There has been a long community-led campaign to oppose the plan to build a cable car up the face of kunanyi/ Mt Wellington, the mountain above Nipaluna/ Hobart. (You can read the many MJ stories on the topic here).

You may have heard of a new push by the government for a cable car.

The following information comes from Residents Opposed to the Cable Car.

‘A Right to Information (RTI) request revealed that the draft minutes of the July meeting of the Wellington Park Trust show that State Growth staff provided a presentation of the status of the “Mountain Review”. We have no details of the content of that presentation, but can infer from Trust responses that it included a recommendation of a cable car. To quote from the draft minutes:
“Trust members questioned why the cable car was included as a draft recommendation.”

It is clear therefore, that despite known opposition from the traditional owners and the community, and rejection by Hobart City Council (HCC) and TASCAT, this government is intent on pushing for a cable car on Kunanyi.

It is worth looking at the full detail uncovered by the RTI to get some idea what they propose. We are only able to see the Trust’s response, not the draft proposals, but it still makes disturbing reading. To read the text of the full RTI go to the WPMT website. At the bottom of each page there is a link which says “right to information”. Scroll down to the disclosure log and open the one RTI that is there.

There is nothing out in the open just yet, but we need to be prepared for when the government starts trying to put their intentions into action. We need to show that we are still here and that we still care deeply about the mountain.

You can write a letter to the editor of the Mercury. You can visit and engage with the Respect the Mountain Facebook page. This is where new information is most likely to be posted first.

It is notable that Monday’s editorial in the Mercury appears sympathetic to us for once, concluding that: “until the government finally clips the cable once and for all, this city will be stuck on repeat, forever arguing over a mountain that deserves a bit of peace.”