Category: Daintree News

Today’s results of Douglas Shire Council’s consultation on the Daintree River Crossing Option confirm that 66% of Douglas Shire residents and ratepayers prefer a two-ferry service compared to 33% of people who choose a bridge. 1% prefer a single ferry.
These results consolidate the excellent work completed by the previous Council under the leadership of Julia Leu as mayor. The new consultation has wasted a year of time and resources. The previous Council approved the two-ferry option on December 3, 2019. New ferries would have been operational on July 1, 2021, in seven months time. Now, this will not happen, as a new contract needs to be signed before the contractor can commence construction of the new ferries.

Douglas Shire Sustainability Group (DSSG) welcomes the results of a survey conducted by Douglas Shire Council into the appetite for a bridge crossing the Daintree River.The survey results confirm the views of DSSG members that a bridge is neither required nor desired and that this community prefers conservation over development. Two thirds of those surveyed said they preferred a two ferry system.

The survey results are in with Douglas Shire preferring a two-ferry crossing over a bridge at the Daintree River. The detailed results, released on Douglas Shire Council’s website today, revealed a majority of those who completed the Daintree River Crossing Survey preferred a two-ferry service with 66% of the count, compared to 33% of people who chose a bridge.

A new app will help to ensure we’re safer in crocodile territory, tracking the ancient reptiles as they travel through local waterways.

The exhibition is a space for residents to discuss their flood experiences, to help with recovery from the monsoonal trough, and to encourage people to prepare for the upcoming cyclone season.

Enjoy a journey back in time as Pam from Douglas Shire Historical Society takes us on a voyage down the Daintree River.

Learn about the historical use of the River tracing back to the Kuku Yalanji, and its use as a pioneering transport route for cedar, dairy, and mail.
Did you know there was an historical settlement called Whitby at the river mouth?
How did Humbug Reach gets its name?
If you’ve got more stories, memories or old photos to add to this trip down memory lane, please share!

Converse has teamed up with local Sydney artist, Elliott Routledge, to paint a mural in Woolloomooloo, Sydney, that not only cleans the air but also helps plant trees in Australia’s Daintree Rainforest. The design for the mural was created in collaboration with Rainforest Rescue
and draws inspiration from the fauna and flora of the Daintree, promoting the message that ‘Trees are the Answer’.

Today’s featured Letter to the Editor addresses claims of a proposed bridge over the Daintree River being more environmentally friendly than. the ferry. “Members of Douglas Shire Sustainability Group (DSSG) have participated in the Douglas Shire Council’s process which is aimed at determining the appetite of residents and others for a bridge over a two ferry system, as a means of crossing the Daintree River. As the arguments in favour of a bridge have been eroded, we have noted that proponents are sticking with two arguments to support their claim that a bridge is less environmentally damaging than a ferry.”

The Douglas Shire Council’s ‘Daintree River Crossing – Options Assessment Report’ gives the costs of the four bridge options as between $53 and $75 million with the average of $60 million compared to the double ferry option of $2.8 million. The two lowest cost bridge options require the clearing of endangered forest types. It is highly unlikely that permits would be issued to clear this endangered vegetation when there are other options .

As a general member of the community with no affiliations to any political group I feel it’s important for the people of the Douglas Shire to have oversight of ALL of the questions being submitted to the DSC and the DSC’s responses. So, I am respectfully requesting that my questions and answers be published on the DNN website and Facebook page if you are agreeable.