started a crowdfunding campaign to pay for legal advice and campaign materials. Are you able to chip in? Every dollar helps!

[IMAGE: Bob Brown]