Dear To Whom It May Concern

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7. Concerns that the protection of Riparian vegetation which preserves river banks and roosting
areas, would not be respected because of the runoff and seepage. The proposed area for this factory
activity is proven to have regular heavy rainfall with winds gusting up to 200km such as the
December 16th 2006 disaster. (RACQ have these records). No amount of attention to detail could
protect the environment from ‘accidents’ caused by storms and heavy rainfall, especially on sloping
land such as this proposed factory site.

8. Concerns for the amphibian populations in the Mary River catchment, particularly the tributary of
Blackfellow Creek. The scientific community is increasingly recognizing the role of chemical
pollutants in amphibian decline. Studies show that frog skin is highly permeable.... Giant Barred Frog
and Cascade Tree Frog are both ‘Endangered Species’ which inhabit Blackfellow Creek.

9. There are concerns for the Endangered Tiger Quoll. Quolls will be attracted to the stench coming
from the sheds and will be at risk of death from the increased heavy B-double semi trailer use in
their environment

10. Additional concerns for the Tiger Quoll relate to wild dogs. Wild dogs will be drawn to the
chicken sheds, lured by chicken odour, attracted to dead animals from the bait stations from the
surrounding chicken factory, as well as the sick and dying chickens, and piles of compost.

11. Concerns also exist for the koala habitat in the Top Forestry area including Cooroy-Belli Creek
Road area. With thousands of semi trailers and large truck movements on these roads as well as the
increased number of wild dogs attracted to the area, Deborah Tabart from the Australian Koala
Foundation is concerned that “Road kill and dog attacks are both key conservation concerns for
koalas”. More localized annihilation of koalas will be inevitable should this proposal proceed.

12. Concerns for the known habitat in and around Top Forestry of the Powerful Owl Ninox Strenua,
Sooty Owl Tyto Tenebricosa, Black Breasted Button Tail Quail Turnix Melanogaster and many other
threatened flora and fauna species. Other similarly cryptic birds utilising the same habitat as the
Black-breasted Button-quail are threatened (e.g. Fig Parrot Cyclopsitta diopthalma, Marbled
Frogmouth Podargus ocellatus, Rufous Scrub-bird Atrichornis rufescens, Eastern Bristlebird, northern
subspecies Dasyornis brachypterus monoides), and most other Australian button-quail are also
threatened or declining. Biological effects from visual disturbance of vehicles and the effect of
disturbance by traffic noise, machinery and bright lights, can effect bird populations in a number of
ways. Non-Agricultural development in any area affects populations of arboreal prey species,
particularly the Greater Glider which reduces food availability for the Powerful Owls. Owls are also
susceptible to temporary blindness by bright lights from broiler farm vehicles and factory buildings in
a known habitat, this will increase the road kill. Additionally, secondary poisoning from the baits and
predation of wild dogs and cats in this sensitive environment will affect many of the species listed
above. Disturbance during the breeding period may also affect the breeding success of most bird
species.

13. Concerns for the amount of B-double semi trailers and large trucks….approximately 2000 truck
movements per year… increasing the risk of road accidents and fatalities. The narrow country roads
have school bus stops, children and families on bikes (both recreational and professional), horse
riders and koalas and other wildlife crossing between Land for Wildlife properties. The excessive
dust will affect domestic rainwater collection and could trigger lung and respiratory conditions of
some residents. With excessive odour and distressed chickens being driven through school zones in
Cooroy and past peaceful residential homes, the effects could be widespread. The ongoing trauma
to, not only the chickens, but to the community associated with thousands of semi trailers driving
through Cooroy (the heart of the Noosa Biosphere), is not acceptable or welcome.

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14. Concerns with noise. Intensive broiler factories are excessively noisy and potentially damaging to
the human ear, and even though chickens do not have an outer ear, their inner ear serves the
function of equilibrium and hearing. Such an unnatural environment can result in physiological
imbalances. Noise emitted from fans, feeders, poultry loading equipment, feed delivery, fork-lifts,
farm equipment, excessive noise from inside the sheds from thousands of distressed chickens, in
combination with unattended alarms going off due to potential poor farm management, thousands
of semi-trailers driving along local roads, delivering, reversing, and removing chickens from the
factory broiler sheds.................... You are invited to listen to a B-double reversing.
http://youtu.be/9nSWoJ7A3Do

Anything living onroute/near/in a broiler factory would be traumatized by this cacophony of noise.

15. There are also concerns about the platypus living in the local waterways. Platypus are vulnerable
to the effects of pollution and as they are semi-aquatic, they rely on the health of small creeks and
rivers for their survival. Blackfellow Creek is the home of many platypus. All platypus feed on a
healthy selection of small water animals such as insect larvae, freshwater shrimps and crayfish.
The toxic runoff and seepage from the estimated annual 2,310 tonne of shed litter each year into
this habitat will be detrimental to all life forms who rely on quality water in the ecosystem.

16. There are other concerns about the future water quality as it is an important issue for human
health and the environment. The toxic runoff from the shed litter from at least one and a half million
broiler chickens annually with high concentrations of ammonia, nitrogen, antibiotics, arsenic, cresylic
acid, formaldehyde and organophosphate pesticides, would be an environmental disaster with far
reaching consequences, including potential litigation (owner and Council) to destruction of a healthy
habitat environment.

17. Scientific evidence supports the notion that feeding chickens with antibiotics on a consistent
basis may cause the humans who consume the meat to lose some of their ability to fight certain
strains of bacteria. A research team led by scientists from The University of Texas Health Science
Center at Houston (UTHealth) published a paper in the Sept. 8 2013 issue of the New England
Journal of Medicine, showing that Antibiotic resistance of a superbug known as vancomycin-
resistant enterococci (VRE) is caused by a specific change in its genome. Bacterial Superbugs which
have become resistant to different types of antibiotics are presenting an increasing challenge to the
world of healthcare; in fact one could go so far as to say that they will be one of the leading health
problems of this century. Antibiotic resistance is becoming more commonly seen as a problem that
cannot be easily treated with other medicines. The associated problems of the superbug infection
often lead to longer illnesses, extended hospital stays and in some cases death. If there is a situation
where antibiotics are used in poultry production, clearly in that environment there is going to be a
more rapid spread of resistance. http://youtu.be/yZ5dAEesEk8

18. There is a genuine concern that once a broiler factory farm is established in a specific Council
area, many more applications will follow. Should this occur, Noosa Biosphere would lose its hard
fought status as an unique World sustainability model. The reader is strongly urged to go to the
Noosa Biosphere website at http://www.noosabiosphere.info/what_is_a_biosphere.htm to gain a
full understanding of what a biosphere is and how it works. It is our responsibility to protect our
beautiful environment for future generations to enjoy.

19. The World Health Organization is concerned about the Influenza viruses (bird flu) circulating in
chickens that pose threats to human health. The primary risk factor for human infection appears to
be direct or indirect exposure to infected live or dead animals or contaminated environments. This
includes travelling between farms and slaughterhouses. This is a concern for not only local residents
but for the Noosa tourist industry.

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20. Insect infestation associated with broiler factory farm activities is of huge concern. The flies,
mosquitoes and other annoying insects will be attracted to the broiler factory farm location which
will create even more concerns for local residents. Mosquitoes can be carriers of deadly diseases
and have been mentioned in some medical journals as carriers of Lyme disease.

21. Industrial agriculture proposals such as this chicken factory farm application is dependent on
copious amounts of water and fossil fuel electricity. Heavy dependence on fossil fuel consumption
increases climate change. These factors alone have far reaching environmental and social costs.

Sustainable agriculture on the other hand, is the production of food or other plant or animal
products using farming techniques that protect the environment, public health, human
communities, and animal welfare. Sustainable agriculture enables us to produce healthful food
without compromising future generations' ability to do the same. This is what we should be moving
towards.

22. In 2006 some people were without electricity in this area for 10 days because of the massive
storm devastation with resultant power lines down…. There have been concerns raised that the
large amount of electricity required will not be sufficient and thousands of chickens will perish.
Noise from back-up large scale generators will create more noise concerns. Power failures are not
uncommon in the proposed area.

23. Elsewhere in the world factory farms have been destroyed in tornados and cyclones, and such
weather events cannot be discounted in this area. In such events large sheets of metal debris,
chickens, shed litter, chemical poisons, stored fuel for generators etc could pose additional problems
for local residents.

24. This factory proposal is not a local family farming business as purported in their application, but
rather an adjunct to a multi-national company which has a turnover in excess of AU$2 billion, and
earnings of around AU$210 million per annum. A US private equity firm, TPG Capital (previously
known as Texas Pacific), purchased Australia’s Ingham’s Enterprises which is estimated to be worth
AU$880 million. Being a multi-national company, the majority of the money will go offshore.

25. Whilst outside the direct jurisdiction for Council to consider, it should be highlighted the amount
of influence overseas corporations have within Australia’s food supply system. Investors, both
domestic and international, have an incontrovertible right to earn profit from their investments,
whilst paying their just expenses and taxes. Council should be concerned however, that areas
designated as a biosphere and heavily reliant on the tourist dollar, should be kept as such for future
generations, and preferably, efforts should be maintained or enhanced to protect land use which is
consistent with this ideology. People have moved to this region for values that Council has
promoted; not for Council to change the game plan for the benefit of a single applicant – an
applicant who is a player within a multi-national plan.

26. Council should define this proposal as an “application for a factory” not as an extension to an
existing farm. If this factory proposal falls under the definition of a “farm”, other applicants can and
will use this proposal – if it should succeed – as a precedent to change the rural land usage.
Factories traditionally belong in Industrial precincts not in a world heritage listed biosphere.

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27.There are concerns for the human appetite for unsustainable farm agriculture which is a driving
force behind virtually every major category of environmental damage now threatening humanity
and the world as we once knew it. Unsustainable agriculture adversely affects the environment in
many ways such as: deforestation, erosion, fresh water scarcity, air and water pollution, climate
change, biodiversity loss, toxic use of chemical poisons, destabilization of communities and the
spread of disease….and this makes sustainable agriculture an urgency for the conservation of life.
Think globally by acting locally is the intelligent option for our future. We urge Council to consider
this aspect in their deliberations.



In conclusion, we strongly urge your positive considerations and actions by not supporting this sort
of intense broiler factory farm activity in our beautiful Noosa Biosphere.

Dr Mercola, a well known author and medical practitioner and advocate of health and longevity,
recently shared the following information about factory farms.

Ctrl + Click to follow link.

http://www.mercola.com/infographics/truth-about-factory-
farms.htm?e_cid=20130916Z3_DNL_SECON&utm_source=content&utm_medium=email&utm_cont
ent=secon&utm_campaign=20130916Z3




Thank you



Jeanette Merrell Ridgewood

PO Box 137 Eumundi Q 4562

on behalf of NO broiler farm Cooroy Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/NO-broiler-farm-Cooroy/367193153408565

9th October 2013.

NO broiler farm Cooroy

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