Design and Construct Problems with Foreshore Beach and New Boat Ramp Observations - December 22 nd 2010 to 9 th January 2011

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1 Design and Construct Problems with Foreshore Beach and New Boat Ramp Observations - December 22 nd 2010 to 9 th January Foreshore Beach Significant erosion of the beach by wind and stormwater Sydney Ports Corporation / Baulderstone Hornibrook have attempted to clean and restore Foreshore Beach on numerous occasions, yet within months we have seen the beach revert to a much worse state. SPC / BH have undertaken as part of their contract to restore and enhance Foreshore Beach on behalf of the community. The EIS called for restoration and enhancement of the existing beach. Well before the design stage (pre-2006) had commenced recreational anglers had alerted SPC / BH to the fact that the fetch between the beach and the runways was significant enough to produce quite destructive wind waves that would erode the beach and impact on the proposed new boatramp. SPC / BH consultants dismissed this with their own modelling and used this argument to persuade the NSW Government that recreational anglers were wrong. SPC has accepted the handover of the new boat ramp and Foreshore beach from the contractors and yet within a month the erosion and stormwater runoff has undermined the fences that protect the dune vegetation along the beach, exposed building rubble and large sandstone rocks and also has shifted the beach sand to form large sandbanks off the beach adjacent to the boat ramp. It has exposed areas of seepage that looks like groundwater / stormwater. The erosion is exacerbated by the NW SW winds that are generated over the runways and airport. The question that needs to be asked is who is accountable for these design faults and who is responsible for fixing them? As taxpayers this is not a financial impost we should be burdened with. It is clearly a case of design faults that were identified by recreational angler s years before the ramp was built. Construction faults are another issue we have identified. For many years prior to the new ramp being built, recreational anglers questioned the location of the new ramp facility and what impacts there would be to Foreshore Beach. Erosion of Foreshore Beach due to its exposure was an ongoing concern and has even been highlighted in the design and construction documents relating to the Port Expansion. This was not a new problem; we have been dealing with erosion problems ever since Foreshore Rd was built many years ago as a strategic element of the original port development. This was not a good location for a boat ramp and the promised restoration and enhancement of what little remains of Foreshore Beach - Botany s only beach - was not properly thought through. The local community and government were hoodwinked into accepting a concept that was poorly thought out and ill designed from inception. For many years recreational anglers have attempted to highlight these design faults and how unsuitable the location was for a boatramp and associated beach

2 enhancement. The problem was again highlighted to SPC in 2006 even before the first sod was turned, but well paid consultants and engineers dismissed these concerns and ignored recreational anglers arguments that the fetch between the runway and Foreshore Beach was enough to generate a destructive wind wave in westerly winds over 15 knots. This is quite clearly shown in the image below from 2006 that was presented to all parties concerned, including the NSW government. The picture also shows the original location of the stormwater pipes from 2006 which have removed or buried in 2010 Over 2010 / 2011 we saw the boatramp opened and attempts made to restore and enhance Foreshore Beach. What is even more intriguing about the above image is the stormwater pipes pictured. The existing stormwater pipe was shortened and concealed as part of the beach enhancement project. This has led to another series of problems that are impacting Foreshore Beach and its users. By reclaiming over 50% of Foreshore Beach to expand the port, SPC has forced swimmers and beach users to use a small area of beach that potentially is a health hazard. Beach users have to contend with a series of stormwater pipes in the middle of the beach, Mill Pond Steam to the north and Penrhyn Estuary to the south. Mill Pond stream serves as a sewerage overflow line during periods of heavy rain and the Penrhyn Estuary is the discharge location for the Springvale and Floodvale drainage systems. It is of grave public concern that contaminated run off from these drainage systems constantly flow along Foreshore Beach and adjacent waters. Penrhyn Estuary has for many years been a proclaimed contamination site and health risk with sign posted warnings on swimming and the consumption of fish. Fortunately the estuary is no longer publicly accessible but discharges from the estuary continue to flow by and onto Foreshore Beach.

3 For some years now we have been requesting the state agencies responsible for health and the environment together with Orica, SPC, Sydney Water and Botany Council to jointly undertake a health assessment of the Foreshore Beach area. These requests have fallen on deaf ears. If there is a health risk associated with swimming at the beach or consuming fish captured in proximity then the public needs to know about it. This mentality of ignorance is reminiscent of the legacy problems of toxic contamination at the Rhodes site which no one officially wanted to know about. This image below is courtesy of SPC and shows the beach after it was rehabilitated in mid The image is meant to highlight the success of restoring and enhancing Foreshore Beach. Even with this image we can already see the damage and sand shifting caused by the stormwater runoff from the buried pipes. A few months later the NW-SW winds and tides have totally eroded the beach. In December 2010 it was a very different picture of the beach. A few weeks later in January 2011 the problem was even worse. The EIS called for restoration and enhancement of existing beach. In this regard both SPC / BH have significantly failed in both the design and construction phases of the project. This has also impacted on SPC / BH ability to retain and restore the once prevalent seagrass beds off Foreshore Beach. This was an integral condition of the consent approval. A recent inspection of the site at low tide by recreational anglers failed to identify any sea grass in the area and highlighted how ineffectual the monitoring and protection of the sea grass beds has been. It is to be hoped that the sea grasses will rejuvenate over time but based on recent events this is doubtful. A workable solution that may resolve a number of the erosion and contamination problems could be the construction of a rock groyne along Foreshore Beach. The

4 groyne / rockwall at the Mill Pond Stream end of the beach appears to have stabilized the sand and stopped the beach erosion at the beaches western extreme of the beach. The mid beach stormwater pipes could be extended and covered by the groyne facilitating a discharge into deeper water and providing protection for the eastern extreme of the beach. Another option is to shift the stormwater outlet to the headwater of Mill Pond stream. A new groyne may also stop the current unwelcome migration of displaced sand towards the boat ramp (see photo above) and provide some protection for boat ramp users against dangerous wave action during periods of westerly winds. Protection for rehabilitation of the seagrass beds may also be a flow on benefit. The following issues need to be addressed as a priority. 1. What measures will be undertaken by SPC / BH to ensure that Foreshore Beach is maintained to a level that is safe and usable in 2011? 2. SPC / BH are well aware of the problems associated with erosion and stormwater discharges at Foreshore Beach - how do they intend to deal with these problems? 3. What is the status of the seagrass beds off the beach and how will the erosion and sand shifting affect them? 4. Will a public health assessment of Foreshore Beach and adjacent waters and risks associated with the consumption of fish caught in such waters, be undertaken.

5 Pictures of Foreshore Beach 22/12/2010 Stormwater or groundwater runoff on Foreshore Beach

6 Erosion and exposure of rocks on Foreshore Beach

7 Erosion and sand migration on Foreshore Beach

8 Building rubble on Foreshore Beach above

9 Booms left high and dry on new sand banks that are covered with rocks

10 Erosion of sand dunes behind Foreshore Beach

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12 - Erosion at Foreshore Beach What a difference 3 weeks make. The image below was taken on the 22 nd December 2010 and only one post was fully exposed. The next image was taken 7 th of January 2011, and now the fence has collapsed with 7 posts fully exposed.

13 2. The Boatramp The boat ramp in its current design is flawed and the construction is already failing. When design of the ramp commenced in 2006 recreational anglers constantly expressed their dissatisfaction with the design and offered many solutions to the impractical designs presented by SPC, even offering photographs of working ramps from all over Australia that incorporated features they wanted to see in this new ramp. The following picture is one which was sent to the project manager in 2006 and shows dual breakwalls and wide distances between the pontoons, in this case each lane is 7m wide with the distance between the 2 pontoons close to 14m to accommodate only 2 lanes of the ramp. Port Broughton boat ramp, South Australia.

14 Flawed design problem 1 NW and SW winds produce a wave on the ramp that makes launching and retrieving difficult and unsafe. Well before the design stage (pre-2006) had commenced recreational anglers had alerted SPC / BH to the fact that the fetch between the beach and the runways was significant enough to produce quite destructive wind waves on the boat ramp. SPC / BH consultants dismissed this with their own modelling and used this argument to persuade the NSW Government that recreational anglers were wrong. The ramp needs the added protection of another breakwall and by also enhancing the current breakwall to create a safe harbour for boat launching and retrieving. Historically we have had these NW-SW winds during autumn and winter, but more recently (due to el Niño / la Niña southern oscillation or climate change) these winds are becoming more unpredictable and frequent. The last 2 weeks of December 2010 has seen NW-SW that has impacted on the ramps safe usage. The following video clearly shows how difficult it is to use the ramp in these prevailing winds - Video: The installation of the aforementioned groynes that could stabilise Foreshore Beach could be used as part of a new breakwall. Flawed design problem 2 The pontoons are too close and poorly positioned to allow safe maneuvering of vessels in these prevailing winds or safe launching of larger ( 6m+) vessels. This 6 m boat has blocked 2 lanes of the ramp whilst its owner parks his car. Pre-construction in 2006 when recreational anglers were shown scale drawings of the ramp, it was emphasized that each launching lane needed to be wider and the pontoons needed to be located at the opposite ends of the launching lanes. At a

15 minimum we required 5 m wide lanes. What we eventually got was lanes less than 5m wide (3.85 m actually) and a launching ramp broken up into a section of 3 lanes and another of 1 lane with a pontoon in the middle. This is an impractical design rendering the ramp dangerous to use in busy periods due to congestion at the end of the ramp and the pontoons. It is virtually impossible to turn a medium to larger size vessel around once launched necessitating the operator to reverse as far as 50 m before reaching clear waster. This is a challenge for an experienced skipper in the best of weather conditions and with clear passageway and a warm motor. What we evidencing is numerous collisions between vessels and unwelcome incidents of ramp rage. It is only a matter of time before someone is seriously or fatally injured while using the ramp. The pontoon closest to the current breakwall needs to be moved adjacent to or attached to the current breakwall to widen the boat ramp. This is the design layout originally put to SPC over This design would provide a very effective 4 lane boat ramp and adequate docking facilities even with the loss of one side of the relocated pontoon. The launching lanes can then be clearly separated with raised lane markers to assist drivers when reversing through the current blindspots. The following picture is from Port Broughton once again and this ramp was used as an example in 2006 when discussing the flawed design that SPC proposed.

16 Flawed design problem 3 Even before the ramp was built recreational anglers and boaters altered SPC to the fact that the parking within the facility was inadequate and would not accommodate all the users. People just dont have anywhere to park their cars and trailers and it stems from the fact that SPC have not provided enough parking in the facility. Once again SPC was alerted to this fact in writing pre-construction in 2006 Concerns have already been raised about the lack of vision and forward planning by SPC re the adequacy of general parking for users of the ramp and visitors to the area. We will have a new boat ramp facility that is at capacity the first weekend it is opened. The very same roads (M5, M7, M2 and ED) that are often congested with the trucks SPC lures to a choked-up Port Botany every weekday, deliver beach patrons and boat ramp users to Foreshore Beach and Penrhyn Rd Boat Ramp. There is no tribal or local conflict here; recreational anglers are a diverse and multicultural group of anglers who interact very well. All we want to see is parking for all of us, not a select few who arrive at 5am just to get a spot. At the very least SPC should deliver a boat ramp facility for 2050, not replace one from the 1980 s...the usage figures for Foreshore Beach and our existing boat ramp are real, not projected, if we were to project what our usage figure would be in 2020, I would be confident that a 300 car/trailer facility would struggle to cope...the facility will struggle to cope with any increased boat trailer patronage beyond 2007 The following pictures are from Australia Day 2011; however the situation was repeated on weekends prior to this date all thorough January SPC also conceded on this day the ramp was at capacity (130 cars / trailers). Throughout the day (5.30 am, 10 am and 1.30pm) the ramp was chaotic and a very dangerous place to be as 3 security contractors hired by SPC tried to control a situation that had escalated to being out of control. The problem stemmed from the fact that all the official parking spaces were full and cars were parking anywhere and everywhere. Entire designated lanes of traffic were blocked with parked cars. SPC was already well aware in 2006 that the M5, M7, M2 and ED would open up the ramps at Botany Bay to increased boat traffic. Instead SPC delivered a ramp facility on par with our previous ramp within Penrhyn Estuary This was a ramp designed 20 years ago and catered for 115 cars / trailers. In their infinite wisdom SPC decided that only 15 extra car spaces (making 130 in total at the new ramp) would be adequate for future needs. A resident of western Sydney who wants an enjoyable day on the water should not be faced with this situation after driving an hour to launch their boat. In many instances turning home is not an option. In the very near future we will see cars illegally parked on Foreshore Rd, endangering people s lives.

17 All cars with red dots on them are illegally parked.

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20 Boat Ramp Maintenance Issues. The ramp is overgrown with algae and moss making it quite slippery. It needs regular cleaning to keep it safe. Cars, trailer and people are slipping at the ramp.

21 The ramp has only been partially cleaned once on the 22 nd of November. SPC were made aware of the dangers on the 23 rd November The ramp pre-cast blocks have shifted in places and the lower section of the single lane launching ramp is at the wrong angle rendering it useless for use at low tide

22 Highlighted areas of the new ramp that are sinking and buckling

23 The ramp is also cracking and shows a patchwork of repaired cracks The following issues need to be addressed as a priority. 1. The pontoons must be moved and widened creating a 4 lane boat ramp and alleviating the bottleneck currently experienced. 2. A new groyne / breakwall must be added to protect the ramp from the NW SW winds that currently impact on the ramp. 3. A new overflow car park must be built on the proposed Tug Berth area to alleviate the issue of overcrowding. It is envisaged that this area would provide parking for cars / trailers in high activity periods during summer and public holidays. This area can remain locked and only used when needed. Botany Council also needs to be approached to open a current storage depot that was once a carpark opposite the new boat ramp for those visitors without boats to utilise. 4. A construction audit needs to occur to identify any structural / construction faults associated with the ramp. 5. Regular cleaning of the ramps surface needs to occur every two weeks. 6. Parking and traffic management sign posting needs to be more specific to eliminate dangerous driving practices and unsafe parking.

24 7. Additional parking is needed for non boat owner visitors to the beach and the ramp area which is a popular viewing location. It has been suggested for many years that the council carpark located adjacent to the Foreshore Rd entry to the car park be reopened. The council car park is currently being used as a green waste depot which seems to be a wasted opportunity. Recreational anglers have repeatedly stated that Sydney Port have failed to listen to their concerns since the very first days of community consultation in 2004 / It has also been repeatedly stated by the NSW Government that recreational anglers should wait until the facility was built and if there was a problem they would fix it. As taxpayers this is not a financial impost we should be burdened with. It is clearly a case of design faults that were identified by recreational angler s years before the ramp was built. Stan Konstantaras President South Sydney Amateur Fishing Association