Otway Forum Report
10th June 2018
OTWAY FORUM MEETING No. 313 - June 10 2018
Cr S Hart and Anthony Alfirenko, Executive Officer OCC, in attendance.
- The Planning Ministers Panel on the Barham Valley mega resort has received more information from the developer/speculator.
- The Panel will now decide if the new information is sufficient before it can be released for public submissions for a further 21 days.
- It is anticipated that a second Directions Hearing will be held in late July.
- The main hearing is not expected to commence before late August.
- Large boulders from Werribee are being placed on the foreshore at Thomas’s corner to protect the GOR.
- Work should be completed this week and paid for by Vic Roads.
- 50 b double truck loads at $1000+ were used.
- Up to 20 other areas are also under threat and are to be reinforced.
- Back and front beaches continue to be replenished with sand from inside the harbour and the Pt Bunbury groyne area.
- About one metre from the base of the replenishment works was lost after the first medium sized swell.
- Over 200 year old aboriginal midden material now collapsing from middle section of back beach dunes.
- Also vegetation/trees collapsing in same area.
- A small groyne saved the original toilet block at the big car park west of the bridge.
- Although the toilet block is now long gone the groyne is buried under tonnes of sand.
- DELWP workshop reported that most of the sand, that has washed away from last year’s work, has not resettled on the beaches.
- Now the area where that sand was harvested is more vulnerable to storm surges and rising sea levels.
- If this cycle of rising sea levels and increasingly more frequent and powerful storm surges continues, there will soon not be enough sand for further replenishment.
- DELWP and Otway Coast Committee are looking for volunteers to monitor the front and back beach erosion with a drone, GPS programmes and a tablet computer, that will be supplied.
- Perhaps the school students could be involved, as its their future that is being washed away?
- More information is required before a long term solution, such as the recommended groynes, will be committed to by our politicians.
- Groynes will widen and heighten the beach, sand bags are not a long term solution and sea walls may protect the road but the beach will disappear.
- Another sand study currently being undertaken with report to be finalised before the end of year.
- A toilet block is planned for southern end of back beach but funding not allocated yet.
- Plans of the proposed $4.6m Wild Dog to Skenes Creek coastal track are now on the OCC website.
- Funding yet to be approved by the state government.
- Is it wise to be putting more public infrastructure/tracks in the coastal zone?
- Isn’t it more important to be putting in long term solutions to address the coastal erosion issues facing the GOR at the front and back beaches?
- $4.6m would go a long way to fixing these issues!!
- Pt Bunbury/harbour redevelopment still waiting on Expression Of Interest process to begin.
- GTA consultants have started a AB Tourism Parking and Traffic Strategy for COS.
- More information on this Thursday at Senior Cits 3-6pm, please attend.
- “It will inform a future project, scheduled for later this year, which will look at infrastructure in AB more broadly.”
- COS work on the duplication of drainage outfall at Thompson street to commence shortly.
- Public Submissions on COS budget this week.
- Finally a new CEO appointed at COS!
- An invitation will shortly go out for Peter Brown to attend a Forum meeting.
Otway Forum meets 2nd Sunday of every month at 3pm at Marrar Woorn or find us at www.forum.apollobay.org.au.
Find out what’s really going on!
Peter Fillmore
Hon. Secretary
Otway Forum
0428 091 694