The property purchased by Alwina Brand, a member of the conservancy, for the conservation of endangered grass owls has been surveyed by a number of specialists and has been monitored by the Endangered Wildlife Trust for a number of years. The breeding pair was present onsite for 10 years before a fire disturbed the nesting site. This was recorded by a specialist who was studying the impacts of the proposed Blue Hills X74 development on the south-west corner of the R55 and Summit Road.
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Habitat in excellent condition was recorded onsite, and a study was done on the wetland system near Protea Road and through the Blue Hills Equestrian Estate, which found there were suitable habitat and hunting grounds. This led to the initial rejection of the development application.
The Midrand residents who commented in favour of the development in the article were not registered as interested parties, and their interest in this is unclear as they reside in Carlswald and Glenferness and will not be affected in any way. However, one resident is an estate agent operating in the Blue Hills area. Perry Garlick of the Blue Hills Ratepayer’s Association represents residents north of Summit Road and was commenting with regards to a wetland system between Summit Road and Olievenhoutbosh, which, as he noted, sees a lot of pedestrian traffic. The site that the conservancy is protecting is fully fenced and could qualify for conservation assistance from the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The conservancy is appealing against the permission for the development, and questions why approval was granted when further studies confirmed the presence of grass owls and the suitability of nesting on the site.
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