THE BYRON SHIRE Volume 24 #18 Tuesday, October 6, 2009 Mullumbimby 02 6684 1777 Byron Bay 02 6685 5222 Fax 02 6684 1719 editor@echo.net.au adcopy@echo.net.au www.echo.net.au 21,000 copies every week
WORDS, WE GET THEM WHOLESALE
Big and small to defend whales
Coastal plan ready for exhibition Byron Shire Council‘s controversial draft Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP) is on the agenda for the Ordinary Meeting this Thursday. Council’s director of planning Ray Darney said the report to Council will be seeking approval to place the draft CZMP out on public exhibition. ‘Once out on public exhibition, we encourage the community to read the draft CZMP and actively participate in the community engagement process,’ said Mr Darney in a press release. During the public exhibition, copies of the draft CZMP and submission forms will be available on Council’s website and at community access points throughout the Shire.
Preserve public access
Environmental campaigners Chris Del Moro and Dave Rastovich dwarfed by the bulk of the Sea Shepherd’s Steve Irwin during a rendezvous near Yamba on Sunday. The pair are among a group participating in the Transparentsea voyage by sea from Byron Bay to Sydney. Photo Billabong/Dawe. Lou Beaumont
The 700km Transparentsea voyage began last Thursday when five environmental campaigners set off for Sydney from Byron Bay’s Main Beach in trimaran sea kayaks. The 36 day voyage, an initiative of professional surfer Dave Rastovich, will highlight the plight of migrating humpback whales, which they will be travelling alongside, and draw awareness to coastal pollution issues. Rastovich addressed supporters of the epic mission on Main Beach, ‘If anyone here has their own networks and ways to put that pressure on the
government, please go forth with that and spread the message because right now the only ship going to Antarctica is Sea Shepherd. This whole trip is about escorting these whales down the coast. When we get to Sydney on November 5 we will join the Sea Shepherd crew in launching their campaign to go down and defend these same whales that are passing our coast right now. ‘There are millions of surfers all over the world who all feel the same about dolphins and whales and feel the same about water quality. We are starting to wake up and be active with these issues. Clear, clean waters.
Transparency. Transparency with our government, transparent waters, transparent sense of self in what we’re doing and how we affect each other with our actions and our decisions. The title of this trip is all about being transparent.’ Rastovich also hopes to promote the admiration of whales through means that are not engine powered. He said that ‘recreation that wrecks creation’ somewhat defeats the purpose. A mid-ocean rendezvous between the Transparentsea participants and the crew of the Sea Shepherd’s Steve Irwin took place offshore from Yamba last Sunday.
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The Transparentsea paddlers battled southerly winds and rising swells to greet the boat’s crew as they sat anchored about two kilometres out from the entrance to the Clarence River. The trimaran sea kayaks were dwarfed by the Steve Irwin, which will dock in Sydney, before leaving for Perth and then the Southern Ocean to officially commence its whale defense campaign in December. Rastovich said of his voyage, ‘It’s only a small act, but I know all the surfers I’ve met around the world have all been supportive of what we’re doing and particularly of Sea Shepherd’s frontline activism.’
According to the release, the draft CZMP aims to ensure preservation and management of public access to beaches; encourage community participation in coastal management initiatives such as dune management; ensure appropriate management of sensitive cultural sites; guide the responsible management of the coastline from an ecological, social and economic perspective; and establish a uniform 20m, development-free buffer between the erosion escarpment and human settlement. The plan will also provide for ‘a uniform 20m trigger distance for relocation to all relevant existing and future development in areas of coastal hazard, subject to certain conditions’; establish two Coastal Planning Precincts for immediate and 100-year planning horizon; and provide an Emergency Action Plan to explain Council’s responsibilities and actions. The draft CZMP also identifies management actions, timeframes and costs. Related documents Coastline Values Study (2000), Coastline Hazard Definition Study (2000) and the Coastline Management Study (2004) can be found on Council’s website at www.byron.nsw.gov.au/coastal-andestuary-management. ■ Comment, page 10