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Possums Play Hole Card At Hotham

By J.D. O'Connor
July 24, 2006

Hey, if you saw the bulldozers coming and didn't want your burrow overrun by legions of high-heeled bipeds and those pesky GL450 SUVs, you'd do what the Pygmy Possums of Hotham Mountain have done - call in the World Wildlife Fund.

The WWF brought plans to build a $500 million, architecturally resplendent luxury ski village on Victoria's Mount Hotham to a screeching - if temporary halt - after announcing that the Bale Mount Hotham complex would impact a colony of wide-eyed Mountain Pygmy Possums.

Photos of the big-as-your-thumb critters have struck the protective side of Australians in recent weeks as the WWF and the Ray Group - who hope to build an eye-popping ski village with all the trimmings - square off over the fate of the Lilliputian colony.

The WWF wants the Bale Mount Hotham complex scrapped completely, while Ray Group development director Tony Cannon said the development would steer well clear of the possums' rocky habitat.

"Obviously it was one of the first issues we ran up against over three years ago when we started planning this village development, and we were warned to stay well clear of that habitat,'' Cannon said.

There were grumblings that the WWF did not accept an invitation to a meeting discussing plans at Mount Hotham and was trying to stonewall the development - a futuristic village with bars, restaurants, spa, and pool. But WWF endangered species network co-ordinator, Julie Kirkwood, said the proposal could severely affect the possums - of which only 2,000 remain.

The Mount Hotham colony is the most robust, with more than 800 of the mouse-sized creatures making their homes there.

Pygmy Possum populations have declined sharply at the species' only other habitats - at the Mount Buller ski resort in Victoria and at the Blue Cow resort high in the Kosciuszko National Park, Kirkwood said.

An independent panel is reviewing plans for the resort and will prepare a report for the Planning Department.

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Comments

	Much as I like to ski, the developers need to modify their plan.
	Posted by: Cammie Glover | July 24, 2006 02:08 PM