Victoria's grassland earless dragon is the tiny reason behind why construction of 300,000 homes has been halted

• Critically endangered lizard rediscovered
• Discovery halts major development in Victoria
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A tiny lizard has brought the construction of more than 300,000 homes to a screeching halt.

The Victorian Planning Authority (VPA) has paused progress on three separate precinct structure plans around Bacchus Marsh, in Melbourne’s west, after the Victorian grassland earless dragon was rediscovered.

Thought to be extinct, the critically endangered species was spotted last year for the first time in half-a-century, prompting a joint investigation between the state and federal governments.

The lizard’s natural habitat is the volcanic grasslands between Melbourne and Geelong, which has become a hotspot for new developments, and sustainability experts are calling for more land to be put aside for conservation.

Required to protect the species under federal law, planners and developers are now scrambling to figure out how they can continue to provide jobs, homes and infrastructure for Victoria’s growing population.

Thought to be extinct, the critically endangered species was spotted last year for the first time in half-a-century

Linda Allison, chief executive of the Urban Development Institute of Australia Victoria, told The Age that a substantial protection zone had been established after the ‘remarkable finding’ while a conservation strategy was underway.

‘This is a serious concern for the sector, with work effectively stopped on planning for some of the state’s fastest-growing areas,’ she said.

‘Early modelling indicates this could potentially impact up to 310,000 homes and 230,000 jobs. This could be a huge blow to the state government’s commitment to building 800,000 new homes by 2034.’

Ms Allison said the institute was working with all levels of government to protect the lizard while delivering housing.

‘This issue must be treated as a priority to ensure the longevity of the species, and to give industry certainty,’ she said.

The lizard’s natural habitat is the volcanic grasslands between Melbourne and Geelong, which has become a hotspot for new developments

In an update this month, the VPA said it was working with the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) to understand how it would survey populations of the lizard in the Parwan Station, Parwan, and Merrimu precincts.

The VPA said it will be in a position to consider progressing this project when the department has made these decisions and there is a strategy to fund the project.

It is anticipated that Bacchus Marsh’s population will more than double to 50,000 by 2041.

The Draft National Recovery Plan said it’s ‘critical’ to ‘pause developments that may pose a risk to inadvertently losing the Victorian or Bathurst grassland earless dragon’.

A federal department spokesperson said projects likely to have a significant impact on a threatened species needed to be submitted for consideration

It also said they had evolved in grassland habitats that were desirable for urban, industrial, agricultural and renewable energy developments.

These types of projects will likely need approval under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, which protects unique plants, animals, habitats and places.

A federal department spokesperson said projects likely to have a significant impact on a threatened species needed to be submitted for consideration.

The draft report says the federal minister is expected to take a ‘precautionary approach’ when there is uncertainty about the size and safety of the species’ population when considering projects.

Dr Sarah Bekessy, professor of sustainability and urban planning at RMIT, said less than one per cent of Victoria’s original volcanic grass plains remain.

In December, a breeding program at Melbourne Zoo successfully hatched 16 males and 13 females as part of efforts to improve their chances of recovery

‘We need to be really careful about surveying for the dragon and if we find it, this place really shouldn’t be developed,’ she said.

‘There aren’t enough viable patches of this ecosystem for it to be a self-sustaining population. We really do urgently need to look at purchasing land and creating new reserves.’

Fauna specialist Manfred Zabinskas, who is employed by developers to factor in the impact projects have on animals, told the Herald Sun ‘we only get one chance’.

‘Being so special and threatened we have to go to every length imaginable to save them,’ she said.

Animal Justice Party MP Georgie Purcell also supported the conservation efforts.

‘The government must not cower to pressure from powerful developers and should take the same approach when it comes to kangaroos and koalas who are routinely decimated by developers,’ she said.

When the lizard was rediscovered in Melbourne last year, experts hailed it akin to finding the extinct Tasmanian tiger.

In December, a breeding program at Melbourne Zoo successfully hatched 16 males and 13 females as part of efforts to improve their chances of recovery.

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