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Pipe arrest defiance

By Melissa Meehan
LANDOWNERS along the proposed Sugarloaf Pipeline route have refused to rule out further protests, following the arrest of Yea farmer Deb Bertalli last Wednesday.
Ms Bertalli was arrested by local police for obstruction under the Water Act (1989) and will be charged on summons.
As Sugarloaf Pipeline Project workers tried to enter her Glenburn property to conduct environmental and technical survey reports, Ms Bertalli and other members of the Plug the Pipe protest movement attempted to stop them.
Plug the Pipe spokeswoman Jan Beer said landowners were upset about what had happened in Glenburn.
“I think the situation was handled badly,” Ms Beer said.
“Farmers should not be frog-marched off their own land; they should be able to stand on their land and protest for what they stand for.”
Ms Beer said that Ms Bertalli did not physically fight the workers, nor resist arrest. She said many farmers had contacted her, venting their disappointment.
“Quite a few farmers have said they will join any protest to stop work starting on the pipeline,” Ms Beer said.
“Plug the Pipe has always said that we don’t advocate violence, but we will continue to fight this white elephant; even if it gets put into the ground, we will fight to stop our water being sent down it.
“And if that happens we will campaign to send this Labor government packing.”
A statement issued by the Sugarloaf Pipeline Alliance of Melbourne Water, GHD, SKM, and John Holland said that the alliance understood the sensitivity of accessing and working on private property and had gone to great lengths to work with landowners.
“Although the alliance has specific powers of entry under the Water Act, we will continue to work cooperatively with as many landowners as possible,” the statement said.

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