THE Western Australian Planning Commission (WAPC) approved changes to the North Ellenbrook East District Structure Plan (DSP) despite renewed concerns about groundwater management and potential environmental damage.

At its November 11 meeting, the commission endorsed amendment 1, which identifies an additional 18.1ha of potential local reserves to protect environmentally significant areas, including black cockatoo habitat.

The amendment also identifies potential road network upgrades, with further investigations to be undertaken during subsequent planning stages.

Swan Communities Environment Alliance vice-chair Jan Zeck urged commissioners to reconsider existing drainage strategies, warning that similar approaches had contributed to groundwater problems across the southern Swan urban growth corridor.

“In high groundwater areas, such as these floodplains associated with the Swan Canning River system, where Bassendean sands overlie impervious Guildford Formation clay, current methodologies and technologies are failing,” she said.

Ms Zeck said authorities failed to adequately account for similarities between the geological conditions in North Ellenbrook and suburbs further south.

She said existing drainage strategies had not been sufficiently monitored, reviewed or adapted following development.

“What is actually happening is no oversight, little scrutiny, and limited compliance,” she said.

“Developers are implementing development with minimal governance and passing flawed infrastructure onto local governments to deal with.”

Ms Zeck said the consequences were ultimately borne by residents and ratepayers.

“It is the local ratepayers and residents carrying the cost and burden of living with the consequences,” she said.

Another deputation raised concerns about the potential impacts of drainage infrastructure and road development on environmentally sensitive areas, arguing that stronger protections were required before local planning progressed.

Swan resident Ingrid Mulder welcomed the additional proposed conservation areas but questioned whether their designation as local reserves would adequately protect black cockatoo habitat and ecological corridors.

She also raised concerns about vegetation clearing that she said had already occurred within areas proposed for retention.

CLE Town Planning associate planner Alex Jarvis supported the amendment, saying it would implement environmental protections recommended through an earlier Environmental Protection Authority process.

He said more detailed water management investigations would accompany future local structure plans.

Responding to the deputations, planning officers maintained that the existing district-level water management framework was appropriate and provided sufficient guidance for subsequent planning stages.

They said further assessments would address drainage, groundwater management and the protection of environmentally sensitive areas.

Commissioners acknowledged the concerns but supported the additional environmental protections introduced by the amendment.

WAPC commissioner Ray Haeren said many of the detailed matters raised during deputations would be addressed through future local structure plans.

The recommendation was carried unanimously by the WAPC.