Paul Oboohov, Canberra
The campaign to save the O'Connor and Bruce Ridge from the Gungahlin Drive extension escalated on March 22, when up to 100 protesters blockaded the work site. Nine people were arrested over two days of protests, organised by the Save the Ridge group.
When the devastation was set to begin, protesters blocked several fence gates where bulldozing equipment was to be brought into the work site. One blockader chained his hand in a tube concreted underneath the ground. After half an hour, police dug out the tube and cut the man free before arresting him.
Protesters asked Environment ACT to order the removal of the earth-moving machines because they were dirty and might contaminate the Canberra Nature Reserve. By the time the machines were cleaned and returned, it was too late in the day to do any work.
On March 23, a protester chained himself to the undercarriage of an excavator. Police took more than three hours to cut him free. He was arrested for obstruction. Soon after, police gave the protesters a 15-minute warning to leave the work site or be arrested. Nine protesters sat by the bulldozer, seven of whom were arrested for trespass.
Later that day, protesters obtained a temporary injunction from the ACT Supreme Court, ensuring no further work could proceed until the court case is heard to determine whether or not the construction is lawful. At this stage a small patch of land — 200 metres by 40 metres — has been cleared. Protesters are planning to replant trees on this area.
There are widespread concerns that there has been no thorough environmental impact statement on the project. Several leading scientists have spoken out against the freeway construction, including the head of the School of Botany and Zoology at the Australian National University, professor Andrew Cockburn.
One of the companies associated with the work is Kellog, Brown and Root, a Halliburton subsidiary associated with US vice-president Dick Cheney. This company has won millions of dollars worth of contracts for the reconstruction of Iraq.
The freeway is planned to go through a valuable nature reserve. It is one of the richest areas of plant diversity in the ACT. It includes old-growth forest and is home to a diverse range of bird species. A segment from David Attenborough's The Life of Birds was filmed on the Bruce Ridge.
Many people use the area for recreational purposes. Students from Lyneham Primary School, Lyneham High School, the University of Canberra and the ANU study the environment in the nature reserve.
Save the Ridge is carrying out a robust campaign including blockades, suburban stalls, leafleting at Canberra Raiders and ACT Brumbies football matches, and legal tactics. The conservation council and many ACT Greens activists have also been involved in the protests.
James Vassilopoulos, Socialist Alliance candidate for the federal seat of Fraser, said: "No road should be built when there are alternatives like boosting public transport and constructing a light rail system. This freeway will cost $71 million dollars, yet from 2001-2006 the public bus system will only get an extra $8 million."
"This campaign is showing that people can organise to stop destruction. We should be bulldozing freeways, not nature reserves. What we need is a viable public transport system," he said.
A public festival is planned at the Ridge to garner further community support.
From 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ Weekly, March 31, 2004.
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