fil_chan

Beaumaris
Conservation Society Inc. was invited to be represented at a Focus
Group meeting in Brighton on Tuesday, 12th September 2006,
and was represented by its President, Adrian Cerbasi,
and its Treasurer, Geoffrey Goode. The meeting was chaired by an
independent facilitator, Michael Henry.

Other organizations and interests
represented were: a yachting association, and the operator of a small
fishing and tourist boating business, each of whom was based in
northern Port Phillip; Brighton
Bathing Box Association Inc, the Sandringham Anglers Club, the Bird Observers Club, Marine Care Ricketts
Point Inc, and the Port
of Melbourne Corporation.

SPOIL
VOLUME AND EFFECTS: A major concern that emerged from nearly
all those present was the nature, scale and somewhat uncertain short
and long-term effects of the huge volumes of spoil proposed to be
dumped on the bay floor. The Bird Observers Club representative
expressed concern about the impact of both short and long-term
turbidity and disturbance of toxic sea-bed materials in northern Port
Phillip on the large penguin populations there.

ALTERNATIVES:
Speakers saw merit in alternatives such as:

• limiting the size of ships
  entering Port Phillip, thus joining other ports with similar
  constraints and maintaining a market demand for medium-size ships to be
  built, it being a principle of the free market that demand creates
  supply,
• a mixed transport system, with
  greater reliance on medium-sized ships, rail transport, and
  decentralized port facilities either at Western Port, Portland, other
  States with natural deep water harbours,
  or a mixture of those options, and
• overcoming the petty State-based
  parochial attitude that insists, possibly against the national
  interest, that Melbourne should forever remain Australia’s largest
  container port, even though the centre of gravity of the Australian
  population is steadily moving northwards at about one kilometre per year.

IMPLICATIONS
FOR DEPTHS BEYOND 2030: Speakers were aware how long term
growth trends persist once they are allowed free rein, and were
dissatisfied with the lack of any credible official refutation of the
valid charge that Port Phillip will be faced with further deepening –
compounding the environmental damage already done – when still larger
ships are likely to be proposed around 2030.

POLITICAL
OBSERVATION: The representative of Sandringham
Anglers made the comment that Labor voters he has spoken to tend to
support channel deepening on the ground that it would be good for
employment prospects, whereas Liberal voters are opposed to it because
of the damage it will do to the Bay.