Petitioning Gympie Regional Council

[Mila's Mum]

Please sign and share - petition is running until Monday 21/4

Petition Link

Gympie's local no-kill shelter, the only alternate dog and cat shelter in the region, is being threatened with a fine of up to $30,000 by council due to noise complaints made by citizens living in surrounding streets, despite the kennels having existed on this site for over 40 years.

No one from the council or any other department has done a noise reading on premisis, yet they have stated that if the kennels do not reach 'No Noise' by April 2014, they will be fined, despite a request for any kind of extension!

The owners of the shelter have stated that they acknowledge that there is noise coming from the dogs occassionally throughout the day - however this noise will generally only last for a short period during breakfast and dinner times.

The shelter is built with the same materials as most other shelters - there are open runs for the dogs which are fenced with wire, as well as besser block enclosures, through which the dogs are rotated throughout the day, as well as being alternated to have some outdoor 'free time' to help burn extra energy. To entirely sound proof the shelter the council is expecting complete indoor enclosure of the dogs, with artificial lighting and no outdoor play. This just won't do for the furbabies' well being.. Not to mention it would cost tens of thousands of dollars, which can just not be gathered in this small amount of time.

This shelter should be valued as an exemplary highlight of our community.

The work is entirely done by volunteers and the shelter only continues with the generous support of the community and donations and discounts of compassionate vets and trainers. These are good people doing the right thing, and yet they are being treat as a nuisance and threatened as though they are committing criminal acts.

Money is always an issue for shelters such as these, and this situation is entirely unfair. We need your support to buy us more time to raise funds and figure out a comprimise! We are trying our best, but we need the best outcome for our current and future furbabies, who without us, would likely not last to see new homes.

[stellnme]

If council know how to make a whole shelter of dogs "no noise", I would certainly like to have that information!

[Loving my Oldies]

Sounds to me as though "someone of influence" has got the ear of "someone" in the Council. In cases like these, there is usually some financial dealings going on behind the scenes as to why a place is being targeted.

For example: is there a developer with council links who wants the site?

Sound cynical .... not a bit of it. Happens all the time and so many council are corrupt in as much as they are easily bought .

Someone with investigative skills needs to start digging, I'd suggest.

[mita]

I looked up their Facebook Page. Best Friends Fur Ever Rescue. They have some lovely dogs for adoption. I specially like Merle & the Shar Pei X. They raise funds by making lovely dog coats, too.

One post makes the point that the council tolerates puppy farms in the area. But seems an organization rescuing dogs is a target.

https://www.facebook.com/BestFriendFurEverRescue

[Guest Ams]

Is there anything outlining what the dialogue with Council has been leading up to this? I haven't been able to find anything.

[mita]

Could only find the Gympie Council's general statement about noise. They say they have to act in accordance with the Environmental Protection Act 1994. That Act requires an actual noise audit be carried out, with levels tested. The Gympie Council has that info on its site.

But the Rescue says that an audit has not been carried out.

No one from the council or any other department has done a noise reading on premises...

If that's so, how can the Council lawfully arrive at a decision to fine or close down?

https://www.gympie.qld.gov.au/noise

I saw such an audit carried out when our neighbours were (rightly) complaining that a loud refrigeration unit on roof of shop nearby was keeping them awake. The Brisbane Council arranged for a noise audit in compliance with the Act.

I saw the officer who came with the noise measuring instruments... & everyone had to be totally silent in the house while the noise levels taken. Except, the officer was puzzled by a loud rumbling. It was the homeowners' tiny Tibbie, Lily, snoring in her soft crate. She was passed over the fence to us, so she'd stop interfering with the testing.

Edited April 17, 2014 by mita

[Guest Ams]

Barking dogs are not normally dealt with under the EPA, they are normally dealt with under Local Laws which would not require decibel readings. A noise audit may well have been carried out at some point near where the complaints originated in order to obtain data relevant to the veracity of the complaint which would be fairer than one done on premises.

" In Brisbane, a dog is considered a nuisance:

• if, in the opinion of an authorised person it unreasonably disrupts or inhibits an activity ordinarily carried out on residential premises
• if it barks for more than six minutes in any hour between 7am and 10pm on any day
• if it barks for more than three minutes in any 30 minute period between 10pm and 7am on any day "

I am sympathetic to the rescue, however I believe there has to have been some ongoing dialogue between the Council and the Shelter management prior to the declaration of a penalty being imposed.

I will admit ignorance of what is required if the premise is running as a commercial kennel as I am sure different rules apply.

[HappyCamper]

sigh nvm prob not my place to say

Edited April 17, 2014 by HappyCamper

[mita]

I will admit ignorance of what is required if the premise is running as a commercial kennel as I am sure different rules apply.

I haven't a clue, either, which would apply in this case of a commercial kennel ...EPA noise measurement of decibels or rate of barks within a time frame.

I also don't know what the rescue means by 'noise readings' (?) not been taken. Decibel measurement or bark rate? Also can't figure why if either done, the details of the results haven't been told to them.

I hope they're getting some good advice from someone with legal expertise.

Edited April 17, 2014 by mita

[Guest Ams]

I hope they're getting some good advice from someone with legal expertise.

Me too.

[HappyCamper]

http://www.gympietimes.com.au/news/fate-in-councils-hands/2247203/

OWNERS of a Gympie dog shelter are facing a battle with Gympie Regional Council over noise complaints.

Best Friends Fur Ever Rescue is a no-kill dog shelter which works as a boarding kennel and rescue shelter.

The facility, located on Eel Creek Rd, is home to 40 dogs, and residents in surrounding streets have made complaints about the barking.

They petitioned the council to have the kennels reach "no noise" status by the end of April.

Operator Peta Herrero-Lopez was warned by Gympie Regional Council that if she made no immediate solutions to the noise, she would face a $30,000 fine.

Ms Herrero-Lopez said she needed to raise funds to make changes and it was impossible to create a no-noise shelter.

She created an online petition to ask the council for more time to raise funds for noise reduction infrastructure.

"The business has been here for 40 years and there have been complaints for a long time, but mainly since I took over in October because I have the dogs in the outdoor runs," Ms Herrero- Lopez said.

"The council has said there can be no noise whatsoever but that's not possible with all the work we do.

"The council has not measured the noise, all they have told me is that it is too noisy."

The petition, which received more than 4000 signatures, has been handed to Gympie Regional Council.

However, Councillor for Planning and Development Ian Petersen said no decisions had been made yet and further action may be taken.

"The situation is that their time has expired and we are undertaking noise testing," he said.

"If the testing confirms the complaints, we will go to court and it will be up to the court to decide."

The shelter's fundraising manager, Jazmyn Smith, said there were many factors the council had not considered. She said the dogs generally only bark during feeding or the arrival of visitors.

"It simply cannot be helped that the dogs have to spend a large part of their time caged in runs and lack of exercise and stimulation can cause all sorts of problems for dogs, one of these being a lot more energy to bark," she said.

"However, the shelter is built from the exact same materials as both the RSPCA and Council shelters; besser blocks, wire and concrete."

Councillor Peterson said other residents are entitled to enjoy a quiet neighbourhood.

"The council is sympathetic to people who care for animals and no-one wants to cause problems for the owners of the shelter but we have a duty of care to maintain the other residents' quality of life," he said.

"Barking is frequent and , it can go on for hours, no-one can be expected to put up with that."

Ms Herrero- Lopez said fundraising efforts were being undertaken to buy acoustic foam, noise barriers and plants to alleviate the noise.

Edited May 3, 2014 by HappyCamper