No end to fiery protest

LOVE her or loathe her, Jill Walker will be forever intrinsically linked to Sandon Point. Her landmark court win against the project this week could have long-term ramifications for coastal developments. MARIO CHRISTODOULOU reports

AMONG the early-morning walkers who stroll the bluff at Sandon Point, there's an ageing lady who's as much a part of the area as the grevillea and the honeyeaters.

A formidable woman - admired by her supporters, despised by her enemies - she is respected by most for her tenacity.

Everyone has an opinion about Jill Walker. The diminutive Bulli resident and self-confessed "child of the '60s", has become one of the most prominent public faces in the fight to stop development on Sandon Point.

Over the years, Ms Walker has worn many hats: agitator, activist, campaigner, naturalist, conservationist and, most recently, litigant.

On Tuesday she made legal history when the Land and Environment Court recognised climate change as a legitimate threat to coastal developments.

In a classic David and Goliath battle, she took on NSW Planning Minister Frank Sartor's approval of a concept plan for the $250 million
development at Sandon Point. Justice Peter Biscoe's lengthy judgment declared that the principle of ecologically sustainable development
should be central to the development assessment process.

The implications of his decision are as yet unknown but could affect all coastal development in the future.

When the hearing began in September, many people admired Ms Walker's resolve but few expected a win.

Pitting herself against the combined might of development giant Stockland and Mr Sartor, the odds were against her.

Although Tuesday's decision won't stop the Sandon Point development, it provides a considerable moral boost to those fighting it, some of
whom have been banging the drum for 20 years.

A fiery protester, Ms Walker has been arrested, assaulted and abused since taking on the Sandon Point issue in 1998.

In a 2002 protest she was seized by police, hurled into a paddy wagon and left for four hours.

She admits to having an explosive temper. "I'm a bit of a Richter-scale person," she said.

"I explode but I'm never quite sure what I'm going to do in a given situation."

Fellow protesters attest to her temper and speak of her passion on the picket line.

"Jill is determined; she is quite intelligent and she has a bad temper. She is intolerant of fools and foolish replies," said veteran
protester Alex Peterson, who has been agitating on the Sandon Point issue for 15 years.

"Stockland have hit a couple of really, really stubborn people down here, with Jill being one of the most stubborn.

"Where I'll poke Stockland in the eye with a needle, she'll use a 12-gauge shotgun."

Described as having an almost encyclopedic knowledge of the development, she's maintained a flood of correspondence to the Planning
Department, Wollongong City Council and Stockland, highlighting every apparent procedural inconsistency in the proposal.

But of the loose grouping of individuals who have campaigned against the development, she was one of the few prepared to go to court.

"It had to be done ... and I seemed to be the only one standing," Walker said.

She is now hoping the court win will lead to a revival in interest in the issue. Her ultimate goal is to see the area recognised as a
coastal park.

Independent councillor Alice Cartan described Ms Walker as an "avid writer of letters".

"I'd call her energetic, I'd call her tenacious - she just doesn't stop," she said.

"She's got a wicked sense of humour ... If she's got something to say she will say it."

It's not known whether Stockland or Mr Sartor will appeal this week's judgment but Ms Walker is not content to bask in the victory.

"If we'd lost, nobody would have cared," she said.

"But I'll keep fighting."