By Cam Lucadou-Wells
Greater Dandenong Council has hopes that Melbourne Water will join in opposition against a proposed cemetery on Dandenong Creek floodplains.
The Southern Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust has indicated the site is its preferred location for its next burial ground in the South East, despite furious community and council criticism.
Council chief executive John Bennie told a council meeting on 14 June that it had met with the water authority, which owns the proposed site at 1564 Heatherton Road, Dandenong.
“We are pleased to hear that Melbourne Water shares similar concerns to Council,” Mr Bennie said..
“But Melbourne Water is obliged to give the proponent the appropriate opportunities to respond to their high-level expectations again around hydrology, ecology, environment, social and cultural impacts.”
Mr Bennie said the council had also lobbied the proponent SMCT to not proceed on the wetlands.
“The proponent has, within their right, decided to not accept that position at this point in time.”
Meanwhile, the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning had not received a “live application” for the cemetery, Mr Bennie said..
“Can I just say that the advocacy against this proposal is continuing and that we are hearing from those that are in positions to consider it, that they share Council and the community’s concerns.”
Councillor Rhonda Garad told Star Journal she hoped the trust would now publicly rule out the Dandenong site.
“Melbourne Water doesn’t seem to be handing over the land (to the SMCT) so hopefully we can get a definitive answer.”
Earlier this month, SMCT said it was still “actively investigating appropriate sites”.
“However due to the size of land required in this fast-growing region, options are limited.”
The spokesperson said the Dandenong site offered the “open green space and conservation values” required for a new memorial park.
“Once a site is chosen, we propose to create a memorial park that has significant amenities to the local community and this site offers the open green space and conservation values to facilitate that.
“Any site will be subject to community consultation and environmental and planning approvals.”
A Melbourne Water spokesperson said: “We have nothing to add at this stage”.
SMCT was contacted for further comment.
