Households stuck between rock hammering and a hard place to live
By Kirra Livingstone
FRUSTRATION is mounting among residents of Maleny, who say they have endured six months of continuous noise from construction work on a new housing estate.
The noise, caused by workers breaking basalt rock to level the land for The Enclave; a 74-lot development by RM Developments – has become a daily disruption for locals, with some residents saying they are driven to tears.
The estate spans Cudgerie Street, Dunlop Way, and Barrett Street.
The construction involves large-scale rock breaking, producing noise that travels far beyond the site, even reaching homes several kilometres away.
Steven Thompson, who lives 3kms from the site, is leading the charge on behalf of nearby residents.
“Normally when it’s going I can hear it quite clearly from my house,” Mr Thompson said.
“It’s annoying but … I can close the doors. “But it had occurred to me it must be awful living nearby; and then I started finding out how awful.”
Mr Thompson said he was aware of one elderly lady who had been crying everyday, and said that had made him feel guilty about not doing something.
“So I got on Facebook and started stirring it up a bit and said I’m going to bring an end to it,” he said.
Jenny Law, a long-time Maleny resident, has lived in the town for 40 years and says the noise is driving her “to the brink”.
“I’m not against development. What I’m against is the constant noise for so long. It’s absolutely affecting everybody, we’re all stressed by it, we’ve all just had enough,” she said.
“And to think that this is going to go on for another three stages… it makes me want to move, and that’s the honest truth.
“It’s distressing and it’s affecting my serenity but I have gone down to the Coast to get away from it, and I shouldn’t have to do that.”
Jenny’s neighbour, Andrew McLean, who ran as The Greens candidate at the state election, said the noise had been going on and off since at least the middle of last year. “The thing that makes me angry is governments are prioritising the dollar … over people who live here,” he said. “You just need to build differently but that wouldn’t be as profitable.”
Mr Thompson, an experienced excavator operator, suggested ways to reduce the noise.
“I happen to know about sound mitigation wraps you can put around the machinery. They haven’t considered this as far as I can see,” he said.
“The minimum that we can possibly hope to get from any protest is sound mitigating measures.
“But at this stage, I’m thinking we might not even get that and we probably won’t because money wins.”
Division 5 Councillor, Winston Johnston, said he had only received two official complaints, but said it wasn’t unusual for Maleny.
“I have gone around that area on a number of occasions and I haven’t experienced the noise levels, but I haven’t been there for the last few weeks because I’m away,” he said.
“There are a number of sites in and around Maleny, within the township that have had to encounter rock breaking over the years.
“It’s been well known for at least 40 or 50 years that there is a lot of basalt rock under the surface in most areas of Maleny.
“While it’s annoying and I wouldn’t like to have it near my place, it’s not as though it’s like a quarry where it’s going to go forever.”
A Sunshine Coast Council spokesperson said the rock breaking was necessary for installing services. “The developer’s contractor has informed local residents about the expected duration of the excavation,” they said.
“While there are no noise limits for construction … there are restrictions on the hours of construction activity.”
RM Developments were contacted for comment.
kirra@gcnews.com.au
