Unless the Land and Environment Court makes a decision in favour of the Southern Highlands Regional Shooting Complex before November 1, the state government would not be allowed to begin work on development until March 2010.

The delay would be to accommodate the breeding season of the yellow-bellied glider and other required spring flora and fauna studies.

HTRAG spokesperson Jodie Laing said the government had already ignored the breeding season of koalas living on the site, which began in August.

HTRAG claims there are more than 100 threatened and endangered species on the shooting range site.

The action group is one of dozens across NSW challenging amendments made in 2005 to the 1979 Environmental Planning Act.

HTRAG launched a legal challenge earlier this year, arguing Part 3A of the NSW planning legislation was incorrectly applied to the Hill Top development.

Ms Laing said the findings of the panel appointed to determine the Southern Highlands Regional Shooting Complex development application was invalid because the panel chairman, former National Party MP Ian Armstrong, had no relevant experience.

She was confident of a favourable outcome on the argument that the Minister rezoned the site inappropriately and that part of the site rezoned environmentally sensitive (E2) should not have been zoned this way because it was intrinsic to the development.

The area zoned (E2) is the fallout range for the bullets.

Ms Laing said all rights for community input into planning decisions on Part 3A designated projects had been removed.

“Contentious development can now go ahead without recourse to the community,” she said.

A primary concern is that once a 3A project was approved, there was no requirement to inform the community of modifications to the development consent.

Ms Laing said a number of other significant questions had been raised about the process that led to the development being proposed and approved.

“[Planning Minister] Kristina Keneally admitted she was being pressured to deal with it quickly,” she said.

“The 2005 amendments also demonstrated a clear move to allow the development to proceed with few impediments.

“The category that singles out shooting ranges was out of character with the existing legislation.

“It was done specifically, not incidentally.”

Ms Laing hopes a positive decision by the Land and Environment Court will pave the way for other challenges against inappropriate development across the state.