Dr Steven Gration president of SOSA has written this article in response to recent news reports about the Government's and Council's funding of a Broadwater Management Plan..

The Save Our Spit Alliance (SOSA) is monitoring the recent announcement by the State Government and the Gold Coast City Council that they have each contributed funds of $700,000 towards the development of a management plan for the Broadwater.

While SOSA supports a plan for the sustainable management of the Broadwater including the Seaway, Wavebreak Island and the Spit, any study or plan must adhere to the 2003 GCCC Gold Coast Harbour Vision recommendations, which remain current GCCC policy. These recommendations oppose commercial development on Wave Break Island and the surrounding public waterways and include building height limits of three-storeys on the Spit.

The State Government's Gold Coast Marine Development Project Report of 2006 also recommends restricting commercial development on the Spit and Broadwater to two parcels of land south of Seaworld and south of Mariner's Cove on the western side of the Spit. The report excludes the construction of a cruise ship terminal on the Gold Coast owing to its negative economic, environmental and social impacts, especially the negative impacts on existing tourism industries such as surfing, diving and fishing.

Recent news reports suggest that funding for a Broadwater management plan are tied to a business lobby group led by Rob Mundle who is currently the commodore of the Southport Yacht Club. His group is promoting the construction of a cruise ship terminal, private marina and underwater aquarium (sic) on Wave Break Island and a floating ship hotel on the western side of the Spit. This appears to be an attempt to use Queensland taxpayers and Gold Coast rate-payers funds to pay for a study into the viability of private and commercial projects (a developer's wish list) that have been previously rejected by the greater Gold Coast community and which would remove community access to areas of public land and waterways on the Broadwater.

During the 2003-2006 Save Our Spit campaign over 34,000 people on the Gold Coast signed a petition to the State Government opposing a cruise ship terminal in the Broadwater. This is the largest petition ever sent to the Government. The community understands the problems associated with the cruise ship suggestion.

These problems include:
-    The massive dredging required to facilitate cruise ship entry to the Broadwater. This dredging would destroy off-shore shoals east of South Stradbroke Island and lead to the destruction of world class surf breaks. An independent university study in 2006 showed that the activity of surfing on South Stradbroke Island brings a minimum of $20 million a year to the north Gold Coast while the Government estimated an annual return of $5 million per year if cruise ships could dock every 10 days throughout the year (which they can't because of prevailing weather conditions).

-    The massive costs associated with extending the seaway wall further out to sea and the costs of reinforcing and/or rebuilding the existing wall.

-    The destruction of sea grass beds which are the Broadwater's fish nurseries and necessary for the health and propagation of marine life which in turn are crucial to the economic survival  of recreational and tourism fishing  and diving on the Broadwater and in the Seaway.

-    Destruction of the best inshore dive sites of any city in Australia at the Seaway and Wavebreak Island following initial dredging to more than 12 metres in depth and ongoing dredging to accommodate large ships.

-    The loss of public parks and restricted access to public waterways to accommodate a port security precinct and private exclusive marinas.
Ironically, the 2005 Malaysian Navigational Report commissioned by the State Government revealed that even after massive dredging to accommodate cruise ships, in most weather conditions on most days on the Gold Coast, large ships could not safely enter, dock or exit the Broadwater or Seaway. In 2010, one of the ship masters involved in the 2005 Navigational Study stated publicly that cruise ships have become much larger now than during the 2005 study, therefore it would not be safe to ever attempt to dock today's cruise ships in the Seaway or Broadwater.

Aquarium activities are currently available at Seaworld for tourists who do not wish to dive or snorkel in the Broadwater. The area on Wavebreak Island suggested by Mundle as a potential underwater aquarium (sic) is already generating millions of dollars for the Gold Coast through dive company activities where tourists and locals can view Queensland's marine life in the wild rather than behind glass walls.

Also, Wavebreak Island is engineered as a sand island to buffer against cyclones and major storm events including floods and storm swell and surge to mitigate against the destruction of revetment walls on the western Broadwater with the consequent potential loss of property and/or life. The erosion of Wavebreak Island during major storm and flood events is also designed to prevent the degradation of retaining walls throughout the canal housing-estates within the Nerang ?Coomera River Estuary systems. The building of hard infrastructure such as marinas, docks, hotels etc. on Wavebreak would work against the principle of absorbing storm swell/surge energy and would exacerbate the destruction of revetment and retaining walls during extreme weather events. The lights from buildings on Wavebreak Island would also present a navigational hazard for current night-time boating activities as it would obscure the navigational markers.  

Therefore, SOSA will seek information regarding the expertise of the  membership of the newly formed 'Waterways Steering Committee', the Terms of Reference for the proposed management plan and insist  that SOSA be recognised as a key stakeholder in future planning for the Broadwater and its environs.

Further inquiries or letters of concern regarding the funding of and establishment of the 'Waterways Steering Committee' and recent news reports of potential developments on Wavebreak Island, the Broadawter and The Spit can be directed to:


Mayor Ron Clarke
PO Box 5042, Gold Coast MC, 9729
mayor@goldcoast.qld.gov.au


Hon Craig Wallace,
Minister for Main Roads, Fisheries and Marine Infrastructure
PO Box 75456, City East Qld, 4002
mainroads@ministerial.qld.gov.au

Additionally, letters of concern can be directed to the Gold Coast 'Sun' and the Gold Coast 'Bulletin'.

Thank you for your continued support of the Save Our Spit Alliance,




Dr Steven Gration              
B.Ed.  Uni Mel                                                                      
PhD    Uni Griffith                                                         
                             
SOSA President                

on behalf of the 2011 SOSA Committee and Members.

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