Byron’s Waverider Buoy Set for Return After Critical Repairs

IAN ROGERS

Byron Bay’s iconic yellow Waverider buoy, a crucial tool for monitoring real-time wave conditions, is set to be redeployed later this week after undergoing urgent repairs by coastal engineers from the Manly Hydraulics Laboratory (MHL). The repair timeline remains weather dependent.

The buoy has been offine since early November after its antenna was snapped, halting the transmission of live wave data vital to the North Coast region.

The disruption highlights the vulnerability of the buoy’s sensitive instruments, which can be damaged when recreational water users tether their boats or watercraft to it.

MHL is urging the community to avoid using the buoy as a mooring point and to maintain at least a 20-metre distance to protect the equipment. Damage not only impairs the buoy’s functionality but can also cause widespread loss of wave data relied on by water users, marine emergency services, and coastal management professionals.

Key Features of the Waverider Buoy

• Design: A 1m-diameter yellow spherical buoy equipped with radar refectors, a 1.5m white antenna, a light, and a black fag.

• Location: Moored about 10 km offshore from Byron Bay.

• Function: Uses an accelerometer to measure wave motion, producing data on wave height, period, and direction.

• Signifcance: Supports safety, navigation, coastal management, and climate change adaptation for the North Coast.

The buoy is one of seven Waveriders operated by MHL, monitoring a 2,000 km stretch of coastline from Byron Bay to Eden.

MHL has been providing real-time wave data for the NSW coast since 1974 and specifcally for the Byron Bay region since 1976.

A Reminder for the Community MHL Director Edward Couriel emphasized the buoy’s importance, stating, “Our wave buoys have been operating in NSW for over 50 years, offering invaluable data for everyone from surfers to emergency services. Repairing and redeploying them is complex and weather dependent. We urge locals to keep their distance and avoid contact to prevent further disruptions to this critical service.”

Real-time wave data from MHL’s network can be accessed at MHL’s website.

Looking Ahead

Pending favourable conditions, the repaired buoy will soon resume its role as the “live and listening ear” to the ocean, restoring a vital resource for water users and professionals managing NSW’s dynamic coastline.

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