Bellarine Times
Tuesday 28 May 2013
VOL 6. No 22
www.bellarinetimes.com.au
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YOUR COMPLETE REAL ESTATE GUIDE
Ocean Grove’s Kristi Page (pictured here in Califronia) was stoked on her first international trip for stand up paddle boarding, where she competed in the Performance Paddling Stand Up Paddle Pro Junior at Huntington and took part in the Stand up for the Cure at Newport beach, California. See page 4 for story. Photo: SEA ME SURF PHOTOGRAPHY
HIT THE WALL BY JAMES TAYLOR
CONCERNED locals at Point Lonsdale hope the improvement of the town’s foreshore will also include measures to prevent further erosion of the beach. As revealed in last week’s Bellarine Times, the federal government has contributed $500,000 towards the Borough of Queenscliffe’s project to beautify the Point Lonsdale streetscape. However, there have been no announcements from the council about increasing the number of groynes – long structures that jut out from the shore to reduce erosion – on the Point Lonsdale beach. Groynes were first built in 1935 in an attempt to retain a sandy beach, and there have been several other works since then to
protect the Point Lonsdale coastline. The timber groynes have since been replaced by three concrete structures, but surfer and sea pilot Dean Zanoni said the existing works were not enough to protect the beach from storms. “There’s been nothing to support sand being put against the wall; the concrete and grout is getting cut out from underneath. “It could fall over in the next six months if nothing happens. “The cliff face is also being undermined. “When winter comes, we get big swells, and the promenade is sometimes almost ankle-deep in water. “If (the council) is prepared to do something, we’re willing to get on a committee to work something out.” Local builder David Rowe moved to Point
Lonsdale in the early 1990s, and said he remembered how the removal of the groynes soon afterwards affected the area. “We lost the whole beach. “With five years of pressuring the council and the state member, we finally got the groynes back in and they worked really well – we had sand back on the beach within a week.” Mr Rowe said two or three groynes at the southern end of the beach would help solve the issue, but there would need to be consultation about their design and placement. “You would need to be careful because of the surf break, it could upset the surfers.” At time of publication, Borough of Queenscliffe chief executive officer Lenny Jenner was unavailable for comment.
Call for works to protect Point Lonsdale beach
Dean Zanoni looks at the seawall on the Point Lonsdale beach. Photo: MICHAEL CHAMBERS
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