Blue Gum High Forest

In 2007 the Blue Gum High Forest Group, a coalition of concerned groups, won their long-running campaign to protect the Blue Gum High Forest in St Ives. They:

• succeeded in having the Blue Gum High Forest ecological community listed as critically endangered under Commonwealth legislation
• campaigned successfully to have both 100 and 102 Rosedale Road purchased
• successfully nominated the Blue Gum High Forest for listing on the NSW Heritage Register

Blue Gum High Forest Discovery Kits are available to schools and other interested parties from Friends of Lane Cove National Park.

Short History

1938–1990
One owner, house since demolished and forest regenerating.

1990
Purchased for $1.8m; 9-lot subdivision refused by Ku-ring-gai Council.

1997
Gazettal of Blue Gum High Forest as an endangered ecological community.

2000
Lot 12 (102 Rosedale Road) and Lot 13 (100 Rosedale Road) sold for $2.2m.

2002
Land and Environment Court rejected a 4-lot subdivision on Lot 12 on the grounds of its inability to provide a sufficient asset protection zone (from bushfire hazard) and also its impact on the endangered Blue Gum High Forest community.

2004
Development application was submitted to Ku-ring-gai Council for a dwelling on 100 Rosedale Road.

2005
100–102 Rosedale Road was advertised for sale.

2005
Ku-ring-gai Council unanimously agreed to allocate part-funding for the purchase of 100–102 Rosedale Road.

2005
Commonwealth Minister for Environment and Heritage listed the Blue Gum High Forest and the Turpentine Ironbark Forest in the Sydney Basin as critically endangered.

2005
100 Rosedale Road was bought by the NSW Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation as an offset to compensate for 0.33 ha of Blue Gum High Forest destroyed as a result of upgrading Hornsby Railway Station and the property was transferred to the Department of Environment and Conservation.

2006
Blue Gum High Forest St Ives was selected as a Threatened Species Demonstration Site. This endangered ecological community was the first of 11 sites within the Sydney Metropolitan Catchment Management Area chosen to showcase best practice management to ensure the long-term viability of threatened species, populations and/or ecological communities.

2007
NSW Scientific Committee determined that the Blue Gum High Forest ecological community be listed as critically endangered, recognising the increased level of threat since it was listed as endangered in 1977 under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act.

2007
A development application was submitted for a large single dwelling on 102 Rosedale Road. The application was rejected by Ku-ring-gai Council.

2007
102 Rosedale Road was purchased by Ku-ring-gai Council, assisted by $350,000 from the National Reserve System and over $72,000 in public donations.