Councillors supported staff's recommendations by voting unanimously in favour of scrapping the DA at the Strategy and Assets Committee meeting on Tuesday, July 20.

With the motion carried, council staff will now continue their investigations to find a suitable site.

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Original applicant Motorcycles NSW abandoned their plans to build a motor sports complex at Yerriyong In March 2017 because of the discovery of rare protected orchids on the site.

Seven months later council resolved to submit their own Yerriyong motor sports complex DA and seek funding from the state and federal government for the 50 hectare site.

But in April and May of this year, due to prior bushfires and lack of rainfall, additional orchids were reported and an environmental consultant concluded that the restrictions needed to protect them would not allow for a motor racing circuit to be located on the site.

During the committee meeting, Councillor John Levett asked to amend the wording of the original motion so that council would not spend any more time or money on pursuing other options for a motorsports complex in the Shoalhaven but his motion was lost.

"I think this is an example of one of the really bad decisions that council has made," he said.

"NSW Motorcycles pulled out of this whole thing because it was obvious that the environmental constraints were prohibitive and it was fairly clear at that time that there were no alternative locations that would even begin to suit such a massive exercise to construct a motorcycle track at this standard.

"Way back then a local orchid expert who is renowned internationally showed myself and a number of others the endangered species that were listed on the national legislation and state legislation that were in the way of this development.

"There were never any private sector organisation to my knowledge who were even interested in pursuing this matter and it was clearly a pathway to failure but council still passed a resolution to commit up to $300,000 to take on the pushing of a DA to council.

Councillor Joanna Gash, who consulted with pro-motorsports group South Coast Motorsports Inc after Motorcycles NSW decided to discontinue its DA, said council had to act on its behalf because it was on crown land.

"The federal government was convinced enough that it was a goer and gave $9 million towards it," she said.

"Motorcycles New South Wales was going to expend $10 million towards it - he had a motelier lined up to build a motel out that way.

"And I know that the mayor and I disagreed vehemently on this proposal, but nonetheless the community wanted it. And that's what we went for, so don't don't put facts forward that aren't facts because I know the facts, and I've just stated some of them."