Animals displaced, residents say, as controversial sports project green lit

Residents are accusing a sports project of killing and displacing animals at Fred Caterson Reserve in Sydney's north-west.

Three rugby fields and a car park are being built which The Hills Shire Council says will support local population growth.

An activist group has taken the council to the Land and Environment Court, alleging a review of environmental factors is inadequate.

The development of a reserve in Sydney's north-west to create a sports facility is killing and displacing wildlife, residents say.

Fred Caterson Reserve in Castle Hill is home to a range of both sporting facilities and native animals, including swamp wallabies and powerful owls.

The Hills Shire Council began work to turn the "predominantly cleared" former pony club section surrounded by bushland into a premier rugby union facility, potentially for Eastwood Rugby Club.

Three fields — including one to be used in the Shute Shield semi-professional rugby union competition — are proposed, along with amenities and a car park.

A council spokesperson said in a statement the project would be enjoyed by generations of residents.

They said the local government area had the highest housing targets in the state, which was expected to increase residents by 50,000 to 60,000 within the next five years if delivered.

The former pony club site at Fred Caterson Reserve prior to development beginning. (ABC News: Declan Bowring)

The almost 7-hectare area was fenced off in late February, with trees removed shortly after.

Ever since, residents have shared reports of dead, injured and displaced wildlife.

Vision posted on a Facebook group frequently used by people opposed to the development shows a wallaby trying to access the fenced-off former pony club site.

Fred Caterson Action Group founding member Susan Sandercock said this was one of many examples of displacement caused by the controversial project.

"It's a wallaby. All it knows is that's where its feeding ground is. That's where its home is, and it can no longer access that," she said.

She said there had been an increase in roadkill, including "a lot of possums", along nearby Gilbert Road.

"Every now and again, you'll see a roadkill, maybe two or three times a year, or maybe it's in breeding season ... but this has been almost a weekly or twice-weekly occurrence."

Ms Sandercock says this wallaby was spotted inside the fenced off area. (Supplied: Fred Caterson Action Group)

Ms Sandercock said residents had seen animals trapped within the enclosed area, which she alleged was larger than the approved 6.8 hectares at tender, referencing