Hardys
Bay
Pumpout Proposal – Summary of Issues
Residential
Impact
-
Adverse
impact by: odour, noise, vandalism, spillage, etc
-
No
supervision to mitigate spillage, vandalism, etc and nowhere to obtain keys
for ‘slops hopper’
-
Decrease in
property values
-
Health risk
Needs of Boat
Owners
-
Most prefer
Booker Bay, particularly commercial users.
-
Almost 80%
prefer somewhere other than Hardys Bay
-
Few
residential boats have fittings compatible with the proposed pump.
-
Would prefer
somewhere they can also obtain other supplies
Marina
Facilities
-
New or
upgraded commercial wharfs must be fitted with pumpout facilities. This is
likely to occur at Booker Bay and Killcare in the next few years
-
No dialogue
with Marinas to provide free 24/7 pumpout facilities in exchange for
peppercorn rental of council equipment
Credibility of
Council Reports
-
Recreation
Usage Survey was not sent to many local residents
-
Recreation
Usage Survey is unrepresentative with only 19 responses compared to more than
100 signatures obtained from wharf users over 1 weekend
-
Many boat
owners in Hardys Bay were not included in the Boat Users survey
-
The attendees
of the Brisbane Waters Users Group that supported a pumpout at Hardys Bay were
almost all from council or government instrumentalities and included no
independent boat owners.
-
The Expert
Report on Environmental Issues by Manly Hydraulics recommended that the ‘slops
hopper’ be excluded from the project to reduce odour, noise, vandalism, risk
of spillage, etc, and note that council staff had agreed to exclude the
‘slops hopper’. The Gosford unit was vandalised and never used.
-
The survey of
suitable wharfs excluded a number of other potentially suitable wharfs.
-
Situation has
changed significantly since the original grant application.
Misuse of
Public Funds
-
Few boats
likely to use facility because of location and need for special fittings
-
Slops Hopper
likely not to be used – it was never used in Gosford
-
Unnecessary
maintenance costs
-
Unnecessary
when pumpouts available at more convenient commercial locations.