The developer of a proposed south east Tasmanian golf course and outdoor activity precinct has faced court following allegations it destroyed and interfered with Aboriginal artefacts.
Mary Ann's Island director and secretary, Jack Chariot, appeared on behalf of the company in the Hobart Magistrates Court on Friday after it was charged with four counts of destroying, damaging, defacing, concealing, or otherwise interfering with an Aboriginal relic without a permit.
Court documents allege Mary Ann's Island interfered with Aboriginal relics on its 116 hectare Gellibrand Point nature recreation headland in Opossum Bay, south of Hobart, between November, 2014 and August, 2022.
The site is the proposed location for its Arm End Golf Course which was approved by the Clarence City Council in 2013.
Following its appearance, Mary Ann's Island's directors released a statement saying it "strongly disputes and denies the charges".
"As the current custodians of the land, we are acutely aware of our responsibility to respect and protect Aboriginal heritage, and at all times we have acted in accordance with the law and within the conditions of our existing permits," the company said.
Last year, the Tasmanian Conservation Trust (TCT) commenced proceedings in the Supreme Court of Tasmania regarding the "long delayed" golf course development proposal for Opossum Bay's East Arm Reserve.
"In its application to the Court, the TCT asserts that the proponent has failed to substantially commence the golf course development by the purported statutory deadline of 1 October 2022 and as a result the planning permit issued by Clarence City Council has lapsed," TCT chief executive Peter McGlone said.
"It is now more than seven years since the proponent was granted its planning permit and it is our view that the golf course has not been substantially commenced and the permit has lapsed.
"The planning permit allowed the proponent to build an eighteen-hole golf course but not even a single hole has been built. Other parts of the development have not been built either, including: clubhouse, massive facilities centre and water tanks, sixty-space car park, practice fairways and greens, irrigation system and other infrastructure."
TCT said impact of the proposed golf course on Arm End Reserve would be "devastating", saying the development would "destroy Aboriginal heritage that is documented across the reserve".
Arm End's website describes Gellibrand Point as Aboriginal land and "one continuous cultural landscape and living place of the Mumirimina people".
"Arm End will continue engaging and communicating with Aboriginal people throughout the project," the website reads.
"Arm End is also committed to providing On Country experiences that connect people with the Deep Time stories that exist throughout the Aboriginal cultural landscape of the Gellibrand Point Nature Recreation Area.
"It is our intent to work with Aboriginal people and the Crown to work towards transferring the Gellibrand Point Nature Recreation Area into Aboriginal ownership."
The Mercury reports that Magistrate Reg Marron granted Mary Ann's Island a without plea adjournment, requiring the company to reappear in court on October 17.
