Wamberal Seawall looks more likely in the wake of Collaroy
We've all seen what’s happening at Collaroy in the wake of the current E/NE swell from ex-Tropical Cyclone Seth.
In terms of what is possible, this week’s swell event is relatively modest, made worse by coincident Spring tides.
Critics of the soviet-style seawall at Collaroy - who claimed the hard structure would set a precedent for other coastal councils trying to deal with the problem of storm-enhanced erosion threatening expensive beach-side real estate and infrastructure - look to have had fears confirmed.
Wamberal, on the Central Coast, is moving inexorably towards copying the Collaroy ‘solution’, if the current trajectory is maintained. Wamberal is an erosion hot spot, and according to a former Town Planner for the Central Coast Council who wished to remain anonymous, a “fucking nightmare that no-one wants to pay for.”
That is an especially cogent argument for the financially strapped Central Coast Council who don't have the bikkies for the wall, estimated by engineers to cost in the 25-40 million dollar range.
There is a ‘solution’ to that problem though.
As the Wamberal Seawall Advisory Taskforce noted in its last Meeting Record Minutes, one path forwards for Councils is to get property owners to pay for the wall and for council to act merely as the consenting authority.
The property owners are represented by the Wamberal Protection Association (WPA). On Oct 20, 2021 the WPA met with Council and the Taskforce head Phil Watson to permit the Association to discuss the option of residents submitting a DA and project managing the coastal protection works themselves rather than a Council project managed solution.
Which is exactly what happened at Collaroy and how the wall was able to be built by circumventing normal community consultation processes.
It's a no brainer from the property owners’ perspective. Sure you might lose the beach but you get to keep multi-million dollar coastal property by chucking a few hundred grand into the kitty to build a wall.
One of the seawall options being considered by Central Coast Council
Other beach users and surfers concerned about beach loss and the effects of denuded sand flow on nearby breaks might not feel so cheery about the new backroom deals between Councils and property owners.
This problem is not going to go away, and increasingly looks like beachside properties will be protected at all costs, reversing policies of planned retreat that coastal councils enacted in the 80's.
In the future, according to engineering firm Worley-Parsons, there are more likely to be conflicts between existing protective works and beach amenity (eg due to narrowing beach width).
Property rights are a powerful force, no moreso than when it comes to protecting the insanely expensive coastal real estate which has become an increasingly scarce and precious commodity on the East Coast.
When property rights conflict with the rights of access to the commons (beach, surf) it's usually property rights that win out, as has been seen at Belongil for the last 20 years. This is despite regulatory guidance from Councils, including erosion lines and policies of planned retreat.
Those property rights will be even more zealously enforced considering the crazy increases in coastal real estate prices- up by 20% in Byron Bay in one year alone. No one gives up that kind of money without a fight to the bitter end, using the best lawyers money can buy.
Byron Shire Council, one of the earlier adoptees of a policy of planned retreat, has now released a short list of options, for dealing with the carpark near the Wreck and its associated mini-groynes. TC Seth created large waves that washed over this structure and into the carpark, as well as severely eroding the Main Beach and Belongil areas either side.
In this case, to be fair, there is already hard structure on the beach, which dissects serious erosion zones both upstream and downstream. Planned retreat looks unlikely to happen here either. The town's infrastructure is expected to be fortified by renewal of the seawall and groynes already there.
Reading through reports prepared by BlueCoast Consulting Engineers, surf amenity makes an appearance. Detailed bathymetric and wave climate modelling is included as part of the protection scheme. That at least gives some hope in the future that where hard structures are placed in the surf zone surf quality for the adjacent breaks is not impacted.
With another La Nina year upon us and the East Coast likely to be under further erosive attack from swells from tropical sources or ECL's, coastal erosion and how best to deal with it is going to be a top ticket item again this year. Potentially a Federal election issue.
Whether surfers, both local and national can organise enough to get their concerns raised to an equal footing with property owners remains an open question. The precedent set so far, suggests not without a helluva fight.
Comments
In the neoliberal world in which we live, the only way the community will reverse this situation is to confront the stakeholders willing to externalise the costs of their enterprise onto the community ie landholders fucking the common wealth of the beach to protect their houses, by imposing countervailing costs upon the stakeholders .
This may mean a civil law suit by community groups against the landholders for their destruction of public amenities. Legal action is awful but it looks to be the only option.
If a civil suit launched by the people of Australia against the handful of Collaroy fucktards , seeking financial recompense for remediation, loss of amenity and punitive financial punishment for the destruction of the natural state of the beach was successful, it’d make the efforts to build sea walls in other places vanish pretty damn quickly I reckon.
Home owners want the benefits of destroying public land for their own private benefits, then let them confront a civil suit issued by the public.
Or a renegade with a super dozer.
I was thinking a disgruntled Russian in a Mig would cost a lot less than $25-40 mil. Just give them a few hours notice to grab their Nolan's.
(Probably doesn't need to be disgruntled tbh)
They will drag out the civil suit and a big weather event will force Cennie Coast Council to act unfortunately. As we all know, humankinds infatuation with dominating nature has now seen it is coming back to bite us on the arse. Greed being the seed.
Unfortunately dead on
Good luck. CC council is best part of a billion dollars in the red.
https://ibb.co/mBv42VS
Fight hard or you'll end up with something like this abortion.
Japan?
The North Entrance is under even greater threat right now. I was there a couple of weeks ago and there was no sand available at all. Wonder what it looks like now?
blowins on the money
Ocean front living is now exactly that and the Ocean is owning you ...
Good luck selling your property,
Even castles fall into the sea, eventually
Castles Made of Sand
Song by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. That's a cool soundtrack, thx for the flashback T2
Pleasure and Pain
Pleasure and Pain
Song by Divinyls
liking this end of days soundtrack
Learn to swim, I'll see you down in Arizona bay.
ha! great line, and one of their best tracks, IMO...cheers!
"Some say the end is near............."
Law suit
Retreat with breakwalls. Fuck the old sandminer cottages
East coast needs more reefs and sandbars. Build more rockwalls, It was pumping 2ft in North haven . Just built some like Stockton
Classic video.
Justs shows how nature continues to do its thing whilst humans continue to want it all in the face of it.
Never should have allowed human habitation on the ocean side of any road.
I'm in Newy and appreciate looking at the ocean from my car, or walking the popular ocean side path.
Combining my two favourite genres. Surf vids and disaster movies.
The drone mind surf angle is riveting
“Never should have allowed human habitation on the ocean side of the road.”
Amen to that, brother. Also the harbour.
Newiwattu!
Go the knights !
2300
Not religious but would love these words below to come true from Matthew. Unfortunately it seems it will probably will be a loss of beach rather than loss of houses.
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
Matthew has a way with words. It's hard to escape the sense we're living in biblical times.
Thanks again Freerider, not sure you intended us to go here but you've opened another big issue
The J curve shape of erosion on north facing beaches & bays in NSW is well known. Studies by coastal engineers & NSW Soil Conservation Service after erosion impacts from the June 1974 East coast storm, lead to changes in Federal & State coastal planning laws in 1979 & 1980.
Background to NSW Coastal protection laws
https://www.edo.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Coastal_Protection.pdf
The challenge of dealing with conflicting property vs community values & global warming related issues is going to escalate in so may areas of our lives (eg. property rights & Bushfires, Floods, Coastal erosion & inundation, etc) The community made need to focus specifically on changing/amending the laws such as land zoning, ownership & responsibility; such as realestate property laws & defining Crown Land (community land) boundaries, etc ; with a legislation that indemnifies all Govt land management decisions & approvals made before at particular date ( XXXXX) to remove responsibility & liability on the Crown, Govt, & Councils (ie. us as a community & our taxes/rates) for issues related to property & climate change.
In May 2010 the US National Academy of Scientists advised on Climate Change & response to political attacks. This is a focused response to an issue of individuals being honest advisors.
.https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/may/06/climate-science-open...
https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/15000-scientists-letter-warn-cl...
There are many ways to protect coastal dunes and properties including a practical manual was produced in the 1980s revised in 1990s & updated in 2001. The practical implementation of dune stabilistation, called "Dunecare" in NSW was left to volunteers mostly retired folk, underemployed & school children.
https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/coasts/coastal-dune-mngt-ma...
It takes about 10 years to restabilise an effective coastal sand dune barrier & 30 years if it has been disturbed / modified by humans & full of weeds, drains, dumped soil, concrete, foxes, cats, cars, 4WDs, tourists, rubbish, horses, devos, motorbikes, joggers, vandals, neighbors with chainsaws, kid with matches, etc.
There are are surfers that swear "the banks were better without sanddunes " & destroy volunteers work & morale. The sandbanks may have been better due to erosion from sandmining, unmanaged development & clearing for views & property values in the 1970s, but the sandbanks on the east coast are quite good now due to dune erosion after two years of storms.
There is no cheap or quick fix to ecological & social issues.
The laws will have to change to avoid the community paying for quick fixes that may just move a problem elsewhere or appease the wealthy minority or ignorant majority within a political term of office.
We will have to have laws that enable adaptation to climate change or build an 'Ark'.
I agree with much of what you say here, BBB.
FR - Sutherland Shire Council are also proposing a seawall at the Alley (Nth Cronulla beach just south of current wall). Interesting they are relying on science/reports 15 yrs old and the report talks about Cronulla not having natural sand replenishment. Seems to ignore it used to have sand replenishment from the open 100m high sand hills which have not only been mined but planted out in the name of dune preservation. Can send you the report if you like. I have sent it to Stu already
cheers Fraz, will check it out.
https://jointheconversation.sutherlandshire.nsw.gov.au/bate-bay-cmp-2021...
Wow, they say the project will be completed late 2021 but the consultation is Dec 21-Jan 22. Talk about Freudian slip......
Australia is a single country that fills an entire continent. It's funny that with all this land available there's so much angst about the last few metres of land before it hits the sea.
The problem is most of Australia is only semi-habitable due to low rainfall and lack of water.
Dark Emu by Bruce Pascoe is a great listen if you get a chance and haven't already. This wide brown land sure isn't England but the indigenous people weren't hungry even in the red centre but I'm changing the subject sorry.
Yeah, but in hindsight they should have built those houses further from the beach. It's not like there was a lack of room in the other direction. That was my point. A pretty worthless point I'll concede.
copy that Spud.
I misread your post to mean everyone should pack up shop and head inland.
Very true, Spuddups, but part of the issue is that in many places there was actually a considerable coastal reserve established in the original surveys and titling in the 1800s which has now eroded. As a result, structures and infrastructure which was often some way back from the beach is now at risk. Good examples are both Byron and Lennox which had shorelines a long way further out prior to erosion events and gradual recession of the coastline - I've heard a dozen conference papers on it but can't find a reference at the moment.
"No quite sure why we can't live in the desert."
Says person from behind desk in a/c office......
"Along the coast of southeast Australia, waves generate currents that move sand mostly northward along the northern NSW coastline, and on towards Queensland."
Summary of research of Byron Bay beach erosion ( a J shaped bay) below.
https://theconversation.com/one-of-australias-most-famous-beaches-is-dis...
Further research on Coastal Issues including erosion & sandmining
https://coastalcare.org/2017/12/did-sand-from-australias-east-coast-get-...
https://www.swellnet.com/news/swellnet-analysis/2015/10/07/damned-marram...
Thanks Steve for the report and some great comments.. I completely understand both sides of the situation owners and surfers, beach goes , etc if thats the wall in picture there proposing to use god fuckn help us .. will definitely win a picture in better homes and gardens.. before the next ECL..
If you look at aerial images of the east coast of NSW most sanddune buildup & erosion moves north with the prevailing S winds & blown back west behind the dune from NE winds.
Cronulla had 15000 years of dune sand buildup. We ero's removed & sold it in 70 years.
https://geocube.mavetju.org/GC7D86E-timeline.gif
BOM wind summary "rose" for your area
http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/wind/selection_map.shtml
Sydney wind summary of 28000 records.
http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/climate/cgi_bin_scripts/windrose_selector....
The irony of the Byron reinforcement at mainbeach carpark is that all the free spirits gather in the drum circle chanting blessings each sunset to gaia perched atop the boulders that have been plonked there for the very purpose of preventing nature from doing it's thing. Classic Byron.
hahahah v. true BD
So so true
Perhaps the local community could ‘persuade’ said property owners that it would be in their best interests to broker a deal with the council to purchase their land.
It seems the wealthy beachfront owners are being afforded the luxury of the majorities rates & taxes to afford the lifestyle they are fortunate enough to be living. In an egalitarian society a seawall to protect the wealthy few is not an equitable solution to rising sea levels caused by global warming. The only realistic solution is retreat from the hind dune system which should have not been built on in the first place.
100%.
Fair enough Greg, although council are still going to have to build rock walls if they want to keep the road behind.
I lived in northern california for 7 years and on returning to east coast of oz am shocked at how fast it is hurtling towards replicating SOCAL both in urban sprawl and cultural behaviour. In 2022 the common community good can go suck a fart it seems making way for personal $$$$ masturbation.
IM glad those houses didn’t wash away and the land owners were able to sit on the back deck and injoy a glass of Moët and watch Seth pump it up.
I think the rest of the community are just gelouse and should go with out so the 1percent remain the 1 percent
Putting aside how much has already been done around Byron, the Belongil Beach beachfront property owners actually lost their case to build a permanent buried rock revetment in the end (though I think the nuance is they wanted to do it on public land): https://www.beattyhughes.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/LAWREP-037-EP...
To save you the hassle, the presiding judge based the decision on the following:
(1) The proposals in fact limited public use: “The proposed works necessarily limit public access to and
along, and public use of, the parts of the beach on which the works will be physically located. The
public cannot walk along, sit on or otherwise use those parts of the beach on which the works will
be physically located.”
(2) The spatial footprint of the proposals was significant: “By reason of their size and extent, the resultant repaired sea wall in front of each of the land owners’ properties will result in the alienation of
significant parts of the public land of the beach and a concomitant limiting, impeding or diminishing
of public access to and use of the beach.”
(3) The public access, occupy and use the beach seaward of the three properties.
(4) The impact on access and use was likely, given the proposed 30-year life of the works, to continue
for a long time.
(5) Construction of the works would further limit public access and use (during construction).
(6) The repaired sea walls would also limit public access to and use of the beach other than the parts of
the beach on which the sea walls are physically located (particularly during periods of high tide or
storm events).
(7) “There are no reasons of practicability that would preclude the land owners designing, locating
and constructing coastal protection works so as not to impede or diminish the physical, land-based
right of access of the public to or along the coastal foreshore, as required by cl 88(3)(a) of Byron
LEP 1988”.
In addition to the above, a recent economic study by Noosa Council found the cost to the community of using a seawall to protect beachfront property (some of the most expensive in the entire country) was actually the worst possible choice (as far as the broader community is concerned, including future generations) of all options analysed..
- Two pager on the consequences sea walls and their study findings: https://tinyurl.com/2wcveuk5
- The full economic study report: https://tinyurl.com/2pscdnez
The basis for civil proceeds per Blowin's comments will be based on a range of Acts and Regs, and economic studies such as the above. Keep in mind the regs in such matters differ a bit between the States.
Those links don't seem to work, Mowgli - have you got others? Ta.
I'm also not sure that the decision-making processes which will be used for these issues is sophisticated enough to incorporate the new economic info adequately, either.
thats true.
but those DA's were for already existing seawalls.
so, in effect the previous litigation by the property owners had already resulted in seawalls.
And they also got approval for minor works to those existing seawalls.
I’ll have to check the Entrance again next time I’m up there Craig. Didn’t seem so badly affected, but I’ll check again. Will be able to give you 25 years of regular inspections to consider. Wouldn’t be buying anything at north entrance though.
If that pic is Wambie recently, I think they might be fucked.
Problem with the ‘planned retreat’ model of the 80s they didn’t really have rising sea levels front of mind in the same way we do today. ‘Planned retreat’ sounds very similar to ‘let them work it out in 20 years when it isn’t our problem’. Also, it isn’t exactly planned, is it. Just laissez faire.
Given that it might be a very active summer for cyclones, they might have to make some very quick decisions.
I don’t really have a dog in this fight. Either way the choice is between two or more very ordinary options.
Thanks BF, you'll be amazed, the place is a complete mess and way worse than Wamberal and Collaroy atm.
Steve, at the front end you said "where hard structures are placed in the surf zone surf quality for the adjacent breaks is not impacted."
I reckon there's very little to zero chance that any hard structures won't have an impact on the quality of adjacent surf breaks. They might be able to minimise it through design, but it would be a rare engineering project that didn't have unintended consequences which show up over a longer time scale.
Checked out north entrance today Craig. Definitely big changes from even a month ago. Used to be that driving over the bridge you wouldn’t see much of the surf, the dunes blocking most vision, now the dunes are not a lot above the high water mark.
Just checked from the south side, will send some photos. Those north entrance houses closest to the beach have been a problem a long time, and when they go the ones further back will be in trouble. Noticed that one house has rocks at the bottom of their place, which I think usually means that places adjacent suffer more erosion.
Interestingly, the water in The Entrance was as clean and clear as I can recall, fish abounding even in the shallows, large numbers of whiting of all sizes but clearly some of legal length out there. Even a beach has formed on the south side at the car park for the carnival rides park. Have never seen a beach there before. I can’t remember it looking so good, in nature terms - cleanliness, fish life, abundance.
Latest from the auntie. Notice no mention of the opposing viewpoints...
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-01-17/will-climate-change-put-an-end-to...
the bloke purchased his property in 2016.
cry me a river.