Posted on November 11, 2024
New independent councillor Corinne Lamont has managed to get sand nourishment on the agenda at the NSW Local Government conference to be held at Tamworth on November 17-19.
Cr Lamont didn’t get the motion to the first ordinary meeting of council but, despite that, a majority of councillors agreed with its sentiments and that allowed the Mayor Lawrie McKinna and CEO David Farmer to submit it to the LG conference before deadline.
The motion asks the NSW Government to assist NSW coastal councils to access offshore sand to improve beach amenity.
Cr Lamont is a member of Wamberal Beach SOS (Save Our Sand) which is opposed to the seawall proposed to be built at Wamberal.
Currently three development applications for seawalls are being assessed by Central Coast Council: two that would extend along Wamberal Beach and the third one would extend from 1 Hutton Rd, The Entrance North to 15 Hutton Rd.
Wamberal SOS says sand nourishment is a better solution.
The note to explain the motion states that many councils increasingly face issues with coastal erosion, impacting beach amenity and property.
“An effective adaptive response to this issue is sustainable offshore-sourced sand nourishment,” the note states.
“This motion asks the NSW Government to develop a coordinated statewide response to offshore sand sourcing for beach nourishment, including possibly establishing a needs-based statewide offshore sand nourishment program.
“This program would include gaining environmental approvals, setting funding mechanisms, confirming ground rules, procuring or sourcing appropriate nourishment infrastructure such as a dredge, and prioritising the treatment of beaches at risk.”
The motion builds on one from Northern Beaches Council which states that the NSW Government has “increasingly withdrawn” from coastal management in NSW.
Central Coast Council has a second motion on the conference agenda.
It asks the conference to call on the Local Government Minister to withdraw Performance Improvement Orders imposed on councils coming out of administration as a matter of urgency and to restore local democracy to those councils.
The PIO on Central Coast Council limits the decisions the newly elected councillors can make for the first 12 months of their four year term.
